Guitar
When a highschool boyfriend taught me a few chords on the guitar, I discovered songwriting and never looked back. Sadly, one of the first songs I wrote was a break-up song about said boy. Ironic? Side note: I am a finger-picking guitarist through and through, so you’ll rarely catch me having a strum.
Violin
I started learning violin in grade three. Though it takes a few years to make any sound that could be construed as ‘pleasant’ with it, it’s worth it once you do! I love writing string arrangements for my songs, and I got to work with a live string trio to record parts for Raven. Lush.
Ukulele
When people think of ukes, the mental image usually includes a Hawaiian shirt, a Lei and a vigorously strummed rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Now I’m not saying this doesn’t have it’s place, but ukes can do so much more. Finger-picked uke has a beautiful harp-like quality that I love.
Piano
It’s a stretch to say I play piano, but I definitely dabble. I have a soft spot for naïve piano lines – simple melodies played in octaves that are woven into the larger tapestry of a song. Luckily, this much I can manage with my limited piano chops!
My Vocal Chords
I’m gonna go ahead and call this an instrument. And it’s my favourite. Though really it’s not a fair fight – there’s just something about it being an actual part of my body that makes it more thrilling. I love to play with moving between soft close vocals, and more ballsy hollering.
