YOU MAY NOT HAVE HEARD OF BASSIST CIARA MOSER, BUT HER DEBUT ALBUM BLIND, SO WHAT? SHOULD GET YOUR ATTENTION FOR A FEW REASONS.
FIRST, THE MUSIC IS LIKE A MODERNIZED READ OF BANDS LIKE WEATHER REPORT AND HEADHUNTERS, WITH SOME EXCITING FUSION GROOVES AND AMBITIOUS SOLOING THAT NEVER LOSES ITS WELCOME.
SECOND, THE ALBUM SERVES AS A MESSAGE FOR THE LISTENING AND WATCHING WORLD. BORN BLIND, CIARA USES HER MUSIC AS MEANS TO EXPLORE TOPICS DAILY ENCOUNTED BY VISUAL BLINDNESS, SUCH AS THE DAILY DETAILS OF LIVING, REQUIRING MEMORY AND TRUST OF FRIENDS TO HELP GET THROUGH THE TENDER MERCIES OF EACH DAY.
BUT THE MUSIC, AS WELL AS THE ARTIST, IS NOT PREACHY. AND THERE IS NO SENSE OF VICTIMHOOD IN EITHER WORD OR NOTE. RATHER, MS. MOSER SIMPLY WANTS TO HAVE MUSIC BE HER STAGE TO CELEBRATE THE WORLD THROUGH EYES THAT MAY NOT SEE, BUT CAN SENSE THE JOYS AND TRIALS AROUND HER.
WE HAD A CHANCE TO CHAT WITH HER, AND HER ERUDITE FASHION WAS FRESH AND REFRESHING.
FIRST, HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE “CIARA”
A lot of people think it’s an Italian name, like “Cheeara”, but it’s pronounced “Keeorya”; it’s an Irish name. Like Keira Knightly.
WHY DID YOU PICK THE BASS AS AN INSTRUMENT TO PLAY?
It’s pretty much the cliché’ reason.
I started with the violin, and I played a little bit of piano, flute and stuff.
I started to get into improvising with the violin. I have two brothers, and we had the idea of starting a band. We discovered that we needed a bass player, so I tried it out.
I had a lot of fun with it. Actually, I enrolled into a high school class, and was late in enrolling. They needed two bass players in the class, and they only had one, so I said, “OK, I’ll play bass”. Otherwise, I couldn’t have enrolled in that school.
I then started playing more actively on bass with bands, and I really liked the roll of being the connecting instrument. It became my instrument of love.
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“I really liked the roll of being the connecting instrument. It became my instrument of love”
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DID YOU EVER HAVE THE DESIRE TO PLAY UPRIGHT BASS?
Not really a desire.
I like the sound of the instrument, and I also learned it for eight semesters at the University of Vienna where I got my undergrad degree. Also, to get a teaching degree you have to be able to teach double bass.
I know how it works, but to be honest, I never really see myself play it a lot because for me, it’s a completely different instrument. I wanted to focus more on electric bass and the opportunity that it holds for me.
I just got a semi-acoustic bass, called “Marcustico”. It sounds similar to a double bass; It’s more for some swing stuff. It has that kind of sound. But the electric bass is going to be my main focus.
HOW ABOUT PLAYING FOUR STRINGS AS OPPOSED TO FIVE OR SIX?
My first two basses had four strings; I had an Ibanez and a Fender Jazz Bass, and I really loved both of them. I actually just chose the six string bass because I love the sound of it.
I was actually looking for a five string bass, I wanted to have the low D and C, but I got the six string because I loved the sound of the bass and I thought “Why not?” as I have more opportunities to play chords and all these things. I’m really happy with the six string.
Although, if it’s a gig where I don’t have to lay down a lot of solo stuff, I definitely don’t mind using a four string.
HOW ABOUT A FRETLESS BASS?
I love it, and I love the sound of it. One day I want to get one; I just don’t have one yet.
