Seeing Through Sound: A Journey of Music and Vision with Heather Hutchison | Episode #26
Episode 26
This episode features Heather Hutchison, a blind social media influencer, musician, and author. Heather shares her journey of navigating life as a blind individual, her experiences in the music industry, and her advocacy work.
She discusses her background in music, starting with piano lessons at a young age and eventually releasing albums and singles. Heather explains how she learned to play music by ear rather than reading Braille sheet music, finding it more intuitive to memorize music through listening.
Throughout the conversation, Heather reflects on her experiences with schooling, her supportive family, and her career in music. She highlights the importance of representation and accessibility in the music industry and shares advice for aspiring musicians, emphasizing the value of practice, performance, and networking.
Overall, the episode provides insight into Heather's personal journey as a blind musician and advocate, offering inspiration and encouragement for listeners interested in pursuing their passions despite challenges.
-
Luisa Recchia (00:04):
Well welcome everyone to another captivating episode of Through Our Eyes Podcast, brought to you by the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. I'm your host, Luisa Recchia, and I'm joined by my favorite colleague and co-host Breyanna Willett. In each episode, we explore the inspiring stories and innovative breakthroughs in the unwavering spirit of individuals and families who face the challenges of retinal diseases head on. We'll dive into the world of research, cutting edge technologies and the compassionate hearts of the people who make it all possible. But before we embark on today's compelling adventure, let's take a moment to thank our incredible sponsors at the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation. They are the driving force behind our mission to spread awareness, foster hope, and shed light on the invaluable work happening in the field of pediatric retinal research. Together we strive to make a brighter, clear future for children and families affected by retinal diseases today. We welcome Heather Hutchinson. Brianna, please take a moment to introduce our guest.
Breyanna Willitt (01:07):
Alright everybody, I'm so excited today! We have Heather Hutchinson with us. She is a blind social media influencer with a pretty large following on TikTok and stuff. So Heather, I don't know if you wanna start out by telling us, you know a little about yourself and we'll go from there
Heather Hutchinson (01:23):
For sure. So I'm Heather. I am a musician, author and content creator and so I've been a musician like forever since I can remember. And a couple years ago I released a book that talks about my journey as somebody who is blind living in Canada and Latin America as well as really my journey as someone who is blind in going through the mental healthcare system. And that sort of led me to posting videos on TikTok and Instagram and just about like daily life as a blind person and advocacy work and uh, yeah, here we are.
Breyanna Willitt (02:07):
So I didn't know you wrote a book. Is that how you kind of started? Like is that kind of where you started or did you start music first or what was your path?
Heather Hutchinson (02:16):
I started music first. So I started playing piano when I was like five. And then my first album came out when I was 16 and my book just came out a couple years ago. People were always like, oh you should write a book, you should write a book. And I never really felt like I had anything to say until I went through like some mental health stuff during the COVID-19 pandemic and I realized that there really like was no information out there for people who are blind, or people with disabilities in general really, about what it's like to navigate the mental healthcare system with also with a physical disability. So I was kind of inspired to share my story and I wrote the book.
Breyanna Willitt (03:02):
That is awesome. So before we really get into all of that kind of stuff, do you mind talking about, you know, just your journey with your vision and kind of how things started?
Heather Hutchinson (03:14):
Yeah, for Sure. So I was born with Leber's congenital amaurosis, so not actually that exciting a story. I was just, I was born blind and yeah, so I haven't really ever known any different.
Breyanna Willitt (03:27):
Right. So were you born totally blind or do you have some remaining vision?
Heather Hutchinson (03:32):
So I have what the doctors classify as light perception. I would say it's a little bit more than that. Sometimes I can see like objects in perfect lighting and obviously light perception, but um, it, it really varies on like the day, the lighting, if I'm tired, I don't know, like a million different factors. So it's, it's kind of all over the place. But yeah, they, they classify it technically as like perception.
Breyanna Willitt (04:03):
Gotcha. So how was schooling and stuff for you? Did you, you know, was it pretty smooth or did you come across some issues as I'm sure most people you know who are visually impaired or blind tend to find unfortunately?
