Background
Saunders was born in Cardiff. She is the daughter of noted Cornish poet and linguist Tim Saunders and Lyn Mererid, who is a member of the choir Côr Cochion Caerdydd and works as a translator. When she was growing up, her father spoke Cornish, her mother spoke Welsh.
Education
From the age of 5 she attended the Seán Éireann-McMahon Academy of Irish Dance and was a cast member of Michael Flatley"s productions of Lord Of The Dance and Feet of Flames by the age of 17, playing a lead role in a Las Vegas production of the former.
Career
She is best known as a singer and keyboardist with The Pipettes, where she was known by the name Gwenno Pipette. She now performs as a solo artist and released the album Y Dydd Olaf on Heavenly Recordings in 2015. In 2001 she had a role in the Welsh language soap opera Pobol y Cwm on S4C, for whom she would later host her own programme Ydy Gwenno"n Gallu..?.
She is fluent in Welsh and Cornish.
Pre-The Pipettes (2002–2004)
In December 2004 Gwenno filmed the song "Ysolt y"nn Gweinten" by Celtic Legend for Classic FM television lieutenant is claimed to be the first video produced in the Cornish language, the text having been written by her father Tim Saunders with music by Cornish composer and ex Gary Numan keyboard player Chris John Payne. The Pipettes (2005–2010)
Gwenno joined The Pipettes in April 2005 after founding member Julia left.
She is most notable for her lead vocals on the single "Pull Shapes" and the chorus of "Your Kisses Are Wasted on Maine". She has more recently posted solo material to her Myspace page, and made a free download of a mini album titled U & I available in October 2007.
In April 2008, Gwenno"s younger sister Ani joined the Pipettes, after the departure of singers Rosay and RiotBecki.
Ani now also releases music with the band The Lovely Wars and solo under the name Ani Glass. Post-The Pipettes (2010-present)
Gwenno has toured as a synth player with Pnau and Elton John in 2012. In June 2012, Saunders released a 5-song Welsh language European Parliament called "Ymbelydredd", available on hand-painted cassettes on Peski Records.
Gwenno appears on The Boy Least Likely To"s 2013 album The Great Perhaps, contributing vocals to the track "lieutenant Could Have Been Maine".
She released her first solo full-length album, the Welsh-language Y Dydd Olaf, in October 2014 on Peski Records. In May 2015 Gwenno was signed to Heavenly Recordings.
The label re-released her debut album in July. Gwenno also currently co-produces and co-hosts a Welsh radio show on Cardiff Radio titled "Cam O"r Tywyllwch" ("A Step Away from the Darkness") with her Peski Records colleagues.
The team was also behind the The Communications Advertising and Marketing "15 music festival in Cardiff, which took place in April 2015 and featured the first live performance in over 20 years by Welsh music post-punk pioneers Datblygu.
Solo discography.