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MONTANA SKIES

NEW ALBUM - "LIFT"

Montant Skies guitar, cello with ellis stompbox

Montana Skies creates a unique new sound, from finger-picking to flamenco, with the unusual pairing of cello and guitar. The core of the group Montana Skies is husband and wife team Jonathan Adams on guitars (steel string and spanish/nylon) and Jennifer Adams on cellos (acoustic cello and her custom 6-String Electric cello). Montana Skies has an extensive tour schedule which has taken them all across the US, Canada and to Asia. As the group moves ahead, they continue to explore the boundaries of contemporary instrumental music.

Montana Skies’ debut recording Montana Skies reached #1 on world and instrumental music radio charts in April and May of 2004 and helped them win the title of “Best New Artist” in the 2004 Lifestyle Radio Awards. Highlights from the cd’s airplay include broadcasts nationally on the NPR radio program “Echoes” and the TV program “Soundcapes”. Montana Skies has enjoyed perfoming live on radio and TV programs throughout the country and internationally. The duo’ recently completed a cross country tour of the US in the spring of 2004 and made their international debut last summer in Seoul, Korea.

Jonathan and Jennifer Adams are the originators of Montana Skies. The couple met almost a decade ago while studying music at the University of Georgia in Athens. At first the two planned on collaborating on classical music but after a trip to the University Library to investigate repertoire, they discovered that music written for cello/guitar was as rare as the combination itself. Jonathan and Jennifer were not discouraged; they began writing their own arrangements to classics and composing music for themselves. Not having set repertoire has given these music artists a great freedom in their musical expression. Jonathan explains, "Throughout the years, we have developed many of our own arrangements ranging from world music and classical to original compositions. The fact that 'ready made' repertoire is not available for our combination of instruments really what pushes us to be more creative with our music. We love composing and arranging, and appreciate the opportunity to present old favorites, along with newer music, to our audiences."

Montana Skies’ name is taken from one of the first songs Jonathan composed for the group entitled “Montana Skies”. Jonathan studied music at Montana State University in Bozeman and this song was written specifically about those times. Jonathan and Jennifer named themselves after this first song because it captures the essence of the duo’s music, and marked the beginning of their newly formed sound.

Forging ahead artistically, Montana Skies is releasing their newest album Chasing the Sun which was inspired by their most recent cross-country tour. Many of the songs were composed while traveling across the USA and seeing it’s national treasures. Chasing the Sun is an homage to the “road trip". Jonathan explains, “This cd is not only about the literal road trip, but also the metaphorical “road trip” of life. We’ve learned a lot on both so far, but mostly we’ve learned that it’s never about the place, but always about the people. Much of this music was written and arranged on our cross country tour in the spring of 2004 and draws from the sights and sounds that we absorbed as we crisscrossed the US. We hope our fans will enjoy the ride as much as we did.”

As a quality Australian luthier in Perth, Western Australia Andrew Ellis of Ellis Guitars blends traditional old-fashioned handcraft with the latest technology to produce sweet sounding custom hand made guitars. Steel string dreadnought, 000, jumbo, OM, small jumbo, L1, Jumbo, Weissenborn, Left Hand Guitars and Lap Steel models, wood body and metal body resonators and custom wood and timber stomp boxes are all hand crafted and handmade. A combination of international solid timbers renowned for acoustic and sound-producing qualities, temperature and humidity controlled environments, attention to colour matching and design, and patient awareness of the delicate processes of manufacture including wood tuning, thicknesses, bracing and finishing techniques guarantee beauty and quality.