Well, just in case you are interested in my bio, I will write one. My name is Alissa (a-lee-sah) and “I was boooorn by the river… in a little teeeeent†-just kidding. I was born and raised in Laguna Beach, California. I’ve always loved music. Starting before kindergarten, I would try to sound out songs on the old piano in my family’s living room. My mom soon had me taking lessons and I was learning songs like crazy. I played piano in my talent shows and at church and for family and friends at parties we would have. Soon after, I joined the elementary school band and took up the flute. Bad idea cause I really sucked. Then I tried the clarinet, which worked better for me, but my main love was still piano. In middle school and high school I went to a Christian school where I joined the choir and, by golly I figured out I could sing too! I was soon a leader in the school worship band and not too long after, leading worship at a large church in OC. From there I would sing the national anthem at football games, perform in school musicals and pretty much sing for anyone who would listen.
One day I begged my dad for voice lessons and started training with Andy Boettner. He taught me things about my voice I never knew I could do and also built my confidence up to the point where I wanted nothing more than to be a performer. With his help and much support, I decided I wanted to pursue music as my career. I found a great college in Ohio and was soon on a plane there to audition for acceptance and a scholarship. Well, I got both and went to Miami University in Oxford, OH as a music student. I majored in vocal performance and minored in piano. Funny enough, I was training in opera, which I was surprisingly good at. I started performing in the operas and singing with the “Choraliers†all over Ohio. I loved being on stage and getting the butterflies at first and then the head rush when you hear the applause at the end. I was addicted.
Unfortunately, Ohio, though I loved it there, didn’t have many opportunities for me to play live, and I really wasn’t into the whole opera thing. After my first year I came back home and almost immediately started singing in local musicals, talent shows and even some competitions. Then I got hooked up with a local “Latin jazz†OC band and became one of the lead singers. Before long they needed a rhythm guitarist and I was on deck. I bought my first nylon string guitar and, when I was ready, backed the lead guitarist at our gigs. I played with them for about a year and a half and, though I am no longer with them, I learned more in that experience than I could have ever asked for. And I got the opportunity at a very young age to start breaking in some chops and learn a whole lot about the band /gigging scene. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
After all this I started training with a well known coach in LA, Seth Riggs who taught me his â€SLS†method (speech level singing) and really latched onto the guitar and started taking guitar lessons. Currently, I am working with an AMAZING producer, John Schreiner, on my first cd. I am playing, practicing and writing a lot in my new “music room†(that used to be my fiancés office- sorry babe) and auditioning guitarists to start a duo of my own in the near future. I’m very excited for the things to come and hope you all will be a part of it. I will have music up soon and performance dates.
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