WHAT BASS PLAYER DID YOU HEAR THAT INSPIRED YOU THE MOST?
When I was sixteen, I got this cd from a friend of mine. He got me into fusion, and through fusion I got into jazz.
I started playing in a funk band with him. He then also started a guitar trio where he was playing things like Scott Henderson, Gorman Guthrie, and all that kind of music.
He gave me a cd on my sixteenth birthday with all of these bass players on it. I heard this one bass player, a French guy named Hadrian Feraud. I called him up and asked him if he was playing a guitar, because I couldn’t believe that it was a bass.
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“I called (Hadrian Feraud) up and asked him if he was playing a guitar, because I couldn’t believe that it was a bass”
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He is not just a virtuoso; his phrasing was something that really threw me off. It was really intricate and super fine. I still didn’t believe that it was a bass. It was super far away for me to play like that, but when I started to study in college when I was 18-19, I got closer to transcribing some of his solos and got 50% of it! (laughs)
In terms of jazz and fusion playing he has been the biggest character for me
I’m also into bass players that are super simple for playing pop music, right on the spot.
I really love Pino Palladino, for example. I’m not a person who is only into shredding all of the time, because that’s not the reason that I chose the bass.
I practice and try to expand my limits.
Two weeks ago, I got to meet the Brazilian bass player Michel “Pipoquinha” David ; it was so inspiring. I knew him from videos, and I played at the NAMM show and saw him there. He also did a residency at Berklee, where I now work. The Music Department introduced me to him, and I got to play with him at a Master Class.
What really struck my mind was that he plays bass, but he can play solo and treat the bass like a guitar, and plays chords, drums, harmony and melody at the same time. That really inspired me.
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“I’m not a person who is only into shredding all ***of the time, because that’s not the reason that I chose the bass. I practice and try to expand my limits”
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WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM DANILO PEREZ?
I learned a lot from him! (laughs)
I think that the main thing that I learned from him was to have a purpose as to why you do things. Why do you write music and stand out there in public?
If you are a public person, you shape society in a way, and you can change things. It’s not only about the notes that you play, but it’s about how you make the people around you feel. Music has the power to change.
I also learned about the harmonic and rhythmic aspect of music. Danilo is 50 something and he is still looking for new things; he’s still expanding.
That really struck me as something with all of the masters. John Patitucci and Joe Lovano are always discovering new things in music. That really inspires me keep growing and expanding my knowledge. That helps me change and change my music.
Something crucial I also learned was that the music and the person I am are super connected. The bass is just a tool that I’m playing music through.
Of course, I need to develop skills as a bass player, but it’s also really important how I am and what I do as a person, as it always has an effect on my music.
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“the main thing that I learned from (Danilo Perez) was to have a purpose as to why you do things. Why do you write music and stand out there in public?”
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WHAT HIT YOU ABOUT YOUR TIME WITH TERRI LYNE CARRINGTON?
The character she is and the things that she does…
For me, she does exactly Danilo taught me. She is the type of person that creates so much change around her, but is also such an amazing musician who keeps looking for ways to grow and create new stuff.
What she does for women in jazz, especially black women in jazz, and anyone who feels discriminated in any way…she does so many things for those people. She helps them to shine and has created many programs, like the Next Jazz Legacy Program.
I see her as a huge idol, and someone I’d want to be like in the future, especially for musicians with disabilities.
It’s not just about changing the lives of musicians for me, but it’s also about changing the lives of people who don’t have a disability.
Terry really speaks to everyone in society, whether they are a person of color or not. That’s exactly what I want to do
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“If you are a public person, you shape society in a way, and you can change things. It’s not only about the notes that you play, but it’s about how you make the people around you feel. Music has the power to change”
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WHEN YOU’RE ON STAGE, HOW CAN YOU TELL IF YOU’RE CONNECTING WITH THE AUDIENCE?