Heather Hutchinson (04:17):
<laugh>. Yeah. Um, smooth schooling experience for people who are blind, not too common, I would guess. So for me, elementary school was pretty great. I had a really good braille is really good support, which is so crucial. I mean there was some bullying but it was mainly like the kind of playground stuff, like minor stuff. Junior high was terrible, like I think it is for a lot of people. Kids at that age they can be terrible and high school the kids got a little bit better but I had not very good supports. I remember going, like for my first, for the meeting when I was in grade nine going into grade 10, uh, switching schools into high school. They had a meeting and I remember just sitting there and they kept saying over and over 'we don't have money for that.' 'We don't have money for that,' 'we don't have money for that.' So I'm like, this is gonna go great <laugh>. And that was kind of like the theme throughout high school was 'we don't have money for that.' So the support wasn't really there.
Breyanna Willitt (05:28):
Yeah, I imagine it's like that for a lot of places though. That, you know, unfortunately money is tight and you know, money is the key to everything.
Heather Hutchinson (05:37):
It is unfortunately. Yes.
Breyanna Willitt (05:40):
So how did you get started in music? I know you said that you started playing piano when you were five. Was that kind of your decision to kind of start to dabble or were your parents?
Heather Hutchinson (05:51):
It was probably more my parents. It was actually like kind of a physiotherapy thing because I was born with hypotonia, which is like super loose muscle tone or low muscle tone I guess you would say. And so they thought that playing piano would help me to strengthen that and strengthen my wrists. And I was always just like, we had a piano in my house growing up, so I would sit like at a very young age and try and like play what I heard on the radio and things like that. So they, they thought it would be a good way to kind of kill two birds with one stone. And I was actually like a really terrible student. Like I hated practicing. I really preferred learning things like songs that I liked by ear, much to the chagrin of my teachers. But, and then I actually ended up leaving music for quite a while and then kind of when I got into my, you know, early teen angst years, I kind of came back to it. I started songwriting as a way to try and work through some of those complicated teenage emotions and I realized I'm gonna have to play like an instrument to be able to accompany myself when I'm singing. So I, I went back to piano and we kind of went from there.
Breyanna Willitt (07:08):
That's incredible. So, were you involved in like, you know, choir or anything like that in high school?
Heather Hutchinson (07:15):
I was, yeah, I was involved in choir from probably I think age seven up. So I took it like in as many choirs in school and things like that. High school, junior high elementary school.
Breyanna Willitt (07:30):
That's so funny. Yeah, I was the same way. You know, I was a big, you know, music geek. I had some vision left in high school and you know, I was in marching band and the select choirs and everything. So I know how incredible that passion for music can be.
Heather Hutchinson (07:43):
Yeah, absolutely. And it feels like it's such a welcoming space. I feel like music, like I just remember like walking into the band room at school and just feeling like safe and feeling like I was in my place kind of, if that makes sense.
Breyanna Willitt (07:59):
You found your people
Heather Hutchinson (08:00):
<laugh>. Yeah, exactly.
Breyanna Willitt (08:01):
So how did the idea of like an album and stuff come around?
Heather Hutchinson (08:06):
When I was 15 I had written a song and my singing teacher, I was taking singing voice lessons at that point and she was like, you should enter into this competition. But I was like super shy, I was like, no way, no way. But she kept bugging me about it. So eventually I did and in the finals of that competition, one of the judges was actually a producer and he came up to me backstage and he was like, you know, this song really moved me. I like what you're doing. It would be so cool if we could record together. And I was kind of like, you know, that's nice. But it was just like one of those things people say in the moment, right? Like, not gonna happen. But he gave me his card and I called him and he actually responded. And so we went out for coffee and like a month later we were in the studio recording the first album. So it was very like, very fast.
Breyanna Willitt (09:01):
Wow, that's awesome though. Like I feel like that doesn't happen like very often and so the fact that you actually went through with it like that is incredible.
Heather Hutchinson (09:11):
Yeah, it was so wild. I didn't, I didn't think it would be possible, but yeah. Exciting.
