| About Dia DiCristino | Dia DiCristino was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. From a young age she was interested in music -- at 14 she was accepted into the Girard Academic Music Program and graduated in 1998 with her high school diploma. While there she participated in a multitude of choirs, one of which traveled to Italy in 1998. The trip culminated in an impromptu performance inside the Vatican. After GAMP, Dia moved on to Immaculata University where she received her BA degrees in both Music and Theology in 2004. In 2002 she began her senior year at university , but unfortunately was diagnosed with an Arachnoid Cyst on the brain -- it covered more than 1/4 of her brain including the occipital lobes and cerebellum. This caused Dia to have 11 brain surgeries in the next 14 months and has left her with a wide variety of neurological problems. She suffers from hydrocephalus to rheumatoid arthritis and has failed every single adult VP shunt system available in Philadelphia. Dia was fitted with half pediatric shunt, half adult in 2004. Because of her health problems, music had to take a back seat for a while, but in 2004, just 3 months after her last surgery, Dia recorded a live album, entitled Five Songs, in St. Peter's Church, Staines, London. In 2007 Dia released her debut jazz album, After the Storm, and made her first music video for the song Moon River. Dia currently resides in the UK with her dogs Figaro and Pinocchio -- she makes frequent trips to the US when her health permits. |
Return to profile |