Abby Zotz
Encyclopedia
Abby Zotz is a Canadian singer-songwriter
, multi-instrumentalist
, and actress.
, Austria
and spread to Germany, from where Abby’s father immigrated to Canada
. He loved classical music
, especially Johann Sebastian Bach
, Ludwig van Beethoven
and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
. Her mother grew up in the rural town of Belmont, Nova Scotia
bringing her love of traditional Scottish music, Irish music and country music
to her daughter.
In her early teens Abby Zotz performed in the community theatre in Oshawa
, Ontario
, and studied voice with The Royal Conservatory of Music.
(Toronto) production of "Savage Heat." Her own show, "A Night on the Roof" blended musical theatre, pop and original compositions at the Theatre in the German City of Pforzheim
.
In Germany she interpreted songs by Bertolt Brecht
and Kurt Weill
as a member of "The Language of Love" collective. She has worked with Paul Humphreys
, former lead singer of Blue Peter
. Abby Zotz founded the Renaissance
trio “The MadriGALS”, whose CD “Alchemy” was nominated for two Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards
(CARA's).
In 2001 Abby Zotz agreed to sing during the wedding ceremony of a gay and a lesbian couple when the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto
tested Canadian marriage laws.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
, and actress.
Biography
The Zotz family originated in TyrolTyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and spread to Germany, from where Abby’s father immigrated to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He loved classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, especially Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
, Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
. Her mother grew up in the rural town of Belmont, Nova Scotia
Belmont, Nova Scotia
Belmont is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in Colchester County.-References:*...
bringing her love of traditional Scottish music, Irish music and country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
to her daughter.
In her early teens Abby Zotz performed in the community theatre in Oshawa
Oshawa
Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario approximately 60 kilometres east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of both the Greater Toronto Area and the Golden Horseshoe. It is now commonly referred to as the most...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, and studied voice with The Royal Conservatory of Music.
Career
Abby Zotz has appeared in Canadian and American TV series and movies. As an actress and singer Abby Zotz has performed across Canada and Europe. She has been a member in the Factory TheatreFactory Theatre
Factory Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, founded as Factory Theatre Lab in 1970 by Ken Gass and Frank Trotz.Factory was the first theatre to announce that it would exclusively produce Canadian plays, but it soon became a widely emulated policy by other theatre companies...
(Toronto) production of "Savage Heat." Her own show, "A Night on the Roof" blended musical theatre, pop and original compositions at the Theatre in the German City of Pforzheim
Pforzheim
Pforzheim is a town of nearly 119,000 inhabitants in the state of Baden-Württemberg, southwest Germany at the gate to the Black Forest. It is world-famous for its jewelry and watch-making industry. Until 1565 it was the home to the Margraves of Baden. Because of that it gained the nickname...
.
In Germany she interpreted songs by Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
and Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...
as a member of "The Language of Love" collective. She has worked with Paul Humphreys
Paul Humphreys
Paul Humphreys is a British musician.-Life and career:He is best known as a member of synth pop group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark , which he founded with Andy McCluskey in 1978.He grew up on the Wirral Peninsula in North West England, during which time he developed his interest in German...
, former lead singer of Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
. Abby Zotz founded the Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
trio “The MadriGALS”, whose CD “Alchemy” was nominated for two Contemporary A Cappella Recording Awards
Contemporary A Cappella Society
The Contemporary A Cappella Society , or CASA, is a 501 charitable organization dedicated to fostering and promoting a cappella music of all styles around the world. CASA was cofounded in 1991 by Deke Sharon by incorporating the first a cappella directory, The List, founded in 1988 & distributed...
(CARA's).
In 2001 Abby Zotz agreed to sing during the wedding ceremony of a gay and a lesbian couple when the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto
Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto
The Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto is a congregation of the worldwide Metropolitan Community Church movement located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is an welcoming congregation openly affirming lesbian, gay, bisexual, heterosexual and transgender people...
tested Canadian marriage laws.
TV and movies appearances
- Street Legal (TV series)Street Legal (TV series)Street Legal is a Canadian television series, which aired on CBC Television from 1987 to 1994.-Synopsis:A spinoff from the 1985 television movie Shellgame, Street Legal focused on the professional and private lives of the partners in a small Toronto, Ontario law firm, Barr, Robinovitch and Tchobanian...
(Canada 1993) - Queer as Folk (North American TV series) (USA 2000)
- Sue Thomas: F.B.EyeSue Thomas: F.B.EyeSue Thomas: F.B.Eye is a Canadian-American television series that premiered in the United States in 2002 and Canada in 2003. The show ended in May 2005 due to PAX's decision to halt the production of original programming. It was one of the two highest rated shows on PAX. In September 2009, Gospel...
(USA 2002) - Our Fathers (film)Our Fathers (film)Our Fathers is a 2005 television film directed by Dan Curtis and starring Ted Danson, Christopher Plummer, Brian Dennehy and Ellen Burstyn...
(USA 2005) - TkarontoTkarontoTkaronto is a Canadian drama film, which premiered in 2007 at the ImagineNATIVE Film and Media Festival in Toronto. Directed by Shane Belcourt, the film went into commercial release in the summer of 2008....
(Canada 2007) - Charlie BartlettCharlie BartlettCharlie Bartlett is a 2008 comedy-drama film directed by Jon Poll. The screenplay by Gustin Nash focuses on a teenager who begins to dispense therapeutic advice and prescription drugs to the student body at his new high school in order to become popular....
(USA 2007) - Strawberries and Wine (Canada 2008)
Discography
- The MadriGALS: Alchemy (1998)
- Two Roads Home: Dovetailing (2003)
- Two Roads Home: Sweet Shadows (2008)