BillCopelandMusicNews.com received the following press release from Marcia Macres. Macres has written a brief article about her friend and music scene colleague Valerie Giglio. Giglio, without ever showing prior symptoms, suffered a massive stroke. Through strength, positivity, determination, and the healing power found in music, Giglio has recovered miraculously.
May 11, 2015
BOSTON, MA – The sultry voice of Stoneham vocalist and Wakefield native Valerie Giglio has been entertaining audiences for years in the Greater Boston area and beyond. She has performed at venues including Scullers Jazz Club, Chick Singer Night Boston, various local hotspots, town festivals and events, and as far away as BJ’s Jazz Club in the Maltese islands. In an instant, it all came to a quick halt in June 2014 when Valerie suffered a massive brain stem stroke. She simply jerked her neck too quickly when looking at her alarm clock as she awoke preparing to start her day job as a criminal attorney in Revere, a career she has also held for the past 15 years. She tore both neck arteries in a very rare medical emergency known as a Vertebral Artery Dissection, which affects approximately one in every 100,000 individuals and is an increasing cause of stroke affecting young and often healthy individuals, such as 42-year old Valerie. A life-threatening blood clot then lodged in Valerie’s brain stem, causing a stroke. The stroke left her fully paralyzed on the left side of her body and confined to a wheelchair. Adding to the heartbreak, the stroke also claimed her vocal cord resulting in the total loss of her singing voice at the height of her musical career.
Even more rare is her remarkable recovery from a wheelchair to relearning to walk, run, rock climb, fence, walk the Red Carpet at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, and getting her voice back all in just 10 months. She spent months at Massachusetts General Hospital and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Charlestown and Medford, with daily continuous therapy to relearn how to walk, move her head, and use her arm and hand again[VG1] . Her rock-star determination and refusal to give up have clearly played a role in what her Spaulding Rehab therapy team calls a miraculous recovery.
Her love for music and desire to sing again kept her focused on her goal. In October 2014, with her armor of determination and support of her husband, family and friends, Valerie started working with vocal coach Vykki Vox, Director of Voice Department, at The Real School of Music in Burlington, MA. “I am so utterly grateful to Vykki Vox and The Real School of Music for helping me regain my voice. At first I thought it was gone forever but after Vykki started to work with me, it all began to slowly come back. She is an amazing vocal coach.” Says Valerie of Vox. After only a month of vocal instruction, Valerie performed a song at The Real School of Music’s monthly open mic show and surprised everyone with her amazing accomplishments. She was on her way to reclaiming her professional voice. Since October, “Valerie has shown so much vocal growth in such a short time. The brain is the biggest part of your vocal mechanism. If you allow yourself to calm your mind and body, then your voice will come together”, comments Vykki Vox of The Real School of Music. Valerie is also a featured singer in Grammy® winning composer, Laura Sullivan’s new video production, 900 Voices.
To see Valerie on the street, it is impossible to tell that she’s suffered a devastating stroke. As Valerie continues her journey on the road to recovery, she has many things to look forward to. She has been invited to sing at the next Chick Singer Night Boston fundraiser on June 11, 2015 at Johnny D’s in Somerville and will also attend Berklee College of Music’s jazz clinic at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy this summer.
Valerie is using her incredible experience and sharing it with others in hopes to raise stroke awareness and prevention, especially in younger individuals. It is a condition often misunderstood as an affliction affecting primarily the elderly population. May is Stroke Awareness Month. Learn the warning signs of a stroke and help save someone you love. Use this simple test called F.A.S.T. F=Face Drooping, A=Arm Weakness; S=Speech Difficulty, T=Time to call 911.
Take a ride along Valerie’s amazing journey by watching this inspirational YouTube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=27&v=0abSpCsiBng.
For more information about this powerhouse vocalist, attorney and amazing woman, visit Valerie Giglio’s website at http://www.valeriegiglio.com. We are sure to see, and hear, a lot more from this amazing songbird who has found her voice again.
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More about Valerie Giglio:
2009–CD release entitled “Songbook” – a collection of her favorite standards from the Great American Songbook reinterpreted in her own unique style.
2011–CD release entitled “The Italian Project” – an Italian-themed collection comprising of swing, blues, and pop cover tunes in Italian from the era of La Dolce Vita as well as Italian contemporary songs and Italian versions of classic American hits – showcasing even more of her ability, range, and depth as an vocalist while staying true to her retro styling.
Website: www.valeriegiglio.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/valeriegiglio
Twitter: www.twitter.com/valeriegiglio
Reverbnation: www.reverbnation.com/valeriegiglio
Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/valerie-giglio
CD Baby: www.cdbaby.com/valeriegiglio
