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I love the silence of a forest, the quiet of an early morning walk. Solitude is like water to me. I need time to be alone, to reflect, introspect, and develop self-awareness...or I shrivel. I don't conform easily, and I am not concerned about fitting in. I will always question things. I don't follow crowds or creeds. Wisdom is happiness. Music, art, and nature inspire me. I have a few very close friends who I have a deep connection with. Sometimes I wonder if studying music at a young age gave me "an old soul" way of being or was I attracted to music because I was always an old soul? #OldSouls

In making the video to "Broken Year" , I was able to express the visual side of the song. The video takes place in New England with many scenes of a woman hiking through the woods. Nature has always been a place where I can reflect and heal, so I wanted the video to express the healing side of the song. "Broken Year" was written after a short-term relationship didn't work out as I had hoped it would, and I sort of just looked back at that time as a "Broken Year" where two people did the best they could. The video, which shows a woman hiking through the forest and looking back on the relationship, brings out the idea that you can look back on events in your life through a negative or positive lens. In the end, I chose to look back at the love we shared instead of the breakup. Enjoy the video! #BrokenYear #SylvieAbate #MandySullivan #SylvieandMandy

"Broken Year" will be the first single I release in 2021. I've performed it many times over the years (with The BeeKeepers), but never got around to recording it. "Broken Year" feels like the perfect song for the New Year even though it was written at the end of 2016. I guess every song I write starts with an emotional experience/story. "Broken Year" was about forgiveness in the wake of a breakup that caused me a lot of heartache. It is a song about the disappointment of second chances that didn't work out. The judges in my head were questioning the fallout from an avoidant love. Avoidant love is when a person, through many complex behaviors, avoids emotional intimacy. "You say it is what it is...You’ve got nothing left to give." But, sometimes you just have to look back with a different lens. "Broken Year" is a song about looking back and being kind. I also came to a place of empathy. Being avoidant is very sad. Since performing the song with The Beekeepers, Mandy and I added a new bridge section that completes the song. This new section also brings home the idea that all the whiskey in the world couldn't "get it back to good." :) Some things can't be fixed. Here are the lyrics to "Broken Year." "We’ve traveled this road before Crossed every bridge and more You say it is what it is You’ve got nothing left to give. Let the judges be fair This was a broken year Let the judges be kind Lookin’ back on our sweet time. We’ve climbed this mountain before Aimed for the skies and more And wasn’t I the scent on your skin And you were my only reason Let the judges be fair This was a broken year Let the judges be kind Lookin’ back on our sweet time. We’ve walked this valley before Found comfort on familiar shores And didn’t I put our love first; didn’t I quench your thirst? Let the judges be fair This was a broken year Let the judges be kind Lookin’ back on our sweet time We played fiddles by the fire Singing songs of love and desire We drank whiskey like it was wine And we laughed until we cried And we drank more than we should Tryin’ to get it back to good Oh, we drank more than we should Tryin to get it back to good Oh, we drank more than we should Tryin to get it back to good But We did the best we could We did the best we could We did the best we could We did the best we could We did the best we could We did the best we could" #SylviesSongs #SylvieAbate #BrokenYear #Songwriting #TheMakingOfASong #WhenSecondChancesFail #AvoidantLove

Today, I stumbled upon the poem, "The Waking" while writing a music review. The artist, Kate Magdalena, wrote a beautiful song to the poem written by Roethke, While listening to Kate's angelic voice sing the words against acoustic guitar picking and gliding flute, I instantly fell in love with the poem. The Waking BY Theodore Roethke I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.    I feel my fate in what I cannot fear.    I learn by going where I have to go. We think by feeling. What is there to know?    I hear my being dance from ear to ear.    I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. Of those so close beside me, which are you?    God bless the Ground!   I shall walk softly there,    And learn by going where I have to go. Light takes the Tree; but who can tell us how?    The lowly worm climbs up a winding stair;    I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. Great Nature has another thing to do    To you and me; so take the lively air,    And, lovely, learn by going where to go. This shaking keeps me steady. I should know.    What falls away is always. And is near.    I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.    I learn by going where I have to go. In this poem, it appears that all things are are dependent upon the recognition of their antithesis which makes the poem circular. And, the awakened state seems to be a form of enlightenment where we experience life fully in the present. One of the most interesting lines is "I learn by going where I have to go." Sometimes, the greatest lessons are not learned by following our own desires, but by going where we have to go, spiritually. #TheWaking #TheodoreRoethke

My family lives in Austin. And they've convinced me to join them! But I have to admit, I was skeptical at first. Texas??? I soon learned that Austin has been named the best city in the United States for music, art, and culture. It is routinely lauded as one of the best places to live in the U.S., thanks to its warm weather, affordable living, and bustling cultural scene. And did you know that Austin is one of the most gay-friendly places in America, with a very active and visible LGBT community – a progressive, liberal haven in the heart of Texas where cowgirls, hipsters, artists, and musicians all live, work and play in harmony. How cool is that? Austin is also a city with gorgeous lakes and parks for hiking and kayaking. It is home to tons of trails for running, walking, hiking or biking – without even traveling outside the city limits! Barton Creek Greenbelt, McKinney Falls State Park, Travis Lake - are just a few of my new favorite spots. Family, music, art, culture, progressive thinkers, gorgeous nature - what more could I ask for?! #AustinTexas #AustinorBust #SylvieAbate #SylviesSongs