Breyanna Willitt (09:17):
So you write all of your own music?
Heather Hutchinson (09:20):
I do, yeah.
Breyanna Willitt (09:21):
Do you do like your own accompaniment or do you have other people now or?
Heather Hutchinson (09:27):
So I would say now, like with technology and recording has changed so much since I started even, so back then it was a lot more common to have like a live band in the studio. Now because of like Spotify and just the advances in technology, it's less common. So I actually usually record everything just at my house, like using virtual instruments and stuff. Then just so you play, like you play a line on the piano or on the keyboard I guess I should say. And then you can really, it's so realistic now you can turn it into almost any instrument. So there's a lot of that that happens in recorded music now and it's, it's an easier way to do it for sure. So that's what I tend to do a lot of right now.
Breyanna Willitt (10:19):
That's crazy. So what kind of softwares and stuff do you use? Do you just use like a voiceover kind of thing or is it something else?
Heather Hutchinson (10:27):
So I use Reaper, which is basically like a recording program. That's what I'm using right now. When in terms of like when I'm just writing the songs, super high tech, I just use like the recorder on my phone to get down on the ideas.
Breyanna Willitt (10:42):
Oh, so you just have like, you don't even like write anything like on a laptop or anything, you all just, that's awesome that you just kind of, you know, in the moment record what you're thinking?
Heather Hutchinson (10:51):
Yeah, and then I take it over to the computer and I usually start with like a piano track cause that's my main instrument and then I'll record the vocal and kind of fill in instrumentation around that using the computer.
Breyanna Willitt (11:06):
Wow. So do you just play piano? It sounds like you play a lot more than piano.
Heather Hutchinson (11:11):
I play piano and guitar, but piano's kind of my, my main thing and thanks to technology I can, I can make it sound like I'm playing lots of other instruments too, so yay for technology.
Breyanna Willitt (11:24):
That's pretty cool though that, you know, we've come to a point now where you don't really have to know how to play each specific instrument that you know, you can just kind of plug it in. That's awesome.
Heather Hutchinson (11:33):
Though. Yeah, it's wild. You can record a song like really in a night. You don't have to wait for, to hire different musicians and try and coordinate schedules and so it's, it's, it's an exciting place to be I think for recording right now.
Breyanna Willitt (11:46):
Have you ever like found any sort of discrimination or anything like that in the music industry? I know it can kind of be a little bit of a hectic place sometimes.
Heather Hutchinson (11:56):
Yeah, honestly I would say it's probably the place I found the least discrimination. Like I remember the first time walking into the recording studio when I was 15 and just feeling like I had come home, like you said earlier, like these are my people and every musician that I ran into during that project and really since I've been working in music has just been so supportive and blindness is such a small thing to them. Like compared with the rest of the world, I don't know what it is about musicians, but they're just like a very accepting group. And so I remember thinking back when I started like, wow, they actually see me. For me, they don't see me as the blind girl, they just see me as a girl who loves music. So musicians not so much when it comes to like managers and PR people. Yeah, there's been a little bit more because they're kind of trying to cultivate the image. But in terms of like the music itself, I would say no it's, it's like a very welcoming and environment.
Breyanna Willitt (13:04):
It's always so empowering when you find people that you know accept you for you and you know, don't, you know, make the comments or anything like that. It's always nice to be able to find your space I guess.
Heather Hutchinson (13:15):
Yeah, it really is. And to be valued for what you can contribute to a project instead of just being seen as somebody who is hindering it. You know, like I think a lot of people in school, they're often the last to be chosen for groups or things like that, especially in like physical education because people are worried that they'll slow them down. So just to be really on an equal playing field feels so amazing when we don't always feel that way.
Breyanna Willitt (13:44):
Yeah, and it's nice with music too 'cause you know, most of the time you don't even really know what the person behind the microphone or anything, you know, looks like or anything like that. So that definitely helps I'm sure.
Heather Hutchinson (13:56):
Yeah, yeah, that's so true. You just, you appreciate the music before you really think about the person. Like you connect with the music on a personal emotional level before you think, hmm, I wonder what this person looks like or what their story is.
