Ugia Pedreira (now known as A Pedreira) was born in Foz, a town in the Galician province of Lugo, and the cultural and linguistic geology of the region has been deeply influential for this singular composer. Since launching a music career in 1995, ‘A’ has become a beloved artist in her country of origin. At age 50+, she is “a multifaceted, wild, rebellious and sophisticated woman, with the gift of the written and sung word.” When Pedreira sings about life and the grip of the Cantabrian Sea, her songs resonate with many generations of fans.
The singer’s rise to prominence in Galician music began with her frequent collaborations, and the three albums she released with the folk group Chouteira. Pedreira’s best-known project was the band Marful, the gold standard for Galician popular music, which took her to Cuba, the Sines Festival (Portugal) and Celtic Connections (Scotland), and led to tours across Galicia, Spain and Portugal. Pedreira confesses that she has been “out of the conventional boxes for seven years,” and these days socializes mainly with dance artists, writers, poets, and plastic artists rather than with musicians.
In 2020, A Pedreira made her solo debut with Segmento Cantábrico, a progressive folk album that mixes music, poetry and spoken word. It’s “an ode to the word,” which strikes an elegant balance between organic instruments and vintage electronic music, and secures her place as the voice of the Galician blues, with a passion for rock and a wide knowledge of popular roots music.