2021 IAMA Songwriter Academy Workshops

844 South 200 East,Salt Lake City UT 84111

05 August, 2021

Description

The IAMA Songwriter Academy Returns! Laurie Lewis, Kate MacLeod, Joy Adams and Andy Reiner will be this years instructors. The IAMA Songwriter Academy returns for 2021 featuring Grammy Award-Winning Musician Laurie Lewis. International touring Singer-Songwriter Musician and local treasure Kate MacLeod, Phenomenal instrumentalist and performers Joy Adams and Andy Reiner . Laurie Lewis’ keen sense of song and songwriting will bring unparalleled experience to the Academy as this year’s guest instructor. She has the knowledge of traditional music under her belt, as well as the skills to write songs within a modern platform. Laurie has twice been voted “Female Vocalist of the Year” by the International Bluegrass Music Association, and was awarded "Song of the Year" for her recording of Who Will Watch the Home Place. She has shared awards for "Album of the Year" for True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe, and "Recorded Event of the Year" for True Life Blues and Follow Me Back to the Fold: A Tribute to Women in Bluegrass. Laurie is also a committed music educator. She’s taught fiddle, songwriting, vocal styles, and harmony singing for many years and has organized and run camps such as Bluegrass Week at Augusta Heritage Center and Bluegrass at the Beach in Oregon. She has taught at the Telluride Bluegrass Academy, Puget Sound Guitar Workshop, Swannanoa Gathering, California Bluegrass Association Music Camp, Walker Creek, and RockyGrass Academy, among others. Laurie Lewis has been singing Kate MacLeod’s songs for many years, for both performance and on recordings. This will be an exciting and powerful duo of instructors for this year’s IAMA Songwriter Academy. Laurie will also be teaching a fiddle workshop on Saturday August 7. Kate MacLeod’s music springs from her lifelong interest in songs, and folk styles on the violin. Originally from the Washington D.C. area, she's lived in Salt Lake City since 1979. She's best known as a songwriter and fiddle player in the Americana and Folk genres, and has a unique versatility as a composer. Her original songs have been recorded by other artists from California to the Czech Republic, in acoustic, Bluegrass, Celtic, and most roots music genres. Kate is also a music educator, a private music instructor, and has taught at many music camps and festivals throughout the country, including the IAMA Songwriter Academy for the past several years. She was awarded "Best of the West 2019" by the Far-West Division of the Folk Alliance International for performance and her commitment to aiding others through music, and has won several awards for her music compositions. Andy Reiner and Joy Adams This dynamic duo will be teaching an instrumental workshop with cello and fiddle. Joy Adams, raised on a small farm in Spokane, WA, began playing the cello at age 15 and is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music. Despite a string of classical adventures, Joy ultimately returned to her roots, joining an old-time band, the Windsor Folk Family, during her last year at Eastman. Recipient of a Mancini Fellowship at the Frost School of Music, Joy completed her Doctorate in 2016. She now teaches music theory and composition at Naropa University, and has been on the faculty of fiddle camps in Boston, Charleston, Maine, Connecticut, NYC, Montana, and Sandpoint, Idaho. She has shared the stage with major artists such as Bruce Hornsby, Ben Folds, Bobby McFerrin, and Chick Corea. Recent highlights include touring with Nathaniel Rateliff, performing on Live From Here with Chris Thile, performing on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and performing at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival with Bonnie Paine (of Elephant Revival). Andy Reiner began playing music at the age of five with the Reiner Family Band, in the New England region. He has since developed his own style featuring creative, rhythmic melodies and thoughtful fusing of world sounds. Earning a Bachelor of Music degree in violin Performance from Berklee College of Music in Boston, he then launched into a flurry of touring and teaching around the globe. Andy and Joy are also involved with the organization of Fiddle Hell music camp. The two are performing as Half