New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Ella Squirrell grew up surrounded by creativity in the beautiful town of Bridport in Dorset. She has always felt at one with the natural world, returning to nature as a comfort in her song-writing. She has recently spent six months living and working in London, after discovering it to be a great base for music, and has returned to Dorset with a wealth of experience.
Ella picked up her first instrument aged 10. She copied folk songs on an Irish penny whistle, before moving on to the guitar when she was 11. Her dad is a professional musician, playing mandolin in a trio folk band, and he fully encouraged Ella's musical growth. He taught Ella the basics before she started teaching herself by taking inspiration from other songs.
Ella recalls writing her first successful song aged 15. She started with just 3 lines and the stepped away from it for a while. When she came back to it, the words began to flow, with a little help from her poet mom. She taught Ella to be brave with words, combining senses and placing the listener in the atmosphere and experience of the writer. This gave Ella the confidence to write her own songs.
As a young teenager, Ella drew on just ideas at first, playing with scenarios rather than real life, as she was yet to experience a lot of the things she wrote about. 'Trust Is A White Dove', a track on upcoming EP, 'Loop', was one of these. It is a scenario Ella wanted to sing about, rather than a real-life anecdote. Between the ages of 17 and 19, Ella started to experience more and so her songs became more personal.
Song-writing is a cathartic process for Ella. She sees it as the best outlet for strong emotions, whether she is feeling down or feeling really happy. Allowing herself to be honest in her song-writing is the key to her creativity.
Ella has followed in her dad's folk footsteps, but with a modern pop twist. She is always learning from other musicians, and believes collective song-writing and collaboration is key for musical growth. She meets musicians at open mic nights and is constantly inspired by their work and attitude.
It is no surprise Ella loves collaboration as she grew up partaking in spontaneous jam sessions with family and friends in the creative bubble of Bridport. She gained most of her skills in this way, having never studied music. She doesn't read or write music; her melodies exist in her head, inspired by what she hears around her, and she teases them out into reality.
This background in creativity is her biggest influence. When Ella is at home, she realises just how musical her family life is. Her dad plays a range of instruments and his playing can always be heard throughout the house. She is revisiting music every time she is in Bridport, discovering new things and catching up with other creative friends. Fellow Dorset singer-songwriter, Jack Harrison, reminded Ella to do it for the love of music and nothing else, and this is something that has stuck with Ella as she continues in her growth as a musician.
Ella hopes to add the piano to her instrumental repertoire, which already includes the guitar and the drums. For now, she continues to write songs by playing her guitar, humming the melody, and singing along.
The biggest moment in Ella's career so far has been performing on the acoustic stage before Ben Howard's show at Birmingham's Barclaycard
Arena in April 2015. Ella counts
Ben Howard as one of her biggest influences, amongst the likes of Joni Mitchell, Rae Morris, Bombay Bicycle Club, and Warpaint, and aspires to reach their heights of success.
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Upcoming Gigs:
1st May 2015
Beach and Barnicott, Bridport
May Day Songwriters Session
27th May2015
The Jam House, Birmingham
The Launch Pad - a regular showcase of some of artists that the Jam House considers "ones to watch".
4th July 2015
Big Mix
Music Festival, Lyme Regis
The Big Mix is Lyme's own youth music festival by the sea,
