'I strongly believe that art, in its various disciplines, is a language that connects all of humanity. It is universal and deeply spiritual.'
Sarah Houston is a classical composer and pianist based in Calgary. After spending a decade playing keyboards and co-writing in local indie alternative and post-rock bands, Young Neighbours and mid atlantic, Sarah realized that her true passion lies in creating and composing music for solo piano. Her first solo album, Home in a Far Away Land was written over a period of 10 years during her rock-band phase, and was self-released in 2016.
Following the release of Home in a Far Away Land and being newly introduced to composers such as Olafur Arnalds and Max Richter (two of her largest musical influences), Sarah’s love of writing in the modern classical/experimental genre quickly picked up steam. When Sarah began writing her sophomore album, she decided that she wanted to take listeners on a more expansive journey, trying her hand at writing for multiple instruments. In Time was released in 2020 and was largely inspired by her experience becoming a mother and balancing that role with having the space to do what she loves: create and compose music. The pieces on In Time are largely written for piano, orchestral instruments, combined with field recordings and a hint of post-rock influence. Sarah’s end goal for In Time was to take listeners on a vast sonic journey, while telling a story through the music. She won Classical Recording of the Year for In Time at the 2021 YYC Music awards.
In 2022, Sarah released her latest project, a 5 song EP titled 'Windshift.' Windshift came out of her desire to learn more about recording in her studio at home over the course of pandemic. As Sarah dove deep into the writing process for this project, it quickly evolved into an experimentation with layered piano, with pieces like 'Fragment' and 'Pulse' whose themes are tastefully surrounded by interesting rhythmic elements and parts that draw from every register of the piano. Sarah is looking optimistically at what lies ahead for her musically, with several new ideas and projects in the works.