Daniel Johnston, Jan Johansson, Bob Dylan, Monica Zetterlund, Stina Nordenstam, Joni Mitchell, Stanley Kubrick, Emmylou Harris, Townes van Zandt, Motorpsycho, Gillian Welch, Thom York, Edith Piaf, Bill Evans, Elton John, Le mystere de vox Bulgaris, Trond Viggo Torgersen, Serge Gainesbourg, Billy Joel, Gram Parsons, Mike Leigh, Ligeti, Hanne Hukkelberg, Loney Dear, Tom Waits, Debussy, The Beatles and The Beach Boys, Lou Barlow, Michael Jackson, Sufjan Stevens, John Coltrane, Haruki Murakami, In the Country, Nina Simone and my mother.
Everybody wants to tell their story. Thank you so much for stopping by my page.
At six years of age, I found a piano in my neighbour’s cellar. Some hours later I was able to play “Do-Re-Mi” from Sound of music with my index finger. I was very fascinated, and have been ever since.
After years of piano lessons and music reading, more precisely when I turned twenty, I started singing when I was alone by the piano. I hade discovered so many artists that I reckoned didn’t have the largest voices in the world, but still was able to give life to their stories. I immediately fell in love with the concept of doing both at once, it felt like one drew from the other, organic, simple and a way to completely lose myself. Still I dreaded even the thought of anyone listening in. It felt too personal.
One day an old friend of mine (thank you so much if you read this) caught me rehearsing, and stood quietly and listened for a while before I noticed. He insisted that I tried it on an audience. I was scared to death, but took his challenge. I guess it must have been a secret longing that made me cross that line that first time. The show wasn’t all that good, but afterwards I felt like I was floating in a cloud. I was so happy! Singing and playing for people makes me incredibly full of joy. I had to take that serious, even though “performing artist” or “song writer” isn’t the easiest career choice I could have made. Funny enough, the moment I started singing for real, I also wrote my first song. I’ve written quite a lot by now.
In the years that have followed I have been lucky enough to sing with some of Norway’s finest men and women, through back up vocals and duets. Last winter I was the support act for Sivert Høyem of Madrugada on his tour, and was able to meet eleven thousand people live on the road.
This whole experience has been leading me up to this moment where I am able to present my solo album with my own songs for anyone who wants to listen. Nothing in the world could excite me more. From my little apartment in Oslo, Norway I send you all the best possible wishes for 2008!
Venner av Ingrid Olava, som jeg også er glad i, vennligst les dette!
Mark Steiner needs your vote to hopefully get a grant from the Norwegian music organization known as GramArt ( http://www. myspace. com/artistene ) so that he can pay for his airfare to Australia this September!
ingen e så gooood som du daaaa, ingen e så gooood som duuuu! takk for herlige træna minner - øya neste... klemmer fra "med hue under armen og armen i bind" ;-)
