My interview with singer/songwriter Kate Havnevik (known from Greys Anatomy OST's)

This is a very exciting moment in my blogger journey and also the Grand Finale of my series "Hobbies, Interests and Passions".


In my opinion (and many others opinions of course) Kate Havnevik is one of the most talented singer/songwriters of today and it is with great pleasure I press the "Publish" button on this post containing my interview with her.... 

Please make sure you help Kate out in her current quest, to not only release her new album with a change to be in the thank you credits of her album, but also in gathering money for charity!

...and please sign her mailing list:

http://www.reverbnation.com/katehavnevik

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!
xox

- Have you always known you are talented? (and if not, how and when did you know?)

Well I started playing guitar when iwas 13, and I picked it up easily and knew I had a talent for music, but I didn't know if I could sing, I only realised I could sing when I was about 18 or so...

- When you write music, do you start with the lyrics or the melody?

I do it both ways, but I would say melody comes easier to me...

- What inspires you to write? 

People, and traveling... so many different people out there with different lives.

- What has been your biggest struggle so far? 

Putting out my 2nd record has been and is a bit of a struggle but I will get there.....

- What music do you listen to yourself?

All sorts of music, anything from Nina Simone to Radiohead.

- Is there any music you just can not stand to listen to? 

Yes there probably is, but I can't remember what........ I guess I have surpressed the memory of that music.....

- One of my favourite songs is "Nowhere warm" and I've always been curious about what inspired those lyrics (amazing!!)....can you tell me? 

The lyrics are filled with a feeling of longing for someone and not giving up the hope that they will return or that you will be with them again. It's a longing for love.

- What advice would you give someone who would like to make a career in the music industry?

Well there are so many different jobs in the music industry, but if you wanna be an artist then write as much music as possible, get home recording software, learn it and record your songs, go out and play gigs, I think you have to be very proactive these days, don't wait to be discovered or for someone else's approval , discover yourself and make a record..... get it online for people to hear.

- What is your musical ambition and/or aim? 

To keep making music without repeating myself too much..... moving forward......maybe sideways....... but not backwards.....

- Which instruments do you play? 

I mainly play piano, guitar and melodica and I sing of course. Voice is also an instrument.

- Any alternative career paths that ever interested you? 

Psychology, Visual Art ….... working with kids.... love kids.... 

- You have had quite some songs featured on Greys Anatomy (this is how I found your music). How did that happen for you and what impact has it had on your career? 

It had a huge impact on my career, suddenly my music was getting into people's livingroom all over the place....... it opened a lot of doors and I am ever so grateful for that. They way it happened was that my demos was given to someone who place music in TV and film in LA, they then gave it to Alex Patsavas, who is the music supervisor for the series and she really liked the songs, it was luck and timing, and my lyrics fit well with the various theme's in the show. It was fantastic for me.

- How much time do you spend in the studio? 

It's my life and my work to be a musician and composer so I spend a lot of time in the studio and the studio comes with me everywhere I travel...

-Tell us a little bit about how you feel when you create music and what keeps you going.....

I feel different all the time, happy, sad, melancholy, angry, tired, energetic, crazy ! but I think a lot of my music has a certain melancholy feel to it, it is in my personality and nature I guess, but we all have a need for variation, you can't do or feel the same all the time,,,,,.....

- Describe your dream concert and audience?

Hollywood bowl with visual projections, a small string orchestra , brass players and a band, warm weather, people are relaxed and listening but also responsive and involved.....a few humming birds are buzzing around ….... an owl in the distance.........the moon is high.......... a starry sky........... and there will be a magical feeling of a very special night....

In which environment do you feel most inspired? 

Very hard question, I get inspired all kinds of places, the inspiration comes from things I store in my head and different things trigger them...

I probably get more inspired in a big city or on a train than by a sun-set though...... I get inspired by people....

- If you could chose musicians to collaborate with, living or dead, who would they be and why?

I would play in a band with Jimi Hendrix and we would use looping pedals and create a massive wall of sound ! Because he rocks! (rocked)

- If you could have given yourself some advice 10 years ago, what would it have been?

Don't get so hung up in what the industry says, it's a waste of time, they never know what they want anyway, do your own thing and trust yourself.

Make a record and put it out yourself and go out and play it live for people!

- What are you most excited about at the moment?

I am very excited about the release of my new record and also about the Pledge Music campaign I am doing where people can pre-order my new CD and also buy lots of different exclusives...

I make little videoblogs and give everyone who takes part some free downloads etc....

It gives me the opportunity to raise money to release my album myself, I recommend this website to all independent artists out there !!!

http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/katehavnevik

- When will you have a concert in Zurich? ;))

I really hope to come to Zurich to play in 2011!!!!! Let's aim for that ! Cross our fingers..... ! 

