Promo Song/New Release: Nearer My God to Thee
Artist: Jake White
Style: Instrumental

Chris Hartwell was born in the rural community of Nyssa, Oregon, where he got his first taste of stardom as a young child. His father would take Chris (age 3) and his older brother, Ryan (age 4), to his place of employment and make them sing songs like "I'm a Little Teapot" for the other employees in the office. When Chris was 5 years old, the family moved to the larger, yet still very rural city of Burley, Idaho. (I remember they had a McDonalds, which really excited my brother and me ... ok, back to 3rd person again)  In the city of Burley and the neighboring town of Declo, Chris spent his formative years.

Starting at around age 8, Chris's mother enrolled him into piano lessons, which he continued to to take, reluctantly, until age 17 - mainly because his mother would not allow him to quit taking them.  "You'll thank me someday!" she would always say. (Thanks Mom!)

High school brought more chances for Chris to grow musically.  He joined the award-winning Declo High School (DHS) Show Choir at the beginning of his sophomore year. He also began taking voice lessons and performing solos as school, church, city, and private functions. And to top it all off, he joined the DHS Jazz Band playing keyboard for the last semester of his senior year. (Not because I was any good, but because their previous keyboardist quit, and I joined knowing I would get a free trip to Disneyland)

But it wasn't until Chris went off to Washington, D.C. for college that he began writing his own music and began to feel the sense of joy, elation, and release that came from letting his heart's deepest feelings speak through his songs.

To further his musical knowledge, he continued taking voice lessons, joined an a capella group ( The GW Troubadours ), joined the University Singers, participated in musicals, and took a number of music courses, including Music Theory, Harmony, and Ear Training. Hartwell finally graduated in December of 2001 with a Bachelors degree in Communication.

To date, Chris has written over twenty-five songs and has recently released his debut full-length CD entitled All I Fear. He has been seen performing his songs at different programs and places throughout Washington, DC, and recently made a move to the Salt Lake City, UT, area to continue his musical pursuits.

Chris Hartwell Website

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