Jun 20, 2008

This Week In Songwriting (20/06/08)

I spend a lot of time trawling the web for songwriting-related articles. It’s a pretty time-consuming process (much easier these days with RSS!), and it’s easy to miss the occasional classic. I bookmark them all for myself on “Delicious”:http://del.icio.us/ihatemornings/ihatemornings, and they show up in the sidebar of my site, but for the benefit of all you webophobic songwriters out there, I’m going to start collating a weekly roundup of the articles I found worth reading.

I hope you find them as useful as I did!

h3. “The Five Key Steps to Songplugging”:http://www.bloggingmuses.com/2008/06/12/the-five-key-steps-to-songplugging/

Another useful guest article from “Blogging Muses”:http://www.bloggingmuses.com, this time covering the stage that most songwriters don’t like – getting the song you just wrote into the right hands.

h3. “How To Make The Most Out Of Open Mics”:http://www.songwritingzen.com/?p=139

Cory over at “Songwriting Zen”:http://www.songwritingzen.com has posted this guide for open mic amateurs. If you find it useful, make sure to check out his previous rant, “The 10 + 1 Commandments Of Open Mics – An Open Letter To All Performers”:http://www.songwritingzen.com/?p=128.

h3. “Musical Influence, Plagiarism and Prolificacy”:http://adventuresinsongwriting.com/?p=28

“Adventures in Songwriting”:http://adventuresinsongwriting.com has a good honest (pragmatic?) take on originality and plagiarism in songwriting. An antidote to the “precious poet” style of songwriter…

h3. “Surviving the Hits”:http://measureformeasure.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/surviving-the-hits/

Suzanne Vega wonders why Luka and Tom’s Diner were hits rather than any of the other catchy songs she has written over the years, and talks about how much work went into the arrangement and production.

h3. “Day to Day of a Staff Songwriter”:http://andreastolpe.berkleemusicblogs.com/2008/06/15/day-to-day-of-a-staff-songwriter/

Andrea Stolpe always writes great articles for the “Berklee Music Blogs”:http://www.berkleemusicblogs.com/, and this is no exception. A fascinating look at the everyday life of professional songwriters.

h3. “…And The Rest Is History: Debunking The Myth Of Getting Discovered (Part 5 of 7)”:http://www.soulofsongwriting.com/sos-episode-26and-the-rest-is-history-debunking-the-myth-of-getting-discovered-part-5-of-7/

Joshua Pearl’s “Soul of Songwriting”:http://www.soulofsongwriting.com podcast is always good for a balanced, spiritual approach to songwriting and musicianship. His incessant tea slurping offends my delicate sensibilities, but the man lives in Woodstock so I forgive him. ;o) His current series (“Debunking the myth of…”) is particularly good for those of us who need a little grounding occasionally.

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2 Comments, Comment or Ping

  1. Joshua Pearl 

    <p>Hi Ben.</p>

<p>Thanks for listening to and recommending the Soul Of Songwriting podcast. </p>

<p>Your open search for musical meaning and success is apparent and your willingness to share your process with others can only lead to greater connection-in all senses of the word. Coincidentally, &#8220;connection&#8221; is the topic of an upcoming <span class="caps">SOS</span> podcast.</p>

<p>I am delighted to find that you live in Oxford. I have visited some dear friends there and have been meaning to get back as soon as circumstances allow. </p>

<p>If you are inclined, please share more specifics about your own artistic journey and how you have come to be a music maker. What led to your studies at Berklee? How would you characterize the music scene and culture in Oxford? Are there any specific challenges you struggle with as an artist?</p>

<p>Sorry to hear that my tea sipping is a bit much for your delicate sensibilities, but my love of tea is just too great to keep to myself. I will be sure to dedicate one of those sips to you ;) especially since you live in one of the best towns on the planet in which I have ever shared a pot.</p>

<p>JP</p>

    Jun 26th, 2008

  2. Don M 

    <p>Howdy. Thanks for linking to the guest post on BloggingMuses! Great site you have here.</p>

    Jun 28th, 2008