 Between 1976 and 1986, she lived in New York where she worked in a band with Carter Burwell and Stephen Bray, as well as writing music for two theatre productions at La MaMa ETC, and occasionally working for Virgin Records.Working within the recording industry had a negative impact on her career aims, and subsequently she resumed her long-abandoned studies of piano, and began studying music of other cultures.In 1992, Simonds relocated from London to West Cork to focus on writing music.