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I would like to introduce The Spirit Guides readers to Heather Kropf - a singer/songwriter. She has self-produced 4 full-length albums, spanning over 17 years: Sky (2000), What Else is Love (2005), Hestia (2008), and Chrysalis (2014) and her latest, Lights (2017).
Heather was trained in classical piano but she approaches songwriting from an intuitive, unschooled perspective and tends to get her ideas from something she hears or learns in her environment and then she plays with it until a song emerges. She says: “Writing songs and making music is a form of meditation!” Her early influences were classical and jazz on public radio because that's what her parents listened to in the family home. Then, as a teenager, she began exploring music on her own and discovered Joni Mitchell, and Court and Spark, Sting, Suzanne Vega and Kate Bush.
Heather loves all music, especially if it is something that she cannot create herself, so artists, such as MeShell NdegeoCello, Brian Blade, The Pixies make her happy! She likes to hear live music on a weekly basis, and considers this one of the great pleasures of being alive.
“It keeps me centred, grounded and healthy. I believe it is our life’s work to acknowledge and embrace what we love, no matter the doubts or fears or struggles. When we are in dissonance with ourselves to any degree there is struggle. For me that manifested in chronic illness, chronic fatigue, depression, anxiety, co-dependency, etc. To get to a place of joy we must align ourselves with our highest path, reference ourselves for our happiness, embody it fully, and let go of knowing the end result. I have found this way of making art to be much more generative and enjoyable in recent years. My health concerns have largely lifted now that I am focusing on what I love rather than what I lack, when I live by love and generosity towards myself rather than judgment or expectation of perfection.”
Heather has a degree in Fine Art and Communication and she has enjoyed working and volunteering as a radio DJ. Recently she wanted to learn more about energy and became a certified Feng Shui consultant. Feng Shui is like music to her, and anything that has to do with energy and metaphysics and the heart interests her. Science also interests her, especially space travel. She loves any system of understanding the soul or the personality, and she loves to watch films. Had the circumstances been different, she might have pursued a career in film instead of music. Primarily, her passion is songwriting and recording. The writing process is inspiring, a time when she can go within and see what's true in her heart, and then bring out a blueprint of a song. She also works with talented musicians to create recordings for albums. She finds it a perfect balance of introversion and extroversion, solo effort and collaboration.
Throughout the last few years, Heather’s creativity has elevated and she has been writing more authentic material. Many of the songs are gathered into her fifth CD album "Lights" and Heather is releasing her first music video of her song "Big Love" by collage artist and filmmaker Brooke Schooles. Heather continues,
“On the eve of making the latest, Chrysalis, I had a heart-awakening experience that I am unable to describe. I met someone, and they ‘woke me up’. This meeting completely changed my life. Just in the last few weeks (and this is nearly 5 years later) the matter is finally settling and I'm in a calm, balanced and confident space. I have spent hours of energy healing with a few of my favourite practitioners, I even sold my home, I changed many relationships, I shed most of my belongings and I changed day jobs. I found it takes the body, mind and spirit time to acclimatise to a more expansive and authentic lifestyle. Not everything can come with you wherever you go, if you are changing your life. But when life calls you, and you say ‘yes’, and you do it unconditionally, your life improves, either that or you suffer. Loving the entirety of your experience is key to transforming it.”
The further Heather dives into being a musician, the more she realises she must follow her heart and go with the flow and let things be a big as they are intended to be. She has been working on a side project called Fair Play which is about sustainable music culture with her local arts council to support the survival of professional club musicians and to produce an exceptional audience experience. Prior to her recent projects, she took part in compilations for local radio and television productions, and has performed several times for TV. With this new album, she has stretched herself to find a producer and has been delighted with the results. She is seeking musicians to work with her. With her previous health matters largely relieved for the first time in nearly 10 years, she is focusing on the areas that became neglected, such as live performances. She intends to travel and wants to share music and to be with others, working creatively, with inspiration and love.
I enjoy Heather’s music. Her voice is gentle, her words meaningful, and the music warming, light and melodic.
Find me on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/user/heatherkropf
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