I love her. So much. Enya.

Her sound has influenced me since I was a teenager. Her ethereal soundscape has always taken me to a beautiful place. Perhaps because I grew up Catholic and the music in those cathedrals always had a somber, almost melancholy element to their melodies and harmonies. Enya went to Catholic boarding school and I imagine she experienced that beautiful, chilling, solemn, holy feeling of the music…she said she loves Gregorian chants, which I love as well. Although I don’t practice anymore, I still appreciate the sweet spirit of that holy music. Enya’s music has the same effect on me, and she has always helped me tap into my dialectic, between hope and sorrow.

Evening Falls is my favorite song of hers.

I strive to connect with my music like this. Like a candle in the dark. She has brought so much love into my life, and I hope that I can maybe do some of that through my music.

I also love when she sings in different languages, as I am a polyglot-wannabe. This song of hers in her native Gaelic is my favorite, about mourning the loss of youth…

Also of course, her songs for The Lord of the Rings…I just melt. I did a cover of “Aniron” (“I Desire”), and so let me know if you’d like to hear it. I do it in a different key because it was what I felt comfortable with; I just love singing that song. Also, how amazing that her lyricist-partner Roma Ryan created another fictional art language, Loxian. I mean I just so love that. Roma then went on to create a world for the Loxian people because she just needed to build a culture that would explain these folks’ sounds. I know that this may not connect with many people – however I like how Enya described it. She said that when she creates melodies, sometimes English, Gaelic, or Latin (a few of her staple languages she sings in) just don’t fit well. As a singer, I do feel sometimes that I wish I could create an art language that better captures the emotions I am feeling and the sounds I am making. I have studied many languages, lived in a good amount of other countries where I needed to speak in different languages. I feel that each language is another set of paints with which to paint one’s life, and music. I would love to learn the language you speak from wherever in the world you call home, as I always want to connect with people’s hearts!

Thus I believe you may hear this songstress’ influence in my music! I hope you enjoy, and again my first single “Lark” comes out by summer 2018.

Goodbye, my dears.

Tags: enya

Hello there wonderfuls,

I had another session at a studio, this time in New Jersey. I have been recording at another studio in North Carolina, but my producer lives in NJ and I was able to record with him helping create my vocals. It was a great experience and it felt so good. I am learning every time I record, as it is an interesting exercise. It involves the balance between feeling connected emotionally to the music as well as executing the technical needs for the recording. It reminds me of some acting classes I have taken, where you learn different methods to practice in order to create a performance that is natural and alive. I feel like I am getting used to it, but it is new and funny at times. My producer wanted me to insert “vocal fry” here and there, and it was just hilarious how much I was not able to do it…even though I love how Bjork does it. That night it was not coming out, but perhaps next time. Any vocal fry techniques y’all can share?

I was so exhausted by the end of the 2-hour session because it started at 8:30pm, and I had been flying solo with my three children for three days before then, my back hurt, and I had allergies. Luckily my hubster was able to be with the children that day, as I literally needed to recover during the whole day. I tried to clear the post-nasal drip-everything about my face-throat-voice…it was good by recording time. I was coughing as well, but not too bad. I am now researching many different ways to help with my allergies…singing has illuminated this need in my life. Please let me know if you all have magic sinus-de-blocking ways that I could employ!

It is a beautiful experience though, when you are working with people whose talent you respect and who are dedicated to making magic with you in a collaborative way. I hope that you all enjoy the end result! I will probably release the three songs separately, by summer 2018.
Peace and love,

Kristine

Tags: recording studio