Singer, songwriter and fiddler, Laura Cortese lights up the stage with a radiating smile, dazzling musicianship and uninhibited delight. She deftly strums, plucks and chops her fiddle behind her raw and rootsy voice.

Originally from San Francisco, she came east to attend Berklee College of Music and for years has been a member of the Boston based fiddle trio, Halali. Forgoing the guitar and bass of the traditional rock band, Cortese tours nationally with indie rock/folk drummer Neil Cleary.

Her latest release called even the lost creek (February 2006) blends the influences of trad, folk and contemporary urban music into an appealing and original sound. Scott Alarik of The Boston Globe adds: "Laura Cortese is an exciting young fiddler-singer. Her music is a captivating, frisky mix of traditional grace and modern sophistication."

http://www.lauracortese.com/