The Songwriter's Workshops meet every Wednesday evening at 7:30pm on WORKSHOP WEDNESDAYS at
The Songwriting School of Los Angeles.
Why do I want to earn a place in The Songwriter's Workshop?
- I am looking for a positive and inspiring songwriter workshop setting in which I can present original work weekly and receive constructive feedback on that work from a skillful teacher, industry guests, and my talented peers.
- I want to generate a volume of regular, quality work.
- I want to play and listen to songs in a room full of songwriters with comparable experience levels and serious motivation.
- I know what I like to do, but I want the exposure to my peers and their different tastes, styles, influences, and genres. I want to learn from their different perspectives and refine my own. This might even allow me to find collaborators outside of my main style.
- I want to meet and learn from a wide array of special guests--from hit writers to touring artists to tv & film music supervisors to publishers--all who will present from their perspective and offer appropriate feedback on my songs.
- I want to work with a gifted motivator and communicator in the teacher's chair to facilitate this kind of experience.
The Songwriter's Workshop affords that rare opportunity of personal and intellectual enrichment, concrete feedback, and genuine community. This ongoing class is designed to inspire, facilitate, and enhance the creation, evaluation, and revision of quality songs. You will not only be pushed to write your best work, you will expand your peer network of potential collaborators and your professional network of contacts. And by learning to meaningfully critique your peers' work, you will fortify your skills as an editor and creator of your own work.
The bulk of class is dedicated to workshopping peer songs. But part of each class we will study concepts, techniques, and skills of great songwriters and great songs and then integrate innovative and practical exercises to help us enact those concepts in our own songs. Each week you can try your hand at the exercises or simply continue to work on the songs you'd like workshopped. Regardless, this portion of class will help generate new ideas and inspire you to take different approaches to your writing. Special guests will include both talented artists, writers, and producers, in-demand vocal coaches, as well as members of the industry (tv/film music supervisors, publishers, attorneys, etc.).
Guest list: Current guests confirmed for the fall 2009 for The Workshop, subject to availability includes Lis Lewis (celebrated vocal and performance coach whose clients include Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, Linkin Park, Rihanna, and the list goes on); Rob Meurer (songwriter and musician and longtime collaborator with Chistopher Cross), Gary Myrick (guitar hero, 80s rock star, and successful songwriter); John Braheny (author of The Craft and Business of Songwriting, hailed in reviews as the "bible" for songwriters); Luke Reynolds (grammy nominated songwriter, session musician and former Blue Merle frontman), Tamir Hendleman (virtuoso pianist and composer and accompanist for legends like Barbra Streisand, Natalie Cole, etc.), and many more. This class is especially for me if I...
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need the objective and insightful feedback of professionals and of peers about my work
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am preparing material for a demo or album recording project and want not only feedback on my songs but to gain the skills of being a better editor of my own work
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am a producer and realize that the great producers I admire are adept at helping artists make their songs as strong as possible--structurally, lyrically, and musically
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am feeling a little stuck and need both the energy of a group setting and the incentive of exercises, goals, and deadlines to get my pen moving
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feel confident in my writing but want to add some creative spice to my writing routine
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want to build a network of fellow songwriters to learn from and with, and to enjoy the process of creating great work
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want the level of access to industry professionals and artists I enjoy that this unique class setting affords
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want to be pushed to write my best work because I know I can create that work.
Schedules, Times & Fees
Workshops are ongoing and grouped by experience level. Songwriters enroll for an initial 8-week commitment and then, if invited back, may subsequently enroll for 4, 8, or 12 weeks at a time. Should you and the teachers agree that you would be better suited in a different level of workshop than you originally enrolled, that move can be made promptly, without a new registration. As space allows, new songwriters can be admitted to The Workshop every other week. To discuss your place in the class, please call The School: 818-848-7664.
Fall Tuition scale:
4 weeks, $200
8 weeks, $350
12 weeks, $450
As class size permits, new enrollments occur every two weeks. We have adopted this strategy for three important reasons:
1) Your schedule may change. After the initial 8-week enrollment, you have the option of renewing your place in class for four week blocks at a time to allow you some flexibility and a smaller commitment of time and resources. If you are certain you'd like to remain in the workshop, the tuition per class is reduced for 8 weeks and lower still for 12 to reward your commitment.
2) New enrollments infuse the group with fresh energy and new writers while maintaining an optimal class-size for the dynamic, critical give and take.
3) As creative people you may go through periods where you need time to work on your songs away from the workshop setting. Often these planned vacations can lead to more productive work when you return to the workshop.
Because your registration reserves a spot in these workshops where class size is kept small and class composition contributes to the value of the class, we cannot grant individual absences or allow you to have "rollover classes" when you must be away. This policy is designed to honor and respect both students' and teachers' investments of time and resources.
In the event the workshop you seek is at capacity, your name will be added to the waiting list in the order in which the tuition has been received.
- Ask about our Refer-a-Friend Discounts.
- Partial Scholarships may be available. Please inquire.
- Eligibility: Workshops will be organized so that writers of comparable experience levels are able to work together to enhance the productivity and benefits of the class for all. Class size will be small to ensure individual attention every week. As demand exists, we will open additional sections to ensure that everyone finds their group challenging and rewarding.
To join a Workshop, you must be a songwriter who has completed songs in the past. If you are not at this point but like the idea of a workshop setting, we encourage you to enroll in The Roots Parts 1 & 2. In this track you will gain workshopping experience while you build the foundation and confidence for writing your best work. You will emerge from The Roots classes with both the skillest to confidently workshop songs and the experience from creating your own growing catalog of work.
The interactive and mutually respectful skills and values of a workshop setting are close to the heart of The Songwriting School. Set your sights on getting admitted to these classes but until you are, know that every class will have some workshop component built into it so that all of our artists cultivate the critical self-awareness, confidence, and compassion to workshop original material.
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