Pelican for the Bluegrass Saturday Night music festival, held at the Gallivan Center Amphitheater. The schedule for the workshops is listed below. A full Academy Pass is good for the Thursday Meet & Greet, all the Friday workshops, and the special instrument workshops on Saturday Morning. The two Instrument workshops can be purchased separately if you are not interested in the songwriting classes on Friday. The workshops will be held in a large/open performance space in which there will be ample social distancing available. Those who are vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus may attend the workshops without wearing a mask. Those who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 will be asked/required to wear a mask (except when singing a song they wish to share where social distancing will be required). This applies to the meet & greet event as well. Hand sanitizer and masks will be made available at the workshop space for anyone who attends. Thursday Aug 5th 7:00 – 8:30 PM: Meet and greet at Ken Sanders Rare Books, 268 S 200 E in SLC. Laurie and Kate will share some music, and there will be refreshments. This is a social event, attended by registered students, workshop staff, and volunteers. Friday Aug 6th 8:45 AM: Arrival time at the Salt Lake Arts Academy at 844 S 200 E, SLC for the day’s classes. Coffee will be provided. 9:00 – 10:30 AM: Workshop 1 – Introductory. Kate and Laurie give their perspectives on musical influences and their own approaches to songwriting. This includes discussion on the many aspects of song, song forms, and what makes a song memorable and singable. 15-Minute Break 10:45 – 12 Noon: Workshop 2: Laurie Lewis – “Getting the Most Out of a Song”: Discussion of the details of performance, instrumental backup, finding the right key, and utilizing our weaknesses and strengths. 12:00 – 1:30 PM: Lunch Break 1:30 – 3:00 PM: Laurie and Kate – “Critique and Song Sharing”. They will both listen to some of the students in a casual, sharing atmosphere, where Kate and Laurie will give feedback on the songs. This is always great fun, easy, and meant to be a positive experience. It also includes discussion on the “nuts and bolts” of a song, its form, and editing practices. 15-Minute Break 3:15 – 4:15 PM: Workshop 3: Laurie Lewis – “Stuck in a Rut: Writing from Different Perspectives and Styles”. Great tips for how to get out of a rut, and/or how to find a new groove. 15-Minute Break 4:30 – 5:30 PM: Workshop 4: Laurie Lewis – “Story Songs”. Laurie writes lots of story songs because there are so many tales that need to be told. We’ll listen to some classic story songs (ballads and other stories), and dissect them. Learn the answers to questions like: What needs to be there? What can be left out? 5:30 – 6:00 PM: Closing Songs with Kate and Laurie, and Q & A. Saturday Aug 7th 9:00 – 10:15 AM: Instrumental Workshop with Joy Adams and Andy Reiner on fiddle and cello – “Improvising: It’s All About That Rhythm, Channel Your Inner Cat”. Joy and Andy’s cat, Capo, is inquisitive, exploring, mischievous, and bold; he lives in the moment, follows his own rhythms, and makes up his own excitement on the fly. As a musician – and a human – you have an inner cat, maybe one like Capo, which you can channel to improvise on fiddle tune rhythms. 15-Minute Break 10:30 – 12 Noon: Instrumental Workshop with Laurie Lewis. “Bluegrass Fiddle According to Chubby Wise”. Laurie’s expertise in bluegrass music will make this fiddle workshop an amazing experience. Chubby Wise played fiddle with Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Boys, and Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. He was one of the creators of the bluegrass fiddle style. This is a hands-on playing workshop, and will also be interesting for anyone who wants to know more about the genre. NOTE: The price for the Academy Workshops includes all the events listed above. You can purchase a separate ticket(s) for the Saturday Morning workshops if you are not interested in attending the Friday Songwriting classes. If you have a Promo code remember to enter it when you are checking out. Intermountain Acoustic Music Association, a non-profit tax exempt organization dedicated to the preservation, furtherance and spread of acoustic music, including bluegrass, British Isles, folk, old-time and related musical forms.