Laura Sullivan and I first met in 2005 when Whisperings had two concerts at my home in CA one weekend. Laura lives south of San Francisco and recently released her beautiful fifth CD, “Close To Home.” Laura and her husband, Eric, became parents in early 2007, welcoming little Shaela into the world. As you can imagine, having a daughter has changed Laura’s routine rather dramatically, but it sounds like it is all in a very good way. We chatted about her new album, her life, and her music recently, and I think you’ll enjoy getting to know this very talented composer/pianist.
KP: Hi Laura! Have you been getting any of the rain I’ve been trying to send to you in the Bay Area?
Laura: We did. It’s cleared up a bit the past couple of days which has been nice because Shaela gets restless in the afternoon when we don’t make it outside to play.
KP: You recently released “Close to Home,” your fifth album. All of your recordings have been quite different from each other. I have been reading my reviews of the previous releases, and felt that each new one was your best. What made you decide to release a CD of folk and traditional songs this time?
Laura: My husband, Eric, and I took a trip to Ireland in 2006 and as we drove across the country, we passed the time singing our hearts out. Some of the songs we were hearing in the pubs were songs I heard when I was child. I fell in love with some of these songs again, and something about the Irish countryside and having fun with that music really got under my skin. I decided to explore it more when we got home. That’s how the album began.
KP: “Close To Home” has more vocals than your previous recordings. Your voice is beautiful whether you are using it as an instrument or actually singing lyrics. Is this a direction you find yourself gravitating toward more and more?
Laura: Thank you. I was longing to vocalize these particular songs on “Close To Home,” but lately I’ve been writing more piano and instrumental compositions, so I may be gravitating in that direction for one of the next projects. One of my teachers told me to sing through the piano and I like to think of it in that way.
I find playing solo piano every bit as satisfying as singing, and on some days even more so. Other days, like when we were on a narrow, winding road in Ireland with the rain beating on the windshield, there is nothing better than belting out a song at the top of my lungs.
KP: I would imagine that being a mommy to a toddler must eat into your composing and performing time! How are you managing to balance everything?
Laura: Time management has become more difficult now that I’m a mom! I do most of my composing while Shaela is sleeping, so her naptime is golden. Not only because I find my rested child much more delightful, but because that is the time I can really focus. I also set aside time to play music when she goes down for the night.
KP: I know it’s kind of soon to tell, but are you seeing any musical inclinations in Shaela yet?
Laura: She absolutely loves music. We took her to see the Bare Naked Ladies when they performed at our local library! I couldn’t believe we got to see them at that venue! Now one of her favorite albums is “Snacktime” by the same group. One of their songs has a section that goes “jump, jump” (which she pronounces “bump, bump”) and she wants that played over and over again while she “bumps” around our kitchen floor.
The music I play is much too slow for her tastes (unless she is going to sleep). She prefers her music high energy, like The William Tell Overture finale, another one of her favorites.
KP: How old were you when you became interested in music?
Laura: I’ve been interested in music for as long as I can remember. My parents love music. Both of them played the guitar and my mother played piano. I remember sitting by my mother while she played Beatles music and she taught me to play “Hey Jude” when I was about 5 years old. I think I learned that song before I learned any classical music.
KP: You are a relatively rare CA native (me, too, but I defected!). Let’s talk a bit about your early life in Northern CA.
Laura: I grew up on a farm near Los Molinos and the Dye Creek Preserve. We had animals, a walnut orchard, and big vegetable gardens. We spent lots of time outdoors in the summer and my parents didn’t allow us to watch much TV, so we got creative with how we entertained ourselves. My brother and I had two tree houses and a creek ran through our property that we would raft down. My mother made most of our food from scratch including grinding her own wheat to make bread, churning her own butter and curing cheese.
KP: How did that influence your music?
Laura: I’m not sure, except it was a pretty simple and quiet life without too many distractions so maybe that gave me more space to focus on music. We also played music together as a family. My brother was on the drums, and my mom, dad or sister played guitar while I played piano. It was fun. I enjoyed using our piano as a toy.
