Skyway News / Lakeshore Weekly News
Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
January 4, 2001

Katy Tessman, a Minnetonka singer and songwriter, has lived in the area most of her life and at least one of the songs off her new album Fall reflects Minnesota traditions. "Caribou" is a song about the vacations her family took up north to Caribou Lake.

Minnesota Traditions
Tessman described the songs. "We all have a special place where we enjoy spending time with our family and friends," she said. "Coming from a family of educators, we spent my childhood summer breaks in the beautiful northern woods of Minnesota. I've got great memories of romping around in the woods with our dog, Daisy, my older sister, younger brother, and our cousins. As an adult, I go back to Caribou as often as I can. There I learned to appreciate and respect Mother Nature at an early age."

The song "Caribou" was also a family affair because Tessman's mom, dad, sister and brother along with their spouses sang back up vocals for this campfire sing-along song while Randy Sabien played the fiddle and mandolin.

Growing up in the area, Tessman attended Robbinsdale Cooper High School where she studied voice training and took part in musical theatre productions. Tessman graduated in 1988. She continued to study voice training at Minnesota State University ‚ Moorhead and graduated with a degree in speech communication in 1992.

After graduating, Tessman returned to the Twin Cities and worked in marketing and communications. In 1993 Tessman's parents gave her an acoustic Yamaha guitar as a Christmas gift at her family's annual gathering on the Fourth of July. While living in an apartment in Uptown Minneapolis, Tessman started writing songs using inspiration from artists like the Indigo Girls, James Taylor and 10,000 Maniacs.

That same year Tessman formed an eclectic folk-rock band named Joe's Elevator. The band performed at different venues throughout the Twin Cities during the four years it was together. In April of 1997, Joe's Elevator released a CD titled Up & Down. Tessman said she was proud of the response to the release concert because it drew more than 400 people, and 100 CDs were purchased.

In 1997, Tessman started her solo career and performed at bars, coffeehouses, festivals and colleges in the Twin Cities, greater Minnesota and surrounding states like Wisconsin and Iowa.

Acoustic Guitar and Mandolin
An acoustic guitar and mandolin are the instruments Tessman uses to accompany her music, which she describes as contemporary/urban folk. In other performances Tessman is also joined by musicians playing bass and percussion. One of the people who accompanies her on percussion is her husband, Dave Stanoch, who grew up in Minnetonka.

Although she has used her second guitar, a cedar-top Seagull acoustic, in performances since 1995, Tessman said she still uses the Yamaha for song circles, camp sing-alongs and other gatherings.

Those people who have seen her perform live may have noticed that Tessman likes to perform bare foot. This tradition started when Tessman played at her uncle's surprise party. The casual setting made Tessman feel like taking off her shoes. Her sister later confided that Tessman "sounded better bare foot," and so she has continued this tradition.

The red guitar strap her brother gave her also accompanies Tessman whenever she performs. She said that one of her friends uses colors to categorize items, for example orange represents man-made, green represents natural and red represents artistic, hence the red guitar strap.

Wedding Singer, Songwriter
Coffeehouses and colleges are not the only places Tessman performs; she also plays at wedding ceremonies, where she performs accompanied by her acoustic guitar and sometimes a harp or piano. Tessman has played at 12 weddings.

"It's a different kind of performance ‚ more structured and planned. I only sing two or three songs, compared to my two-hour coffeehouse gigs, so I have to be focused and 'on,'" she said. "It reminds me of the recitals I performed in when I was in high school. Plus it allows me to learn beautiful love songs that I usually don't perform in my original music gigs."

On the subject of how writing songs makes her feel, Tessman said, "I definitely feel a sense of accomplishment when I finish a song. Songs come to me when I'm frustrated about a relationship or overjoyed about something. It's cathartic for me and I hope listeners feel something too. I'm a very positive person and I write quite a few 'feel-good' songs, however, I do write about 'serious' topics."

A Singer Full of Energy
Pulse newspaper and Tessman put together four showcases during 1998-1999 to encourage acoustic music in the area. This involved Tessman choosing a sampling of local contemporary folk musicians to perform at the showcases. Tessman not only organized these performances, but also played at the showcases herself.

Tessman also does her own booking and promotions. "I enjoy the business side of my career," she said. Performances on KTCA-TV's NewsNight Minnesota and KFAI-FM Radio's folk music programs are two of the credits in Tessman's career. She is also a member of the Minnesota Music Academy and Just Plain Folks, which is a grass roots networking association for musicians nationwide. In addition, she made an appearance at the Minnesota Folk Festival and she was a finalist in song writing at the 2000 Minnesota New Folk contest.

Tessman's background and experience have led her to her new CD Fall which was co-produced by Tessman, her husband and Jay Moran. Topics on the new CD include everything from songs about the north woods like "Caribou" and "Dip, Dip and Swing" to "Figured Out," a song about her friend's manic depression. During the summer of 2000, Tessman started using a full band at certain live shows to bring forth the fuller sound on some of the songs on Fall.

Tessman is preparing to release her first solo CD titled Fall on Saturday, Jan. 6 at the Fine Line CafÈ, 318 North First Ave. in Minneapolis. The $2 cover charge will go towards to purchase of Tessman's CD. For more information about this performance call (612) 338-8100.

Photography by Jon Duder.