Virginia native Sandra Sisk is a singer, songwriter, and practicing veterinarian. Her original music is a unique blend of country and blues. Early influences by folk artists like Carole King and Carly Simon were later shaped by the blues sounds of Bonnie Raitt and the country sounds of Shania Twain and Faith Hill. Born and raised in the Shenandoah Valley, she showed her musical aptitude early, picking out the melodies of TV theme songs on an old, out-of-tune piano, and singing with the radio and record albums. Her parent’s strong emphasis on academics left little room for music lessons, so at 13 she began to teach herself to play guitar and sing popular tunes. Her two passions were music and animals, and without formal musical training during childhood, she chose a career path in veterinary medicine. She attended the University of Virginia and earned Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral degrees from Virginia Tech. But after working long hours in clinical practice, there was something missing—it was time to follow the music that had always been a part of her. Since the early 90’s, Sandra has pursued music in many directions. She has studied music theory, piano and guitar. She has studied various vocal styles including traditional choir music, barbershop harmony, popular music, and classical voice. She sang women’s barbershop chorus and quartet harmony for six years. Her vocal versatility emerged as she sang lead, baritone or bass parts with ease. She then performed as the lead singer in Whitewater Band, playing classic rock, blues and country in the nightclubs of southern Maryland and northern Virginia for several years. In 2003, Sandra began working with songwriter and guitarist Brian Wallin. Over the next two years, she recorded two albums and began to seriously pursue songwriting. After hearing her first two albums, Bill Littleton, former editor of Performance Magazine, wrote “…after twenty songs, I’m convinced she can absolutely sing anything; however, she obviously knows exactly who she is….” He goes on to describe her "warm tonal homebase."
Sandra and Brian's music is a collection of vivid lyrical images and beautiful melodies, delivered with a warm vocal intimacy. They continue to study and develop their songwriting craft.
