Young songwriters gather to learn

Young songwriters from across Central Oregon and as far away as California and Colorado gathered in Sisters to share in the joys of self-expression and hone the craft of songwriting.

The event is presented annually by Sisters Folk Festival. This year, the setting for the Americana Songwriting Academy for Youth was The Belfry, where instructors with experience in and passion for a life in music taught breakout sessions and helped the young artists bring their ideas to life.

One of the instructors was Sisters Folk Festival Americana Project alum Slater Smith, who has become a songwriter especially noted for a project that took him to each of Oregon's State Parks, where he created a song and a video. Smith taught a section on "Beating Writer's Block Using Song Structure."

Smith said he had "an almost-not-worthy feeling. I learn as much as the kids and get re-inspired. I'm honored to be back."

Sisters High School senior Kendra Kemp said, with some surprise, "I haven't been nervous."

She particularly enjoyed working with other students in small groups. One group performed her song "And I Will" at a student concert at The Barn on Saturday night.

Rob Merola, too, enjoyed working in the song circles. He described the supportive atmosphere of the camp as "stress-free - acceptance of unique talent ... what you can bring to the table. It's really inspiring."

The camp is about learning to access ideas, thoughts and emotion and harness them into authentic self-expression. It's not about becoming the next hit-maker or reality TV star. That emphasis on authenticity is reflected in the subject of Sisters Folk Festival-favorite Keith Greeninger's workshop: "Songwriting for Your Unique Voice."

Kemp was fascinated by the outcome of an exercise in the workshop, where Greeninger gave the students four chords and had them come up with something that felt right for their voice.

"He gave us the same four chords and everybody came up with something different," she said.

The emphasis on art over crass commercialism was reinforced by Welsh singer-songwriter Martyn Joseph, who on Saturday offered a passionate exposition on the writing life.

"If you're listening to me because you want to have a hit record, you might as well go play football outside," he joked. "It's not gonna happen."

He urged the students to dedicate themselves to working hard on their songs and making them a truly unique expression of themselves and what they have to say and admonished them "don't add to the noise."

For Joseph, songwriting is a deep, profound and therapeutic experience. The act of writing is a way to understand the world.

He told the students that, through art, they can have an impact on their own life and the lives of others. In dark times, a song can "enter into the moment and remind us that life is worth living."

Greeninger, Joseph and other select performers capped the inspirational weekend with a concert at The Belfry. It was aptly titled: A Celebration of Song.

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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