Although a record deal has not yet been penned, and the album cover - not yet finished, the future looks bright for this hopeful young star; she's got all the right influences from her dad, such as her piano playing technique, plenty of effervescent enthusiasm, songwriting talent and the right attitude; at the same time, Emma is keeping her finger firmly on the pulse of what's going on in music TODAY.
From the beginning…
Emma was born in 1979, which makes her 21 at present. She started singing very early, and admits to have always loved it. Emma also started to learn the piano at the age of six, and has more recently been working with the guitar as well. Her first professional experience took place when she was about ten, when she was chosen by her school to sing with the choir on a
Rolling Stones album, entitled, "Symphonic Stones". From then on, Emma was always trying to get involved in any recording she could possibly participate in. She did backing vocals for projects any of her friends happened to be working on as well as recording her own material at school and with Dad - whenever she'd get the chance.
When Emma was fourteen, her father invited her to sing a duet with Denny Laine
(ex-Paul McCartney & Wings, The Moody Blues) on the second Wizards Convention album (rel. 1995). Eddie initially played her the song on the piano, and then asked her to try singing it. He was probably expecting her "little schoolgirl" choir voice, and she remembers thinking at that point, "what is there to lose…" and let rip!! That was the first time Emma had ever really shown what she could do - to anyone other than her own bedroom mirror! She admits to have been shocked at herself, but that was nothing compared to the look on her Dad's face!
After that, Emma spent a lot of time writing songs and recording them whenever possible. She also spent as much time as possible trying to develop her voice. Her older sister told her, "It's bad for your voice to have proper training before you reach a certain age…", so by the time she had convinced her mother that she was ready, she couldn't stop going to different classes and joining courses out of school, and so forth. Emma had several different vocal tutors at school, and one actually told her mother that he'd thought she didn't really want to learn how to sing; he wouldn't stop being pushy with her. The fact was, though, he was just a bore. (Or at least unaware of the emotional aspect of music!)
Next, Emma went on to do a Summer school at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, and studied
the associated boards, grades I-VII. In September 1998, she started at the London Music School, where she studied all kinds of vocal styles, and also where she met Terry Lewis, with whom she now writes a lot. Terry plays guitar on her new album, and the two of them have also co-written a couple of the tracks.
A proper cover for the new album has not yet been made, but Emma is in the process of getting that done right now. She has not got a record deal either but is
actively looking for one!
At present, Emma is working on a lot of new songs which are mainly piano-based, yet she is also thinking of using a lot of different and original ideas and sounds. So, hopefully, you'll be hearing the name
Emma Hardin real soon!