August 27, 2010

Los Angeles, CA

The ASCAP Foundation 2010 Lester Sill Songwriters Workshop is now accepting submissions. Geared toward advanced songwriters, the Workshop will take place at ASCAP’s Los Angeles office beginning in mid-October for a series of eight sessions.

Re-named in 1995 to honor ASCAP’s late Board member and industry pioneer Lester Sill, the Workshop will feature prominent guests from various facets of the music business. ASCAP executives Brendan Okrent and Etan Rosenbloom will oversee the series, which is designed to enrich participants’ knowledge of the industry, help them establish contacts and confidence, and expand their collaborative partnerships. Past guests have included Sir George Martin, Don Was, Rick Nowels, Glen Ballard, Jackson Browne, Linda Perry, Billy Steinberg, John Shanks, Kara DioGuardi, Ben Harper, Jonatha Brooke, Matthew Wilder, John Rzeznik, Greg Wells and numerous others.
Info here: http://www.ascap.com/calendar/Default.aspx?action=display&ID=1982

Born on April 9, 1921 in New York, Weiss originally planned a career as a lawyer or accountant, but his love for music led him to the Julliard School of Music where he honed his skills in writing and arranging. This experience led to writing arrangements for Stan Kenton, Vincent Lopez and Johnny Richards.

Mr. Weiss went on to write some of the most popular pop songs of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. He worked with many collaborators, but a large number of his well-known songs were written with Bennie Benjamin. Some of their songs include “Rumors Are Flying” (1946, Frankie Carle, Les Paul), “Surrender” (1946, Perry Como), “Confess” (1948, Patti Page), “I Don’t See Me In Your Eyes Anymore” (1949, Gordon Jenkins), “Can Anyone Explain? (No! No! No!)” (1950, The Ames Brothers, Ray Anthony), “Echoes” (1950, Jo Stafford and Gordon MacRae), “I’ll Never Be Free” (1950, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan, Kay Starr), “To Think You’ve Chosen Me” (1950, Eddy Howard), “I Ran All the Way Home” (1951, Sarah Vaughan), “Jet” (1951, Nat “King” Cole), “Wheel of Fortune” (1952, Kay Starr), “Cross Over the Bridge” (1954, Patti Page), and “How Important Can It Be?” (1955, Joni James).

He also had successful song hits with other composers, including “Lullaby of Birdland” (1952, with George Shearing), “Can’t Help Falling In Love” (1961, with Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore, recorded by Elvis Presley), “What A Wonderful World” (1967, with Bob Thiele, recorded by Louis Armstrong), “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” (1961, with Peretti and Creatore, recorded by the Tokens), and “That Sunday, That Summer” (1963, with Joe Sherman, recorded by Nat “King” Cole). Weiss’ movie scores include Murder, Inc. (1960), Gidget Goes to Rome (1963), Mediterranean Holiday (1964), and Mademoiselle (1966).

Additionally, Mr. Weiss collaborated on Broadway musicals, such as Mr. Wonderful (1956, with Jerry Bock and Larry Holofcener), which starred Sammy Davis, Jr. and featured the title song as well as “Too Close For Comfort.” Others included First Impressions, based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1959, with Robert Goldman and Glenn Paxton), and Maggie Flynn (1968, with Peretti and Creatore), set in New York during the Civil War, which starred Shirley Jones and Jack Cassidy. Weiss and Will Severin composed the family musical, A Tale of Cinderella, which premiered in December 1994 at the Theater Institute in Troy, New York and filmed for presentation on PBS.

Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984, Mr. Weiss also served on the Songwriters Hall of Fame Board for many years, and he will be greatly missed.

Photo: Sam Teicher Collection/Songwriters Hall of Fame

Our “Writer Workshops” for the Fall are filling fast!  “Writers Workshop A” happens on Tuesday evenings from 6:30-8:30PM beginning September
7th.  “Writer’s Workshop B” happens on Wednesday evenings from 6:30-8:30PM beginning September 29th. The workshops are similar in level and experience and will both feature industry guests.

Here are links to each workshop for descriptions and applications:

Workshop A

Workshop B

Our next New Writer Showcase will be at The Bitter End on Wednesday, September 22nd from 8-10PM. The Hit Factory workshop, new events and our networking meetings are all on the way. No better time to join the SongHall than right now!

Please contact Peter Bliss at pbliss@songhall.org for more information.

