Emily Haviland: Album Update & Other Thoughts

Dear Beloveds -

I am pleased to announce the release of my monthly newsletter with you all. With all the various social platforms that we use to keep in touch with one another; some are on facebook and not instagram, others are on tik-tok and not facebook, I decided it was high time that this gal gets her s*it together and start a newsletter.

Stories from Summer 2023

• Tanglewood

  This summer felt a bit chaotic at times. (Mostly good chaos.)I was back and forth working at Tanglewood and launched a successful board weekend onsite, while my partner toured throughout the country with Twiste Pine. We had a tricky time catching each other amidst it all, but were still able to catch some rest-time at my parents house on a lake in Maine here and there. (For those of you that may not know, I started full-time in administration at the Boston Symphony back in April. I am currently part of a team of 1, managing relations with our board that consists of over 200 folks.) I spent a total of three weeks or so out in the Berkshires and boy, did I do quite the deep dive into all things BSO and Tanglewood related. The learning curve has been tricky, as I was previously working with a board of about 42 at Berklee College of Music, so I am JUST starting to feel like I’m getting the hang of it. My colleagues at the BSO say that it usually takes a full cycle of the their performance seasons (1 year) to really understand the intricacies of this institution. The BSO was founded in 1881, so its history goes way back.) Needless to say, I am happy for this opportunity to continue learning about arts non-profits, the philanthropic endeavors that aid in keeping these institutions alive, all whilst helping rebuild the board program in this post-pandemic season.

• Gigs, Recording, & Summer Pickin’

  Taking into consideration the time that needs to be dedicated to the BSO, the new rule around my performance career is to focus in on specific freelance work and the Emily Haviland solo project.

  Some freelance highlights: Every so often I have the honor of sitting in on some Ethan Robbins gigs, sometimes with his band Cold Chocolate, which is always so fun. Ethan is a dear friend who I always have a great time with. I’ve been performing and song-sharing at a lovely singer/songwriter circle through some Berklee friends and colleagues at Arts at the Armory in Somerville, MA. For all you locals, you can see details for my next sit-in there on September 20th.

  Twisted Pine’s annual appearance at Ossippee Valley Music Festival always stamps the latter half of the summer festival season, and that is one that I never miss. Musician-friends from all over come to either perform there or pick late into the wee hours of the morning, and because it nearly monsooned half the time, I was able to really hunker down and play fiddle for as long as I could manage!

  Another highlight was sitting in on Eva Gertz’s recording session at Dimension Sound Studio in Jamaica Plain (where I recorded my album). I was honored that she asked me to sit in and sing some harmonies for one of her tracks, and had an absolute blast! She is truly a joy and is a talented songwriter and performer.

“Not Who You Think” Album Updates

The album is set to be released in early 2024! I’ve started the beginnings of my hunker-down-into-promotion-land and have some really exciting things coming down the line.

• Music Video

  In mid-August, my sweet friend, Blake Hannahson, videographer/photographer, drove all the way down from Toronto to shoot the album single’s music video. He stayed with Chris and I in Watertown for three nights, with the majority of the time onsite in Newburyport, MA. Blake is an massively talented man all around with creativity running through his veins and as I said, a dear friend. So with him and Chris (as his assistant/my co-producer), my nerves whilst filming live in front of random summer tourists on the boardwalk were nearly non-existent. The concept I pitched was a little tricky and called for full commitment on my end; so prior to, there was a part of me that questioned my ability to perform said idea in front of a bunch of random people. (Said people all trying to have a nice peaceful night on a beautiful boardwalk in an old New England port-town. They got more than they bargained for.) But I will tell you right now, I performed just fine and made a complete fool of myself, and you will all love it.

• CD Release Tour

  I am planning a short CD release tour set to start in the early months of 2024.The hope is to tour throughout northern New England in MA, VT, ME, and RI.

• Kickstarter Gifts

  For those of you that ordered lyric booklets and/or embroidered bags, I am working on it! The lyric booklet is looking quite lovely (if I do say so myself) and I’m looking forward to sharing it with you! The downside is is that I’ve unfortunately developed tendonitis in my wrists and thumbs and with all the typing and guitaring and fiddling that I do, I do not have the physical capability to be embroidering small letters. So if you ordered one of those small embroidered bags, you will most likely be getting a beautiful, hand-drawn lyric book. My hope is that these, along with the CDs, will go out for the holiday season! And for those of you that didn’t order one of these booklets, I will be selling them on the CD release tour with the rest of the merch!

Can’t wait for you all to hear the album. This is an actual dream come true and so many of you had a part in it. I couldn’t have done this without you, my sweet tribe.

Happy end-of-the-summer

xoxo

Emily Haviland