Hanna Richardson & Phil Flanigan

b. 16 May 1956, Alexandria, Virginia, USA. The daughter of a foreign service officer, much of Richardson’s childhood was spent overseas. At the age of seven, while in South America, she began piano lessons and also sang at home with the family. In 1965, her father retired to Geneva, New York, and it was while in high school there that she encountered bass player Phil Flanigan. While still in college, she began singing professionally, first rock and then folk music. Thanks to hearing Ella Fitzgerald on record, she decided to start singing jazz. However, it was the singing style of Maxine Sullivan that was to have the greatest impact upon her. After college, Richardson moved to Rochester, New York, continuing to pursue her interest in both folk music and jazz and she also taught herself to play the mandolin. In 1986, she moved to Syracuse, New York, and continued to work at Syracuse University, eventually becoming Assistant Dean in the School of Management. She sang professionally during this period, as back-up singer on several recording sessions, and at various engagements in the Syracuse area. Re-encountering Flanigan who had toured and recorded with Sullivan, Richardson began singing with him and he became her second husband. It was almost inevitable that their first recording project together, 2002’s Something To Remember You By, should be a tribute to Sullivan. An eloquent, unadorned, and lithely swinging singer, Richardson’s work displays her deep appreciation of the music and considerable respect for the lyrics, which she interprets with understated charm.
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