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Fiona
spent the early years of her life growing up in the small
country town of Greenpark just outside of Christchurch. Fiona's
mother and sister were both pianists, and her brother and
father enthusiastic listeners.
Studying Classical Piano and Violin from the age of six, Fiona acknowledges the
influence of her teachers, Christina Sell installing the value of treating every
note like it was the most special sound she would ever hear.
Learning Violin from Margaret Buchanan until she was 12, Fiona learnt that music
could always be fresh, new and exciting. "I was lucky to have her as
my first violin teacher as she has set a firm belief in me that I could always
have fun with the violin."
Susan Farmer and Jan Tawroczwicz completed Fiona's official education. "Both
of these people taught me that technique makes it possible for me to play on
the violin the things that I hear in my head."
Fiona’s early career as a musician saw her perform concertos with the NZSSSO,
CSO, CYO, winning two national secondary school music competitions, one in Piano
and the other in Violin.
When Fiona was eighteen she became part of the well-known Blue Swing Quartet,
recording for television and radio and touring the length and breadth of New
Zealand.
She has opened for artists such as Tony Bennett, Ottmar Liebert and the late
Victor Bourge. Pears has also recorded for many artists around NZ including recording
string backings on Bic Runga's album, “Beautiful Collision,” and
arranging
and recording on Hayley Westenra's second CD, "Odyssey."
Fiona then teamed up with engineer and producer Rob Mayes and released her debut
CD, “Las Sayas,” in May 2002, which featured her first compositions.
After the successful release of, “Las Sayas,” Fiona spent time writing
more of her own compositions. Travelling around Europe and Ireland gave her the
inspiration to write more of her own music. "This album has Spanish,
world-music and gypsy influences but also has a mix of things I can only describe
as my own experiences of life. I believe that we are all influenced by things
that happen to us throughout our lives; bad, good, frightening, wonderful things
that ultimately form who we
are."
Sold out performances at London's, "Rendezvous," jazz bar and the Chichester
jazz festival followed with the now standard return invitations accompanying
them.
Returning to NZ in July 2003 Fiona performed three concerts at the Christchurch
International Arts Festival to full houses. On the night of her final show, the
doors shut 40 minutes early for another full house. This concert ended with a
standing
ovation, (the first of the arts festival.)
Following these concerts, work started on the second album, "Doorways to
Distant Lands." This album contains nine originals and her own arrangement
of the traditional Brahms “Hungarian Dance No 5.” This was released
in November 2003.
At the start of 2004 Fiona joined fellow kiwi Hayley Westenra
on her first world tour, travelling to Australia and Japan. As well as accompanying
Hayley, Fiona
also performed
her
own arrangement of the Brahms, for which she received
a tremendous response at all shows, the most noticeable being the concert at
The
Sydney Opera
House where the audience's reaction was overwhelming to say the least!!
After this tour Fiona made the big shift to London and since then life has been
a whirlwind of concerts and tours around the UK, which has included performing
her
compositions at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire, The
London Palladium and also a concert where she performed three of her compositions
with the
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
Fiona released her first DVD in 2005, which comprises live performances from
NZ
and the UK from the
last year and a half. Also included was a music video for her piece,
"The Zoo Keeper," which subsequently got picked up by the UK/European
music video channel, Classic FM TV. The video made the playlist and is still
receiving regular
air play.
Fiona has also been busy recording for
EMI and Universal on CDs for artists such as, “Libera, Aled
Jones, The
Choir Boys,” and, “Hayley Westenra.” Fiona also wrote and recorded
a
string
arrangement for,
"The Mists of Islay," on Hayley's most recent release,"Odyssey."
Since then Fiona has been darting back and forth between NZ and the UK, performing
her own sell-out shows in NZ then flying back to the UK for appearances on
BBC TV, (she recorded her own version of "Schindler's List for a special
programme
commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the holocaust,") touring
Europe, Asia and the US with Hayley and most recently, supporting Heather Nova
on her
tour of Europe. Fiona describes the Heather tour as a lot of fun
as she not only performed her originals to a whole new audience,
but she filled the role of lead guitarist, adding distortion to her violin, nicknamed
'The Beast.' "I used to say everybody wants to be a rock star, I actually
got to play the part of one for a few weeks even down to living on a tour bus....quite
an experience and a lot of good fun!"
Fiona released her third CD, "Memories
of
Home," in the UK in July 2006 and in New Zealand in December of the same
year.
For
this
album, Fiona teamed
up with London Producer, Ian Tilley. Fiona describes this CD as, "my
most exciting project to date. It is an amazing experience to be able to listen
to my own CD and enjoy it without being too judgemental of my performance. I
think that most musicians are perfectionists when it comes to listening back
to their own work. I can honestly say that thanks to all the hard work from everyone
involved in this CD, I can listen to it and enjoy it without being analytical
of every
note....."
Fiona has just returned to the UK from a nationwide tour of New Zealand. She
performed sell out shows and had standing ovations throughout the tour. The reviews
have been outstanding. Her final show at the Christ Church Cathedral was a sell
out performance with over 700 people queuing across the Cathedral Square to get
into the concert. During the tour Fiona was also a regular performer on New Zealand
national TV and radio.
2007 holds many exciting new projects for Fiona with the making of her latest
music video for, “Memories of Martin and Mary”, and her new DVD, “Live
at the Christ Church Cathedral.
Fiona will be performing at UK festivals throughout the summer. She also has
a tour of Asia with, “Libera,” and will be performing in Bermuda
in June with Heather Nova.
Fiona is already organising her return to New Zealand in December with festivals
and another nationwide tour for 2008 already in the planning. |
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