One of my vocal students, the incredibly talented 12 year old Breeze Redwine from Starston, had recently made it to the grand final of TeenStar 2015, the UK’s biggest search for teenage and pre-teen singers. I’m really excited to say that she was the winner in her category! I was so proud that she performed my song ‘Here Alone’ to a capacity crowd at Birmingham’s NEC, an acoustic song which she had recently recorded at the Mill Studio near Diss.
She also achieved the highest score of the night from the industry judges. TeenStar is organised by Future Music who have been responsible for the likes of former X-Factor finalist Luke Friend, Lucy Spraggan and Birdy and over 9,000 acts entered the competition this year across the UK.
The prestigious music industry judges included record label representatives, executives from music management companies, recording studios, professional musicians, national press and the examination board, Rock School. It’s an amazing achievement and I’m sure Breeze has a great career in music ahead of her.
Here is her stunning performance at the NEC of 'Here Alone'
Also this month I’ve been filming a new music video which will be online soon. The video, which is for one of my acoustic songs ‘Time to Grow’, was made by hugely talented local film maker and photographer Claudia Taveira Photography and we’ve collaborated on a few videos and photo shoots in the area. Norfolk provides many beautiful locations for shoots, from the coast to the broads, around Norwich cathedral, Foxley Wood is another favourite, and she has filmed lovely music videos for my songs. You can see me playing my guitar and ukulele all over Norfolk on my YouTube channel which includes links to our previous videos: www.youtube.com/lisaredfordmusic
I've also recently covered a song by country artist Kacey Musgraves. Doing a ukulele cover of her song 'Late to the Party' https://youtu.be/Hg_gpvD4Hjw
Music and songwriting is my passion and I enjoy writing a regular music column for Songwriting Magazine, aimed at songwriters and fans of song-led music. In the column I also share my experiences as a songwriter and give advice on various aspects of being an artist. Previous subjects have included dealing with stage fright, writer’s block, using social media, face to face networking, collaborating with other writers and writing music for film and TV. My latest one has been about crowd funding, something that has become increasing popular over the last few years.
As an independent singer/songwriter, self funding and promoting an album and EP has been a costly business, so for my next release I’ve been considering the crowd funding route, something I’ve not tried before. Fans actively participate in an artist’s project and in return artists offer a variety of rewards which can range from exclusives, experiences and signed merchandise, depending on the amounts of money they’ve received.
Here’s a link to all my songwriting columns so far and I’d love to hear from any songwriters and bands in the area who have successfully funded a release: http://lisaredford.tumblr.com/songwritingblog
Another passion of mine is music education and I always feel really inspired after going along to music workshops and masterclasses. Music & arts charity Musical Keys who work with people with complex &/or additional needs and who this year are celebrating their 25th anniversary, are running Creative Connections, free music and arts workshops, aimed at 13-25 year olds. They’re happening all this month and provide a great opportunity to learn some excellent creative skills.
Workshops include song and lyric writing, music technology and production, sampling, sound for film, foley recording and sound FX, group drumming, iPad composition and Rock School, a two day workshop where those attending get the chance to develop song writing and performance skills, receive instrument tuition and get to write and play music with band mates with the help of professional musicians. All these sound like invaluable skills for embarking on a music career and I’d certainly be interested in attending a few of those myself.
The morning and afternoon workshops will be happening at Create Norwich (formerly the Norwich Music Hub) who have recently moved in to new premises in Trowse creating a relaxed, engaging environment full of hi-spec kit. Places are free but must be booked in advance by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . For more information visit www.musicalkeys.co.uk/c
Looking ahead to autumn and I’m really looking forward to be supporting the renowned Eliza Carthy at OPEN Norwich on October 14th. For all my upcoming gigs and teaching information, please take a look at www.lisaredford.com
Lisa Redford
"In a sea of smart female singer/songwriters Lisa Redford is an admiral" Maverick magazine ****
www.lisaredford.com
All Things Norfolk business member, singer-songwriter and music tutor Lisa Redford has written and recorded a brand new song at home during the lockdown "From Afar"
Lisa got her inspiration for writing this song when walking in her local area in Norwich and seeing a poster in a window which said "know you are loved from afar" . The song is all about missing loved ones but knowing that we can still love and care from them "From Afar" until we meet again. Once the song was written Lisa then recorded an acoustic version of it from her home studio.
