 |
| Home of the Archive |
| May 2004 Guild Tidings The official Publication of The International Songwriters Guild Volume 9, No. 5 NEXT MEETING 5:00pm. Sunday May 2nd, 2004 Songwriters, composers, performers, publishers, and the curious are encouraged to join us. Non-members are invited to attend a meeting or two to get a feel for our group and what we do. Officers: President/Treasurer Russ Robinson (407) 851-5328 Vice President/Member Reception/Newsletter Matthew Griffin (407) 903-1212 Membership Coordinator/Website Coordinator Susan Foster-Trewick (407) 760-2153 Archives Barbara Ross (407) 862-2795 President's Letter Dear Members, Wow, I was elated at our last meeting (April 4th). We had a great turnout, and some real good new songwriters attended. The samples we heard were interesting. Now if we can have some winners in one of these songwriter�s contests, we�ll be even better known as a Guild (which is already known as the best). American Songwriter magazine has a good contest in every magazine (bi-monthly). It�s a song lyric contest and could pay off big-time. Each bi-monthly winner gets an acoustic solid guitar with case. And one winner every year wins round-trip airfare for two to Nashville (American Airlines), and a professional demo recording by Music City Music Productions, Inc. Another interesting event is a four-day audition and talent search in Nashville on Memorial Day weekend (May 28th through the 31st); it�s called Ambassador Charlie Ray�s Nashville Music Festival Number 4. All forms of country, Americana, gospel, and bluegrass music are welcome. Unknown singers can be heard and meet record company representatives, agents, and publishers. This is a songwriter�s dream, where you can pitch your song to singers and record companies live. This is not for free; I�ll quote prices for the event if you call me (and I�ll bring details to the May meeting). There are 8 long pages I can read to you if you are serious about attending. Try to make the meeting Sunday, see you there. Best ever, Russ Robinson What�s So Hard About Writing a Song? By Matt Griffin New songwriters interest me. They bring a fresh viewpoint with them to their first ISG meeting, and I�m always looking forward to hearing it. What I don�t look forward to is the crash of that optimism, the moment when their dreams get a serious reality check. There�s an old adage which I�m sure I�m misquoting: the more you know, the more you realize how little you know. I think writing a good song is more difficult that most people think it is. Many relatively new writers come to our Guild thinking they�re going to set the place on fire, and few actually do. A lot goes into the creation of a terrific song, and novice writers are frequently taken by surprise at how much is involved. Here are some knowledge areas that are often underestimated by young songwriters: Criticism � Many new writers are not expecting criticism of any kind. Family members have typically given them nothing but glowing reviews. I firmly believe that learning to handle criticism�and to make positive use of it�is the single most important factor in becoming good at almost any creative endeavor. Craft � We�ve all heard writers announce proudly that the song is the song, and they never change it once it�s written. I understand the sentiment, but craft and rework are critical to long-term writing success (success in the business sense�being published and recorded). I don�t care how good a song is, you can always make it better with another creative pass. So make 10 passes, or 20. I believe you will keep improving the product, even on the 20th pass. Dedication � Occasionally we�ll get a new writer who is expecting instant gratification. Forget all of this critiquing and such, and just give me the magic phone number to success! Of course, if I had such a number, I�d be using it myself and on a daily basis. Songwriting is a craft, and all crafts take time and practice. Earnings Potential � Another commonly-held misunderstanding is that a good song will bring the writer lots of money. In truth, a good song will probably bring squat. In today�s market, you need to have great songs to have a realistic shot at substantial financial success, and even that may not be enough. Luck and timing help as well. And the writers most-likely-to-succeed are the real go-getters, the ones knocking on doors and making phone calls. Collaboration � Though this is certainly not universally true, I think new writers often miss out on the benefits of collaboration. Writers (including myself) need to have a certain amount of self-confidence, if not outright arrogance, to do the job well. It�s hard to trust someone else with a piece that you�ve invested yourself in, and it can also be hard to admit that someone else�s idea is better than yours. But when a collaboration works, it can produce a song that is better than either/any of the authors could have written by himself/herself. We�ve all been there, haven�t we? Some of us have been at this for years and still struggle with some of these basic truths. Writing a terrific song is involved and difficult, and takes talent and inspiration and a lot of sweat. And when the end result really sings, isn�t it worth it? ISG Bulletin Board Printing services for Guild Tidings are graciously provided by Printing USA, 4732 South Orange Blossom Trail (just south of Holden), Orlando. Phone: (407) 857-7468. (Thanks Art Cappuccio !!!) Meeting space graciously provided by Central Florida Musicians Association. Local 389 You are invited to join the largest union in the world, representing the interests of the professional musician. Visit their website at afm389.org for more information. You may reach them by phone at: 407-894-8666 We�re always looking for material for the newsletter. If you have any information that you would like to see added to the newsletter, please see Matt Griffin at the meetings or email him at [email protected] . Please keep your articles brief and to the point. Print deadline for the newsletter is approximately two weeks prior to the monthly meeting. Classified advertising may be placed free of charge to members in good standing with the ISG. For more information on display advertising and/or classified advertising for non-members, please call Russ or Matt or email: [email protected] . Why isn't your gig announced here? Call us with your appearance schedule! Place your classified ad or gig announcement here! Free to ISG members as always! Just get your text to Matt by the print deadline (usually the Friday 16 days prior to the monthly meeting); email is best ( [email protected] ). Welcome new members James Gavin, Thomas Olinger, and Darrell Monroe! April Top Five�Results of April critique session (1) Gotta Have a Hummer by Ed Kavetsky (2) Hey Granddaddy by Carlos Colon (3) Why Don�t You Believe in Intuition by Naoku Mercer (4) All I Can Be (With You) by James Gavin (5) Pretty Songs of Love by Thomas Olinger � 2004 ISG |