Today we’d like to introduce you to Abby Posner.
Abby, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I grew up in a small mountain town in Colorado called Evergreen. I started playing music when I was six years old, and I had a desire to learn as much about music as possible. I wanted to teach myself every instrument and speak the musical language fluently so when I was nine years old, I took guitar lessons, then drums, bass, and then I decided I would go to music school and continue on with my journey. I then learned banjo, mandolin and percussion in my early 20s and got my undergrad at California Institute of The Arts with a focus on multi-instrumentation and composition. I went on to teach music, play in several bands (both as a hired gun and lead singer), and compose music for film and TV. Today I continue to play music full time. I am scoring for a feature documentary and touring as a solo artist/with my band Abby and The Myth.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has been a wild juggling act. I have had to work extra hard in order to do this full-time. There are no weekends, only gigs, and composing, and there is not a lot of time to relax. The music industry is tricky, you have to work your butt off, and sometimes it is hard to see the pay offs. It is a two steps forward, two steps back type of life. One day you feel like you are on top of the world, and then next day you feel like you haven’t moved forward, and you are right back to where you started. I think as a queer woman I have had to work extra hard because up until recently you had to hide your sexuality in your artistic expression in order to “make it.” I think in the last five years, people are appreciating diversity in the industry more than ever, but it still feels like the industry has a long way to go.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I am a songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist. I have an extensive background in mixing, recording and arranging. I think one of my favorite things to do is create custom music cues for Film and TV placements. I play all of the instruments in the studio and sing all of the harmonies…it is my own personal playground. I have also been teaching music since 2006, and I feel that I have learned so much from teaching various instruments. It has kept my music theory and ear training very fresh from when I first studied music at CalArts. I can play a variety of genres and styles on many different instruments, and I have been told that my lyrics are poetic and hopeful in a universal way.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I always loved being on stage in whatever capacity when I was a kid. I acted for many years, played in bands, and always felt extremely comfortable as a performer, however, there was this other side of my younger self that was extremely introverted and sensitive. I always used music as a sort of self-soothing/therapy. I was very aware that I was “different” from a young age. I knew I liked girls as young as four years old, and I knew that in order to fit in I had to figure out a way to get along with everyone, even the bullies and the people that had different backgrounds/values. It was kind of a form of survival, but in the end I feel like it shaped who I am today.
Contact Info:
- Address: Culver City
- Website: www.abbyposner.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @abbyposnermusic
- Facebook: facebook.com/abbyposnermusic
- Twitter: twitter.com/abbyposnermmusic
Image Credit:
Black and white photos by Rollence Patugan, and the picture of me holding the banjo by CBC Photography
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