Clarsa's grandmother produced musical theater, gave piano lessons, and played church organ. Her four daughters grew up singing barbershop harmony. Clarsa's mother, in turn, filled her home with the folk/rock harmonies of Peter, Paul and Mary, Simon and Garfunkel, and the Beatles. She sang in the car and around the house, and Clarsa and her brother and sisters learned to harmonize early.

Clarsa performed musical theater in college and community productions. As Lady Coral de Chauncey, she was a popular bard in the SCA Kingdom of Caid, where she met Brad Banyan. He taught her solo vocal and guitar performance, and encouraged her to put both playfulness and honesty into her own music.