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 BACKPACKER
CD Review -River to River Trail: The Hike through Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois
Rain trickles through the leaves, saturating the ground and releasing the warm musky scent of clean earth in Shawnee National Forest. I reach up to wipe the drizzle from my brow, but…it’s dry. Really good rainjacket? Nope, really good CD. So good, in fact, are the piano solos on River to River Trail that they’ll sweep you away to a lush forest even if you’re sitting in a dingy office. The 176-mil -
Read Full Description – Susan Newquist, Associate Editor, Backpacker.
Flipside, Southern Illinoisan
Zola Van included on compilation of composers, pianists -- Ken Seeber
A new CD called "The HeartAid Project" has just been released. It's a collection of piano music designed to benefit the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and their families. One of the featured artists is Herrin composer and pianist Zola Van.
The CD, which retails for $16.98, is being distributed by Spring Hill Music, one of the leading independent New Age record companies i -
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The Daily Egyptian
..."Nature has always been inspirational for Zola, who used to visit places in Southern Illinois as a young girl. Her mother would paint landscapes and draw in charcoal, as Zola and her sister played on paddleboats at Pounds Hollow, near Camel Rock in Garden of the Gods. Her grandparents also taught her to respect nature through their love of farming. Her music is an accumulation of these experi Read "Musical Inspiration from Mother Nature" by Jennifer Wig in full at: Read Full article
 Southern Illinoisan
"A Walking Inspiration":
..."I've written music for years, just sitting at my piano bench, or wherever I am," said Van. "It's on napkins. I'll find it in an old purse, I find it under the car seat. I just write music down on whatever I can grab when something comes to me." Van was with her family at Millstone Bluff, near Garden of the Gods, looking at an ancient Indian petroglyph of a thunderbird, when inspiration for h -
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American Hiker
The magazine of American Hiking Society
The Shawnee Forest has always been a part of me. Long before I realized this forest has a heart that speaks to those who listen, I had been drawn into a connection with it that I carry with me wherever I am. I find that when I visit other places, I catch myself comparing these new locations to the forest, and no matter how beautiful, I have none that compare to the Shawnee. Its very heart has spo Read Full article
 Melodies In The Wind
Undoubtedly some of the most beautiful country in the United States is found in deep southern Illinois along the River-To-River Trail. The passage runs from Battery Rock on the state's eastern boundary, through the Shawnee National Forest and on to Devil's Backbone Park at Grand Tower on the banks of the Mississippi River, covering 175 miles and requiring about two weeks to hike in its entirety. Outdoor Illinois a publication of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources by Liz Pensoneau, Managing Editor. Read Full article
Nightlife
Music Notes and Entertainment Briefs
Charting --
According to http://NewAgeVoice.com, pianist Zola Van’s Paint the Forest Winter is the number three new-age album in the nation, sitting above releases by Phillip Glass, George Winston, and Peter Gabriel. New Age Voice magazine determines chart position based on radio airplay. Congratulations!...
December 12, 2002 - January 9, 2003 Carbondale, Illinois |
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 NAV New Age Voice Magazine, January 2003
by Peter Manzi, Editor -- First Spins NAV MUSIC REVIEWS
If you're antsy to get outdoors but can't due to the winter's weather, the next best thing may be to listen to Zola Van's second effort Paint the Forest Winter. Her 12 impressionist pieces were inspired by hikes through the Shawnee National Forest in Illinois, and most are some of the more melodic, romantic and visual piano efforts you'll hear this year from a piano solo release. An excellent a -
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 SE Missourian by Sam Blackwell, Editor
SONGS OF SHAWNEE -- Southern Illinois Musician Riding High on New Age Charts -- Friday, Jan. 17, 2003
For most of her adult life, Zola Van was a music teacher in the public schools who enjoyed the outdoors and playing the piano. She gave private piano lessons and played "The Wedding March" on many Saturdays. Thirteen years ago she became the mother of the first of her two daughters, Jessica and Katelyn. "Mommy" was and is a role central to her life.
But now Van is a pianist whose name and CD Photo credit: Fred Lynch Read Full article
NAV - New Age Voice Top100: Zola Van
Top 100 Charts and Playlists - Airwaves Chart
About NAV Charts & Playlists:
New Age Voice Magazine published the industry's Top 100 Airwaves charts as well as each contributing radio station's monthly top 20 playlists. Previously included as a newspaper insert with each magazine, the individual playlists were available exclusively online from November 2001 through December 2002. Zola has ranked 8 times in the NAV Top 100 being reviewed -
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Rankings have been taken from the NAV Top 100
 Christmas Reviews.com
by Richard Banks
Foundering and feeling as though my adjectival flow has been cut off, I still have all these reviews to do (right away). Fortunately, I could just sit back and enjoy Zola Van's piano. Of course, I couldn't enjoy myself for long without trying to understand and over-analyze what it is that hooked me. Fortunately, I can enjoy and analyze at virtually the same time.
What I liked first was the po If you like Christmas music, you will love this site! Read Full article
 Rebecca Review
5 Star Review -- Mystical Christmas Journey
Truly, I've never heard a collection of piano solos so delicate in magical beauty. Zola Van's music will quickly capture your heart. The universal messages of hope, peace and love have been captured in her interpretations of each carol. I highly recommend "Carol: A Christmas Journey" for the Holiday Season or anytime when you need a musical escape. It is timeless in its appeal and is a much neede The Rebecca Review is one of the Top Amazon.com Reviewers Read Full article
 The Southern Illinoisan
TEAMING UP TO HELP CHILDREN: FALL FANTASY FESTIVAL BENEFITS POSHARD FOUNDATION, KICKS OFF 'PAT'S KIDS' FUND-RAISER
BY JIM MUIR
THE SOUTHERN
Posted: Sunday, November 21, 2004 7:38 AM CST
CARTERVILLE -- A large and enthusiastic crowd of more than 700 people turned out Saturday night at John A. Logan College for the sixth annual Fall Fantasy Festival, a popular fund-raising event that benefits the Poshard Foundation.
Pianist Zola Van plays dinner music while the guests ... STEVE JAHNKE / THE SOUTHERN
photo credit Read Full article
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