September 15th, 2024
ToneGym Hero: Sabine Konrath
Driven by her deep love for music and the joy of creating with others, leading her to pursued classical piano and choir singing, eventually evolving into songwriting. Sabine Konrath is this month's ToneGym Hero!
How did you first find your way into making music?
When I was five years old, my parents sent me to a teacher who taught us how to read notes and play the recorder. I was good and liked it, so I switched to alto flute later. When I was ten, I started getting classical piano lessons. I also loved singing and sang in our school choir and later at university.
I have always had music in my life. Although I am not a professional musician, I started singing lessons in my thirties and sang in different choirs.
The big change, however, occurred when I was 55 and talking to a friend about my poems and lyrics, and should I put music to them? I started looking into songwriting and found a mentoring program where I connected to people worldwide.
Slowly, my knowledge came back, and with it, the joy of writing and singing my songs. With the help of my mentor I released my first song, Lost in Shadows, last year and have not stopped since. While I use my midi keyboard and a DAW to record demos, I started to learn a few chords on the guitar, because I love writing folk and country.
Aside from music, what hobbies or activities do you enjoy?
I am an avid knitter and crafter. I enjoy working with hand-dyed yarns and creating something tangible for a change. Knitting means getting into a meditative state, which always inspires new ideas. I also love to read, mostly crime novels, nonfiction on different topics, and biographies.
What’s something you're surprisingly good at that has nothing to do with music?
Learning new languages comes easily to me. I am half German, half French, and live in an area where three countries (DE, FR, and LUX) meet. So I speak French, German, English, Spanish, and a bit of Italian—and I try to learn a few sentences when I travel to a new country.
If you could play or create with any artist, who would it be and why?
Oh, that’s a difficult one! So, while I always listened to David Bowie, I rediscovered him from a songwriter’s perspective, and I guess it would be fun to learn from this genius how to create something unique and universal simultaneously.
When it comes to lyrics, I’d choose Leonard Cohen. His verses are pure magic. I analysed a few songs and used similar rhyme schemes from time to time. I love how his songs just flow.
Among the living ones, I would love to work with Sting. His ability to change genres, give his songs a jazzy feel, and create songs that feel like they have been here forever and are new at the same time. I think I could also learn a lot about performing. I once saw him play live, and it was amazing.
What musical instrument do you love the most, and what makes it irreplaceable for you?
I love the piano in all its beautiful forms because it is so versatile and sounds different in every genre and style. I love classical music as well as Jazz, Pop, Soul, and R&B. It allows me to write my songs in a pure form and later change to other instruments and sounds.
What daily or weekly habits do you have in place to keep you creating?
Every day I do the Gym exercises, most days I write lyrics or free text for 10 to 15 minutes, and I work on a song most weekends, meaning putting a melody and chords to my lyrics and experimenting,
What keeps you motivated to continue making music?
I have a network of friends all around the world. We collaborate to write songs, and we also chat a lot online or help each other, support our releases, and share our knowledge.
What song would you choose as the soundtrack of your life?
That’s tough, but I think the one that fits most is “My Way”, in Frank Sinatra’s version - because in the end it’s what matters most, to do it my way.
What's your favorite feature on ToneGym, and how has it helped you in your musical journey?
When I started Tonegym, my goal was to hear chords better and get a feel for chord progressions and inversions. I needed to hear what would work best in a song. So Chordelius, Route VI, and Inversionist were the ones I did often, and I have to admit I struggled a lot with inversions in the beginning.
I also love the vocal range test, as my range can change a bit from day to day.
What’s something exciting you're working on or looking forward to?
I’m currently working on two new songs, that will both be released this autumn/winter - and I can really hear that I am getting better at writing and singing. Can’t wait to share them.
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