Dorian Wood

Wood was born in Los Angeles, California to Costa Rican parents. They began their musical education at a very early age, under the tutelage of their grandfather, the pianist Calasanz Alvarez.[http://www.laweekly.com/2007-08-16/music/dorian-wood-beautiful-losing/ Dorian Wood: Beautiful Losing], LA Weekly. In their early teens, Wood’s parents divorced, and Wood’s mother moved them and their sisters to Costa Rica. They continued their studies at the Conservatorio de Castella, and after graduating, they made their way back to Los Angeles. They studied film at Los Angeles City College for two years but then dropped out to concentrate on music.[http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/?p=679 SoCal Musician Mends Heartbreak on Debut], Signal Tribune. Wood first gained exposure performing on the gay bar circuit.[http://hearincolors.com/2013/10/04/las-dorian-wood-is-something-else/ LA's Dorian Wood is Something Else] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235844/http://hearincolors.com/2013/10/04/las-dorian-wood-is-something-else/ |date=March 3, 2016 }}, Hear in Colors.

Wood released their debut album, BOLKA, independently in 2006. Produced by Rebecca Stout, BOLKA received wide critical acclaim for its impeccable merging of folk, soul, Bulgarian choral music and experimental music. They quickly followed up BOLKA with the EP, Black Pig Suite.[http://www.net-emergence.org/lartiste-du-mois/interview-dorian-wood-pianos-frances-bacon-and-peter-seeger Interview Dorian Wood: Pianos, Frances Bacon and Peter Seeger] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100601080326/http://www.net-emergence.org/lartiste-du-mois/interview-dorian-wood-pianos-frances-bacon-and-peter-seeger |date=June 1, 2010 }}, Net Emergence. In 2010, they released the album Brutus, which featured only Wood on vocal and piano, and was recorded live at the church St. Giles in the Fields in London, in the midst of their European tour.[http://indigestmag.com/blog/?p=5501#.VCcO_mNg8_F God Bless This Army So Close to the Ground (how the Brutus)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201092312/http://indigestmag.com/blog/?p=5501#.VCcO_mNg8_F |date=2015-02-01 }}, InDigest Mag.

Wood was a member of the Los Angeles-based experimental orchestra Killsonic for three years.[http://www.laweekly.com/2009-02-19/music/killsonic-a-24-piece-l-a-big-band-39-s-quot-cloud-of-noise-quot/ Killsonic: A 24-Piece L.A. Big Band's "Cloud of Noise"], LA Weekly. Wood received critical praise for their performance and "picture perfect" art direction (Los Angeles Times) in the Killsonic opera, Tongues Bloody Tongues, presented at the REDCAT in Los Angeles in 2010.[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2010/07/dance-review-the-now-festival-at-redcat.html Performance review: Killsonic at the NOW Festival at REDCAT], Los Angeles Times. Wood performed at the REDCAT again in 2011 in the opera Zoophilic Follies, along with Timur and The Dime Museum.[http://www.timesquotidian.com/2012/05/30/dont-quarrel-about-species/ Don't Quarrel About Species] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304032245/http://www.timesquotidian.com/2012/05/30/dont-quarrel-about-species/ |date=March 4, 2016 }}, Times Quotidian.

In 2011, Wood was commissioned by LACE (Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions) to present a new work for the performance series Los Angeles Goes Live, part of Pacific Standard Time. Wood's performance installation, Athco, Or The Renaissance of Faggot Tree, incorporated over 30 performers, and was presented at Barnsdall Art Park.{{Cite web|last=Hoetger|first=Megan|date=2012|title=Re-performance: History as an Experience to Be Had|url=https://www.x-traonline.org/article/re-performance-history-as-an-experience-to-be-had/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928213047/http://x-traonline.org/article/re-performance-history-as-an-experience-to-be-had/ |archive-date=September 28, 2015 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=X-TRA}} That same year, Wood performed with acclaimed artist Marina Abramović in her piece An Artist's Life Manifesto, presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

Wood released the album Rattle Rattle in 2013. An epic collection of original doomsday-themed songs that form one strong, continuous piece, Rattle Rattle incorporated over 60 musicians, including a 45-member choir assembled by Wood themself, The Difficult Women, as well as duets with Angela Correa (Correatown, Les Shelleys) and Nina Savary.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2013-04-09|title=Album Review: Dorian Wood, 'Rattle Rattle'|url=http://la.thedelimagazine.com/13346/album-review-dorian-wood-rattle-rattle|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517042635/http://la.thedelimagazine.com/13346/album-review-dorian-wood-rattle-rattle |archive-date=May 17, 2013 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=The Deli Magazine|language=en-US}} Wood directed the controversial video for the first single "La Cara Infinita" (a duet with Eddika Organista), which featured a guest appearance by Margaret Cho.{{Cite web|last=Portwood|first=Jerry|date=2013-05-16|title=WATCH: Dorian Wood's 'La Cara Infinita'|url=https://www.out.com/entertainment/popnography/2013/05/16/dorian-wood-la-cara-infinita-margaret-cho|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304061115/http://www.out.com/entertainment/popnography/2013/05/16/dorian-wood-la-cara-infinita-margaret-cho |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Out|language=en}} Wood's following video for their single "O" featured performance artist Rafa Esparza and model/make-up artist Taryn Piana.{{Cite web|last=Nichols|first=James|date=2014-04-09|title=Dorian Wood, Queer Artist, Premieres 'O' (VIDEO)|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dorian-wood-o_n_5111617|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-11-18|website=HuffPost|language=en}}

