Singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco [ tickets ] will make her official return from a year's hiatus spent recovering from tendinitis when she launches her 2006 summer tour in June and supports a new album on the horizon for August.

The performer took a break for her time off in April to make an appearance at the Jazz and Heritage Festival in still-recovering New Orleans. DiFranco also played a couple of warm-up shows around the same time, but these were the only appearances she's made since last July, when she announced the one-year layoff.

DiFranco's summer outing now runs into September. Tickets for nearly all shows are currently on sale.

The singer's latest album, "Reprieve," is due to hit stores Aug. 8. Her most recent studio release, "Knuckle Down," the 18th of a career dating back to her 1990 self-titled debut, was released early last year.

DiFranco, who typically performs more than 100 gigs per year, announced last year that she is suffering from inflamed nerves and tendons in her wrists and hands. Following her tendinitis diagnosis, she took a three-month break from the road in an unsuccessful effort to treat the condition. She then canceled all of her planned dates for late August and beyond.