Sonoma singer-songwriter’s gift of music

Eclectic singer-songwriter Cynthia Tarr belts out jazz songs, show tunes and pop favorites with ease, rousing a crowd with her powerful voice. Yet she knows the joy of music also is found in subtle ways.

Her pitch-perfect “Star Spangled Banner” at last summer’s packed Sonoma City Party ended with riotous applause. At a local convalescent center, the appreciation was barely audible but equally powerful.

Tarr and her 25-member Free Spirits Gospel Choir were performing the hymn “I’ll Fly Away” when Tarr noticed an elderly woman, eyes closed, quietly singing along to the lyrics.

“She was tracking the song,” Tarr said. “We were hitting something for her that was unlocking something.”

Tarr, 55, was moved by the experience, an affirmation that she’s in the right place both professionally and geographically.

Tarr serves as the music program director of the Sonoma Community Center, a job that allows her to reach diverse audiences. She is both performer and teacher, one day sharing her vocal talents, the next encouraging voice students to find their range and define their pitch - and finding joy in both endeavors.

“Singing for me has always been a portal to the soul,” Tarr said.

She never planned to live in Sonoma or champion others with their musical interests and aspirations.

Her long and unexpected journey with a degree in performing arts, earned decades ago from USC with a goal of becoming an actress. She landed numerous Hollywood auditions, but the profession never took off as she had hoped.

Tarr had faith in her acting abilities and was an especially skilled comedic actress, but says the pursuit was “a wild goose chase.”

Over more than 20 years in L.A., she worked a host of jobs while hoping for her big break but found herself relying on her musical abilities more and more. Eventually, she focused on singing, songwriting and studio work.

Tarr’s talents and longtime passion for music - everything from country and French to rock and Latin - helped her land work recording demos for other artists and collaborating with musicians that included Chris Bennett, Brazilian jazz legend Dori Caymmi and multiple Grammy Award-winner Keb’ Mo’. She has written or collaborated on more than 100 songs.

Tarr also worked for a short time as road manager for The Manhattan Transfer.

She credits her late parents with her interest in music, recalling a childhood filled with music.

She was raised in Appleton, Wis., before moving to Washington, D.C., when her father took a job in the Nixon administration. Both parents were musical, and Tarr learned harmony as a girl. She can’t recall a time when she wasn’t singing.

“Growing up, I listened entirely to black music, the more soulful the better,” she said. “I’ve never been interested in a great set of pipes that doesn’t have a lot of soul behind them.”

Despite her talents and successes, work in the L.A. music industry was intermittent. Tarr spent her last decade there working as a holistic counselor offering New Age healing and hypnotherapy.

By then, she and her musician husband Cliff Hugo, the bass guitarist for Supertramp, were more than done with the fast-track, competitive world of Hollywood.

“Brilliantly talented people leave L.A. every year,” Tarr said. “They don’t want that kind of life, and you understand it.”

“For all intents and purposes, I’ve never looked back. L.A. has lots of soulful people in a soulless place.”

The couple arrived in Sonoma seven years ago and quickly embraced the small-town quality of life and chance meetings that led to new opportunities and a new outlook.

She performs for appreciative audiences, loves watching the progress of her voice students and also utilizes her talents planning productions for the community center, directing the gospel choir, leading workshops and hosting recitals and intimate Kitchen Concerts for her students.

“I feel literally touched by the interactions I have every day here,” she said. “I get recognized all the time. My contributions are valued here.”

Toni Castrone, the center’s executive director, said Tarr awakened the center’s “fairly sleepy” music program when she came onboard.

“Cynthia is a force of nature. She brings so much heart to her work, and that is why she has developed such a vibrant following,” Castrone said.

Margaret Hatcher, the center’s special projects manager, encouraged Tarr to teach singing classes after catching her performances at Olive and Vine restaurant in Glen Ellen shortly after Tarr arrived in the valley.

Today, Tarr finds herself balancing those efforts with new projects that include a trio called Quixotics, a weekly radio program on local station KSVY (5-7 p.m. Mondays) and the community center’s annual Holiday Follies Naughty and Nice, the variety show with over-the-top costumes and numbers that range from singing to hula dancing.

“It’s really irreverent and fun and has really touching moments, too,” Tarr said. “And it always ends with snow.”

Tarr also is working on a CD titled “Here’s to Life,” her signature toast during personal performances, that she expects to release by June.

Supporters donated $20,000 through an online campaign to help cover expenses, something Tarr finds especially humbling.

Sonoma was never on Tarr’s radar, but leaving Hollywood has given her a platform on which to shine.

“I had to let go to come here,” Tarr said, “and I have it in spades now.”

Cynthia Tarr will serve as mistress of ceremonies and perform at the Holiday Follies Naughty and Nice extravaganza at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in Andrews Hall at the Sonoma Community Center, 276 E. Napa St. Gala cocktail reception begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $30 or $25 for balcony seats. Holiday attire recommended. For tickets, or for information about voice classes or the Free Spirits Gospel Choir, call 938-4626, ext. 1, or visit sonomacommunitycenter.org. More about Tarr is at cynthiatarr.com.