Amy Malkoff Music | ABOUT
I love vocal harmony. I love to create intricate harmonies that read more to the ear like countermelodies. There are also times when singing in unison is just as powerful as dissonance, and I have a good intuitive sense of when a harmony line isn't needed at all. Sometimes less is more. I have had the pleasure of serving as backup singer for (and writing harmonies for) numerous incredible musicians, both in studio and in performance. Please see the backup page or more in depth information about my backup experience and what I can offer.
I have an AB in music from Kenyon College with graduate studies at the New England Conservatory of Music, and earlier studies at the Dana School of Music. In my years as a working musician, I have been part of both the acoustic music (folk) world and the a cappella world, so I'm always in search of that place where beautiful vocals, intricate harmony, and strong songwriting converge.
For 7 years post-college, I was 1/2 of the duo Raymond Gonzalez & Amy Malkoff, and during that time we produced two full length recordings, toured consistently, and were included on "When October Goes" (Rounder Records), among other compilations. After that, I founded Deadline Poet, which was initially a cappella group, then became a full band, and lastly a guitar/keyboard/vocal trio. When that group disbanded, we had produced several recordings, and appeared on a handful of compilations.
After that, All About Buford was founded, an award-winning pop-funk band that fairly comfortably fit in a funny space created where a cappella and contemporary folk collide. Our performances consisted of some songs without instruments, and some with me on guitar, but always with a dedicated beatboxer and lots of rich harmonies. All About Buford was the 2003 Boston Regional Harmony Sweepstakes champions and runners-up in 2002, and I was awarded "Best Original Song" in '03. We did formal showcases at both The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and The Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference (NERFA). We put out one full length CD, "Supercar", one multimedia DVD project, "Deep", some single song recordings, and we were included on several compilation CDs.
Since then, I have been working as a backup / studio singer and in smaller projects, and as a clinician and adjudicator at events all over the country.