Some people would prefer to believe that the art of songwriting is dead., that popular music has been reduced to nothing more than reworked ideas of a musical form that even originally held little exception. The exception in this case is a strong and steady voice amongst the confusion, carrying the torch of a craft almost forgotten in the last 20 years, the craft of a songwriter, poet, dreamer and storyteller all rolled into one gentle mind. At 24, Tara MacLean, armed with a guitar and her voice, every night offers intimate glimpses of her soul to audiences hungry for creative substance. Tara MacLean is a songwriter.

It's not just the peek at her own inner workings that is drawing people in, but her uncanny ability to give the listener a glimpse into their own experience, as if they were looking into a mirror. This remarkable Canadian has the talent and quiet ability to make you feel like you're having a conversation with an old friend even if you're sitting alone in your living room.

Tara has spent most of her life as a globetrotter and world observer living and studying in places as diverse as the Caribbean, Toronto and the U.K. But it has been the last three years that have changed the life of this Prince Edward Island born poet in ways she could never have imagined. Discovered singing with friends on the outer deck of a B.C. ferry by Nettwerk staffers, MacLean's gentle style and honest approach won her fans immediately.

After recording "Let Her Feel The Rain" for the Nettwerk benefit compilation CD, Lit From Within, MacLean was signed by the label in April 1995. This agreement paved the way for Tara's debut album Silence, recorded in San Francisco at Brilliant Studios with producer Norm Kerner (American Music Club, Sky Cries Mary). Released in the summer of 1996 (and recently reissued), Silence has steadily garnered fans at radio and retail in North America.

Silence is a unique glance at subjects as wide-ranging as child abuse, loss, self-affirmation and hope, each carefully treated with the subtle grace of Tara's introspective pen. While the album showcases the sparkling reality of her songwriting gift, it is live where she and her songs shine brightest. Recent tours with Ashley MacIsaac, Paula Cole, and Dar Williams and appearances on the Lilith Fair tour have introduced her thoughtful folk-pop to a huge number of enthusiastic public minds hungry for musical art. The response has been overwhelmingly positive.

While it may seem contradictory to title an album Silence, Tara explains her choice to do so in her own unique and elegant way. "The album is called Silence because that is the place where songs are born. Out of a void something has to be created, to find light in darkness. Truth speaks to you in silence. It's the only place you can hear it."

These like all of her musings, are words carefully chosen.; they are appropriate evidence of the rare being that she is, for she is a songwriter.

Other fan sites:

• members.xoom.com/jlinvill/tara