Kate xxx

Become a fan of Kate on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kate-Havnevik/10107311233?ref=ts


Join Kate's fans and listen to her music on Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/katehavnevik


Read more about Kate:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Havnevik

Hobbies, Interests & Passions, Part 5: Mountain biking by Chris Hafner

I was asked by Linda if I could do a blogpost on biking. Of course I can and I am happy to share my experiences of one of the best sports you can do. 


Mountain biking has to do with concentration, action, technique and endurance and the best thing about it is that when you are doing it you are out in nature relaxing your mind. 


When you ride, especially downhill, there is nothing to think about! You cannot think you gotta focus otherwise you crash.... It happened to me too. 


The fascinating thing about Mountainbiking is the connection between endurance or cardio workout and skills when riding downhill on the trails and steps. It combines fun with a hard workout and that is the main reason why I love biking. Besides that, it helps to recharge the batteries and to balance the life. 


I bought my first bike when I was 16 years old. At 17 years I started cross country racing. This continued until I was 19. This was fun but also hard, especially because one of my best friends was always faster than I was:-) and because you have to eat good food and be careful that you sleep enough. Since that time up to now, biking has been a part of my free time.


One of the best things I did was the bikecamp in Valle Maira (Piemont, Italy) in 2009. If you ever have the chance to bike in the Piemont GO!! Try to get a good guide and enjoy the stunning and beautiful nature and the amazing trails of this valley. When you meet somebody it is a shepherd...nobody else. Besides the Mountain biking, you can enjoy fantastic food and good wine of the region, which is also a plus when going on holidays. 


Last year I bought my first full suspension bike. It is a lot of fun to ride! Not as fast as a hardtail (uphill) but.....who wants to be fast all the time? The world is turning fast enough so when riding I just want to have fun and enjoy. At least it is really fast when riding downhill :-).


If anybody of you ever wants to join for a bike ride....let me know. Mountain biking is also a great way to meet people. 


Thanks for reading and enjoy the ride! 


Chris

Hobbies, Interests & Passions, Part 4: Logos by Patricia Shea

I love type and I love illustration so what better way to combine the two than in full colour illustrated logos.

When I first got out of school I took a year off and decided to work in a commercial art studio before heading off to art college. I spent almost the whole year laying out Letraset and learning about the spacing, leading and kerning of many different typefaces and thus my love for type began.

Pictured here are four logos I was commissioned to create by different businesses and a sketch of the first draft of one of those logos. As you can see “Ambiance” started off quite differently than it ended but the seed of the idea remained, the typeface, the concept was embellished with English Ivy and a more formal, decorative flourish.

My most recent logo for "The Sugar Shack Cupcakery" in Brooklyn, New York was commissioned after the owner, Jill London, saw a design I had created for my own use on apparel and other items in my Café Press store. I baked, iced and photographed the cupcake in order to create a precise illustration of such, which in this instance was executed using colour pencils.

The "Harmony" logo was designed for a company in California who wanted to depict a combination of the Monarch butterfly and the California Poppy, both of which are indigenous to that companies geographic area, along with the name of the store "Harmony" in an elegantly flowing script.

“Panache” was designed for a store in the wine region of California.

“Created by Mother Nature” isn’t a logo per se but has the feel of one. I had so much fun with the type on this one, changing fonts and fading the colour from top to bottom. I added the type about 5 years after I had created the central motif and was pleased with the results.

All of my logos are created with watercolour paints or colour pencils and my beloved Winsor Newton Series 7 brushes on watercolour blocks by Aquarelle. The type is hand drawn with design flourishes added to create a uniquely decorative word. The only time I use a computer is to scan the image in, change any small imperfections and resize the logos to their fit their end need.

I am looking forward to doing more logos in the future and am hope I am lucky enough to be commissioned to do more delicious ones for bakeries, chefs and food writers. I love the look of desserts and enjoy making them too.

Thanks so much for taking a look and thank you Linda for being so kind as to feature my work on your wonderful blog!!

Patricia Shea

http://patternpatisserie.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Patricia-Shea/102550487197

Hobbies, Interests & Passions, Part 3: Vegan Cooking & Baking by Wendy

Hello, I'm Wendy. 


I'm 19 and just trying to make the world a better place by being the best me I can be, and by making food!


 I just recently discovered my passion for vegan cooking and baking after becoming vegan again after a few years of straying from my veg roots. 


As a kid I just wanted to try things like cheese and chocolate and all sorts of food that is not so great for you, and once I started eating what "normal" people ate I found that as a result my health started failing, I gained weight and I just felt crummy (also my conscience kicked back in).

 After being brought up to know all sorts of nutritious information and knowing about all the suffering animals go through to produce all these food items people take for granted, one day I just woke up and couldn't even think of eating animal products any more. If people only knew what sort of cruel unthinkable things they help happen by going to the supermarket and buying meat/dairy/eggs and supporting these big companies that farm these thousands of animals in such deplorable conditions, I think we would all think twice about what we put into our cart or on our plate. 


