Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Accomplished vocalist and jewelry designer Gina Venturini featured on Get the Funk Out!

If you missed Gina on my December 26th show, 
you can hear the entire show here.


ABOUT GINA VENTURINI
Gina Venturini is a vocalist in the classic sense of the term.  She sings from the soul and loves every note with all of her heart.  From classic jazz to classical chorale, a television audience or a Saturday night crowd, Gina is right at home.  Her delicate, crystal clear and beautiful voice cuts to the raw emotion of a song and deeply touches the listener every time.  You will feel her motto, “Let the music from your soul touch another’s heart.”

Gina grew up in Nebraska, knowing at age three that she wanted to be a performer.  She studied trumpet in high school before switching to opera at the University of Nebraska.  Upon graduation, Gina made another switch, this time to the musical hotbed of Minneapolis.  There she performed as a backup singer for a Neil Diamond/Elvis impersonator.  She soon landed a tour with a Top 40 dance band called Passion.  Gina honed her craft while singing six nights a week in Marriot hotels up and down the East Coast.

Gina’s voice has been heard on local radio stations from Nebraska to Los Angeles.  She has also appeared as a dancer and featured vocalist in several musical theater productions, and has joined countless bands onstage in Los Angeles and on national tours

Gina joined forces with two other musicians in 2005 and formed Genius Girl.  Their 2005 release titled “Happy Moon” showcases Gina’s talented voice singing country, blues, and Jazz.  In 2010 Gina teamed up with  singer/songwriter  and music colleague Jimi Yamagishi to form a jazz duo and it blossomed into an original  music project called Valet that includes Amanda Best Best, David Zacharia, and Karl Lee.   The group has been playing venues through the LA are, Relay for life Cancer benefits, The Japanese American Theater and other festivals. Their music is a mix of Jazz, Latin, Rock, and pop music that is guided by spirituality. The group is gearing up to record their first CD in 2012. 
                                   

Professor Stephanie Reich, UCI professor of education and expert on youth and social media

LISTEN to today's show featuring UCI professor Stephanie Reich Stephanie Reich , UCI professor of education and expert on youth and soci...