That’s a cool question, because when I play “live”, I don’t really look at anybody, since I am blind
So for me, in the US, culturally, it’s different because everyone shouts around when they like ***you’re playing. That was something really funny about when I came to the US; people don’t do that at all in Austria or in Europe.
But there is an energy in the room that you can sense. It’s a vibe or zone that you’re in. I don’t think that it’s possible to describe it with words, because you can always break it down to the visual, which I can’t.
So for me, I can only say that there is an energy in the room that I feel mostly through how connected I feel with the people in the band that I’m playing with . If that happens, the audience always connects with us as well.
If you can make that happen in the rehearsal room, but also on stage, I know that the audience is connected because the feedback that I’m getting after the shows is always completely mind blowing.
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“The bass is just a tool that I’m playing music through”
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HOW IS THAT FEELING DIFFERENT THAN THE FEELING YOU HAD MAKING YOUR RECENT ALBUM I’M BLIND, SO WHAT?
It’s not that completely different in the studio as in concert.
If I am in the studio, I am still trying to imagine an audience that listens to that album.
Of course, I’m going to be playing in a little different way, as I still know that it’s being recorded. But the goal is to play completely the same as in concert
I think that every musician works on that difference of being in the studio and in front of an audience.
For me, the most important thing for me was that I’m in the studio with people who I really connect with, and know on a daily basis. Not only musically, because if you connect with them personally, you will have a good musical connection as well.
If you’re not in front of an audience and just in the studio, then you can create an environment where everyone is comfortable and everyone feels open to explore and play together.
It was also good in the studio when we were recording together for the album at Wellspring Sound. It was outside of Boston; we were there for the weekend, 8-10 people working on the project, so we really had time to connect.
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“there is an energy in the room that I feel mostly through how connected I feel with the people in the band that I’m playing with . If that happens, the audience always connects with us as well”
WHEN YOU’RE IN THE STUDIO. WHAT DID DRUMMER/VOCALIST LUMANYANO MZI BRING INTO THE SCENE ?
Basically, I was the main producer, I planned everything out and conducted the session. But definitely, the person who came with the most ideas and suggestions for the project was Lou Magnano. He’s a very active person, and his social skills and vibe was like “Hey, we should try this, what do you think about that Ciara?”
In the end it was always my decision, but he’s always try to support the music.
Definitely, everything else besides music, he was one of those who always had my back. When I’m at a gig or something, he’s there and I know that I’m not going to get lost. He always looks out for me.
There are certain people that I’ve bonded with, where the level of trust is super high. The main thing in having close friends like that is that they make me feel that I’m not blind.
They do things that make me forget that I’m blind as well; of course I never forget it. But, they just know when I need someone to guide me, but they don’t overdo it.
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“(Teri Lyne Carrington) is the type of person that creates so much change around her, but is also such an amazing musician who keeps looking for ways to grow and create new stuff”
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WHAT DO YOU MEAN?
I hate when people help me all of the time with things that I don’t actually need help with. That’s a feeling that you have or don’t have naturally. Some people are good at it right away, and others need time to understand how I live.
A lot of people think about themselves being blind and what they would need. But, that’s different than me being blind and what I would need, because I’ve been blind for my whole life.
Lou Magnano is definitely one of those people who knows me very well by now, even though we only met 3-4 years ago. That’s pretty crazy to have him in my life.
How we connect musically, we always have the same opinion, so I can always trust him with the project, and can share my opinions on certain things with him, and he’ll say, “We can solve it like this or like that”. So it’s a big support role on the side; someone I need to talk to.
YOU HAVE WRITTEN ON HOUR WEBSITE HOW YOU MEMORIZE MANY THINGS. YOU HAD TO LEARN TRANSCRIPTIONS BY MEMORIZING THINGS OVER AND OVER AGAIN. WHAT ELSE DO YOU WORK ON MEMORIZING?
In music, I have to memorize everything.
