Bigfork and Columbia Falls Music teacher returns to the stage

Danae Carlson is making efforts to return to her roots as a professional musician after over a decade of teaching music at Bigfork and Columbia Falls schools. Carlson taught music in Bigfork from 1999-2001 and choir in Columbia Falls from 2002-12, but before all of that she traveled the world as a youth choir member and eventually became an opening act for major musicians.

“Performance is a huge part of my life, after high school I went chasing that musical dream and did stuff with Tracy Lawrence and Chris LeDeux,” Carlson said.

For the last three years she performed at the Ken Dutter Memorial Benefit Gospel in Kalispell each March. Then about a year ago she resumed writing her own music.

Carlson performed in Coram and Dillon earlier this summer and gave her final performance in the Flathead at the Bigfork Christian Church on Sunday.

“I always knew I wanted to get back into performing and knew I had songs to share,” Carlson said. “It is all kind of transpiring, God is doing his handiwork on his own and moving me in this direction, so I am letting him.”

In a few weeks she will move to Sacramento, Calif. and hopes to continue performing and making music. She recently completed recording a new album of original contemporary Christian songs but hasn’t contacted any recording companies yet.

Prior to her transition into the contemporary Christian genre, Carlson performed country, bluegrass and some rock as well. She won the True Value Country Showdown for the state in 1990 and 1997 and was the opening act for performers such as Hank Thompson, and Bailey and the Boys.

When she quit performing she got into education as a way to keep music a part of her life and career.

“Music just enhances all the other core classes, it is the connecting tissue between math and history and language and P.E.,” Carlson said. “It draws everything together because it is movement and math, in music we cover it all.”

Carlson’s experiences as a single mother for 12 years are a common theme in her new music. Now remarried with plans to move to California, she’s not sure where her life or her music will go to next, but she said she hopes it involves more performances.

“Life has a way of getting you looking for deeper meaning and deeper understanding, especially when you are a single parent your focus changes,” Carlson said. “All those elements went from just in the church surface to much deeper artistically in my lyrics and making it applicable to life.”

For updates on Carlson’s music and to find out when her album will be released, send an email to friendsof.danaecarlson@gmail.com to be added to her mailing list.