Lytingale (Lois Henrickson)
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A prolific songwriter (about 500+ songs - she stopped counting!) and a versatile musician (vocals, keyboards, guitar, flute, alto flute, dulcimer, hand drums, and awesome kazoo) in many musical styles, "Lyte" has 3 albums (Home To My Heart on CD, and Altar of Love and Inspirations on Cassette), and several singles for download at Lytingale.com, as well as sheet music available from Lytingale Music or Heart Wind Music. She is also the author of a workshop & book on reshaping church music called Growing Your Church Music Program. She has used her clear soprano voice for all styles of music, from rock to opera, blues & jazz to musical comedy. Her songwriting reflects both deep spiritual exploration and a joyful wit & playfulness. |
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"Sisters" with Kathryn O'Shea
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Born in Farmington, Connecticut, she took voice lessons at Hartt School of Music, performed in school concerts & shows, did roles for Myth Farmington community theater, and was even a finalist in the Connecticut Junior Miss pageant. As a freshman at Ithaca College, she was featured in their Opera Workshop. She transferred to University of Connecticut where she graduated summa cum laude, University Scholar, with a major in Music Education (voice)... singing Mozart & madrigals for classes, and Grace Slick with a rock band on weekends. In Richmond VA and Washington DC she performed in a folk duo called Crystal Blue Breeze. Lyte has performed roles in musical theater at Asheville Community Theater, and has sung classical solos with The Asheville Choral Society, the North Carolina Symphony, and The Johnson City (TN) Symphony.
Lyte loves to scat and improvise, and has studied improvisational singing with Rhiannon and Elise Witt. |
Mom & me
Held by my grandpa Carl Henrickson
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 Womansong - 75 voices in harmony
She now accompanies, composes, arranges, and sings with Womansong of Asheville community chorus.
Two of Lyte's original songs appear on their CD "Everybody Got Her Own." Lyte's song "With Great Love" was selected and performed by a 300-voice mass choir at Sister Singers Network Festival 2010 in Chicago (sheet music available). "Together We Can Change the World" will be performed by mass choir at the 2023 Sister Singers Festival in Cleveland. Her song "I Will Carry You" is the title track on Womansong's 2012 CD. Two of her songs, "My Sisters" and "Dinner," are included on Womansong's 2017 CD, "Turn the World Around." Womansong's 2018 concert season included her songs "Dress Like a Woman", "All I Really Want is Peace on Earth", and "Me, Too". |
Wedding on the Pacific coast
At UMMAS retreat
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Lyte's songs have been widely used in Unity churches, and have been published in a Unity hymnal ("I Am Love") and in Unity Worldwide Ministries' songbook Songs From A World Awakening, Volume I ("Hold Me In Your Arms, Mother Earth," "I Open My Life," and "Spirit's Journey") and in the Unity Online Choral Library at Heart Wind Music. "We Are All Friends Here" is used as a welcome song in many Unity churches; "The Greatest Gift" is also sung in several churches of other denominations.
Lyte served at Unity in Mills River, NC, from 1983 to 2015 as
Lytingale taught private voice & piano lessons, and has team-taught Sing for Joy Voice Classes. Lyte officiates or sings at wedding ceremonies and at memorial services, has sung at local Unitarian-Universalist churches, has been a guest speaker and/or musician at other Unity churches, is a founder of UMMAS and was a frequent performer at their annual Retreat, and has performed for other regional and national Unity conferences. Lyte is a Reiki II healer, attuned by Jonna Rae Bartges. She offers personal life coaching, a spiritual workshop with music ("Sweep The Cobwebs From Your Mind"), and is working on a book. Lytingale lives in beautiful western North Carolina. Married for 30+ years to the late Rev. Chad O'Shea, they are the proud parents of two talented offspring, Michael O'Shea (performing/composing as Kinjac; producer & mixing/mastering engineer, video editor, photographer) and Kathryn O'Shea (actor, singer/songwriter, professional puppeteer, dancer), who once worked together as Double Shadows.
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