Nationally celebrated singer-songwriter Jeanne Cotter will perform at 7 tonight at the historic Paramount Theatre.

Friday, May 11, 2001

Nationally celebrated singer-songwriter Jeanne Cotter will perform at 7 tonight at the historic Paramount Theatre.

She will be performing a repertoire of songs from her new CD, "Diamonds on the Water." The performance was scheduled last January before the tragic death of her father, Dick Cotter, in February.

"(Mayor) Bonnie Rietz asked me to do a concert for the Paramount last summer," Cotter said. "A portion of the cost for the concert will go to the restoration of the Paramount. I have never performed at the Paramount. My last concert in Austin was at the high school auditorium. I have fond memories of the Paramount. The first movie I saw there was ‘Mary Poppins.’"

Cotter will be playing the piano while singing songs she wrote. Her music is folk and country. The music industry categorizes her style as adult contemporary. She probably will be singing something a cappella. Her performance will include storytelling and the characters in her stories are all from Austin.

"I want this performance to be a celebration of being from Austin," Cotter said. "My last couple times in Austin have been duress since the death of my dad. He was excited about me doing this concert. I want to celebrate my life. The death of my dad has changed me and my family; it almost seems as if this was our time to have something tragic happen to us."

Cotter and her husband-manager Matt Moore used to come to Austin every summer and have music retreats at her dad’s home on the outskirts of the city. They still will be having these retreats, but they will be held in Cambridge now. They have rented a log cabin located on lake surrounded by 90 acres of woods.

Cotter’s first music teacher was her mother, Beverly. Her mother would be in the kitchen shouting out instructions as Cotter played the piano. Her dad, Dick, would come home at night and ask to hear a concert.

"My dad couldn’t tell the difference of what I made up on the piano and what was a learned piece," Cotter said. "We all sang in the house, and doing concerts for my dad is when I made up songs."

Even if you have heard Cotter perform before, Moore says every concert is different and Cotter brings something new and fresh each time she performs.

Call Sheila Donnelly at 434-2214 or e-mail her at newsroom@austindailyherald.com.