Subj: CD RECEIVED¡¡¡
Date: 10/22/2001 11:44:23 AM Eastern Daylight Time
From: tecomarsurcadiz@ono.com (J.L. BUENO)
To: KariTieger@aol.com

Hello Kari
Thank you very much for you send the CD. Sound great, a fantastic work that is perfect for the show. Please be sure that will be played. A wonderful album, believe me¡¡
all the best
J.L.

From - Rhode Island Songwriters Association (RISA) Newsletter - June 1999, Vol. 6, No. 3

RISA MEMBER CD Release
KARI TIEGER “TOUCH OF MAGIC”

Rhode Island singer/songwriter/pianist Kari Tieger’s new album, “Touch of Magic,” is no act of legerdemain. Here, she has skillfully created 57 minutes of thoughtful, artful music and poetry. This debut effort showcases Tieger’s talent for haunting melody and lyrical imagery. Projected by a strong, sweet, spiritual singing voice and commanding keyboard work, this collection touches on Latin rhythms, New-Age wisdom, Middle Eastern influences and Bohemian sensibility. Co-produced with Tony Ricci and recorded with the support of 21 musicians and singers. “Touch of Magic” is played out with precision, tact and economy. Tieger may well have released two very fine shorter albums from this 20-track catalog, but as the artist cryptically reported through e-mail communique, “I’ve done brevity.” Right out of the starting gate, Tieger flexes her impressive vocal muscle, power and range with “Tell Me Please,” a touching, think-out-loud litany of tender rhetorical questions, ethereal in style until she asks in street lingo, “Are we here for the long haul?” “Rainy Day Reflection” is a holistic poem touting love’s optimism. Tieger’s speaking voice is captivating, luxurious and sure. Arguably, she could seduce an audience reciting the phone book. Accentuating voice and rhyme on this track are bass, percussion and flute. This poem reappears on the album under the title “Second Reflection,” displaying the power of nuance through inflection. Be it the take-me-I’m-yours sentiment of “Wrap Me Like a Present,” the acknowledgement that we’re all human in “Fallen Angel,” or a celebration of love, Samba style, with “Magic Touch,” Tieger incarnates each track on this album with a freshness that’s deep and soulful. The three selections in French here, “Tu Demeures Dans mon Coeur,” “Cote d’Azur” and poem the “Reine de la Nuit,” are delicious.
Whether the listener is fluent or not is irrelevant, for Tieger’s treatment of the language is
enchanting. In any language, “Live and Let Live” is an inspirational work that plants the seed of peace and love beneath ground barren of tolerance. Backed by a righteous chorus of singers, Tieger bravely leads these crusaders to Nirvana. Middle Eastern strains are the center of “Rosebud,” a lovely, infectious, chant-like ditty with an inspiring middle eight that proclaims with hope and reassurance, “One by one the petals open up...” The album exits (or so we think), with “Trilogy of Night Songs,” a mini-drama that begs the question will Tieger ever attempt to write a stage musical? “Touch of Magic” is not retro, nor is it modern milleneal. It is truly a body of work for the ages, disappearing not soon into thin air. - Micheal Khouri

From - The Providence Phoenix, December 18, 1998 ARTS Section
“Nightswimming” - column by Michael Caito

Excerpts from:

Burning Bright, Kari Tieger, Sidedoor Johnnies, and more

With the holiday falling on Friday, we’re out a day early next week, and here are a few last-minute additions for those stockings hung with care...

Kari Tieger: Touch of Magic (Tiger Sound 20-piece CD)
Mixing French and English, songs and spoken-word reflections, mature takes on relationship issues and a gothic trio of vampire tunes, Kari Tieger returns with a batch of compositions written over the past decade. Primarily a vocalist/keyboardist, Tieger enlists the support of numerous talented pals to pull together this sprawling release, most of which works very well. “Tell Me, Please” opens Magic with her best track, a no-nonsense examination of a long-term
relationship whose incisiveness smacks of a psychologist’s desire to cut through rationalization and its oft-confusing investing of emotion with the weight of reason. Add to this the innate prettiness of the tune and Tieger blasts out of the starting blocks. ... A rarity, as Tieger forces the listener into what in certain ways is an internal Socratic dialogue. Buoyed by the presence of intermittent strings (viola, violin, cello), some nifty, understated percussive work from Steve LaValley and an alternating rhythm section (bassist Mibbit Threats and drummer Dave Price in particular), Touch of Magic works best when Tieger doesn’t stump about proselytizing about love’s errant nature, but writes simply and without too much fancy adornment of the ways by which we comprehend what happened, is happening, or may happen. Things will go right and things will go wrong, she says, but without a fatalistic bent, dooms everything to the vagaries of fortune and ultimate [success or] failure. This is the case in the first and finest of three songs written and sung in French, the beautiful “Tu Demeures Dans mon Coeur.” While perhaps the only truly spectacular moment during this hour-long platter, image and emotion fall into place perfectly in this Valentine’s Day tribute to a loved one, essaying how mutual nourishment doesn’t lessen individuality but creates a vibrant, healthy tandem greater than the sum of its parts. You could even call this one timeless.

From - The Providence Journal, Monday, January 25, 1999
“Band Spotlight” Feature by Andy Smith

A reborn bug to perform brings out an eclectic sound
By ANDY SMITH, Journal Pop Music Writer

Who: Kari Tieger.

What she plays: She calls it “eclectic pop” with elements of classical music, New Age and jazz. Her album, Touch of Magic, includes poetry set to music, several songs in French and a suite of romantic songs about vampires that Tieger refers to as the soundtrack for a movie that doesn’t exist yet. One label Tieger says doesn’t fit her is folk: “People try to put me in that category, but to me, my music has very little in common with that.” Tieger used a lot of musicians on her album, but live she is mostly solo, although lately she’s been working with Ron Schmitt, drummer from Pendragon. History: A native of the Bronx, Tieger has been writing songs since she was a little girl, and studied voice at the State University of New York in Potsdam. After moving to Rhode Island, she continued to study voice with Maurice Lewis, but after his sudden death from a heart attack, she stayed away from music for about 10 years.
The bug hit her again in 1989, after she wrote a song and thought it would be fun to record it. She even sang in a rock band called Campbell Soup in the early ‘90s. Parlez-vous Français: Tieger speaks (and sings) fluent French, and she’s considering making an album in French, and possibly even touring France. “I have a very strong feeling I was French in a previous life,” she said.

Where to hear her: Tieger will play at Borders bookstore in Garden City on Feb. 18 at 7 p.m. and at the Borders in North Attleboro on Feb. 28 at 3 p.m.

Or hear her now: Call Journal Line at 277-7777 or toll free outside the Providence calling area at (800) 992-9255 and enter BAND (2263).

Subj: Re: CAV Open Mic Ends
Date: 6/9/99 10:00:55 PM Eastern Daylight Time
From: Yr n wood
To: KariTieger

Kari,
Sorry I haven't emailed to say how impressed I am with your recording. I have listened to it several times and really think it is a work of art... It is what you have always needed,
something that showed all the diversity you bring to music. If you want a quote (former chair of RISA, host of CAV, and all that) I would say the following. "Kari Tieger has done a brilliant job of defining herself as a talented multi-faceted artist. She mixes elements of pop, classical and avant garde styles to create a musical painting which only seems to grow more beautiful with each listen. The songs are well crafted, the musicianship is solid throughout, and the vocals, both spoken and sung are lovely. This is one of the most inspired recordings I have heard in years..." Talk to ya soon.. Once again, great job..
Jeff