Becoming vegan isn't some scary or boring task you have to drag yourself into, it's just a new way of thinking about food and tasting so many new things you probably wouldn't otherwise. It's easy and you get to be so creative. You might discover you have hidden talent in the kitchen :) Plus you get to feel great about your health, the animals, and the planet. Doesn't that sound so much better? I sure think so. 


There are tons of food options out there to go discover and even if you can't bring yourself to give up dairy or eggs, you can check the internet and find a farm/store near you that produces local small farm eggs or dairy. 


Cooking and baking vegan food is so fun and tasty and I love doing it, it relaxes me and it's a great creative outlet. And that is why I started my blog. I wanted to show people through photographs that vegan food rocks :) 
And even if you're not ready to go all out, you should take my challenge and try going vegan for a week. There are so many great new things to try, like Diya vegan cheese or Gardine vegan meats that make vegan cooks like me almost euphoric with delight. 


Well I could go on, but you could just go check out my blog and then think about spending more time with your hobbies and maybe even start a blog of your own :)


Wendy
http://vegangoodiesbywendy.blogspot.com/

Hobbies, Interests & Passions, Part 2: Thrifting by Lina

hello guys & gals!

my name is lina & i live on the west coast of the states & run the blog from lina.

i am so excited that i get to do this guest post for linda. she asked me to do a post about one of my (many!) hobbies.

i have decided to talk about & give some tips about one of my favorite hobbies – thrifting!

i find all sorts of neat treasures at thrift stores. one time i found a polaroid camera full of film for about $3. another time, i discovered some old black & white photos.

thrift stores can be the perfect place to find vintage clothes, designer clothes (i have found quite a few marc jacobs items!), & clothes (or other items) that can be altered for fun. for example, i bought a tote bag for $0.50 that had a design on one side & ended up covering the design with flying bird fabric for a pocket (see photo).

thrift stores can be your craft stores, as you can find all kinds of crafting & art project supplies.

♥ many thrift stores have bags of ribbon, zippers, yarn, & knitting needles sold for cheap.

♥ old sweaters bought while thrifting, washed & dried on the hottest cycles, will turn into felt for sewing projects.

♥ there are always old children’s books & nature books that can be used for collages.

♥ my friend, petunia, always finds old sheets & pillow cases that she uses for fabric for her sewing projects.

♥ vintage & mismatched jewelry can be used to make pins & broaches.

 

whenever i go thrifting, i always check the book section for anything that looks interesting. about 85% of the books on my bookshelf come from the thrift store. usually, books are around $1. i have found brand new books (like twilight & the time traveler’s wife) & old classics (like the catcher in the rye & the great gatsby). i also stumble upon many cookbooks as well, full of all sorts of good recipes.

as you can see, thrifting is quite an adventure & you can never know what you will find. i hope these tips help you on your next thrifting trip!

thanks for reading : )

lina

Hobbies, Interests & Passions, Part 1: Tea by Jordan M. Williams

Hello,

First things first, I would like to thank Linda for inviting to guest post on her blog, and share with you all a hobby of mine.

My name is Jordan M. Williams, I am a 22-year-old college student from Fresno California (United States), majoring in Nursing... I am also a tea addict. I fell in love with the taste of tea when I was 16.

While in India for two weeks, I was introduced to loose leaf tea in two forms. The first and my favorite out of the two Masala Chai (spiced tea), the second being Lemon Grass Black tea.

Since than tea has gone from hobby to something I am very passionate about.
I've been asked, why

is it that you like tea so much? My response to that is easy, tea is peaceful and calming. To make tea, causes you to take time out of your day and go through a process that can be very relaxing. Which can be something we need in this fast paced world.

Making tea can be a very personal experience. The more pots you brew, you tend to develop a little bit of a tea ritual. I general heat up my water and pick out my tea. From there I find a quite place, steep and strain my tea using my glass gaiwan. Pouring into my black tea-cup I often sip my tea, and ponder about life.

Tea is simple, yet complex at the same time. All you do is add hot water and tea leafs very simple. Yet from one plant (Camellia Sinensis) can be used to make a variety of different teas. From Ti Kuan Yin (Iron Goddess of Mercy) to 1st Flush Darjeeling, there are over hundreds of different teas (excluding herbal infusions). Tea has amassed quite a large culture with ceremonies, practices, even a school of philosophy known as Tea-ism.

I'm not one that can put together a good closing but I will end with this. If you have a hobby, make it one of your passions. Learn as much as you can about it, then go share it with people. It will not only make you happy, but you can make good friendships along the way.

“Today is life-the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake. Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you. Live today with gusto.”

Dale Carnegie

Later Dayz,

Jordan M. Williams

Twitter - @iJordanWilliams