Every gig I play, everything I teach, if I’m in the studio and if I have to practice something, I have to memorize.
I know that most people practice like “I have this Bach Etude, and I’m just going to play it”, and they just put the music there. I have to learn it and memorize it before I can actually practice it. But, that’s the better way, because then , I know it, and I can then actually focus on the music.
If you’re just reading it, it’s going to be putting it down.
There are people who read it down very well, because that’s how the concept works in classical music. I’m definitely not trying to talk down reading, because it’s a very important skill and a lot of people do it very well.
Still, the more direct way that we all know is to memorize it, and that’s what I’m forced to do. But, I’m very happy about that
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“There are certain people that I’ve bonded with, where the level of trust is super high. The main thing in having close friends like that is that they make me feel that I’m not blind”
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HOW ABOUT DAILY LIFE MEMORIZING?
In daily life, I have to memorize all of the ways that I walk.
For example, if I walk to the train station, I leave my house, walk down the stairs and have to go to the left and walk down the street until I hear a street in front of me. Then, I turn to the right and cross the street in front of me, cross two more streets and get down to the intersection where there’s the train station.
I thencross that street, So, I know all of the traffic lights, that have an audible signal, so I have to press it to activate it.
For example, I know that if I stand in the cross walk, I know that the button to press is at a certain place on the right. I have to memorize that, because you kind of hear where it is, but cars are very loud and so you have to know where it is when you walk closer to it.
I then cross the street, and then cross the tracks, and if I walk a little bit to the right, there’s the train station
That’s how I know all of those things
If I were to describe the way to a sighted person, I’d say, “Just walk down Cummings Road, turn to your right and then walk until you see the train station”. For me, I need way more little details.
There are mobility trainers with whom I would take lessons with when I move to a new place in order to get to show me the way to walk. When I’m going somewhere I’ve never been before, most times I’m with either someone else, or I take a ride share with Uber, or a ride service that books people with disabilities.
I definitely memorize more things than others. I can take my phone out and take notes, but then I have to take out my ear pods,so that can distract me from what I’m doing
In school, I would use brail; there’s a display that you can put on your computer, and I can read with my hands what’s on the screen so I don’t have to use “Speech” all of the time. But the braille display is heavy to carry, so I have to memorize a lot of stuff. Or I record them.
What’s really important is that I have to memorize where I put all of my stuff.
If I’m cooking, I have to know where everything is.
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“I know that most people practice like “I have this Bach Etude, and I’m just going to play it”, and they just put the music there. I have to learn it and memorize it before I can actually practice it. But, that’s the better way, because then , I know it, and I can then actually focus on the music”
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When you’re cooking, you have to know where so many things are at the same time. There’s the pan with the vegetables, the pot with meat, and the rice or whatever.
For me, being disciplined therefore is very important. When I take out the rice, I want to put it right back in the closet after putting it in the pot, because if it’s standing around on the kitchen counter, I might forget and will knock it down all over the floor. You have to be very disciplined to do house things.
I also have places where I put my things. I put my phone only on my night stand or on my desk. I have a place on the right side on the corner or the left side of my computer. If I put it somewhere else, I have to right away start looking for it. So then, I have to go around and touch everything.
Most of the time I kind of memorize where it was. The “Find Your Phone” function on your watch is pretty helpful, where you can press on your watch to make the ipone ring. I use that a lot . (laughs)
SINCE YOU HAVE TO MEMORIZE SO MUCH, DO YOU THINK THAT YOU’RE MORE SELECTIVE AS TO WHAT YOU TAKE IN AND ABSORBE, SINCE IT TAKES SO MUCH MORE WORK?
Yes, I definitely am.
I wouldn’t say that I memorize less than the people play, but I do have a filter.
What is more important for me is the filter of when I memorize something not important I forget it right away.
For example, if I have to play pop songs that have similar forms, I learn it maybe a day before or the day of the rehearsal, play it and then it’s gone unless it’s a project that I play more often
My short term memory is very well developed.
