This photo is with Peter Van Velthoven, performing at the Crossroads Cafe in Antwerp, with Ingrid Veerman and Two Dollar Twodollar Bash, few years ago
I heard her voice some days ago! I saw her on stage, i enjoyed her performance, I loved her as she present herself to her audience!
Yes, she is a great! Only two words, are enough to describe Orit Shimoni!
I decide to have an interview!
So read and learn more about Orit, a talented musician, songwriter, singer, a dynamic women!
Orit, you are composer/writer, musician and teacher! How you manage your time and arrive to be satisfated reaching your aims?
I was a school-teacher foreight years, with music always a side-project. Eventually, after I had two albums, I decided that I want to focus all of my energy on music. It was hard to leave teaching behind, but I have discovered that I get much joy from performance, and can share the same educational values through music. I have also written a few children's stories and give story-telling workshops for children sometimes, so I still get to have that wonderful interaction with children, between my shows for adults. There is, thankfully, enough time for songwriting, but writing bigger projects has been very challenging, as I am always on the road. I still haven't figured out the perfect formula, but I keep working on everything as hard as I can.
How you will describe shortly yourself?
I describe: myself changes with my mood, but the consistent character traits I have are that I am emotional, very sensitive, I care very much about social justice and equality.
I am hard-working but a bit disorganized. I am a very serious person, but I still maintain a sense of humour, sometimes sarcasm. I try to learn from every situation, about me, myself, others, and the world. I am intensely philosophical and this can be quite exhausting, but it's worth it.
You are a canadiens citizens! Your origin coming from?
Did your culture affected your carrier?
I am both Canadian and Israeli. Being Israeli is a challenge because it is a country that everyone has an opinion about. I often feel very misunderstood, which is very difficult. Growing up in Jerusalem, in the context of chronic wars has definitely shaped my identity. The tragedy of wars everywhere affects me emotionally and spiritually. I believe so much in peaceful dialogue and diplomacy. I am a bit traumatized from the violence I have experienced in Israel, and also the history of the place and both peoples is so intense and complicated, that I cannot shut off my political self. Where other people can sometimes be more easy-going, being from Jerusalem means I am always worried about what is happening in that part of the world. My wish since I was a young girl of five years old has been for peaceful resolution, so both sides can live a normal life. It is hard to be optimistic. My Canadian side celebrates cultural diversity and wishes this kind of tolerance for the rest of the world.
How you describe your first steps, you stared to follow your dream?
Here I want to be focused on your hardly time as I heard from you, that you explained during the concert at Art Stalker Gallery.
My steps toward becoming a full-time musician were gradual. I always sang, and began to play the guitar when I was 12 years old, already writing my first songs when I was 15. It was a fantasy that I would grow up to be a 'real' singer and I tried to proceed with a normal life. I did not dare imagine that I would be a real musician, even though I was actually already performing in cafes and bars from the time I was 16. But when I moved to Montreal, Canada, I started to go to music bars, and when I sang my first few songs, I got a lot of requests from other musicians who wanted to play along with me, and within a few shows, a man approached me, wanting to produce my first album. It was a very exciting time, and made me feel more 'real'. When the album came out and got praise and radio play, it felt less like a fantasy and more like reality, and this really encouraged me to continue. I took small steps forward until I was ready to go full-time, and that was the scariest step. I never imagined I would live the life I am living now, touring internationally as an independent artist, producing five albums with more on the way. It is an honour to live this way and be well-received wherever I go. It is a very tough life but also very rewarding and I hope I can continue for a long time.
You love Berlin! How grow up these feelings? You can describe for further some points signed your life here in Berlin.
When I did finally quit my teaching job, I came from Canada to Berlin. It was a very difficult time, because I was scared that I would not make enough money to survive. But it was also very strange to be in the country that my grandparents had to run from to save their lives. It was important for me to be there and make connections with people of my generation, a proof that peace was possible. It took me a while to get used to it, and in that year I wrote my Berlin album, "Sadder Music - Live in Berlin" (http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/littlebirdie3) to describe some of what I was going through.
Berlin is an incredible city, with so much art, and fantastic, creative people. I have developed wonderful friendships and I will always want to return.
You talked about many thing during your concert at Art Stalker Gallery! Was so interesting when you talk about your tour, you made in Europe, the people they helped you, the site where you find those people! I would like to give for all artists, young people, impress them and give power to follow your steps!
The way I tour is not the way most people picture it, no hotels and airplanes. I don't make very much money as a musician (times are getting tougher in the music business), and so the only way to survive is to make the costs as low as possible. Luckily for me I meet people who are happy to have me as a guest in their home. It is so much better than a hotel room because I can have conversations with the local people, get to know them and the place, and have human connections, instead of being alone in a hotel room.
Wich song/songs are your prefer songs and why?
It is impossible to say which songs I prefer. I am emotionally connected to all of my songs. I write from the heart, and so they all mean something important to me. When I perform, I try to give as much variety as possible so that, in terms of the sound, it is not too repetitive. So I go from a slow, folk song to a more jazzy-bluesy one.. the styles vary, but actually the most important thing for me is the text, the words, the message, and it just happens to be that I love singing.
That way, even if the audience doesn't understand the words, they can still be moved by the emotion of the sound.
Your aims and your plans for the nearest future?
My aims and goals are to continue to do this for as long as possible. So long as the songs come to me, I would like to continue to record and perform them. I hope I continue to be so lucky to meet wonderful musicians who want to work with me, and wonderful friends where I can stay while I'm passing through the different cities I play in. I am trying to be as healthy as possible so that I have the energy to continue! I am also working on a book about my life on the road, that I would like to finish and share with my fans. But the truth is, you never know what is around the corner, so I try to be patient and I am curious what the future will bring.
I would love to know your Slogan, that impressed you?
There a few "slogans" I hold dear. One is to always to try to act from love and not from fear. The other is to pay attention and learn from everything and everyone. My latest, which I came up with when I was feeling down, very tired and not in the mood to do the hard work of organizing the shows and promoting them was this: "Stop complaining. You are very lucky to have this task, and well-equipped for it." Having gratitude for what you have is very important!
Orit I thank you, from the bottom of my heart and wish you successes!
