About
Rowan Sway is the musical project of Kate Minogue, an American singer-songwriter based in Basel, Switzerland.
rowan (n.) - a small mountain tree characterized by its bright red berries. Associated in celtic and norse mythology with humanity, perseverance, and life. .
sway (v.) - to move gently back and forth, as if touched by wind or music.
People say that Rowan Sway sounds like Taylor Swift, Sarah McLachlan, and Imogen Heap went to Ireland together.
I like to combine acoustic instruments with electronic sounds and beats, along with a hint of celtic influence in the melodies.
Like a good friend, a song is a place for you to feel what you feel, and be where you are.
Sometimes a certain landscape, a poem, or a piece of music will resonate with you. It holds you while taking you deeper into an experience or a feeling. Not to be consumed by it, but to become more intimate with it. To see what it offers, and where it’s inviting you to go.
And going further into *IT* – this precious crazy messy magic life – this is what I’m after!
Just like how a breeze sets the trees swaying, life's flow of people, places, and circumstances finds us and moves us. Writing songs is a way to be with what touches me: to feel it, explore it, cherish it, and create from it.
A little bit about me
Music for me started from day 1, with a dad who was always singing and never too far from a Martin guitar. I was lucky to pick up the flute in 5th grade, and to grow into a card-carrying marching band geek through high school.
Hearing James Taylor and Joni Mitchell at home, playing classical music in orchestras through college, then falling head over heels with Irish traditional music have all shaped the kind of sounds and words I like to put together.
Also, it took a long time and some very kind music teachers to work through my fear of singing. Being heard freaked me out so much that I swore to everyone, including myself, that I sucked at singing and refused to try. So if you’re reading this and saying the same thing about yourself – but deep down you want to do it anyway – well then, here’s your official invitation! I promise it’s worth it, no matter what you sound like at first.
In 2017, quite unexpectedly I found myself buying a one-way ticket from Boston to Switzerland, where I now live happily in Basel. If I’m not making music or wearing my daytime comms job hat, then I’m probably falling off my skis, baking something chocolatey, or foisting my German on unsuspecting locals.
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