Collaboration is a powerful force. It’s how I became a songwriter and it’s what got me onstage. I’m a singer first and foremost. While my instrument sounds good acappella, it does me best when paired with another musician. This is also the case for many of the talented singers I train every week.

Finding a creative cohort/performance partner is nerve wracking and time consuming. Upon my arrival in San Francisco, I dealt with an array of strange Craigslist encounters and had myself transiting all over town to meet up with prospects who never turned out to be the right fit. Funny enough, I met my bandmate in the most obvious place– My vocal coach’s studio.

It was a conversation I had about this very subject with my friend, musical colleague, and piano instructor, Ciara McAllister that led the two of us to create a performance workshop specifically for the clients in our respective studios. COLLAB is a “collaboration lab” and safe space where participants perform live, experiment and grow together as artists with hands-on guidance from Ciara and I. Singers are paired up with pianists to form duos, singer/songwriters share their original songs and singer/pianists work on inspired cover tunes. The finale happens in the form of “COLLAB: the performance”, a live showcase of each artist’s selected musical piece. Sessions ran this past summer and fall for four weeks each and were absolutely incredible!

Words to describe COLLAB: creative, intense, camaraderie, open, supportive, exciting, powerful, magic.

I am thrilled to offer this workshop and be part of such an inspiring group of artists!

See photos of both sessions: SUMMER 2012 + FALL 2012

The SPRING 2013 session of COLLAB runs April 18 – May 10.

Registration is now open!

Yes, YOU CAN PICKLE THAT, but do you know how wonderfully good for you cucumbers really are? As an avid cucumber water drinker, I was happy to learn that:

#1 – Cucumbers are 95% water which means they are majorly hydrating (Hello, SINGERS!)

#2 – The phytochemcials in cucumbers will kill bacteria in your mouth (a.k.a. bad breath). Press a slice to the roof of your mouth for 30 seconds.

#3 – Full of B vitamins and electrolytes, cucumbers can help boost your energy and relieve a headache.

#4- Thanks to their naturally occurring fiber and high water content, cucumbers help the body flush itself of toxins.

#5 – Cucumbers are extremely alkalinizing. Consuming foods that are alkaline help maintain the body’s ideal pH balance.

Bottom line, I feel a difference when I add more cucumber to my diet. My thirst is quenched faster, my skin looks clearer (Yay for natural, non-toxic beauty!), and I definitely notice a healthy energy spike (Especially, if I run a few through my juicer making it a base for some tasty green juice). Slice some into your water glass (or julienne it into your water bottle) and see how you feel!

Sources which inspired this post:

Natural News

Energise Alkaline Diet Blog

BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE! And it’s that time of year when my band, KARMACODA heads into the studio to get creative with a fave holiday cover tune. We chose the Frank Loesser classic, BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE because it’s a great duet and one that we thought would be fun to turn on it’s head and change up. We reversed the traditional vocal roles (I took over as “enticer”), went minor on the key, and gave it a downtempo feel. Hope this adds a little sparkle to your celebrations as 2012 comes to a close!

Download BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE for free HERE

SF WEEKLY writer, Ian S. Port got into the spirit with a thumbs-up review!  READ IT HERE

MERRY HOLIDAYS! xo

I’m excited to present my band, Karmcoda’s new music video for our single, EPIC!

A major thank you to podcaster extraordinaire, Anji Bee for premiering it on her show, The Chillcast Video Edition!

The band and I had such a great time partnering up with director Luis Otavio Feldens, photographer Greg Slick, and makeup artist Krysti Lozinski to bring you this dark, dreamy ride through a moonlit forest and night garden. Check out stills from the making of the video on our Facebook page.

To view in HD quality, be sure to click “720p HD” on the bottom right of the video. Enjoy!

I love January simply because it’s a fresh start. The sun is beginning to stretch its light out a bit longer and I’m out from under the cover of winter’s darkest nights. Action plans for my music and studio are forming and taking their first sips of air. I feel alive in a 2012 kind of way.

It’s quiet space that brings me clarity– Getting away from external chaos and going inward. This sentiment is where the lyrics of Repair + Beauty stem from. The band and I stripped down the album version and added a new ending for our live, acoustic performance at The Dolby Theatre.

“I’ll leave a light on/I’ll leave a light on for you, babe”.

Happy New Year.

