Kavisha Mazzella

Kavisha Mazzella AM (pronounced KAV-eesh-a Mutt-Sel-la) is an Australian composer, singer-songwriter, folklorist, activist and choirleader whose style has mediterranean, gypsie and Celtic influences.[1] She won an ARIA Award for Best World Music Album for Fisherman's Daughter produced by Mick Thomas (ex Weddings Parties Anything) in 1998.[2][3] Mazzella has released several studio albums independently. She is also a member of I Viaggiatori (The Travellers) an Italian folk band which play Italian folk music and independently released one studio album, Suitcase Serenata, in 2010.

Kavisha Mazzella
Mazzella on stage at the Cygnet Folk Festival, 1999
Background information
Birth namePaola Mazzella
BornLondon, UK
Genres
Occupation(s)Composer, musician, arranger, singer, songwriter, choirleader
InstrumentsVoice, guitar, accordion, mandolin,
Years active1981-present
LabelsMazzella Music
Associated actsI Papaveri, I Viaggiatori, Rich'N' Famous, "Le Gioie Della Donne" choir, "la Voce Della Luna" choir

Early life

Mazzella was born in 1959 in London to an Italian father and an Anglo-Burmese mother. In the 1960s the family moved to Perth, Western Australia.[4]

In 1981 through researching her Italian heritage Mazzella formed I Papaveri with brother Giri Antonio Mazzella and Sanjiva Gianni Margio playing Italian folk from the 14th century onwards.[5] They released a cassette "Flowers in the Desert" in 1981.

In 1987 after returning from busking in Europe Mazzella formed the band Rich'N' Famous with Lee Buddle, Gary Burke, Reuben Kooperman, Peter Grayling including John Reed. Rich 'N' Famous played shows mainly in Fremantle and various festivals such as Woodford, Port Fairy and Brunswick Music festival.

In 1989 Mazzella founded the Fremantle Italian women's choir "Joys of the women" with Italian immigrant women. This was documented by Franco Di Chiera's film "The Joys of The Women", which received a national television cinema release in 1993.

Kavisha Mazzella with Aniello (Andy) and David De Santi performing their Italian music set at Georgetown Folk Festival, Australia, 1996

In 1996 Mazzella formed the Melbourne Italian Women's choir "la Voce Della Luna" (The Voice of the Moon);[6] in 2000 she was awarded the Italian Government award Italia Nel Mondo for her work in promoting Italian Culture in Australia. She directed la Voce Della Luna until 2013. In 2004 the Victorian Government commissioned Kavisha to write "Tunc Justus" a choral work celebrating Raffaello Carboni, the famous Italian translator and assistant to Peter Lalor in the Victorian Goldfields and the Italian connection in the Eureka Stockade. In 2007 Mazzella was commissioned by the Victorian Women's Trust to write the women's Anthem "Love and Justice" to celebrate one hundred years of women's suffrage in Victoria. In 2008 she won the Multicultural Commissions Award for Excellence for her work in community music. In 2011 she formed the Moon's A Balloon Mental Health Choir in Melbourne.

Kavisha has performed at festivals in Canada, Ireland, USA, Hungary, Slovenia, New Caledonia, Singapore, China and Malaysia.

Mazzella collaborated with Angela Chaplin, the theatre director in Deckchair Theatre Company in Fremantle for many years writing and composing music for shows. In 2002 Mazzella together with co-writers Katherine Thomson and Angela Chaplin won a Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work for Mavis Goes to Timor.[7]

Advocacy

Kavisha has also worked with indigenous communities in out back Australia teaching songwriting workshops and has also been an advocate for refugees and mental health in many theatre projects .Her concerts and theatre projects promote multicultural harmony and coming together of cultures to share common humanity.

In 2011 Kavisha was awarded an Order of Australia for her services to singing songwriting and reflecting the experiences of refugees, indigenous and multicultural communities through performance.[8][9]

Discography
  • 1981 as I Papaveri: Flowers in the Desert (cassette-only)
  • 1993 with "Le Gioie Della Donne" Italian Women's Chorus: The Joys of the Women (Soundtrack) ABC Soundtracks 4796092 (musical direction/accompaniment/lead vocals/production by Kavisha Mazzella)
  • 1995 Mermaids In The Well Larrikin
  • 1997 with Judy Small & Bronwyn Calcutt: 3 Sheilas
  • 1998 Fisherman's Daughter Mazzella Music
  • 2000 Canberra, Cork, Calgary ... Live Mazzella Music
  • 2003 Silver Hook Tango Mazzella Music
  • 2010 as I Viaggiatori: Suitcase Serenata TN1647-80 – with Irine Vela (Greek bouzouki/mandolin); David De Santi (accordion); Mark Holder-Keeping (clarinet/saxophone)
  • 2011 Love and Sorrow Mazzella Music
  • 2014 Riturnella Mazzella Music
  • 2017 The Fearless Note Mazzella Music
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References
  1. Martin Mulligan (20 November 2014). An Introduction to Sustainability: Environmental, Social and Personal Perspectives. Routledge. pp. 157–. ISBN 978-1-134-54875-0.
  2. "Aria Awards 1998". Aria Awards. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  3. "Songs of joy for the choir and its pig-hearted mentor". The Sydney Morning Herald, 21 December 2013, Larry Schwartz.
  4. "The voice of a heartbroken angel". kavisha.com. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  5. "Melbourne singer-songwriter Kavisha Mazzella mines Italy's past on new CD". The Sydney Morning Herald, 17 February 2014, Larry Schwartz
  6. "City warms to sweet sound of complaint". Ian Cuthbertson, The Australian, 6 July 2010
  7. "Past nominees and winners". Helpmann Awards. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  8. MAZZELLA, Paola Kavisha – Member of the Order of Australia, at It's an Honour, www.itsanhonour.gov.au. Retrieved 26 November 2015
  9. "Outstanding Australians rewarded for their achievements and contributions". ABC AM, Emily Bourke, 26 January 2011.
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