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“it’s also really important how I am and what I do as a person, as it always has an effect on my music”
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IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU READ THAT YOU LIKE TO MEMORIZE?
There are things that are easier or harder to memorize. But something that came super easy for me was classical stuff, because I grew up with classical music on the violin
I have an ear that hears those harmonies easier. There are people who have listened to jazz since they were little, like John Patitucci, who’s listened to jazz for years, so that language is easier for him.
It doesn’t mean that I can’t do it, it’s just how your ears respond to things.
I don’t write down things from notes or books. I used to, and that’s a good idea. I should do it again.
HOW DO YOU PICK UP A WORLD VIEW? FROM LISTENING? READING?
I guess for me it’s not necessary an exact quote, but learning what someone is trying to say,
IS THERE A RELIGION OR PHILOSOPHY THAT YOU’VE TAKEN IN THAT GUIDES YOU?
I’ve heard a lot of different things, and have taken in a lot.
I don’t commit to a certain view or philosophy of the world.
I think that the reason is because my parents were on a cruise ship, traveling for 20 years and working as a cook and waitress.
I grew up Catholic, because that’s what you do in Austria, but I don’t feel bound to it at all.
I’m a very open person who likes to take in what I hear, but I haven’t yet found THAT belief.
IS THERE ANYONE IN WORLD HISTORY THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SIT DOWN FOR AN EVENING WITH AND PICK HIS OR HER BRAIN?
I think Nelson Mandela was a very interesting character, having myself spent time with South African people.
Also Gandhi. Einstein sounds interesting to me
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“the drummer/bass relationship is the most important relationship in a band. But there’s this thing where the drummer should be listening to the bass, but even more, the bass should listen to the drummer”
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SINCE YOU RELY SO MUCH ON HEARING, WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST PET PEEVE ABOUT DRUMMERS, AND WHAT DO YOU LISTEN FOR IN A DRUMMMER?
Something that I definitely want with drummers is that they are precise with timing.
The reason is that my foundation is a lot of “pocket” music, the fusion funk stuff, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t like drummers who float, like Brian Blade
I like when the drummer has a clear downbeat
Something that I really love and want to hear is a drummer who is listening to the whole group and have a sense of melody and an arch over the piece.
The drummer leads the whole group. So if there’s a piece, there has to be a kind of connection
I’ve discovered with even less drummers that I want them to listen to me
That’s where it gets interesting, because the drummer/bass relationship is the most important relationship in a band. But there’s this thing where the drummer should be listening to the bass, but even more, the bass should listen to the drummer
If the bassist plays something the drummer wants to commit to, then the drummer should really commit to it. Some drummers listen to the bass, but they’re not really sure to go with me.
As we say, “The drummer sits on the longer branch” because he has to take care of the time. In the end, the drummer is the boss. It’s important to have the dominance on the drummer’s side, but to also have a sensitivity to what the bass and melody do.
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“Something that I really love and want to hear is a drummer who is listening to the whole group and have a sense of melody and an arch over the piece”
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WHAT GIVES YOU THE MOST JOY?
The sense of community, and feeling that I belong to whomever I’m hanging out with. Family and love.
Being healthy and connected to nature.
I’m also a big enjoyer of good food and drink, because my dad is a cook. I’m very spoiled (laughs)
Since music is my whole life, I also enjoy activities outside of music. I enjoy locking in with the drummer in music, but I really enjoying being away from music at times.
Going for a hike or watching a movie. Enjoying life with my loved ones.
WHAT FOOD SMELLS THE BEST TO YOU?
That’s an interesting question!
When I cook, something that I really love is the smell of onions. They’re usually the things that you make first
When my dad cooks, everything smells so good. You just want to eat it!
He makes this deer stew; he sizzles down the red wine for five hours in the bones of the venison. The whole house smells of it, and you just want to eat it so badly!
