Biography

CONTACT: Lauren Mary Longo, harp
laurenmarylongo@gmail.com
c. 201-788-1339

Click here to go to Lauren Mary Longo - At the Manger

ABOUT THIS SINGLE
JUST RELEASED!

It came upon the midnight clear,
that glorious song of old,
from angels bending near the earth
to touch their harps of gold:
“Peace on the earth, good will to men,
from heaven’s all gracious King.
The world in solemn stillness lay,
to hear the angels sing.”

Inspired by Edmund Sears’ text, my purely instrumental arrangement of this beloved Christmas carol starts in “solemn stillness”. The tune evolves, drifting in and out as clouds in the dark night sky. All at once, the angels’ song appears as strains of Angels We Have Heard on High unfold with a jazzy Longo original spin on the tune. It’s a kaleidoscope of angel song conveyed by one celtic harp.

In the midst of wars, trials, conflict, there is no better time for angel song and the peace that it brings. ”And still the heav’nly music floats O’er all the weary world…”

Lauren is playing a Llyr 36 string harp by Timothy Harps on this recording. This particular harp is made of cherry wood that grew on the maker’s property. It has a particular bright resonance in the upper registers—-perfect for evoking angels’ harps.


ABOUT THE ARTIST

Lauren Mary Longo is a recording and performing artist in the metropolitan New York area. Her harp music has been featured on the radio programs Harpestry (USA) and Celtic Roots Radio (Ireland) and internationally on radio stations throughout the world, recently reaching the 1.1 Million stream mark on Pandora Radio.

Experienced as a professional Church musician on piano, organ, and harpsichord, in 2004, she discovered the celtic harp. That instrument served as her muse.

Finding it difficult to sleep one night following surgery, she decided to produce music that created an ambience enabling people to drift off to peaceful slumber. With this in mind, she founded her own record label: Wing And A Prayer Recordings, releasing her first solo original AngelCalls, (2005), a continuous stream of 43 minutes of improvised music.

Other recordings of original music and arrangements soon followed: Glory Be (2007), Miracles (2008) At the Manger (2009) and Reflections (2012). Most of her original music is designed to promote deep relaxation, creating soothing background music for the home or travel.

Lauren also holds a PhD in Music from the City University of New York. Recent recordings and concerts feature brilliant new arrangements for celtic harp, reworking music—-from Medieval chant to the Beatles. Drawing upon her historical knowledge, she adapts and transforms these tunes in innovative ways—-creating new original versions with a modern twist. The result is musical magic.

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