Aoife O’Donovan for MIAC live

Victoria Mcginty, Staff writer

Among many of the exciting things at Mercyhurst, students and staff are offered unique experiences that they cannot find anywhere else, one of which is our MIAC performances.

The Mercyhurst Institution for Arts and Culture, MIAC for short, is a unique program to Mercyhurst and the Erie community as a whole. This program brings in big-name celebrity performers and groups that are known across the world. The previous season brought names like Kristin Chenoweth, Rufus Wainwright, and Rosanne Cash to the D’Angelo stage.

For the 2020 half of this season, MIAC is hosting various concerts that are going to be held virtually on Zoom. To kick off this unique ensemble, Aoife O’ Donovan brings us her talents on Sept. 10, 2020.

Aoife O’ Donovan is best known as an American singer-songwriter specializing in Indie Folk and Indie Rock music. Born Nov. 18, 1982 in Boston, O’Donovan had always had a natural gift for music. Her interest in folk music began at a young age as she was influenced by musicians like Joan Baez and Bob Dylan.

O’Donovan then went on to study contemporary improvisation at the New England Conservatory of Music, located in Boston. While there, she formed the band Crooked Still with other musicians from the area. Graduating in 2003, she continued to make music with Crooked Still over the next few years up until 2011. While a part of Crooked Still, O’Donovan also formed a second group in 2005 called Sometimes Why. This contemporary folk group released their debut album “Sometimes Why” that same year, and a second, “Your Heart is a Glorious Machine,” in 2009.

While not playing in groups, Aoife works on her solo career. Currently, O’Donovon has released three EP’s, two albums, and a live recording. According to Spotify, she is most known for her songs “Loretta” (in collaboration with Taylor Ashton), “Stanly Park” and “Nebraska.”

When not performing and making music, Aoife is a wife and mother. She married conductor Eric Jacobsen in 2016. Following their marriage, the couple welcomed their daughter Ivy Jo into the world in 2017.

Her music is both easy-going and enjoyable, and any indie music fan should have her work on their playlist. While O’Donovan continues to collaborate with both groups and their members from time to time, her solo work has increased her notoriety in the public eye. For example, some of O’Donovan’s music can be heard on episodes of HBO’s “True Blood” as well as ABC’s “Private Practice.”

To listen to some of Aoife’s work, you can stream her music on Apple Music, Spotify, and other various music streaming services.

While Zoom is not the traditional way of holding concerts, the Mercyhurst community is still incredibly excited to have Aoife O’ Donovan open our 2020/2021 MIAC virtual series. The Indie music genre is a staple to many college students, and O’Donovon’s music is just the perfect tone for the atmosphere. For more information or to register for this event, contact director Dr. Brett Johnson at bjohnson. mercyhurst.edu or visit the Mercyhurst Institution for Arts and Culture website.