I love the sweet stuff, chocolate, so if someone bakes a cake…
GOOD BREAD! READ! You got me on the wrong foot! I could talk about food for hours (hours)
In Austria we have so many types of bread. I really miss the smell of good bread.
Sometimes you can smell artificial bread in a supermarket, but the smell in a bakery is very hard to top.
I love the smell of Indian food as well. I live with a friend from New Dehli. When I come home I take a sniff and go “Whoa”
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“If I were to describe the way to a sighted person, I’d say, “Just walk down Cummings Road, turn to your right and then walk until you see the train station”. For me, I need way more little details”
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WHEN PLAYING, DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE A DIFFERENT PERECEPTION OF THE PASSAGE OF TIME ON STAGE THAN OTHERS SINCE YOU HAVE NO VISUAL REFERENCE?
I have never noticed that I have a different perception of time. I feel like sometimes my feeling for what time it is or how fast or slow time passes is better then other people’s perception because I am not so distracted by the visual craziness around us
HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO DETECT THE DIFFERENT TIMES OF THE DAY, AND DO THE DIFFERENT TIMES EFFECT YOU EVEN THOUGH YOU CANNOT SEE THE SUN OR DARKNESS?
YOU SAID YOU LIKE MOVIES. WHAT ACTORS VOICE DO YOU LIKE THE MOST?
None! (laughs)
People think that just because they are faceless that they like being a voice that I like to hear. That’s just not true!
Maybe Spongebob. I like weird voices.
In German, you have movies that are synchronized and the voices are all the same. The Mr. Krebs in Spongebob is also Benjamin Flower in a TV movie. So that really puts me off sometimes.
But that helps me to recognized characters in a movie quicker
DO YOU HAVE ANY FUTURE GOALS?
I want to keep releasing music on my site as an artist, and put my self out there. I want to tour with this project that I have now.
I’m in the process of booking a US tour and next year in Europe.
My goal is to play and tour with other projects and musicians. I get really inspired when I play with other groups and people. I love playing the role of a bassist and making the music sound better.
As I said before, I want to raise the awareness for people who have disabilities. On one hand I want to help those people by creating mentorship programs for musicians with disabilities
There’s a program called Mutual Mentorship with Musicians, one that Terri Lynne Carrington does. It’s for women in jazz and black women in jazz. I want to create a similar one for people with disabilities.
I’d like to do clinics around the world, like how Victor Wooten does. I have ideas about doing memorizing classes and give what I can to the musical society because of my point of view as a blind person. I want to share that through being a teacher.
Maybe teach and tour at the same time, and even write some books on my point of view to music
DO YOU LIKE PEOPLE READING TO YOU, OR AUDIO BOOKS
Yes, I love that
It was cool when my mom read to me as a child. I listen to audio books.
I love reading in braille. The National Library Service provides a small box that allows you to read. It’s important to keep reading braille. Not reading makes you an alphabet if you keep listening to texts and speech
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“I love playing the role of a bassist and making the music sound better”
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YOU’VE GOT TO ADMIRE A PERSON THAT LOOKS RIGHT AT YOU AND DECLARES “SO WHAT?” TO WHAT SOME WOULD CONSIDER AN OVERWHELMING DISABILITY. IT IS THAT MIXTURE OF FIGHT, SPIRIT AND JOY THAT CIARA REFLECTS IN NOT ONLY HER MUSIC, BUT HER PERFORMANCES AND SONG TITLES. HER DEBUT ALBUM IS FILLED WITH EXCITING IDEAS AND DIRECTIONS, HOPEFULLY SOME OF WHICH WE WILL MEMORIZE AS A MEANS OF HONORING HER DEDICATION TO THE MUSIC AND TO HER LIFE ON EARTH. LOOK FOR AN UPCOMING TOUR, AND BRING HER SOME FRESH BAKED BREAD!