29 High Street
adoptive business:
Hermit Thrush Brewery
amplifying the good work of:
Connecticut River Conservancy
spotlighting local creatives:
Collin Leech | visual art
Lissa Schneckenburger | music
Miles Ackerman-Hovis | coding
funded by:
The Town of Brattleboro
Arts Council of Windham County
“I am inspired to write songs about difficult and divisive subjects, in a way that highlights the commonality of different narratives and voices. Finding beauty and building community through music, while embracing our humanity and differences, is my passion.” —Lissa Schneckenburger
Schneckenburger's playing is...quietly virtuosic...her voice is pure and clear, full of simple emotion. —All Music Guide
When Schneckenburger sings—an enchanting mix of smoke, gravel & honey—you stop what you’re doing. The down beat slams your body as the lyrics ignite—diamonds in the snow, bright voices of love and loss—and then she brings each song to a boil, careening around each unexpected detail. The song ends before you’re ready, leaving you breathless with your heart pounding in your ears. You reach forward and hit repeat.
Some albums, it seems, we’ve been waiting our whole lives to hear. ’Thunder in my Arms’, Schneckenburger’s first release of all original music, is a song cycle about attachment, parenting and trauma. After a decades-long career performing as a traditional fiddler and ballad singer, Schneckenburger’s personal experience as a foster parent sparked her drive to write stories of family attachment and loss. She found herself diving into writing this new material with a fever that matched her subject matter. Sung from a myriad of viewpoints, ‘Thunder in my Arms’ can be at times brazen and innocent, resilient and triumphant, softly confessional and sweetly comforting.
Schneckenburger says, “At a certain point I noticed that everyone we turned to for help with parenting was talking about the same thing: finding compassion, synchronicity, and understanding. In my attempts to be a better adoptive parent I found plenty of invaluable books and workshops that got that point across, but no songs! Music has this magical way of communicating emotion almost instantly, and allows human beings to synchronize with each other on so many levels. I set out to write songs that would resonate with other parents like myself. Songs about loneliness, exhaustion, beauty, abandonment, love, loss, and above all, hope.”
Schneckenburger’s fans will be the first to tell you that the sonic tapestry of ‘Thunder in my Arms’ is a sharp contrast to her previous recordings. Rooted solidly in a foundation of drums and bass, the songs swell with electric guitar, piano and strings, and at times explode with brass and saxophone. Above this rich and alluring mix rides Schneckenburger’s expressive vocals, with her tender lyrics driving it all home.
Raised in a small town in Maine and now living in Vermont, Schneckenburger grew up with music. She began playing fiddle at the age of six, inspired by her parents’ interest in folk music. In 2001 she graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music with a degree in Contemporary Improvisation. She has been performing and teaching music around the world ever since.
"To me, music creates community," Schneckenburger says. "Music is what people sing along to, dance to, fall in love to... music brings people together. These songs are part of all of us, and it's an honor to have had the chance to record them.”
Connecticut River Conservancy is the voice for the Connecticut River watershed, from source to sea. We collaborate with partners across four states to protect and advocate for your rivers and educate and engage communities. We bring people together to prevent pollution, improve habitat, and promote enjoyment of your river and its tributary streams. Healthy rivers support healthy economies.
Fermenting since 2014 with only wild Brattleboro mixed culture yeast, Hermit Thrush Brewery has continually pushed the boundaries of new sour beer. To truly understand terroir and wild yeast, a brewer must come to terms with the type of beer that “wants to be made” in their region. We are proud of Brattleboro’s wild yeast for its balance, its stone fruit and pecan character, and how dry and effervescent it leaves the beer. We are grateful to our region’s farms for the availability of world class hops and fruits, as well as to our area distilleries for unique and beautiful oak barrel flavor histories. We delight in making beer that could only be made in our place, with our team, supported by our community and environment.
hermitthrushbrewery.com
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