Interview with Singer-Songwriter Vera van Heeringen

  


               With a hint of Gillian Welch but stylings completely her own, Vera van Heeringen plumbs the depths of Americana music with deftly versatile, instrumental skill and a sharp eye on the shifting landscapes and stories of humanity in the 21st century. Others have written, "It’s unusual to find someone who’s as good a songwriter as an instrumentalist, who brings the guitar to life in a way that is entirely her own. She’s subsequently been compared to people like John Martyn and Richard Thompson. Vera has an open, charming onstage presence that belies her outstanding flat-picking, and the ability to tug at your dancing shoes with a well-chosen rollicking fiddle tune or reduce you to tears with a poignant lyric,  making for a great gig that will linger long in the memory."



AHC: What has this journey in music, so far, been like for you, the highs and the lows, and what sort of life lessons do you feel you've picked up along the way?

Vera: That’s a hard thing to put into words. I find it impossible to describe in words what music means to me and what this journey has been like for me. This is exactly the reason I play music. Songs give me a way of expressing this that is a hundred times better then trying to talk about it.

I never thought I’d make a living playing music. I never thought I’d learn to play the fiddle. I never thought I would write songs.
I’ve enjoyed this journey so far and I am very excited to find out where the next stage of my musical journey will take me.

The highs, when they come, are intense musical moments that keep me fuelled for months, and give me belief that what I’m doing is the right path for me.

Lows happen when I’m not finding inspiration, and I always need that thing of playing with others, connecting and feeding off each other.

A major low came for me a year and a half ago when I lost my confidence and belief completely after a burnout and then soon after as I injured myself playing the bass. I had to step back to review and analyse what was happening and rejig body and brain working together. It was hard, but I’ve found ways to help myself and I think I’ll come out of it a lot stronger.

AHC: What first drew you to music and what was your early musical environment like growing up? Were there pivotal songs for you then that just floored you the moment you heard them?

Vera: I grew up in the Netherlands and listened to a bunch of stuff that my parents were into. Anything from to Queen, Buddy Holly, Fats Domino, Steve Earl, Hugh Moffat to Tom Russell, just to name a few. My parents were on their own musical journey while I grew up. They discovered roots/bluegrass/Americana music together. We always had music playing in the car and my parents also took my brother and me to concerts and festivals. Listening to music gave me a way to be in touch with my emotions.

I don’t remember a pivotal song but I do remember going to a blues camp, probably in my first year of secondary school and people were sitting round a fire singing songs and strumming. I really wanted to learn how to play chords so I could be a part of a session like that. That was a pivotal moment, the realisation that you could be strumming chords and singing songs together in a session with people you might not know and songs you might not even have heard.

AHC: Do you remember the first song that you ever wrote? Or that first moment when you picked up a pen and realized that you could create whole worlds just by putting it to paper? 

Vera: I remember the first song I wrote, ‘In Love with Someone Else’ which I recorded on my debut album ‘Standing Tall’. I must have been about 19 or 20 as I remember living in the UK whilst studying English as a Foreign Language. I never considered it any good and didn’t finish it until much later. I never thought I would write songs, partly because English isn’t my first language and I didn’t feel I had the vocabulary to write anything decent. It never stopped me wanting to express my emotions though so I would always scribble some things down.

AHC: Which musicians have you learned the most from? Or writers, artists, filmmakers etc?

Vera: I learn most from musicians I meet along the way. There are many soulful musical human beings that I have been inspired by. One example is Darrell Scott. I’ve always loved his music but meeting him brought about change. I ended up in his songwriting class at a camp by accident and at this time I’d never considered writing as a thing I might do, let alone attend a songwriting class. A whole lot of things made sense all at once and his soul inspired me. I got lifted high and fed off that injection of inspiration for a long while and it changed things in a deep way. The biggest learning experiences always come when you don’t expect them, but when your soul is open.

AHC: What do you think makes for a good song, as you're writing and composing, is there a sudden moment when you know you've found the right mix, that perfect angle of light, so to speak?

Vera: It’s a magical and mysterious experience. Somehow inspiration, emotions, words and melody come together into a song. It’s often clear at the time of writing when something good or true happens. Those moments often happen unexpectedly and you have to catch them when they do. I also feel that you have inspiration ‘stored’, and can tap into that when the time is right. It’s about learning to trust that things come together – you can never force the process.

AHC: Do you consider music to be a type of healing art, the perfect vehicle through which to translate a feeling, a state of rupture, hope lost and regained? Does the writing and creating of the song save you in the kinds of ways that it saves us, the listener?

Vera: Yes, music is absolutely a healing art and it saves me. I am very grateful I have the opportunity and support to do so. The older I get, the clearer it becomes that I need to play and create music to survive.

AHC: What are your fondest musical memories? In your house? In your neighborhood or town? On-tour, on-the-road?

Vera: I have countless amazing memories from being on the road, but also loads of lovely music around our kitchen table.

I can think of some recent fond musical memories of the last year - listening to great records in a friend’s kitchen, playing a session in the river at a festival, going for a swim in the sea before doing a gig, dancing round the kitchen with my children, learning to play the Cajun accordion.

The best memories for me usually lie in the small moments.

AHC: With the traditional ways that we listen to music rapidly changing, does it affect how you write and put together an album? Too often people are downloading and engaging with singular songs rather than albums as on ordered and thematic canvas, do you regret that your work may not be received in the way it was intended or created?

Vera: I have so far only put albums together the original way and I will probably remain to do so. I feel that there will always be a core of people who appreciate the thought and the way you put together an album. As for people downloading single tracks, once I’ve recorded my songs I am emotionally and creatively onto the next stage and I’m happy if anyone in anyway can connect to something I’ve done. If someone is moved by one song I wrote then I feel my work has been worthwhile.

AHC: When you set out to write an album of songs, how much does 'where the world is' in its current moment, culturally, politically, otherwise, influence the kinds of stories you set out to tell?

Vera: I write when I’m moved by something. I never set out to write political songs and I don’t write to make a point, but our current situation in the world does seem to be seeping into my songs from a human point of view. For example, one of my most recently finished songs is from the point of view of a migrant who has to wait an unimaginable amount of years to find out whether he can stay and be allowed to work. It’s always the personal stories of peoples’ lives I find interesting.

AHC: Do you have any words of advice for other musicians and singer-songwriters or anyone who is struggling to create something of value out there, who are just starting out and trying to find their voice and their way in this world? What are the kinds of things that you tell yourself when you begin to have doubts or are struggling with the creative process?

Vera: Write from the heart and be true to yourself.

If it’s not happening, go and do something else. Something that makes you feel good. By doing that you’re more open and things will start to happen.

AHC: Do you have any new projects you'd like to mention?

Vera: I’ve started working on a new album with my trio which I’m very excited about. Apart from playing music for a living, my partner and I also make a smoked habanero and garlic hot sauce. It’s tasty. Check it out here: www.jockshotsauce.com


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Visit Vera's website at http://www.veravanheeringen.com/_/Home.html

Bandcamp: https://veravanheeringen.bandcamp.com/releases