I am excited that my song "Pretty Words" will be featured on BWH Music Group's On Peace Street Compilation Album. I will be joining 18 other artists on this phenomenal album to share songs about peace and social justice. Here's a copy of the press release! Pretty Words" by Sylvie's Songs Feat. Amanda Sullivan Is Selected For BWH Music Group’s ‘On Peace Street,’ A Compilation Album Featuring Emerging and Exceptional Independent Artists And Songwriters Sharing Songs About Peace and Social Justice. (Boston, MA) About Pretty Words Written by Sylvie Abate, "Pretty Words" is a song about the cycle of emotional abuse. The song explores the "honeymoon" period in an abusive relationship where the abuser shows a side of themselves that the victim may truly love, pushing them further into the continuous cycle. "It's good to hear you're gonna change. That things will be different this time. I don't want to remember all your promises. ' Cause I want who you are now. And I want who you are now. And I'm falling, I'm falling for your pretty words." "Pretty Words" is a single that was released in advance of the concept album, I Walk Out Of The Fog. The title, I Walk Out of the FOG, is based on the acronym F.O.G. which stands for Fear, Obligation, and Guilt. The term FOG was first coined by Susan Forward and Donna Frazier in the book Emotional Blackmail and describes feelings that a person often has when in a relationship with someone who has a personality disorder. In "I Walk Out of the Fog", Sylvie explores emotional abuse and recovery.  Four songs have been released in advance of the album including "Pretty Words", "Flashing Yellow Lights", "Indecision", and "Roots Run Deep." There will be nine songs on the album: ​(1) Indecision, (2) Yellow Flashing Lights, (3) Pretty Words, (3) Honey You Lie, (5) Roots Run Deep, (6) Broken Year, (7) The End of the Line, (8) You Can't Take My Voice Away, and (9) Upwards and Onwards. Each song will be released as a single in advance of the album. "Pretty Words" is sung by lead vocalist Amanda Sullivan who carries the song with a deeply felt, emotional performance. Instrumentally, the song is intentionally sparse featuring a duo between piano and cello. The delicate and flowing piano is performed by Phred Mileski who also sings harmonies, and the moving cello lines that weave through the song are performed by Cleo Flemming. About Sylvie's Songs Sylvie Abate grew up listening to her father play popular music on an electric organ.  After trying the organ, she switched to guitar and took lessons throughout her childhood and teens. Sylvie went on to study classical guitar at the Hartt School of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music. She holds a Bachelor Degree in Guitar Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music. Many of her original songs incorporate finger-style guitar playing. ​ Sylvie's Songs has over 45,000 song plays on ReverbNation, the world's leading digital music distributor.  Several songs have aired on college radio (70 stations) across the United States  On digital radio, her songs have garnered over 20,000 spins in the  United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, China, Taiwan, South Korea, Brazil, Costa Rica, Mexico, France, Germany, Australia, Switzerland,  and Japan.  "Yellow Flashing Lights" was aired on Woman of Substance Radio's "Me Too" special and  "Pretty Words" was chosen for the National Missing Persons Gina Songwriting Contest.  "Roots Run Deep" aired on  National Indie Radio's "HerStory" and  "Roots & Wings" programs. ​ “Indecision” has aired nationally on 66 cable TV channels and was also distributed by Euro Indie Weekly where it was aired on Rtua TV Orvieto (Umbria), Tele Futura (Campania),  ele Radio Sciacca – DTT (Sicilia), Eden TV  (Veneto, Lombardia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia), Tele Vallo (Salerno , Potenza, Matera) and  LaQtv(Abruzzo),   Sylvie's Songs have also been distributed in China on Xiami,  QQMusic,  Weibo,  Douban and WeChat.   Sylvie' Songs hold synch licenses with several major TV networks including ETV! Network, the A & E Network, Oxygen, The Discovery Network, TLC Network and VH1. "Nuanced songwriting leaves listeners feeling like they’ve experienced something rather remarkable."  - Cashbox Canada For more information about Sylvie's Songs, please visit her website. Connect on Facebook.​ About BWH Music Group BWH Music Group works with today’s best emerging independent artists to achieve common goals in sound and artist promotions offering Recording Services, Compilation Releases, Music Public Relations, and National Indie Radio. A sought-after post-production studio for emerging artists, “BWH Music Group has become synonymous with hosting some of the biggest and brightest young stars on their roster.” – Gas House Radio. #SylvieAbate #SylviesSongs #PrettyWords #SongsAboutDomesticViolence #BestSocialJusticeSongs #BWHMusicGroup #IndependentMusicNews

The folk group I was in for almost three years, The BeeKeepers, has come to an end. I will miss making music with Phred and Mandy, two of the finest musicians and singers I have worked with. Some of my best memories were on the stage or in the studio with The BeeKeepers. Reheasing at Phred's house in New London every week was something I really looked forward to...we even had a songwriting retreat - I'll never forget Phred's amazing front yard garden. Endings are often bittersweet; I feel sad about saying goodbye to a band I love, but I'm also excited about the music journey ahead. I'm grateful that I had the opportunity to play, write, record, perform (and laugh my ass off ) with such fine musicians and friends. When The BeeKeepers played our last gig, I knew it would be my last live performance for a long time. Aside from burning out on gigging, somewhere buried in my soul, I have always wanted to pursue songwriting. There's a freedom in creating art on your own terms. I know it won't be easy. I will have to record many layers myself, direct the arranging, production, and orchestration; I will have to hire studio musicians and vocalists. As challenging as this feels, it is exhilarating to think about the possibilities. 3 days after writing this blog post... A song idea has been brewing. The lyrics come to me in less than an hour. I pick up my guitar. It's been awhile. I tune the strings. I start playing. The song is just there. It flows out of me without much effort and I love it. The song is titled, “You Can’t Take My Voice Away.” #sylvieabate #songwriting #solosongwriter