Kristi Martel

Kristi Martel (born 1973), is a singer, song-writer, performance artist and yogini based in Rhode Island. She has recorded much of her music, and has toured extensively across the United States and Canada, giving concerts in many cities.^[1] She also teaches classes in a variety of yoga methods.^[2]

Martel was born in Melrose, Massachusetts, in 1973, and moved to Rhode Island at age 5. She studied music, theatre, dance, poetry, and performance art at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, earning a Bachelor’s degree in 1994. She pursued similar subjects at Mills College in Oakland, California, receiving a Master’s degree in 1998. She began performing and recording original music and performance art.^[3]

From 1997-2001, she taught at the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts in Richmond, California.^[4] In 2000, she suffered a back injury while studying jiu-jitsu. She turned to yoga to rebuild her strength and improve her mobility.^[5] This sparked a serious interest in yoga, which led to yoga teacher training Yogaphoria^[6] in New Hope, Pennsylvania. She has studied with several prominent yogi and learned meditation, kinesiology, herbal healing, and integrated energy therapy to complement the more traditional yoga.^[7]

She has since returned to Rhode Island, where she teaches yoga, voice, and piano.^[8][9] Her musical style mixes jazz, soul and rock styles, combined with her classical training.^[10][11][12] She incorporates her own personal experiences as well as yoga philosophy into the music and into the lyrics.^[13][14] She continues to record and to give concerts, and for two years was music director at a local Rhode Island radio station.

Discography

Martel records with Sealed Lip Records, singing and playing piano and keyboards as well as composing and arranging:^[15][16]

• Firewater (SLR12, digital single) April 2011
• Blessed Community (SLR11, digital single) February 2011
• Seeds (SLR10, digital single) December 2010
• The Sacred Whore Demos (SLR9, CD LP) June 2009
• Ravengirl (SLR8, CD LP) October 2006
• Quaint & Curious Ravendemos (SLR7, CD LP) August 2005
• The Mule (SLR6, CD LP) March 2004
• bound (SLR5, CD single) July 2003
• brave enough (SLR4, CD LP) November 2001
• give me a little... (SLR3, CD EP) October 2000
• With Mouth and Hands (SLR2, cassette) September 1998
• 4-track and live recordings (SLR1, cassette) August 1996

References