Sarah Elizabeth Haines

ABOUT

Sarah Elizabeth Haines is a lot of things. A New York City-based violist, violinist, vocalist, songwriter, guitarist and performer, most recently playing violin and viola for the national tour of Hamilton, music has brought her around the world--from playing chamber music in China, with orchestras and rock bands in South America and Europe, and to most of the continental US with various theatre productions.

Sarah's sophomore album Castaway was released in February 2022, with Glide Magazine saying, "The production, songwriting, singing, and musicianship are all top-notch throughout this twisting full length. [The album] is a stunningly strong statement as the artist has found her voice while constantly evolving and traveling through this thing called life."

Other bands she performs with include the contemporary classical ensemble Contemporaneous, with whom she most recently recorded Gemma Peacocke's "Strobe Lights and Blown Speakers", a concerto for viola and chamber ensemble. She has been a member of orchestral rock band Emanuel and the Fear since 2013, and has written music for MTV and Viacom. Her string arrangements have been made and recorded for numerous bands and singer songwriters including Mr. Marigold, Mackenzie Shivers, Nikkie McLeod, and Guards. Sarah made her solo debut with the Chelsea Symphony premiering Michael Boyman's Viola Concerto in 2017.

Sarah has also toured with Les Miserables, and Todd Almond’s Kansas City Choir Boy with Courtney Love. Other theatre credits include Jagged Little Pill (sub, viola), Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (sub, viola), Beardo (Violin), Iow@ (Viola), and Hadestown (2014 workshop, Fate/viola).

Photo By: John Carluccio

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SONGWRITING

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Hi all,

Thank you so much for being here and taking a moment to check out my music. Castaway as a record was a monumental effort for me personally; fighting through the depression and loneliness that many people were also feeling during the pandemic to create something I am really proud of is not an act I will ever take for granted. This record was a long time coming in a lot of ways but the sudden solitude of mid-late 2020 was the spark I needed to finally dive deep in a way I hadn't been able to previously, and it brought sounds and words and a grounded boldness out of me that I would not have been able to imagine in a previous iteration of myself. One idea I kept coming back to obsessively was this ::

It is said that no person is an island, but we forget that we are all the sea. It is in our very nature, especially the nature of women, to flow and adapt; we all contain multitudes and mysteries in our depths, but to find them we must be brave enough to take the plunge. In my travels I always find myself seeking riverbanks, lakesides and shore lines to commune with, and they have brought me comfort in lonely times. We are all made up of more than half water, after all.

I'm really proud of this whole album. Please listen to it when you have a moment. I appreciate you.

--Sarah

"The production, songwriting, singing, and musicianship are all top-notch throughout this twisting full length. [Castaway] is a stunningly strong statement as the artist has found her voice while constantly evolving and traveling through this thing called life." -- Shawn Donohue, Glide Magazine

NEW / COLLABORATIVE MUSIC

Here's a playlist of songs that feature string arrangements I've written:

I am always open to new and interesting collaborations! Feel free to drop me a line anytime and find me on social media so we can find ways to work together.

PROJECTS