On the Road Again… Breaking New Ground
By Rose Marie Bresolin
I caught up with Sara after seeing her performance at the Cavern on her tour last May. I was curious to learn more about what inspired her into a life of music and ask her where the road had led after the tour.
Sara: Well, the road had actually opened after my debut record, Sad, But True in August of 2018. I performed at South by Southwest (SXSW), played countless shows around Detroit, and the mini tour with shows in Toronto, Montreal, New York and Boston was part of that experience.
Rose Marie Bresolin: I’m aware that whatever style a musician may start with, it evolves as they do. Can you tell us a little about the path in yours?
Sara: I’ve been singing since I was four years old, but I didn’t start writing songs until my teens. I started out writing on the guitar, but then switched to piano shortly after. This is when I really found my voice. I was inspired by artists like Amy Winehouse, Carole King, Etta James and Billie Holiday when I wrote Sad, but True. The resulting sound is a combination of jazz, R&B and pop music that I’ve listened to throughout my lifetime.
Rose Marie: Can you describe the process of how your music comes together?
Sara: All of my songs started out with just me and the piano. Writing this record was very cathartic and happened during a coming-of-age time in my life. All of the songs more or less deal with some of my first experiences with heartbreak and how I handled them.
It wasn’t until I began the recording process that I brought other musicians and instruments into the mix to shape the live-sounding songs that are on the record.
Rose Marie: The experience sounds much like what an artist undergoes when working a piece of art together, yes?
Sara: Definitely! Like I said, the songs start out as very simple and stripped down, and it’s a long process to bring them to the fullness that you hear when they are played live or on the record. But probably the most important comparison to art for me is the emotion that the songs convey.
Rose Marie: Super! So, tell us, where do you see your music heading next, or should I say, leading you?
Sara: Currently, I am working on another record and plan to release new music and a music video that I co-directed. We’re looking to have that out in early 2020. I also hope to return to SXSW in March and continue playing in new cities I haven’t shared my music with yet.
Rose Marie: The music that you write has been shown to resonate with both the young and the old, and you have the voice range to carry it off; is that a reach you intentionally set out to achieve or was it part and parcel with an energy pressing for expression?
Sara: I think it just happened, and I have to remind myself that even though it feels as though it’s been my life forever, I haven’t been at it for very long. In some ways, I still feel like I am just starting out.
Rose Marie: I want to ask about what part of the process drives you the most?
Sara: Hmm, I think the actual creation – from sitting with an idea to writing the song, to seeing it come to life. Then bringing it to the bank! Recently I’ve been experimenting with using a synthesizer and software instruments to create a feeling. That way I can bring the music together, so I don’t have to wait to bring it to the band to test it out.
Rose Marie: I think that might begin to answer the question about the evolution process, yes?
Sara: Yeah, you feel yourself growing when you find yourself performing this song you wrote in your room and then you took it out there for people to listen to. The connection you already had with the piece expands as it goes out to those who are really listening.
Rose Marie: Wow, must be empowering to see a thought you had, take on its own life. And more so with knowing that the feelings in the words have the potential to spark thoughts in listeners who might give them yet another form. But at the end of the day, we all know it’s a tough industry you’ve chosen. What advice might you have for other budding musicians at risk of abandoning their creative pull?
Sara: For what it’s worth, a word to fellow musicians is to be relentless about your pursuit. Take “failures” or “let downs” in stride, because there are going to be a lot of them. Never lose sight of what you love about playing music, and if you do, find it again.
To learn more about Sara Barron, you can follow her on her website: www.saramariebarron.com
Previously, in Toronto
The soulful sound of Sara Marie Barron and her band was applauded by a packed house at the Cavern in Toronto. Family and friends were there to cheer her on!
An American born singer with strong Canadian ties, Sara began her tour here in Toronto, and onto New York, Boston and Montreal. We can anticipate far more to come from this young vocalist and songwriter.