It’s no secret that Joni Mitchell is a genius. She also wrote my favorite Christmas song. River is somber, aching and beautiful. It is a dose of reality amidst the hustle and bustle– A stock-taking moment as the year comes to a close. It gets me every time. In it’s reflective mood, I find memories, warmth and spirit.

My band, Karmacoda and I couldn’t help but cover this tune. Wishing you and yours a river to skate away on… Happy Holidays!

Download a free mp3 of River HERE

Just over a month ago my band, Karmacoda and I released our fourth studio album, Eternal. Blood, sweat, tears– the whole nine yards has been put into the creation and delivery of our newest sonic collection. This summer saw us playing great shows in LA, Portland, and of course, SF. It’s been completely exciting and happily exhausting!

Since then, our time has been filled with the preparation of special “extras”: A proper music video for our single Epic, along with live, acoustic video versions of the tracks, Feel The Weight, Repair + Beauty, and I Am Just Not Listening Any Longer.  All of the videos will be appearing on our YouTube channel over the next couple of months.

We also took a quick trip down to Southern California to hang out in the studio with podcaster extraordinaire, Anji Bee, and record an Eternal-focused edition of The Chillcast!  This live, in-depth interview will be up for your listening pleasure on September 30th.

Check out a cool and thoughtful review of the album on AllMusic.com.

You can preview and purchase Eternal on iTunes, CDBaby, Amazon and at the Karmacoda Store (where vinyl and hi-def versions are also available).

I’m so grateful to my amazing bandmates, wonderful clients, family, friends, and fans who continue to support Karmacoda.  Thank you a million times over!

Yep– That’s my Raven on the cover.

Take a photo tour of Heather Pierce Vox + Music’s new studio here!

I am absolutely thrilled to announce the shiny new location of Heather Pierce Vox + Music at 2002 3rd Street!

It’s been a long-time dream of mine to combine my teaching and writing spaces into one complete hub of music and creativity. Just as spring arrives, so does the time for this exciting change!

I’m still in my favorite SF locale (Potrero Hill), now just a bit closer to the hip and ever blossoming Dogpatch neighborhood.

In-town clients– Here are a couple local spots you might want to visit before or after your session:

The Dogpatch Cafe: This lovely little organic coffee house at 3rd + 20th has great ambiance, light eats, wi-fi and an acoustic piano– you have to love that.

Moshi Moshi: A divine sushi spot serving lunch, dinner and cocktails. The rolls and apps are fresh and creative, plus they’ve got a fantastic vegetarian menu. On the corner of 3rd + 18th.

Directions to my new space live HERE. Studio doors burst open on April 4th. I can’t wait to welcome you in!

xo + music,

The common cold and flu… SO not good for singers. A run-down body equals a run-down voice. Can’t have that! Tours, gigs and recording sessions require healthy vocalists. Though it has been unseasonably warm here in San Francisco, many of my clients are struggling to keep their immune systems on the up and up. Thus, I’ve put together a list of my favorite cold and flu season fixes.

If you think you’re on the verge of illness, start taking Wellness Herbal Resistance Liquid every couple of hours. This is a formula that Franco Garritano (my savior of an acupuncturist) swears by. Wellness contains goldenseal and echinacea along with Yin Chiao, a powerful Chinese herbal blend that fights oncoming colds fast. It’ll cost you about $12.00 and save you a lot more. I buy it at my local Whole Foods Market and keep it in my bag at all times. Whenever I come into contact with anyone who isn’t “feeling so good”, I take a dropper-full.

Prefer a fizzy tablet-style immunity booster? I love Zenergize Natural Health & Wellness Boost. It’s completely chemical-free and does not contain any sugar whatsoever (Remember, white sugar is evil when you’re getting sick as it exacerbates the situation). I pop a tablet into my water bottle and refresh throughout the day. The citrus flavor is my favorite. It tastes exactly like Tang (fond memories of summertime at my Grandma’s). Available at Whole Foods for around $8.00 and online for $5.00 at Organic Pharmacy.

Last but not least, I always make a steamy, comforting cup of Fresh Ginger Elixir. Nothing soothes a scratchy throat more! Lately I’ve been adding a sachet of Two Leaves & A Bud Organic Chamomile tea to my mug for an extra dose of calm.

Along with doing my best to get plenty of sleep and drinking mass amounts of water, these three fixes work like a charm for me. As a side-note, be sure to check-in with your own healthcare provider before trying anything new. Hope these ideas help. Stay healthy this winter!

Organic Chamomile Tea + Fresh Ginger Elixir.