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BARBARA BLAISDELL Barbara Blaisdell has been playing piano and writing songs since the age of 5. Growing up in New York City, she wrote and performed her first musical at age 15. Most recently, keyboardist/songwriter Barbara Blaisdell and guitarist/songwriter Tim Utt had one of their original songs, "Talk Is Cheap" make it into Jonathan Demme's remake of 'The Manchurian Candidate,' starring Denzel Washington and Meryl Streep. Another original tune, "Yes Means Yes" is featured in the Tom Hanks hit film "Philadelphia.' Barbara and Tim have recorded their original tracks with the help of many outstanding musicians including Jon Fishman, Eric Bibb, Jennifer Hartswick, Dave Grippo, and Chuck Eller.
Barbara's band, Sensible Shoes, enjoys a large local and regional following. They opened for 10,000 Maniacs, NRBQ, and the J. Geils Band, and they shared the Ben & Jerry's 'One World/One Heart' stage with Rosanne Cash. Sensible Shoes plays regularly at Skunk Hollow Tavern in Hartland Four Corners, VT.
Barbara continues to study the craft of songwriting. She is a member of ASCAP and the National Academy of Popular Music, and was also one of a handful of songwriters from across the country chosen to attend Rosanne Cash's intensive songwriting workshop. Rosanne calls Barbara's lyrics "real and powerful, like a page from a diary," and says, "Barbara creates beautiful melodies, and I love how she plays."
Recently, Barbara was music supervisor of Kingdom County's 'Voices Project.' She worked with teens across the state to create original music for the show, which also featured a song co-written by Barbara. Barbara designed and implemented songwriting and original musical theater programs at the Richmond Middle School in Hanover NH, where she and her students create an original musical each year. She also teaches improvisational/blues piano and songwriting classes for teens and adults privately.
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