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Okay, here we go – Chris Purcell and I have recorded, mixed and mastered our first song on the Tascam DP-03SD and we’re feeling mighty happy with ourselves. The song is called ‘The Time of the Horses’ – and this first horse out of the gate just happens to be our most recently written song. Generally, how it works with us is that I write the lyrics and Chris sets them to music. The lyrics are always first, and then the music. Even though Chris and I have written songs on our own, we both really enjoy the collaborative nature of our musical partnership. We’re keen to work with other songwriters and recording artists from the New England area and further afield, and we’ll soon begin inviting guest vocalists and musicians into song-room central. I’m feeling excited that we can finally record our eclectic collection of songs, which fall into genres of country, folk, pop and jazz. Owning a machine like the Tascam DP-03SD is very empowering. Thanks again Arts North West – and thanks to Jennifer Greaney for being such a wonderful support for this Arts North West Micro Grant project!

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On the 4th November, composer Chris Purcell and I will be presenting a songwriting workshop at the Wicklow Hotel in Armidale. This workshop has been organised through my association with the New England Writers’ Centre, and NEWC have done a fabulous job with the poster. Chris and I recently finished our first collaboration together, a song cycle called ‘Lullaby & Lament’ – where I wrote the lyrics and Chris set them to music. Rather than following the traditional path of song cycles about myths, classical tragedies and unrequited love, the songs from ‘Lullaby & Lament’ cover topics such as grief, loneliness, divorce, estrangement and death, as well as love and happiness – universal themes written in words and music that go straight to the heart. Chris and I both write songs on our own as well, but we enjoy collaborating and are currently working on our second project. We’re really looking forward to sharing our songwriting skills with the people who come along. See you there!

Songwriting_Workshop