{"id":6035,"date":"2023-09-15T13:04:05","date_gmt":"2023-09-15T13:04:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/byta.com\/blog\/?post_type=methodtomymusic&p=6035"},"modified":"2023-09-15T13:04:07","modified_gmt":"2023-09-15T13:04:07","slug":"christina-martin","status":"publish","type":"methodtomymusic","link":"https:\/\/byta.com\/blog\/methodtomymusic\/christina-martin\/","title":{"rendered":"Christina Martin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Where are you based?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I live in Atlantic Canada, specifically Nova Scotia, in an old farmhouse, on a dirt road, in the middle of somewhere quiet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How, when and where did you start making music? Are you primarily a musician or a producer, or do something else?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m a solo artist and I started writing songs and recording when I was 20 and living in Austin, TX. I\u2019m both a musician and a producer (my music and music videos). My main instrument is my voice, but I also play rhythm acoustic and electric guitar. I use the piano as a tool for songwriting, but you won\u2019t catch me playing piano in front of anyone. When I was a child my parents put me into piano lessons, but I quit and opted for sports after a few years. It wasn\u2019t until I experienced a pretty low period in my life at the age of 19 that I left Atlantic Canada and ventured off to Austin and Germany and discovered a love for singing, songwriting, and performing with other musicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who would you consider some of your biggest influences when it comes to your \u201csound\u201d?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I have an old friend Jason Silverberg (The Lennings) who I originally learned how to play rhythm guitar from, and otherwise, I\u2019m betting that I learned how to sing initially from imitating all the artists that I loved. I can\u2019t possibly list them all, but as far as the female singers go, I sure do love Annie Lennox, Whitney Houston, Tori Amos, Tina Turner, Cyndi Lauper, Chrissie Hynde, Celine Dion, Shawn Colvin, Jann Arden, Patty Griffin, and Nana Mouskouri. In terms of songwriting, perhaps Tom Petty, Paul Westerberg, Neil Finn, Shawn Colvin, Tori Amos. I loved a lot of male vocalists and bands as well, like Roy Orbison, Bruce Springsteen, Bryan Adams, The Jayhawks, Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Queen\u2026 I\u2019m sure I\u2019m leaving out a bunch. I dreamed of having a stellar live band like Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers or Fleetwood Mac, and to be able to move freely around the stage singing and connecting with the audience like Tina Turner or Cyndi Lauper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explain your creative process. Do you have a routine?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Once upon a time I would read and write every morning for at least 3-4 hours. Now this has become seasonal for me. I might pick up this routine about 1-2 years after a new album has run its course. I don\u2019t have a manager, so I have to do a lot independently just to keep the momentum going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Travelling has always given me fuel to eventually complete a song. I also am more successful writing music when I can be alone. Since we\u2019ve been home-bound with the pandemic, apart from finishing up songs for my new album Storm, I\u2019ve not felt overly inspired to write new music. Plus, it\u2019s been busy just trying to stay afloat. But on tour, I\u2019ll collect snippets of rhythms, melodies or short lyrics on my cell phone as they arise, email them to myself, then when I\u2019m home I set aside time to organise the ideas and listen back. Sometimes the ideas don\u2019t spark anything further and end up in the trash can, and other times it leads to a song. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not always the case, but often I work quickly with mapping out the song structure, melodies, notes on song treatment, and chord changes. I\u2019ll include lyrics if I have some, but often it\u2019s just embarrassing lines until the music is complete. I can take a day, or an hour, or maybe years to finish a song. I don\u2019t stress over it, but I don\u2019t label a song \u2018finished\u2019 until it\u2019s recorded and really fleshed out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A dream day routine for me involves:<\/p>\n\n\n\n