Abby Bernstein, Jason Yudoff

Nick Howard

The BMI/Lollapalooza stage, a superstar forecaster, has launched performers such as Ke$ha, Lady Gaga, and Eric Church.
More info here: http://bmi.com/news/entry/548641

As the basis of their publicity campaign against ASCAP, they are using a letter from ASCAP President and Chairman Paul Williams to ASCAP members asking for voluntary donations to the ASCAP Legislative Fund for the Arts, a political action committee established in 1986 under Federal Election Committee guidelines. In that letter, Williams mentioned the threat posed by the “copyleft” movement, who are mobilizing to undermine the copyright protections on which our members rely to earn a livelihood from their creative works.

The copyleft movement has encouraged a culture of disrespect for copyright by defending corporate and individual infringers; undermining every effort to provide more effective protection, no matter how limited or reasonable; promoting a reduction in copyright protection; supporting the dismantling of our rights through the courts; and questioning the basic premise that the tidal wave of infringements and unlicensed uses online hurts creators.

Paul Williams was recently challenged to a “debate” by a founding leader of the copyleft movement, Lawrence Lessig.
Get the story here: http://www.ascap.com/playback/2010/07/action/Copyright.aspx

Our next evening is Tuesday, August 3rd when we will be hosting an open mic featuring past SongHall Writer Workshop participants each performing 1-2 songs.  If you are a former workshop member and want to play - email Peter Bliss at pbliss@songhall.org

Our final Summer Night series will take place on August 17th featuring half hour sets by Jason Yudoff, Abby Bernstein, Craig Schoenbaum, Jerzy Jung and Nick Howard

Go to the Caffe Cielo website for more information.

Amy Lennard with Andy Stack

Dani Tersini and Jennifer Logue

Jennifer Logue with Nick Fox and Calvin Winbush

Rebecca Jordan with Thad DeBrock

Shannon Marsyada

A detailed list of performers for each evening will be posted shortly so keep visiting the songhall.org website for updates!

Admission Is Free!

Caffe Cielo is located at 881 Eighth Avenue (located between 52nd & 53rd St.), and a special late night menu is offered.  Please save the dates and join us in a wonderful way to enjoy these lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer in New York City!

For more info please contact Peter Bliss, Professional Activities Coordinator, at pbliss@songhall.org

Submissons Open: June 15, 2010
Submission Deadline: July 31, 2010

About The Awards
The ASCAP Deems Taylor Awards Competition (for books, articles, liner notes, broadcasts and websites on the subject of music) is back after a one year hiatus. Submissions of books and articles issued in 2009 being accepted now. Submissions accepted June 15 to July 31, 2010. Click for more information. The 42nd ASCAP Deems Taylor Awards are made possible with the generous support of the Music Publishers Association (MPA). Founded in 1895, the Music Publishers Association is the oldest non-profit music trade organization in the United States.
Go here for eligibility requirements: http://www.ascap.com/calendar/Default.aspx?action=display&ID=1971

You won’t want to miss a thing.....

Three special Tuesday evenings this summer: SongHall Summer Nights

Fall Workshop “A”

Fall Workshop “B”

BMI has announced the creation of a two-part campaign designed to help fuel rebuilding efforts after the historic flood that devastated Middle Tennessee last month. The initiative was unveiled by BMI President & CEO Del Bryant and BMI Vice President, Writer/Publisher Relations, Nashville Jody Williams during Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s all-star Nashville Rising: A Benefit Concert for Flood Recovery, held June 22 at Bridgestone Arena in Music City. BMI operates on a non-profit making basis, representing more than 400,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers, many of whom live and work in Middle Tennessee.
Full story here: http://bmi.com/news/entry/548511

In each of the cases filed, the business or establishment has either publicly performed the copyrighted musical works of ASCAP’s songwriter, composer and music publisher members without obtaining a license from ASCAP to do so, or had signed a license agreement with ASCAP but failed to comply with the license’s payment terms. In every instance, the establishment refused to obtain a license or pay the fees owed under the license, but continued to perform ASCAP members’ music without permission, resulting in the filing of the infringement actions.

ASCAP protects the rights of its members by licensing and distributing royalties for the non-dramatic public performances of their copyrighted works. Those licensed by ASCAP include any establishment or business that wants to perform copyrighted music publicly.
Full story here: http://www.ascap.com/press/2010/0621_ASCAP_21InfringementActions.aspx

Songwriter Hall of Fame special features have begun airing today on the following channels:

60s - with Jackie DeShannon
70s - with Earth Wind & Fire and David Foster
80s - with Phil Collins
The Highway - with Taylor Swift
The Joint - about Bob Marley
The Loft - with Leonard Cohen
Praise - “Bridge Over Troubled Water”
Siriusly Sinatra - with Johnny Mandel
Soul Town - with Earth Wind & Fire

These spots are running once every few hours, and they will air through Friday, June 18th.

