Heather Gemmell
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Heather Gemmell

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Band Folk Acoustic

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Discography

Demos 2007

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Bio

It’s hard to wrap your mind around the fact that it was only four years ago that Heather first picked up the guitar and began playing. The dedication of online tab learning and the constant interest in trying new things, made learning the guitar a quick process. But for a girl as busy as Heather was, it’s hard to imagine how she even had the time to learn the guitar, let alone write music. Attending school in the states, playing college softball, being a residence assistant in the on-campus dorms, and yet always finding time to play her guitar made Heather grow quickly as an artist.

After two years of playing, Heather found herself softly singing along to the guitar melody that she strummed. Singing though had never been one of her favorite things to do. She was always the kid at school assemblies that lip-synced the national anthem because she didn’t enjoy the sound of her own voice. But with the guitar it was different; there was something about strumming her guitar while faintly singing along that was incredibly enjoyable to her. The usual reoccurring complaint she received, when playing for her friends, was to just “sing louder”. It took a lot of time and guts, but gradually she started to sing with the same intensity that she had when she played guitar.

“I can learn to get faster and more advanced as the years go by with my guitar, but vocally there are certain barriers that time just can’t fix. I have taken vocal lessons and I know quite a bit more about the different ways of singing, but I will never be able to sing as loud and as powerful as the singers out there in the music industry today, and I'm ok with that”.

She knows her limits but that doesn’t stop her from singing. “As long as I am on key, have some meaning behind what I am saying, and continue to get better with the guitar, I still have a chance of being heard. I feel like I have grown enough to the point that I am ready to play for real audiences and have what I am saying in my songs heard by strangers. I want to continue to write and connect with people as I play.”

Advancing on the guitar and strengthening her vocals weren’t the stopping point for Heather’s learning streak in the music industry. Soon after, she found herself playing the harmonica and picking up the djembe drum. Heather is constantly continuing to learn and grow with her music and this ambition and willingness to do so makes her a strong musician and a pure asset to the industry. It’s wholesome passion that keeps music afloat, and it’s pure love for music that creates such passion.

This past year has been an experience in itself for Heather and is continuing in a great direction. “Four years ago I would have never thought all of this would be happening.” In June, she found herself in Vancouver recording her demo album with seven tracks that are now available to the public. Shortly after she returned to Cranbrook from recording, Heather began playing shows more frequently and at a greater level. Though creating music and playing for the public are two of the many things Heather enjoys, she will be putting them on a slight hold to backpack through Thailand for four months starting in mid-November. This trip will not only show Heather the world, but give her inspiration and creativity for recordings in the future. Until her travels, you can continue to find Heather on stage with a guitar in her arms and a harmonica hanging from around her neck.