In October 2014, Wood toured Europe in support of the release of their EP, Down, The Dirty Roof, via Atonal Industries.{{Cite web|date=2014-06-30|title=Gira europea y nuevo EP de Dorian Wood en Otoño|url=http://bornmusic.org/blog/gira-europea-y-nuevo-ep-de-dorian-wood-en-otono/|access-date=2020-11-18|website=Born! Blog|language=es|archive-date=November 12, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141112132732/http://bornmusic.org/blog/gira-europea-y-nuevo-ep-de-dorian-wood-en-otono/|url-status=dead}} In 2015, Wood released a digital EP, "Hymn to Freedom", also via Atonal Industries.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2015-06-23|title=DORIAN WOOD: HYMN TO FREEDOM EP|url=https://larecord.com/album-reviews/2015/06/23/dorian-wood-hymn-to-freedom-ep-album-review|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209013140/http://larecord.com:80/album-reviews/2015/06/23/dorian-wood-hymn-to-freedom-ep-album-review |archive-date=February 9, 2016 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=L.A. Record}}

In May 2017, Wood released the album XALÁ. Recorded at the Auditori Municipal in Vila-Real, Spain, "XALÁ" is their first full-length release recorded completely in Spanish. Described by Wood as an exploration and simultaneous devaluing of hyper masculinity, they are accompanied on the recording by bassist Xavi Muñoz and percussionist Marcos Junquera.{{Cite web|last=Mesa|first=Daniel|date=2017-05-23|title=El matriarcado es lo único que puede salvar este mundo|url=http://www.mondosonoro.com/entrevistas/dorian-wood/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180310011936/http://www.mondosonoro.com/entrevistas/dorian-wood/|archive-date=2018-03-10|access-date=2018-03-10|website=Mondo Sonoro|language=es}}

In April 2019, Wood debuted their orchestral tribute project to iconic Mexican/Costa Rican singer Chavela Vargas, XAVELA LUX AETERNA, at the Festival Internacional de Arte Sacro in Madrid. The project was created in collaboration with Spanish artist Alberto Montero. The project toured Europe, the U.S. and Mexico from 2019 through the beginning of 2020.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=FIAS 2020|url=http://www.madrid.org/fias/2020/dorianwood3.html|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2020-11-18|website=Comunidad de Madrid|language=es}} In May 2020, Wood released the EP Paloma, which was recorded at Teatro Real Coliseo de Carlos III in Spain, during the final concert of the tour.{{Cite web|last=Wood|first=Dorian|date=2020-05-01|title=Paloma, by Dorian Wood|url=https://dorianwood.bandcamp.com/album/paloma|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200514194639/https://dorianwood.bandcamp.com/album/paloma |archive-date=May 14, 2020 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Bandcamp}}

Wood announced in 2020 the release of two back-to-back albums, ARDOR and REACTOR. The albums were recorded during an artist residency at Human Resources LA.{{Cite web|last=Hereford|first=André|date=2020-09-04|title=Dorian Wood creates a soundtrack for resistance and action with two new albums|url=https://www.metroweekly.com/2020/09/dorian-wood-creates-a-soundtrack-for-resistance-and-action-with-two-new-albums/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200907170858/https://www.metroweekly.com/2020/09/dorian-wood-creates-a-soundtrack-for-resistance-and-action-with-two-new-albums/ |archive-date=September 7, 2020 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Metro Weekly|language=en-US}}

In 2022, Wood debuted their tribute to the singer Lhasa De Sela, entitled LHASA, at the Festival Internacional de Arte Sacro in Madrid, in collaboration with singer Carmina Escobar and composer Adrián Cortés.{{cite web | url=https://www.rgbmultimedia.es/proyectos2022/fias/dwood.html | title=FIAS 2022 | XXXII Festival Internacional de Arte Sacro de la Comunidad de Madrid | access-date=August 26, 2022 | archive-date=August 26, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220826211620/https://www.rgbmultimedia.es/proyectos2022/fias/dwood.html | url-status=dead }}

• BOLKA (2006)
• Black Pig Suite EP (2009)
• Brutus (2010)
• Glassellalia EP (2012)
• Pearline EP (2012)
• Rattle Rattle (2013)
• La Cara Infinita EP (2013)
• Down, The Dirty Roof EP (2014)
• Hymn to Freedom EP (2015)
• Ten Bowie Songs (2016)
• XALÁ (2017)
• Segua EP (2018)
• Rhythm Nation 1814 (Live at Human Resources) (2019)
• Paloma EP (2020)
• ARDOR (2020)
• REACTOR (2020)
• Invasiva (2022)
• Philomeno EP (2022){{Cite web|last=Wood|first=Dorian|date=|title=Dorian Wood|url=https://dorianwood.bandcamp.com/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106135704/http://dorianwood.bandcamp.com/ |archive-date=January 6, 2010 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Bandcamp}}

Wood is genderfluid and uses she/they pronouns.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Dorian Wood - Bio|url=https://www.dorianwood.com/bio|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170617000706/http://www.dorianwood.com:80/bio |archive-date=June 17, 2017 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Dorian Wood|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Wood|first=Dorian|date=|title=Dorian Wood (@DorianWoodMusic)|url=https://twitter.com/dorianwoodmusic|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200531181844/https://twitter.com/DorianWoodMusic |archive-date=May 31, 2020 |access-date=2020-11-18|website=Twitter|language=en}}

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Category:1975 births

Category:Living people

Category:American people of Costa Rican descent

Category:Performance art in Los Angeles

Category:Singers from Los Angeles

Category:Non-binary singers

Category:Los Angeles City College alumni

Category:21st-century American singers

Category:American non-binary musicians

Category:21st-century American LGBTQ people

Category:Genderfluid writers

Category:Genderfluid artists