We highly recommend that you take a listen to "From Afar" by visiting https://lisaredford.bandcamp.com/track/from-afar and support this talented local artist by purchasing the song digitally for £1 . You can also view the video by visiting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfnukKmLcqc
On Friday 28 February, over 275 children from 8 local schools attended open rehearsals at the Auden Theatre in Holt.
The children, aged between 7 and 12 were invited to hear members of the London Mozart Players performing pieces in rehearsal, ahead of their public performance later that evening. Amongst the programme was Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 4 performed by horn player Ben Goldscheider, who was the winner of Brass Section of the BBC Young Musician of the Year winner 2016, when he was 18 years old.
Saturday (29th) saw over 80 young brass, strings and woodwind musicians taking in a free workshop to perform as an orchestra. For the workshop, specialist music tutor Helen Stowell of the Norfolk Music Service specially arranged a range of pieces from Mozart’s Horn Concerto to Havana, by Camilla Cabello. For many of these young musicians, this was their very first ensemble performance and a unique moment to play great orchestral pieces with other musicians.
It has been a very busy and creative start to the year and I'm really looking forward to playing some lovely local gigs this month and throughout spring. These include some brand new live music nights that are happening in Norwich showcasing the wealth of talented local artists from Norfolk.
Common People at OPEN Norwich ~ Friday February 21st
My next gig is a really special one. As well as performing my own material, I love to perform many of my favourite songs from different genres. I'm looking forward to be playing an acoustic set at OPEN Norwich next weekend as part of a special 90's music charity night of Britpop, indie and dance from the team behind Common People. Expect some surprise 90's favourites in my set!
It has been a little while since my last All Things Norfolk column. I had a really busy summer playing lots of festivals in the area and further afield. Here in Norfolk I really enjoyed performing at the first F-19 festival, a major new music festival in Feltwell at the stunning St Mary’s Church; all profits from the festival went towards the upkeep of this stunning medieval building.
I was also part of a brilliant line-up for The Waterfront Sessions. It was an all day promoted by The Tilting Sky celebrating some of the regions finest country and Americana artists by the riverside at Norwich Waterfront and it really showcased the wealth of talent here.
In July I also released a single Let Go - the second from my latest EP Edge of Love. It has been receiving some lovely airplay on many stations and shows including BBC Introducing Norfolk. Edge of Love has continued to get great reviews, so much so that I’m excited to be releasing a new single I Just Can’t Forget next month. The ballad, like all of my songs, comes from the heart and has a more soulful country sound with harmonies, piano, pedal steel acoustic and electric guitar
It features terrific local musicians: The Vagaband’s Jose McGill - who also produced the EP - plus Mark Howes from local blues duo Dove and Boweevil and Mikey Shaw on drums. The single has already been performed live in session for Whispering Bob TV’s Under the Apple Tree - intimate live acoustic sessions recorded in the home studio of legendary BBC broadcaster Bob Harris - certainly one of the highlights of my career so far!
It has been a very busy and exciting time as my new EP Edge of Love - recorded and mastered in Norwich and featuring a whole host of local talent - is now released worldwide!
I have been blown away by the wonderful airplay and reviews I have received including 4 stars in national music magazines Maverick and RnR. The title track also features on the excellent Un-Herd cover mount CD which comes with the May/June issue of RnR, in shops now.
I have been interviewed for a few local glossy publications - including Norwich Resident Magazine, KL Magazine and Norfolk Magazine - as well as had airplay on BBC Radio Norfolk and Suffolk, most recently a live acoustic session for Drive Time on BBC Radio Suffolk with Stephen Foster.