Biography
Maria Sangiolo’s soprano has drawn parallels to the styles of Joan Baez, Shawn Colvin and Carolyn Hester, with Sing Out! magazine observing that she “sings sweetly like a songbird” and the St. Paul Pioneer Press remarking that “Sangiolo’s voice is clear as crystal.”
Yet her songwriting distinguishes her through its literate examination of romantic experience, whether she portrays herself alone or within a relationship.
Vocal ability arrived naturally; as the niece of a noted opera singer, Sangiolo performed throughout her life yet treated music as a serious pursuit only after earning a communications degree from Simmons College in Boston in 1988. Open-mic appearances quickly generated interest, leading to her first recordings—three duets titled “Project Girl,” “Vagabonds” and “Ordinary Women”—which she contributed to comic songwriter Don White’s album Two Vagabonds In Disguise.
Her two self-produced releases, Hard Words in 1992 and Eyes of the Heart in 1993, together surpassed 50,000 copies sold. Co-produced by Brooks Williams, Eyes of the Heart reached the top position on Boston folk station WUMB’s chart and appeared on the Maverick Report’s Adult Trendsetter Radio Top Ten in Austin, Texas.
Two further albums received national distribution: Follow Your Own Heart, issued in 1997 and produced by mandolinist and guitarist John Curtis of the Pousette-Dart Band, and Blue Earth, released in 1998 and produced by guitarist Jim Henry. The latter featured Cliff Eberhardt on background vocals and Brooks Williams on 12-string and slide guitars. Whereas earlier recordings emphasized original compositions, Blue Earth primarily displayed Sangiolo’s interpretive skills through material by Guy Clark/Vince Gill, Townes Van Zandt and Don White.
Yet her songwriting distinguishes her through its literate examination of romantic experience, whether she portrays herself alone or within a relationship.
Vocal ability arrived naturally; as the niece of a noted opera singer, Sangiolo performed throughout her life yet treated music as a serious pursuit only after earning a communications degree from Simmons College in Boston in 1988. Open-mic appearances quickly generated interest, leading to her first recordings—three duets titled “Project Girl,” “Vagabonds” and “Ordinary Women”—which she contributed to comic songwriter Don White’s album Two Vagabonds In Disguise.
Her two self-produced releases, Hard Words in 1992 and Eyes of the Heart in 1993, together surpassed 50,000 copies sold. Co-produced by Brooks Williams, Eyes of the Heart reached the top position on Boston folk station WUMB’s chart and appeared on the Maverick Report’s Adult Trendsetter Radio Top Ten in Austin, Texas.
Two further albums received national distribution: Follow Your Own Heart, issued in 1997 and produced by mandolinist and guitarist John Curtis of the Pousette-Dart Band, and Blue Earth, released in 1998 and produced by guitarist Jim Henry. The latter featured Cliff Eberhardt on background vocals and Brooks Williams on 12-string and slide guitars. Whereas earlier recordings emphasized original compositions, Blue Earth primarily displayed Sangiolo’s interpretive skills through material by Guy Clark/Vince Gill, Townes Van Zandt and Don White.
Albums