Dial in to the Cousin Brucie Show “60s on 6” from 5 pm – 9 pm ET tonight to hear Phil Ramone and Jackie DeShannon who are scheduled to be live in the studio!

“Keith Mardak has long been immensely respected as an innovative publisher, keeping the important tradition and art of printed music alive, while making it sustainable and viable with today’s new technologies,” commented Chairman/CEO Hal David. “We are pleased to honor him with our prestigious Abe Olman Publisher Award.”

Mardak began his career at the Hal Leonard Corporation in 1970, where he is currently the Chairman/CEO.  The Hal Leonard Corporation has experienced a dramatic annual expansion since its beginning, especially with the 1985 purchase Mardak headed by an internal management group. The Hal Leonard Corporation currently is the world’s largest music print publisher with a catalog consisting of over 200,000 publications, covering a broad spectrum of printed music.

Mardak has been a past member of several musical organizations including the board of directors of ASCAP, the Music Publishers Association, the American Music Conference, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, as well as Summerfest, the world’s largest music festival. Mardak currently serves on the board for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee and with his help; the Hal Leonard Young Musicians Program along with the Mardak Center for Administration and Training were formed. Mardak was also an essential part in the creation of the Daniels-Mardak Boys & Girls Club, which opened in 2004. The Boys & Girls Clubs today serves more than 33,000 Milwaukee kids a year. In 2005, Mardak received an honorary doctorate from VanderCook College of Music for his groundbreaking philanthropy for music education and inspiration to millions of musicians around the world.

On June 8th at the Bitter End in New York City, five promising young songwriters were given the distinguished Abe Olman Scholarship for Excellence in Songwriting. These individuals are those who have risen to an exemplary standard and have been chosen by ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, SGA and SHOF.

This year’s Abe Olman Scholarship recipients are:
Gabriella Caspi (SHOF)
Comic Book Heroes (SESAC)
Rebecca Jordan (ASCAP)
Keli Price (BMI)
Chris Tedesco (SGA)

Abe Olman, for whom the scholarship program is named, was both a major figure in the music publishing community and a songwriter himself, in addition to being one of the founders of the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The Abe Olman Scholarships given out each year are made possible by his family in the interest of encouraging and supporting the careers of young songwriters the likes of former scholarship recipient John Legend. The Abe Olman Scholarship winners’ songs are also featured on the annual compilation CD; The Best of the Songwriters Hall of Fame New Writers Showcase: Volume 8. There was a performance showcase after the scholarship presentations.

The Holly Prize, a new award made possible by Songmasters and administered and juried by the Songwriters Hall of Fame as a tribute to the legacy of SHOF inductee Buddy Holly was awarded on June 8th to New Jersey native Laura Warshauer. The Holly Prize recognizes and supports the “all-in songwriter,” an exceptionally talented and inspired young musician/singer/songwriter whose work exhibits the qualities of Holly’s music. Additional support for the SHOF will come from the Listen To Me; Buddy Holly recordings, in production under music great, Peter Asher.

Inductees at this year’s event include Leonard Cohen, Jackie DeShannon, David Foster, Johnny Mandel and Earth, Wind & Fire’s Maurice White, Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Larry Dunn and Al McKay. Posthumous inductees are Tom Adair and Matt Dennis, Bob Marley, Laura Nyro, Sunny Skylar and Jesse Stone. The Johnny Mercer Award will be presented to Phil Collins. The Towering Song this year is “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” to be accepted by Paul Simon. The Hal David Starlight Award will be presented to Taylor Swift. The Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award will be presented to Phil Ramone.

Ticket Information:
Tickets for the Songwriters Hall of Fame event begin at $1000 each, and are available through Buckley Hall Events, (212) 573-6933. Net proceeds from the event will go towards the Songwriters Hall of Fame programs.

CONTACT:
Fran Curtis
Rogers & Cowan
212-445-8423
fcurtis@rogersandcowan.com

Caitlin McNamara
Rogers & Cowan
212-445-8232
cmcnamamara@rogersandcowan.com

Lauren Wilsman
Rogers & Cowan
212-445-8486
lwilsman@rogersandcowan.com