Born in Ithaca NY in 1988, I was introduced to guitar at the age of 17. I started taking the guitar seriously around 21 years old. My driving influences were folk, gospel, soul, blues, funk, and indie rock. I’ve experienced so much joy writing and performing with Waking Bear. Who knows what will happen when we all wake from hibernation – we want to yell and sing! Of course I’ll be wailing on the electric guitar – and thank goodness for that because you wouldn’t want me wailing into a microphone!
2011 was a year of musical awakening for me. Emerging within my spirit was a grand appreciation for music. After playing around on a roommate’s guitar, I sought my very own. I was determined and I dedicated myself to full time practice. During this time I connected to something very special in my heart – communicating beautiful, cathartic, and sacred motives that tell a story you can connect with on another level. I have felt the healing energy of music in those painful moments of smiling up from the bottom of a well (figuratively). The novelty of this art form has left me spellbound from the beginning. It truly is the best thing that’s happened to me. I took a few lessons, but mostly learned from jammin’ and youtube lessons. Around age 26 I engaged with the psychedelic feeling I felt from playing the blues. Since then I have gotten to know my instrument in a whole new way, mixing major and minor scales in a harmonic and melodic way to convey expressive motifs that lend themselves to the essence of the song. It took a pretty bit of time. Hours, developing techniques that felt the most natural for my hands to enact.
Through the ups and downs of this journey, I have experienced how playing guitar provides a secure foundation to keep me grounded in this purpose: to participate in this medium of artistic expression and be active in the community. I’ve been through a handful of bands in the last decade all of which I am truly grateful to have been a part of and to have learned from. The courage and earnest intent to make the most of what I have to work with has led to joining Waking Bear. From the bottom of my heart, I truly love and admire the beautiful souls who are my bandmates. It’s such a joy to collaborate with this creative team of artists to uplift you with these stories in song.
