Diamanda Galás (born August 29, 1955) is an American-born avant-garde performance artist, vocalist, and composer. Her parents are Greek Orthodox. Galás was born and raised in San Diego, California. She is know for her distictive, operatic voice, which has an impressive range, and has been described as "capable of the most unnerving vocal terror" [1] (http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=diamanda_galas). Galas often shrieks, howls, and seems to immitate glossolalia in her performances. She is also a fine pianist and organist. August 29 is the 241st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (242nd in leap years), with 124 days remaining. ... 1955 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A work similar to Marcel Duchamps Fountain Avant garde (written avant-garde) is a French phrase, one of many French phrases used by English speakers. ... Performance art is art where the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time, constitute the work. ... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... Greek Orthodox Church can refer to any of several hierarchical churches within the larger group of mutually recognizing Eastern Orthodox churches: the Orthodox Church of Constantinople, headed by the Patriarch of Constantinople, who is also the first among equals of the Eastern Orthodox Communion. ... San Diego County in the Southwest corner of California. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Official languages English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... Glossolalia [from the Greek, γλώσσα (glossa), tongue and λαλώ (lalô), to speak] comprises the utterance of what appears (to the casual listener) either as an unknown foreign language, or as simply nonsense syllables; the utterances sometimes occur as part of religious worship (religious glossolalia). ... A pianist is a person who plays the piano. ... An organ is the following: In anatomy, an organ is a group of tissues which perform some function. ...

She worked with avant-garde composers like Iannis Xenakis and Vinko Globokar who gave her the lead role in his opera Un Jour Comme Une Autre which deals with the death by torture of a Turkish woman. The work was sponsored by Amnesty International. She also contributed her voice of Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula and also apeared on the motion picture soundtrack. Iannis Xenakis (Γιάννης Ξενάκης) (May 29, 1922 Romania - February 4, 2001) was a Greek composer and architect who spent much of his life in Paris, France. ... The foyer of Charles Garniers Opéra, Paris, opened 1875 Opera is an art form consisting of a dramatic stage performance set to music. ... Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization, the stated purpose of which is to promote all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards. ... Francis Ford Coppola (born April 7, 1939 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American film director, screenwriter, vintner, magazine publisher, and hotelier. ... Bram Stokers Dracula is a 1992 movie produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola based on the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. ...

Susan McClary (1991) writes that Galás, "heralds a new moment in the history of musical representation," after describing her thus: "Galás emerged within the post-modern performance art scene in the seventies...protesting...the treatment of victims of the Greek junta, attitudes towards victims of AIDS...Her pieces are constructed from the ululation of traditional Mediterranean keening...whispers, shrieks, and moans." Susan McClary is a musicologist considered to be a significant figure in the New Musicology. She is noted for her work combining musicology and feminism. ... Performance art is art where the actions of an individual or a group at a particular place and in a particular time, constitute the work. ... The Red Ribbon symbol is used internationally to represent the fight against AIDS. AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, rarely written Aids) is a disease characterized by the destruction of the human immune system. ...

In 1994, Galás collaborated with Led Zeppelin bass guitarist John Paul Jones. The resultant record, The Sporting Life, while containing much of Galás's trademark vocal gymnastics, is probably the closest she has ever come to rock music. Led Zeppelin (clockwise from left: Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Bonham, John Paul Jones) Led Zeppelin was a British band noted for their innovative, influential approach to heavy blues-rock and as one of the most popular and influential bands of all time. ... Fender Precision Bass Bass Guitar refers to electric and acoustic basses - stringed instruments similar in design to the guitar, but with longer scale and tuned lower in pitch. ... Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones in 1972. ... Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ...

A recent work (2003) deals with the Turkish genocide of Anatolian Greek, Armenian and Assyrian people. Look up Genocide in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Genocide has been defined as the deliberate killing of people based on their ethnicity, nationality, race, religion, or (sometimes) politics, as well as other deliberate action(s)leading to the physical elimination of any of the above categories. ... Assyrians are a Christian Syriac-speaking minority inhabiting northern Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and northwestern Iran, some of whom also identify themselves as Aramaeans, Syriacs and Chaldeans. ...

Her latest song cycle is an interpretation of songs by Edith Piaf and Marlene Dietrich. Edith Piaf Édith Piaf (December 19, 1915 - October 11, 1963) was one of Frances most beloved singers, with much success shortly before and during World War II. Her music reflected her tragic life, with her specialty being the poignant ballad presented with a heartbreaking voice. ... Marie Magdalene Marlene Dietrich (December 27, 1901 – May 6, 1992) was a German actress and singer. ...

Discography:

• Litanies of Satan (1982) - notable for "Wild Women with Steak Knives"
• Faust. Eros. Tod (1982 ?) (live)
• Diamanda Galas (1984)
• Saint of the Pit (1986)
• Divine Punishment (1986)
• You Must Be Certain of the Devil (1988)
• Masque of the Red Death (1989)
• Plague Mass (1984 End of the Epidemic) (1991) (live)
• The Singer (1992)
• Vena Cava (1993)
• The Sporting Life (1994), with John Paul Jones
• Schrei X (1996) (live)
• Malediction & Prayer (1998) (live)
• La serpenta canta (2003)
• Defixiones, will and testament (2003)

Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones in 1972. ...

Source

• McClary, Susan (1991). Feminine Endings: Music, Gender, and Sexuality, p.110-11. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press. ISBN 0816618984.

External links

• Diamanda Galás (http://www.diamandagalas.com/)
• Shrieking For Sanity (http://www.choler.com/articles/diamandagalas.shtml)
• The Serpent Speaks (http://www.choler.com/articles/diamandagalas2.shtml)
• Diamanda Galás in conversation with Edward Batchelder (http://www.newmusicbox.org/article.nmbx?id=2311)