#1 on iTunes Charts

#3 on Billboard Jazz

I Travelled to Mali and This is What Happened...

I arrived in Bamako early evening in November 2008. I was about to begin a month-long tour of performances in Mali and Burkina Faso with choreographer/dancer Gabi Glinz, dancer Aoussou Kodro Akondi Evry and (while in Bamako) drummer Chris Jaëger.  We were invited by L'Institut Culturel Français (where we were performing) to conduct a week-long workshop with musicians/singers and dancers ending with performances onstage at the prestigious concert hall in the heart of the capital of Mali.


On that evening in 2008, Sory Ibrahima Diakité and I met for the first time.  I couldn't speak French and he couldn't speak English.  We communicated through music.  I set up my laptop and keyboard. I played a bass line that looped around, then added orchestral strings. Then I looked at Ibrim (my nickname for him) and said ok. I gave him the mic and he sang to the track. One take. That was the beginning of a most remarkable workshop collaboration between myself and the remarkable griot singers of Mali. 


The song Nenna is a tribute to his mother and to all who give and nurture life. Years later I decided to mix the many tracks we recorded, with better tools, and release a record, but the files had been digitally corrupted. Except for a few excerpts here and there, it was all lost. All I had was an mp3 I made of that moment back in 2008. Incredibly, in 2021 I was able to locate the singers I worked with and we were able to re-record this beautiful song, with Ibrim recreating his masterpiece as he first wrote it. It is on the album LoveIsALove which we released the same year. Playing actual strings, the quartet Arcobaleno Music from Serbia.

Hi.  I'm Elise.

I'm incredibly proud that my song "Mardi Gras" recently danced its way to #1 on the iTunes charts and held a beautiful #3 spot on the Billboard Jazz chart, but my journey in music isn’t only as a jazz singer-songwriter.


Nestled in the heart of NYC's vibrant music landscape, I’ve fully embraced music in all forms.  I've been honored to tour with musical legends like 5X Grammy nominee Joe Jackson and the iconic Ronnie Spector. Perhaps you've caught my voice on records of industry giants like Boy George, Peter, Paul and Mary, Rebecca Pidegeon, and even the legendary George Burns. Or maybe you've been moved by my ethereal notes that grace the opening credits of CBS's "Cold Case” or my comforting singing letting you know that “Nationwide is on your side.”  


Then there are those lighter moments! One of my funniest sessions was voicing a candy box for a MovieFone commercial. And let's not forget that little playful tune “Gimme a Break” in those KitKat commercials - that was me too!


But if we trace back to the origins of my musical romance, we land on the piano—my first love. It's where I marry the soulful undertones of folk and blues with jazzy nuances, creating an intricate tapestry of sound. My heart and soul resonate as a musical wanderer, and I've ventured into the realms of theater, rock, progressive, classical, avant-garde, and world music. These genres and I, we engage in lively and heartfelt conversations. Music has its voice, and I'm all ears.


I invite you to join me on this melodious journey, where I shape-shift and weave through the vast universe of sound. Music speaks. I listen. And I hope you do too. Welcome aboard!

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