Songwriter teaches students

Sisters High School was the site of another unique teaching experience last Friday. Kathy Marshall, a songwriter who has attended the Sisters Folk Festival's Americana Song Academy multiple times, taught a class about "Songwriting and Intuition" to Americana Project students.

The lesson was held in Gary Bowne's Americana Project class, with Brad Tisdel, folk festival executive director, on hand. Both have become friends with Marshall since her first "song camp" four years ago. The class and visit had been in the works since last fall, with Marshall's schedule finally meshing with the teaching schedule last week. She made the trip over from her farm in Veneta.

Class opened up as it traditionally does, with a performance by one of the students. Jodie Reoch performed an original song for her classmates with Marshall watching and listening intently. After enthusiastic applause and thoughtful critique, Tisdel introduced the special guest to the students.

Marshall quickly began talking about how her life has always involved music, growing up in the mostly black ghettos of Chicago in the 1960s and '70s. Soul and gospel were early influences, and she explained that music was part of her life since age five. Singing with her family before every meal was the norm; breakfast, lunch and dinner. She taught how her past comes through her music. For her, songwriting comes from intuition, rather than logic.

Her intuition is striking, as she is a musician that does not know how to read music. That is not uncommon, she said, and provided examples of other known artists that do not know how to read music. She believes that music theory can cause limitations in songwriting and hold you back.

"Music comes from the ether," she said.

She recommends songwriters keep a tape recorder and a notepad by their bed at night to capture inspiration from dreams.

After performing four songs from her recently released debut CD, which was recorded right here in Sisters, she summarized her musical experience. During the "song camp" four years ago, she cried for three days straight while writing music because she realized it was exactly what she wanted to do. After that experience, it was important to her for people to hear her music - not from an egotistical viewpoint, but from a sharing perspective. To her, being supported and encouraged by others is the most important thing.

For more information about Kathy Marshall and her music, visit www.

kathymarshallmusic.com.