Breyanna Willitt (14:12):
Yeah, definitely. Are your parents musical or are you just kind of, you know, the odd one out I guess?
Heather Hutchinson (14:19):
They really are. Everybody always asks, like, if I came from a musical family, my mom played a little bit of piano, nobody else, my dad, my brother didn't play anything. I have one aunt who's a really, really good piano player. But no, in my immediate family, nobody really plays music.
Breyanna Willitt (14:36):
That's, yeah, that's, that's crazy though. I mean, I'm assuming your parents have been so supportive and everything through this, your entire music career and everything.
Heather Hutchinson (14:45):
Yeah, and they've been good. I think, like for my mom, it was pretty wild when all that started happening, but she, you know, made it happen. Drove me to rehearsals in the recording studio and so she was, she was great throughout that process.
Breyanna Willitt (15:01):
Awesome. Um, sorry, I'm just looking at my question. So where are you at now as far as, you know, your music career and everything like that? Do you just have the one album?
Heather Hutchinson (15:12):
No, I have four albums and then right now I'm just releasing, like, I just released a single last Friday, I think. Right now I'm releasing a lot of singles because that's just what people are tending to gravitate towards right now with the streaming platforms and everything. Singles are kind of the way to go. People prefer that you have like newer music out more often, so they don't wanna wait for like it. It's very like instant gratification right now. Right. Like I'm sure you probably remember, at least I do, I'm old enough going to like the, the CD store on release day and you've been like waiting for this album for six months and you, you stand up, you stand in the lineup and you wait to buy it. Like, that was my childhood. But I feel like kids these days, like they want it now. So the, the single thing is kind of the way to go. So I've just been releasing a single here and there every time whenever I get the chance to. It is pretty time consuming, but as much as I can, I, I love writing music and I love probably even more. I love recording it.
Breyanna Willitt (16:22):
So now that you have all of these singles and stuff out, do you find your, do you often perform for people like live?
Heather Hutchinson (16:30):
I don't. I quit performing honestly a few months before Covid. It was kind of a, a blessing in that way for health reasons. And then Covid hit and it kind of really gave me the opportunity, I guess to realize that. And I know it's, it's weird and a lot of musicians are like, what? But I just really realized that I way prefer recording to performing live. So I think it, you know, live music has come back thankfully to some degree, but I think it's still not what it's at. And I mean there are times when I miss it, but honestly usually I'd just like rather be at home in my pajamas writing and recording music rather than playing it.
Breyanna Willitt (17:18):
Absolutely. I was just gonna say I imagine it's a lot less stressful.
Heather Hutchinson (17:21):
It is, it is. Because like if you're a perfectionist, how many other opportunities do you have in life where you can just like press a button and erase your last mistake <laugh>, it's so great.
Breyanna Willitt (17:33):
Yeah, exactly. So what advice would you have for, you know, younger kids who are kind of looking into getting into music, I guess? Like which way, how would you go about doing it if you had to do it again?
Heather Hutchinson (17:45):
If I had to do it again, I <laugh> I would practice a lot more, I would take it a lot more seriously from a younger age. I would've kept going with those piano lessons and actually applied myself to what I was being taught because there, there is method to the madness. There is a reason that they're teaching you these things. Other than that though, honestly, and I know it's contrary to what I just said, but get out there, perform performing competitions, meet people and see, you know, if, if those opportunities, I think the more people you meet and the more you put yourself out there, the more you're gonna see those opportunities open up to you.
Breyanna Willitt (18:29):
That's awesome. So when you are playing, like when you were I guess learning how to play piano, 'cause obviously you couldn't really see sheet music, so how did they go about, you know, teaching you?
Heather Hutchinson (18:42):
So, I learned all by ear. I can read a little bit of braille music, but I'm honestly terrible at it. I just, I never really saw the point to it if I was just gonna memorize the material anyways. 'Cause you know, until I get a third hand if both my hands are playing piano, I'm either way I'm memorizing it. So I found it personally just as easy to memorize it by ear as to memorize by reading the music and then playing it back.
Breyanna Willitt (19:13):
I didn't even know they made braille sheet music. That's interesting.
