Creative Mindfulness Connects Us to Our Self-Awareness
Creative mindfulness has brought me much joy, peace and balance with my own mental health. I enjoy sharing my latest artistic expressions across various media, such as painting, where I have found my visual voice. My work pushes boundaries and connects mind with body. Click on an image below to some of my creations.
Claire McAllister Singer Songwriter and Artist
Enjoy the ambient, jazz influenced sounds of my albums at Claire McAllister Music. Having grown up with my classical flautist mother, and writing songs as a child, later, while on holiday from university, my musician father introduced me to his jazz world in London, where I met his musician friends and listened to his albums. I was hooked. This style connected my passions for creativity, improvisation and performing. My songwriting doesn’t stay with jazz and has meandered into other territories such as pop, electronic and spoken word. It continues to evolve with new collaborations.
My life experience has provided a rich resource for writing, singing or painting about our shared human experiences, often asking questions or describing challenges and exploring ways to find meaning and joy.
As the daughter of professional musicians I started writing songs in childhood and went on to play in numerous bands and ensembles, including running a successful function band for 10 years. In 2010 I won the PureSolo vocal competition in association with Jazz FM and went on to study a Masters in Jazz performance at the prestigious London Guildhall School of Music in 2014. In 2018 my album Caminos was released under the Turquoise Coconut record label and I was invited to perform on BBC Radio London on the Robert Elms show and was interviewed on London TV.
All the songs on the album are written, arranged, co-produced (with Richard Smith, TQ1 Studios) and sung with Giuliano Paris on Piano, Julio Fuster on bass and Pere Munuera on Drums. Caminos deals with themes of belonging/not belonging, finding your voice and not having a voice.
My latest EP No Mud, No Lotus, the talented pianist/composer Giuliano Parisi joined. Writing for this started in 2021 in the aftermath of the pandemic and finished early 2023. The songs speak about challenges common to many of us, and the unexpected beauty that can come from them, not unlike the message of the book of the same title, written by Zen Bhuddist Thich Nhat Hanh. Performances of this work include dancer and movement collector Martin Bowes.
I have worked with amazing talent, such as: Dennis Rollins, Kate Williams, Ian Shaw, Liane Carroll, Brigitte Beraha, Carlos Lopez-Real, Scott Stroman and Malcolm Edmonstone to name a few. I also love performing in the successful gypsy swing, bossa nova band Nomad!c.
“Her music and words strike ‘an exquisite balance between captivating poeticism and softly-lit musical soundworlds” – John Garner
“Minds (Caminos) is an emotive release featuring soulful vocal performances, delicate instrumentation and an addictive vibe.
This excellent release needs to be heard” – @fvmusicblog
“Minds (Caminos) is rich with such directed and deep lyrics behind a voice filled with melancholy. It goes straight to the heart. It is inspired by talent and professional experience” – New Artist Discoveries
Mental Health Through Creative Mindfulness is My Priority
Making time for creative mindfulness can drastically improve our wellbeing.
My passion for lyricism started as a young child, writing a song each week and trying to get my grandma and great aunt to learn them. I performed with my guitar on a Sunday morning over porridge. Later, I went on to write poems and more recently short stories and non-fiction books too.
Give it a go yourself! Just start with a notebook and pencil and let yourself doodle, draw, scribble, write or even just make marks. Stay with it and see what happens. Creative mindfulness for mental health could reveal and release feelings you never knew you were holding on to.
If you would like to check out some of my books, such as the series of three ‘Conversations’ on Amazon. Click on one of the books below to open on Amazon now.
