June 19, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Local singer/songwriter to perform at Pastorius
by Kristin Pazulski

Lizanne Knott, a lifelong musician and Philadelphia area native, will be gracing the stage at the Pastorius Park concert on Wednesday, June 25. Knott, who grew up in Horsham and Ambler, has been playing the guitar since she was 10 years old and has been touring the area’s stages for years as a singer/songwriter.

“I’ve been playing for forever and a day,” she said in a phone interview last week.

Knott is an “XPN Welcomes” musician who has played at many of the area’s recognized venues, including World Café Live, the Kimmel Center, Tin Angel and more. This will be her first performance at Pastorius, which she said she is excited about because it brings her two favorite performing conditions together.

“I absolutely love performing outside, and I like the smaller audience because it’s more intimate,” she said of the Pastorius’ venue, which she has learned about through her friends Melody Gardot and Phil Roy, who have performed in the concert series. “I love being able to see people’s faces, which you can do outside.”

She recently returned from her first overseas tour in England. Knott had to cut her UK tour short this winter because it was discovered that she has a medical disorder that causes her blood to clot — the reason and diagnosis are still being researched.

“It threw me for a loop a little bit,” she said.

But, fortunately, the best medicine for Knott, a self-proclaimed “YMCA addict” who loves to run, is to keep moving, so she has continued to perform locally and has scheduled another UK tour next year.

Most noteworthy about Knott’s musical career, besides her talent, is her dedication to using her music for good. Her music has been used in independent films, documentaries and to raise money for nonprofits, most notably the organization, HEAL Africa.

HEAL Africa provides medical aid to individuals and families in warring Central African countries.

Knott was introduced to HEAL Africa’s efforts through a television documentary. After watching the struggle in Central Africa and what HEAL Africa was doing to help, she contacted the organization and offered aid.

“It just struck me,” she said. “It came kind of naturally for me, to do something for them.”

The organization’s owners invited her to New York to see a video on their programs, and asked if she would create a song for them. Her project resulted in more than one song — Knott created an entire CD for the organization, which is sold with 100 percent of the proceeds going to HEAL Africa (learn more at healafrica.org). She said it has raised thousands of dollars for the organization.

Knott, a former horse trainer, lives in Spring House, Pa., with her children and husband Glenn Barratt, a Grammy Award-winning producer and engineer. They have a recording studio together in Spring House on Bethlehem Pike.

She is performing with a band next Wednesday, with local artist John Conohan on keyboard. Also taking the stage that evening is Jim Boggia, a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist with a new album, Misadventures In Stereo, due out Aug. 5.

The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. Rain location is J. S. Jenks Elementary School, 8301 Germantown Ave.