Heather Hutchinson (19:17):
I feel like that's cool. Yeah, and I find it so counterintuitive to what braille is. I don't know if it's just me, but I, I don't know, I feel like they could have done it way less confusingly. I'm not, I'm not a huge fan to be honest. I mean, I think it has its place for some people, you know, when when they're learning music theory and things like that. It's just never for me personally been something that I've gravitated to words or found super useful.
Breyanna Willitt (19:47):
Yeah, that's, is it like, sorry, I've never heard, like I didn't know, so I'm now full of curiosity. Like is it just, you know, a note and then kind of where it's placed, I guess like, 'cause obviously, you know, there's like 80 different Cs, C notes.
Heather Hutchinson (20:04):
It's like, yeah, pretty much. And then they have, you know, obviously like whether it's a quarter note or an eighth note or it's, it's a lot and it's, it's, it sounds like a lot. I never got that proficient to edit, unfortunately.
Breyanna Willitt (20:20):
Wow. I'm trying to think. Is there anything else that you wanna mention or shout out to anybody? Shout out your albums or your singles?
Heather Hutchinson (20:30):
Yeah, for sure. So I am on pretty where anywhere you listen pretty well anywhere you listen to music, Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, music, just under my name, Heather Hutchinson. All my music is there. As well as I often will post clips on Instagram and TikTok, Heather Hutchinson music. And then if you go to my website, obviously it's all there as well. Heather dash hutchinson.com, H-U-T-C-H-I-S-O n.com. Awesome.
Breyanna Willitt (21:01):
Well thank you so much for, you know, coming on, taking time out of your day. We really appreciate it and you know, I'm sure you know, even the parents and stuff who have little kids who, you know, have vision issues, really appreciate you coming on and sharing your story and your experience with learning music and everything.
Heather Hutchinson (21:19):
It was awesome. Thank you so much for having me.
Breyanna Willitt (21:21):
Louisa, I think it's all you. You wanna wrap it up.
Luisa Recchia (21:23):
Well, thank you Heather for being here and to our listeners for joining us and hope you enjoyed this empowering episode where there are no limits to what one can achieve with encouragement and support. A special thank you to our sponsor, the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation for their unwavering dedication to making a difference in the lives of those affected by retinal diseases. Your support truly makes these stories possible. We encourage all our listeners to stay connected with us and the foundation to continue learning, sharing and supporting the cause. Remember, it's through our collective efforts that we can create a brighter, clearer future for children, families impacted by these challenging conditions. If you enjoyed this episode, please don't forget to subscribe, leave a review and share it with your friends and family. Together we can raise awareness, inspire hope, and drive change. But before we go, I have one more question for Heather. Heather, please share a little bit about your book. Not only are you a musician, but you're an author.
Heather Hutchinson (22:26):
Yeah, so my book is called Holding On by Letting Go. It's a memoir of my life as a blind person growing up. And then the time I spent hospitalized for mental health care and just what that was like. I really wanted to give people an idea to really strip away the mystery of like what goes on behind those doors and especially what goes on behind those doors if you have a physical disability and you need, you know, extra accommodations while all of that is also going on. There wasn't a lot of information out there for myself or for my family when we were going through it. So I really wanted to provide that information to other people.
Luisa Recchia (23:12):
Wow, thank you so much. And once again, for our listeners, can you tell us what your website is so we can go out there and I am hoping your book is available there as well.
Heather Hutchinson (23:22):
It is, yeah.
Luisa Recchia (23:23):
Beautiful. So why don't you go ahead and share your website once again for our listeners.
Heather Hutchinson (23:29):
It's www.heather-hutchison.com. H-U-T-C-H-I-S-O-N.
Luisa Recchia (23:36):
Thank you. Thank you so much. Stay tuned for more inspiring stories and groundbreaking research on Through Our Eyes podcast. Until next time, remember that every voice, every story, and every effort counts. Thank you for being a part of our mission. Goodbye for now.
Show Notes
Heather Hutchison’s website with book and music links:
https://www.heather-hutchison.com/
Heather’s book: