The Song School

Just seconds into his current album, Idaho-native Josh Ritter leaps into rapid-fire lyrics that reference Joan of Arc, Calamity Jane and Florence Nightingale, all of whom seem to be stuck together in the belly of a whale. Those legendary heroines he name-checks were each responding to an inner voice that pushed them toward some extraordinary mission, one both noble and a little foolhardy. Over the course of six full-lengths, Josh has followed those voices - touring the world as a folk-rock troubadour, becoming a national celebrity in Ireland, winning over critics at the New York Times and Paste Magazine (who named him one of the 100 best living songwriters), writing some of the most poetic and intellectually complex songs of our young century, and winning over fans with a jubilant, warm live show that is in-the-moment, fun, and unusually sincere.

Melissa Ferrick has the kind of relationship with her audience that few artists are blessed with. Her live performance is fierce and funny, outspoken and vulnerable, passionate and real. Writes the Boston Globe: "She appeared at times to be channeling Bruce Springsteen and Ricky Lee Jones simultaneously. The emotional honesty of Ferrick’s first-person lyrics, the force of her vocal delivery and the disciplined fury of her musicianship connects her to her audience with confidence and grace. She’s been gaining fans since her first release at age twenty-two on Atlantic Records. Her next three recordings were released by indie label What Are Records. In 2000, Melissa launched her own label: Right On Records. Her newest album, In the Eyes of Strangers is the label’s sixth release. Always groundbreaking, Melissa achieved an industry first by setting up direct digital downloads from her website, allowing her fans to help fund the recording of her new album.

Vance Gilbert burst onto the singer/songwriter scene in the early 90 ’s when the buzz started spreading in the folk clubs of Boston about an ex-jazz singer who was knocking ‘em dead at open mikes. The word spread of this Philadelphia born and raised performer to New York; Shawn Colvin invited Vance to be a special guest on her Fat City tour. Gilbert took audiences by storm ( “With the voice of an angel, the wit of a devil, and the guitar of a god, it was enough to earn him a rarity: an encore for an opener ” wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in its review of a show from that tour). Gilbert ’s five albums, with guests as varied as jazz greats, Tuck and Patti, Jonatha Brooke, Patty Larkin, Dee Carstensen, Vinx, and Issa (formerly Jane Siberry), are essential ingredients to the American singer-songwriter collection. His presence, both as performer and teacher, will renew your belief in the importance of songwriting.

Pat Pattison is an author, clinician and Berklee Professor of Lyric Writing and Poetry whose students have composed for major artists and written number one songs. At Berklee, he developed the curriculum for the only songwriting major in the country. His books, including Songwriting: Essential Guide to Rhyming and Songwriting: Essential Guide to Lyric Form and Structure, are recognized as definitive in their genre, and have earned many ecstatic reviews. His clinics are attended by songwriters all over the country, and his articles appear regularly in a variety of industry publications.

PAUL REISLER has been performing and writing for over 30 years. He was the founder of Trapezoid and performed close to 3,000 concerts worldwide. He has been involved in over 35 recording projects in various roles as a musician, engineer, producer and composer. He has just released a new album of original songs with his new band, Paul Reisler and a Thousand Questions featuring Angela Kaset and Howard Levy called At Night the Roses Tango. He is the founder and director of Kid Pan Alley™ and has now written over 800 songs with over 18,000 children nationally. Their recent CD, Kid Pan Alley Nashville, features many of that city’s best-known artists recording the songs written with the children. That album received a Grammy nomination and won both Parents’ Choice and NAPPA Gold Awards. He has taught songwriting to adults at workshops and songwriting schools throughout the country including the Rocky Mountain Song School, Utah Song School, Swannanoa Gathering, Blue Ridge Songcamp, Augusta Workshop, Hollyhock, Kerrville, NSAI, Songcamp in the Mountains and many others. He’s currently working on a Kid Pan Alley musical, a full-length piece for orchestra and narrator based on Aesop’s Fables, and a new Kid Pan Alley CD in Charlottesville, VA.

Steve Seskin started out in the 70’s as a street musician in San Francisco, and has steadily built an exceptionally successful career both as a songwriter and as a performer. After releasing several albums on his own label, he decided to visit Nashville to expose his songs to a wider audience. Seskin signed to a staff songwriting deal with Little Big Town Music Group, and the cuts came soon after: “She Can” was on Alabama’s 1989 platinum-selling album “Southern Star,” and Waylon Jenning’s recording of “Wrong” climbed into the top 5 on the country charts on 1990. Nearly 20 years later, the trip to Nashville has proven to be a good one; his discography includes country chart toppers by artists such as Tim McGraw ( “Grown Men Don ’t Cry ”), Colin Raye ( “I Think About You ”), Ricochet ( “Daddy ’s Money ”) and Kenny Chasey ( “All I Need To Know ”). “Don ’t Laugh at Me ” which was recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary, was the impetus for the Don ’t Laugh at Me Project, a curriculum designed to teach tolerance in schools.

Farm girl Susan Werner was raised in rural Iowa but began her professional music career in Philadelphia, after studying classical voice at Temple University. Inspired by a Nanci Griffith concert, Werner left behind her opera training and began performing as a singer-songwriter at coffeehouses throughout the northeast. Now with 6 albums under her belt, an active touring career throughout the U.S. and a string of accolades from the likes of The Washington Post, The Village Voice, and The Chicago Tribune, Susan Werner has become one of the defining artists of the folk music genre. Her songs effortlessly slide between folk, jazz and pop, and are delivered with a sassy wit and classic midwestern charm. Says The New Yorker: "Susan Werner, a clever songwriter and an engaging performer, brings literacy and wit back to popular song."

"Chicago" Mike Beck presents his International Touring workshop at SongSchool for the third consecutive year. Since 2001, Mike has toured Europe over a dozen times, spending more than 24 months performing and touring in Switzerland, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France, Ireland and Belgium as a solo performer and with his band The Intergalactic Brother & Sisterhood of Big Eyed Beans. His debut CD, released in 2002 has received radio airplay in the USA, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Transylvania, Romania, Macedonia and Japan. He has personally brought over 20 musicians on their first overseas tours. Mike is currently in the midst of recording his followup CD release, due out this Autumn, which includes vocal contributions from Bloodshot Records' Nora O'Connor. Mike has been a featured panelist at South-by-Southwest, the Folk Alliance National Conference, and several other music industry events. Mike loves empowering and inspiring musicians to pursue their dreams, and enjoys sharing practical ideas, methods and information to help make them real. He also loves to sing, and apologizes in advance for when his usually-too-loud voice heard around the FolksFest campfires keeps you awake all night. He is very excited to be back in Lyons, Colorado for his fifth Song School.

A native of eastern Kentucky, Ron Browning has been immersed in both performing and fine arts since childhood. His educational background include a BME in voice and piano from the University of Kentucky, post-graduate studies and teaching credentials from University of California at Northridge, and a Professional Designation of Recording Arts and Sciences at UCLA. Ron currently resides in Nashville, TN where he teaches privately and is on staff at the Nashville Jazz Workshop. As a vocal coach, his students range from major recording artists, to star attractions on subscription series, to acts for Vegas showrooms. He also grooms singers for their very first public performance and works with all genres of music. His vocal method is based on the use of natural voice that one uses everyday -- at work, at home, and at play.  He believes that if you can speak, you can sing.  He is gifted at being able to quickly identify and remove the stumbling blocks that prevent clear and easy voice. One of his students, Patti LaBelle says of Ron: "he is a miracle worker.  He is phenomenal and I thank him for my voice." As a songwriter, Ron's achievements include hits with RCA, special writing assignments for Paramount Television, a dance suite for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, an original long-running musical in Los Angeles, and orchestrations and incidental music for Franklin Lacey, co-author of The Music Man. Ron is presently writing a vocal method text based on his work and the seminars that he does both locally and across the country.

Ah, the elusive bio. The story. The sub-urban legend. Here goes: Tim Burlingame penned his first song at the age of 5 called, "In God We Trust". With a running time of 00:12, the words taken from the back of a dollar bill, and the chords formed from any open string he could strum, the now legendary opus (within the family anyway) went on to sell no records, and gained him a national following of zero people. But it was the start of a love affair with songwriting that has been propelling him forward ever since. He has twice been a finalist in the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Songwriter Showcase. With his wife, Kathrin Shorr, he has toured in the U.S. and Europe. His songs have been featured on Dawson's Creek, Party of Five and Joan of Arcadia, and he was also the guitarist on the theme song for Joan of Arcadia, a re-recording of "What if God Was One of Us," with Joan Osborne. He runs an independent studio in Los Angeles and freelances as a composer/songwriter for film, television and commercial projects. In 2007, Tim scored a feature film starring Melora Hardin, of the critically acclaimed NBC television series, The Office.

Ellis is a nationally-known touring singer, songwriter and guitarist known for her powerful vocals, charismatic stage presence and playful sense of humor. She founded her own record company at age 18 and has since released five albums with a sixth due in late 2007. Though she keeps a full-time touring schedule, she has maintained a loyal following in her home base of Minneapolis, where she has been named "Best Musician" for the past five consecutive years. She also has a strong following on the college circuit and was nominated for "Best Female Artist" in 2006 by readers of Campus Activities Magazine. A past Song School attendee, she was also a finalist in the Songwriter Showcase in 2005 and she recently won a 36-hour songwriting competition with a song about coffee.

Rebecca Folsom has taught the Art of Vocal Freedom for over 12 years. She finds great joy in helping others claim the natural resonance, strength, and passion of their own voice. She has a very effective and unique approach of mixing nontraditional shamanic exercises with traditional building block vocal practices. She has taught body centered Vocal Freedom workshops with some of the nations top elite athletes, and helps singers find fluidity and strength with martial arts, yogic, Taoist, and Toltec practices along with classical vocal techniques. Her years of study with Joy Gardner Gordon’s Healing Voice work, Stephen Chun-tao Chengs’s Tao of Voice work, the study of yogic posture and breath, Americo Yabar’s Salka Connection, and years of extensive performance and touring have created an instinctive, effective, and totally fun practice of vocal mastery. She has sung on hundreds of other artist’s recordings and has added two new CDs Shine and Ruby, Live at Velvet this year to three previously released. She will be releasing a newly published book of poetry later this year. She has had the pleasure of performing on BBC radio and television in N. Ireland, Nashville’s Bluebird, Opryland, and Tin Pan South stages, NY’s Bitterend and Falcon Ridge Music Festival, and Colorado's own Rocky Mountain Folks Festival and Red Rocks Amphitheatre. She is happy to be back for her ninth year at Song School teaching singers how to deepen their personal presence, expand their vocal mastery, and have fun doing it!

Jennifer "JJ" Jones began playing drums and guitar at age 14 while attending a private school for the arts in Seattle. During her career she has been the drummer and arranger/producer for a multitude of bands and studio projects covering a variety of styles, including funk-blues, instrumental jam, alternative rock, power-pop, honky-tonk country and acoustic-folk. While living in Madison, Wisconsin, JJ began playing lead guitar and working with singer/songwriter Kelly Brightwell, and eventually produced her first CD. Currently based in Milwaukee, JJ continues to collaborate with Kelly, in addition to playing drums with and recording for nationally touring singer/songwriters Ellis, Julie Loyd and Barb Ryman, as well as up-and-comers Emily White, Mike Keane and Liz Snavely, and Native American flute player Bobb Fantauzzo in his trio JazZen. A sensitive and expressive player, JJ specializes in finding the just the right rhythmic feel to bring out the inherent beauty of a song. This will be JJ's fourth year at Song School. She is looking forward to another wonderful experience of musical exploration and collaboration!

Arthur Lee Land combines diverse influences to create a fresh new musical vibe: Afrograss Flavored Folk Rock. During a tour of Nigeria and Ghana, West Africa in 2001, Arthur spawned the concept of Afrograss: a synthesis of West African percussion and bluegrass in a folk rock context with a touch of funk, reggae, latin and world beat. A talented multi-instrumentalist, Arthur has perfected the art of looping live tracks during one-man performances that have dropped jaws at smaller clubs and concerts across the country.  Recently, Arthur was voted Best Singer/Songwriter by Colorado’s Marquee Magazine for their 2005 Front Row Awards and has added Producer to his list of credits producing and playing guitar on song school alumni Selasee Atiase’s new CD Run in 2005 whose title track won first place in the "2005 International Song Competition (ISC)" for the World Music category. Run was also licensed for the EA Sports 'FIFA 2006' soccer video game which has sold over 6 million copies internationally. This is Arthur’s 5th year teaching at the RMFF Song School.

Terri Mazurek is a Minneapolis-based social worker turned booking agent. What started as a brief consulting gig for a local musician turned into a full-time music career. Terri founded Peppermint Booking Agency in 2000 and currently represents eight nationally touring musicians on the college circuit. She received the National Association of Campus Activities award of "Agent of the Year" in 2005 and has helped six of her eight artists to receive showcases at the regional and national college conferences. She also collaborates with nationally touring folk/rock musician Ellis, co-managing her record company Rubberneck Records. Terri applies her social work training in her music career, and she is known for her passionate commitment to helping artists reach their full potential. In addition to coaching musicians and helping them to set goals and action plans, Terri has taught workshops at several festivals and music conferences throughout North America.

Julie Portman, winner of a New York Obie, has directed, performed and written for the professional theatre for 30 years. She is founder and artistic director of Ki Theatre. The art of story is central to Julie’s work as a writer, theatre artist and teacher. She has written five plays inspired by true stories. More than 300 productions of these plays have been presented nationally and internationally. Believing that everyone has a unique story to tell and the need for that story to be heard, Julie offers Life Stories Workshops. The workshops teach people of all backgrounds how to write and share their own stories and participate in a process that builds community. Julie's most recent play inspired by people's true stories, Three Roses, is the centerpiece of The Rose Project, a coalition of organizations gathered to address issues of violence. The play was also recently made into a PBS television broadcast (and video) directed by Academy Award winner Paul Wagner.

Justin Roth is a nationally touring singer/songwriter/acoustic guitarist and has released four independent CDs as well as being a core contributer to an instrumental solo guitar album produced for Target Stores, entitled Lifescapes - Solo Guitar, which has sold over 70,000 copies nationwide. He has shared the stage with Shawn Colvin, John Gorka, David Wilcox, Martin Sexton among others.

In 1991, Alan started the folk music listserv, and later organized the first Internet Quartet Songwriters Showcase, a tour that took 24 songwriters to 11 cities in the Northeast in a total of 66 concerts. Alan has written for several music magazines including Dirty Linen and Sing Out! and has taught seminars on the internet for musicians at national and regional Folk Alliance conferences, the Kerrville Folk Festival, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Christine Lavin’s Martha’s Vineyard Singer Songwriter Retreat, and of course, our own Song School.

"I would rather be listening to a good song than be doing anything else. Songs change lives. They can give our days and nights an almost dreamy quality. I want to be as much a part of that as I can. That's why I write." Winner of The 2005 Rocky Mountain Folks Festival Songwriter Showcase, Kathrin Shorr's songs have been featured on the television series Joan of Arcadia, Beautiful People, and Dawson's Creek. Living in Los Angeles with her husband and co-writer, Tim Burlingame, she composes and sings for film, television and commercials. Honored with ASCAP's prestigious Sammy Cahn Lyricist Award, she has performed with Colin Hay (Men at Work), Kelly Joe Phelps, Glen Phillips (Toad the Wet Sprocket) and Shawn Colvin.

Moira Smiley works internationally as a composer-vocalist. Based in Los Angeles, she leads her fiery roots vocal-band, Moira Smiley & VOCO, travels the world as a soloist in early and traditional music and creates new work with dance, theatre and film.   Moira was born in Vermont, moved to Indiana to pursue a piano performance degree at IU School of Music, and finished with a degree in Early Music Vocal Performance, having studied voice with Thomas Binkley, Paul Elliott, Paul Hillier and Alan Bennett. She taught a semester at University of Birmingham (UK), toured and recorded with the acclaimed Theatre of Voices, Fretwork Consort of Viols, The Dufay Collective, Sinfonye and The Concord Ensemble. In 2001 and 2002, she won a Barbara Thornton Memorial Scholarship for Medieval Music, given by the Sequentia Ensemble, and recorded Disc three of the Complete Hildegard Works with Sinfonye (Celestial Harmonies).  More recently, she sings the role of "Sorceress" in Purcell's opera "Dido & Aeneas" with Musica Angelica to open The Getty Villa. Moira was 'the voice' for BBC/PBS Sir David Attenborough's famous "The Life of Birds" and Marie Antoinette’s voice in feature film "The Affair of the Necklace,”  She continues to record for various other film and television productions.Moira’s  been writing music since the age of six – focusing on voices-as-instruments, and in harmony.  Her recent commissions have been by choral ensembles, dance and theatre companies.  In Fall, 2006 she will premiere two voice & movement pieces with TripDance Theatre at the venerable Ford Amphitheater in Los Angeles.

Amy Speace was propelled onto the national stage in 2006 when Judy Collins heard her sing and handpicked Amy’s “Songs For Bright Street” to release on her own imprint, Wildflower Records. Called “a superior example of stunning music at its best...country-folk that is illuminating and effortlessly accessible" (The Verve), the album received widespread critical praise, including landing in the Top 10 for many weeks on the US Folk and Roots charts.  In 2007 “Bright Street” was released by Wildflower/Ryko in Europe and ended up on many European Best of 2007 lists and Amy has spent the past 2 years touring both the US and Europe, sharing the stage with Ian Hunter, Judy Collins, Little Feat among others.  WFUV, NYC’s main AAA radio station, recently named Amy in its “Top 16 To Watch in 2008”.  Based in NYC, Amy originally started out as an actress/director/playwright, having spent 2 years with The National Shakespeare Company acting and teaching, then running her own Off-Off Broadway theater company, while acting in television and films. A guest appearance at Club Sine (where Jeff Buckley was playing later that night) led to an offer for a headline slot and she never looked back. Last year she was nominated by the International Folk Alliance as “Emerging Artist Of The Year”.  She was invited to contribute the title track to “Born To The Breed”, a tribute CD to Judy Collins, which also features Chrissie Hynde, Shawn Colvin, Rufus Wainwright. Amy’s follow up to “Bright Street” will be released Summer of 2008 and was recorded and engineered by rock legend Mitch Easter (R.E.M., Let’s Active).

Songpoet/percussionist Annie Wenz is a multi instrumentalist, folk-roots artist & humanitarian activist who has traveled 25 countries throughout the world "bringing people together through music". Her experiences span the spectrum, performing & teaching in Pakistan for earthquake victims & dignitaries as guest of M. Soomro/acting president, to "New Zealand's Millennium Celebration", festivals & arts centers in Costa Rica & Germany, jazz clubs & theater productions in Sweden, the far-off corners of Thailand, Vietnam,  Bali & Mexico, as well as throughout the US!  Annie is known for her unique way of blending contemporary sounds with roots/traditional & multi-cultural influences & funky rhythms, accompanying herself & others on guitar, piano, indigenous flutes & percussion instruments. She has shared performances & soundtracks with (her former band members!) Senegalize talking drum wizard Massamba Djop (also of Baba Mal's band), percussionist Jose Gonzalez of Puerto Rico, "Viva Quetzal's" Eugenio Huanca, Guy DeVito ("Steppenwolf"), & London's Robert Dean (Sinead O'Connor's guitarist). Her songs are inspired by her many journeys... kayaking & backpacking around the world, working as a registered nurse, rafting guide, activist and a teacher. Annie travels throughout the US. sharing her grant winning workshops, "Dancing with the Muse ~ From Story to Song", "Politics & Song ~ We CAN Make a Difference", "Funny??? ~ The Art of Humorous Songwriting", "Passing The Torch ~ Creating Community Music", & "Plays Well With Others... The Art of Drumming & Percussion" with songwriters, educators, health practitioners, accompanists & folks who just want to have fun! She has 6 recordings to her credit on her own indie label Gypsy Moon Rising, including her newest all instrumental CD  Winds of the World.