about

Chrissy Gardner is a songwriter, pianist, keyboardist and singer. She has recorded two original albums, “Alabaster Room” and “Waxwing”, featuring world renowned musicians Tony Levin, Joe Vitale, Pete Huttlinger, Abigail Zsiga, Professor John and Peter Stroud. She is a member of Sister Willow, Lovefox, The Lee-Ann Lovelace Band and a female-fronted CSN tribute band. She is the producer, creator and host of The Moose Piano Lounge and was a founding member of A Broken Umbrella Theater for whom she has composed music for six original productions. Alongside her many projects, she has been playing solo in piano lounges for 20 years. She is the audio producer for Sister Willow, plays a little guitar and a wee bit of trombone. 

Check out her music. It’s authentically her.

Upcoming Gigs

September 14th, 2024
Lee-Ann Lovelace Band plays Chickenstock
1:00 to 5:00 pm
303 Meadow Rd, Farmington, CT
…blues, rock and soul originals by Lee-Ann Lovelace…
Chrissy plays keys and sings backup in this band … and sometimes brings out the trombone :)

September 29th, 2024
Chrissy Gardner and Lee-Ann Lovelace
2:00 to 5:00 pm
No Cover
Hopkins Vineyard
25 Hopkins Road, Warren, CT
With buckets of joy and beautiful harmonies, Chrissy and Lee-Ann sing your favorite cover songs.
Gorgeous and charming venue with glorious wine and cheese plates.

October 6, 2024
Lovefox
12:00 to 3:00 pm
No Cover
Fall Harvest Festival
Madison Beach Hotel
94 West Wharf Road Madison, CT
…gorgeous three part harmony with Chrissy Gardner, Lee-Ann Lovelace and Megan Chenot singing your favorite covers…
Enjoy a day at the beach with local vendors.

September 12th, 2024
Lee-Ann Lovelace Band plays Downtown Sounds
Details TBD
…blues, rock and soul originals by Lee-Ann Lovelace…
Chrissy plays keys and sings backup in this band … and sometimes brings out the trombone.

SISTER WILLOW
The Bijou Theater
Chrissy Gardner, Abigail Zsiga and Megan Chenot come together as Sister Willow and bring their heartbreakingly beautiful voices together for a musical experience that is nothing short of transcendent. With lush harmonies and evocative songwriting, their music brilliantly blends folk, Americana and blues in a way that is unique and unforgettable. Sister Willow has been described as utterly captivating, healing and deeply resonant.

FOLLOW

 Sister Willow

This is Chrissy’s main musical project at the moment :). Please visit www.sisterwillow.com to learn more.

Chrissy Gardner, Abigail Zsiga and Megan Chenot come together as Sister Willow and bring their heartbreakingly beautiful voices together for a musical experience that is nothing short of transcendent. With lush harmonies and evocative songwriting, their music brilliantly blends folk, Americana and blues in a way that is unique and unforgettable. Sister Willow has been described as utterly captivating, healing and deeply resonant.

solo original work

Closest and most vulnerable to Chrissy’s heart is her songwriting. As a pianist and singer, for the past 20 years she has been performing her original music which ranges from the whimsey of the 1920’s to the rock anthems of the 1970’s with a classical and often intimate twist.  She has recorded two original albums, “Alabaster Room” (2009) and “Waxwing” (2016) featuring world renowned musicians Tony Levin, Joe Vitale, Pete Huttlinger, Abigail Zsiga, Professor John and Peter Stroud. Recently, other projects and … well … life … were occupying more of her time. But that’s all about to change, and there will be more to come in 2024.

The Lee-Ann Lovelace Band

Chrissy plays keys and sings backup (and on a lucky night, plays trombone) for the incomparable Lee-Ann Lovelace Band.

Lee-Ann will leave you floored with powerful soul, rock and blues originals.

Lovefox

Brilliant voices, incredible harmony and beautiful friends. Lee-Ann Lovelace, Chrissy Gardner and on a super special day, Megan Chenot.

on a personal note

… (though I really don’t feel much of a separation between my music life and personal life) … I have three cats (that I probably talk about too much), a truly wonderful husband and a strong, kind, brilliant 16-year-old daughter, Lucy, who works and trains as a clown and aerial artist. The most comfortable role in my life is being Lucy’s mama. Having my daughter saved me from a life of too much chaos and taught me to connect with my intuition; she is my favorite human. My side obsession is astrology. The books on my shelf are categorized by color and include spiritual thought, mysteries, novels with strong female characters and poetry; they don’t collect too much dust (especially now that I have a wood burning fireplace to read beside; I am absolutely in love with it.) I do NOT enjoy music while driving or cooking; I primarily listen to podcasts (mainly Armchair Expert) or silence. I love writing and recording music more than most things, and when immersed in a project, I have a hard time pulling myself away to sleep at night. I am barely able to keep a plant alive in my house. I thrive on coziness. I love coffee, but try to quit about every third month. Everyone that knows me would say that I struggle with the concept of time, but I am determined to figure it out in this lifetime. I am very comfortable in solitude. I love going out to dinner. I am terrified of cooking for a group of people. And while I never have the drive to go to a party, I absolutely love being with close friends, talking for hours and hours to try to solve the mysteries of the universe, to dissect the latest Consumer Reports findings or to play silly thought games. I laugh, loudly, a lot.

The deepest heartaches I have had will somehow seep out in my music, I’m sure, at least in metaphor, and then you’ll really know me for better or worse. ooof. But there is also so much whimsey and joy in what I write. For me, being an artist is a commitment to craft, to the journey of getting closer and closer to authenticity and to bridging the spiritual realm (greater part of who we are, higher vibrations, whatever you want to call it) with being human. Every time I step out onto a stage I feel intense butterflies, but I always remind myself that the audience arrives with their own heartaches and joys, and we’re likely there for the same reason: to make a connection, to exist in the present moment and to feel what it means to be human, together. And when that happens, that’s my spirituality.

I love, love, love being at this point in my music life, working with so many incredible women that I adore, admire and respect. In the beginning, at least for me, it felt lonely in the music world as a girl: now I have a tribe. Thank freaking goodness. I am happy where I am, and at the same time, I am always dreaming of the next thing. And I am continually aware that there is always more to learn, always another way to grow.

I’m grateful that you found your way to this site. I hope you’ve found something to connect with and wish you love, happiness and peace.

Always with sincerity,

Chrissy