Young at heart magic of a Polish musical virtuosa who beat all the odds to bring the delights of childhood to all ages

Eva Hurt exudes a brilliance in her personality both on and off stage. Her achievements have been remarkable, considering she suffers from a rare and daily painful inherited skeletal dysplasia affecting the hip joint. Her condition led to bullying at school, which made her even more determined to succeed in the career which she loves.

Launched for this Christmas is her CD My First Harmonica Album, released earlier this year.

“It's about promoting high quality music as classical/crossover to a younger audience but I know that adults have been buying it for themselves and listening to it in their cars, even in the office. It’s also been proving popular in school assemblies as a background music,” explains Eva, 40, a classical singer and harmonicist.

After graduating from Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland, she moved to London to continue her studies at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in Greenwich. It was not an easy process financially. “I had to pay for everything myself. Being from Europe I was not entitled to any discounts on tuition fees.”

Eva performs regularly in the UK and Europe. Her voice type may be described as light/lyrical soprano and her vocal repertoire ranges from baroque to contemporary works. As a harmonicist also, she plays classical and crossover music on chromatic harmonica.

Speaking about the new album Eva comments: “It's a strange thing really - bringing to life a project which was intended for one thing but then it suddenly starts creating its own direction, a life of its own almost. This is music for young people and for all who are young at heart - in other words, this music is for everyone with a natural sense of childhood adventure.”

There are spiders, the King of the Flowers, the Castle and a frog. “That frog is not just an animal, but an instrument,” she says. It inspired Eva’s composition Frog from Plaza de España, the final piece on this 16-track CD.

There are compositions by J S Bach from the 18th century and by others since then. Some were adapted for the harmonica, such as Porgi Amor from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, in which the player faces a challenging need for breath control. Others were written by harmonica players, for example, by the modern Polish composer, Zygmunt Zgraja.

My First Classical Album is performed by Eva Hurt with backing from Ana Ivanova (violin, viola), Jurand Jakub Zygadlo (guitar, mandolin), Ben Golightly (piano) and Elwira Kitala (piano). Besides Bach and Mozart, this debut release also includes pieces by Shostakovich, Boccherini, Shubert, and many more.

As described by her fans, the CD is ‘inspirational, useful and great fun.’ It’s also great for long car journeys and has an ideal selection for easy listening, or background music to assemblies and conferences. Notably, it is used also as a quality teaching CD.

‘When you listen to this recording, the sound is so clear, that you will feel that they are playing just for you. They are.’ Peter Walker - New Culture Revolution

Eva often performs as a duo, trio or quartet with guitarist, pianist and violinist up to two hours of 'chill-out' crossover or classical background music.
As well as an accomplished classical singer, her prowess on the harmonica has been recognised globally. Eva is a prize winner at no less than eight competitions, including the World Harmonica Festival, Trossingen, Germany and the National Harmonica League Competition held in Bristol. She has appeared at many music and culture festivals in the UK and across Europe.

Eva’s talents don’t end there. She encourages young people to play and to study the harmonica and is the author of many music tutor books in particular Triola - a first level harmonica tutorial for children published in collaboration with the 170-year-old German Seydel Sohne company, the oldest harmonica factory in the world. The Triola is an instrument well-known in eastern Europe and, says Eva, “it's great instrument to start with.”
“It has the quality of keyboard and wind instrument in one so it's easy to transfer to mainstream instruments. It’s simple but very effective and it can speed the learning process significantly. I tested it for seven years now and can really see the difference in a child taught in the traditional way and one using the Triola.

The artist is disabled and from an ethnic minority, born with a genetic condition. Eva was discouraged by family, teachers and friends to pursue a career in arts and music on the grounds of being a disabled female. How grateful we should all be that she defied them all.

Eva Hurt is available for interview.

Eva Hurt performs regularly in the UK and Europe. Her voice type may be described as light/lyrical soprano and her vocal repertoire ranges from baroque to contemporary works. As a harmonicist also, she plays classical and crossover music on chromatic harmonica.

The artist is disabled and from an ethnic minority, born with a genetic condition. Eva was discouraged by family, teachers and friends to pursue a career in arts and music on the grounds of being a disabled female.

My First Harmonica Album, which retails at just £10.99, can be previewed at:
https://play.google.com/store/music/album/Eva_Hurt_My_First_Harmonica_Album?id=Batjn373wv z2rn6wusj7zmtjnmu&hl=en_GB

For further information, images and hard copies please contact:

Eva Hurt direct on +44 (0)7578 808353
Email: eva.musician@yahoo.co.uk
Website: http://www.evahurt.com/

Or

Graham Garnett
SomethingToShoutAbout EA UK
167 Oak Street
Norwich
Norfolk, NR3 3AY,
UK.

Tel: +44 (0)7940 361721
Email: wordsmithgginnorwich@mail.co.uk

This release was published on openPR.