I began my musical journey with classical violin at the age of seven while being raised on the east coast by two Woodstock ‘69 performers. I was playing Bach and Beethoven and listening to the Who and Hendrix. In the early 2000’s, as a young teen, FM radio broadened me to the girl-powered voices of Destiny’s Child, TLC, and Alicia Keys, and then to the equally necessary angsty voices of Green Day, Death Cab for Cutie, and Blink-182. I’m not sure how other kids made friends, but for me, I’d ask the prospective party if I could scroll through their iPod and then I’d make my call. I was looking for variety.

While studying philosophy in college, I played in classical ensembles up until a particularly terrifying classical performance during which I virtually blacked out from stage fright. I put down classical violin and started improvising fiddle and singing in a folk trio. You can find footage of those days by googling “Lilting Forward”, and you’ll be blessed by the soothing voices of two other talented singer/songwriters: Melissa Chilinski and Sasha Letovsky. These folky women drew me out of my protective shell, helped me find my singing voice, and showed me the magic of three part harmonies. We performed on campus and around the Albany, NY area and though I still shook from stage fright, I was able to hear a strength emerge in my voice. I started diving into experimental folk singer/songwriters such as Andrew Bird, Laura Marling, Laura Veirs, Anais Mitchell, Sharon Van Etten, and Gregory Alan Isakov. Their words and sounds rang vibrant and true and the craft felt very accessible to me. I learned some simple songs on the guitar, performed solo at a few open mics, and was shocked by how comfortable and happy I felt up there, alone and spotlighted.

My own sound started pouring forth when I decided to leave New England and planted myself in the dry pines and cold rivers of northern CA in 2015. A change of scenery is often the most reliable catalyst for creativity. For the next few years I farmed, taught yoga, immersed myself in nature, and wrote my first EP, Feather, which I released in 2019.

I can’t separate my classical training from the way I write on guitar. Intricacy and precision were trained into my hands, and my mind was taught in orchestras to listen deeply to tone, dynamics, blending, and arc. Feather features a full band, including the magnificent cello work of composer Yoed Nir (https://yoednir.com/). Feather has been applauded as “poetic”, “emotionally kinetic”, “haunting”, and “giving.”

After releasing Feather, I performed all over Santa Cruz county. When the pandemic hit, I lost my day job and began writing my second album. While indoor concerts were on pause, I live-streamed dozens of shows and played as many outdoor concerts as possible. After heartbreak, a wildfire, and some deliberation, I decided to move back east. I booked a tour across the country and drove myself back to the east to grow my music near my homeroots.

Since moving to NYC, I’ve been flown back out to California to perform house concerts and at a local bay area music festival. My instrumental track, “November”, has been selected for the South Texas International Film Festival. My spotify audience has quadrupled, and I’ve acquired thousands of new streams. Safe to say, it was a good idea to move to New York City!

Hope to connect with you in some way, soon —Lyndsay