About Claudia 

Claudia Gruber is a versatile musician proudly born and raised in central New Jersey. She is a singer/songwriter whose style incorporates her favorite genres, including pop, alternative rock, and jazz/RnB, and has been writing music since she was 9 years old. Claudia plays piano, guitar, and ukulele, and currently teaches individual music lessons for kids and adults in eastern Virginia, alongside working on a variety of projects.

Claudia holds a Master of Music Therapy degree from Duquesne University (2024), and a Bachelor of Music Therapy degree from Berklee College of Music (2021). At Berklee, she co-music directed the student run vocal jazz group, Point of Departure, during which the group became Downbeat Magazine’s 2020 student award winner for Large Vocal Ensemble, and debuted their EP “Circadian” in 2019. Claudia was also a member of Pitch Slapped A Cappella, where she opened for Pentatonix in Boston during their Christmas tour (2017). Claudia has performed at Boston Symphony Hall, The Wang Theatre, and in several venues across the country.

Additionally, Claudia is an avid recording studio vocalist and songwriter. After starting session-singing work at the age of 16, she fell in love with being in the studio and decided to start recording her own original music. In 2019, Claudia released her first full original album “Opportunity.” Most recently in 2023, she released her pop-electronic EP “Heartsongs,” and these are both available on streaming platforms such as Apple Music, Spotify, Tidal, and Amazon Music.

Today, Claudia continues to perform, write, and collaborate with those in her community. She writes custom music for a variety of occasions, records lead and background vocals for session work, and provides top-line writing for music spanning from acoustic pop, Lo-fi RnB, dance and electronic music, to heavy metal and rock.

Music Style & Influences

Claudia’s background is eclectic and diverse. Most of Claudia’s early training and exposure to music was through classical piano technique, sacred choral music, and musical theatre, but these later shifted into pop and jazz-specific music education. Her stylistic influences include iconic artists such as Ariana Grande, Hayley Williams, Birdy, Billie Eilish, the 1975, Coldplay, Mac Ayres, MARINA, Pentatonix, and Disney pop music that shaped her love of music from an early age. She loves popular music from the 70s and 80s (like America and Tears for Fears), the classic pop/rock sound of the early 2000s (like Paramore or Michelle Branch), and the ever-evolving world of pop musicians today. She loves to explore all of these facets of the music industry in her own music and also when creating music with others.

Photography by Anais Possamai

Photography by Anais Possamai

Photography by Anais Possamai

Photography by Anais Possamai

Music Therapy

Claudia is a board-certified music therapist. Inspired by the way singing, songwriting, and performing supported her through her childhood and teenage years, Claudia is passionate about providing a space for others to discover their potential and express themselves through the powerful medium that is music.

During her time pursuing her Master’s degree through Duquesne University, Claudia focused her work on songwriting research and clinical processes. Her studies deeply explored her own values as a music therapist and musician in general, in which she approaches her work through a strengths-based, humanistic framework, influenced by ecological orientations.

At Berklee, Claudia received two awards for Outstanding Achievement in Music Therapy (March 2018 & April 2020). She is trained in settings including early childhood, mental health, nursing homes, medical facilities, and for hospice care. Claudia completed her comprehensive internship training at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she supported children and families with complex medical needs and collaborated with many interdisciplinary team members.

Because of her passion and focus in songwriting, Claudia enjoys exploring how therapeutic songwriting can be used for all ages, such as creating imaginative stories or using song lyrics to communicate difficult emotions. She has presented at several conferences on writing techniques as they relate to music therapy.

Claudia formerly instructed at Supernow, a virtual “edutainment” platform for kids, where she created two interactive programs that explore songwriting, music listening, crafts, and movement, all inspired by music therapy techniques.

Most recently, she has become a songwriter for Songfinch, a platform in which its customers can purchase a completely custom, personalized song created by its artists to celebrate love, friendship, relationships, and other meaningful moments!