AMPLIFIED INSIDE
Kids are out of school.
Musicians are out of work.
We want to bring them together—virtually—
to LEARN new skills and CREATE new songs.
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Through our new distance learning program, Amplified Inside, our songwriting workshops will now be offered through online video conferencing, where professional local musicians will lead small groups of students through a five session, week-long songwriting process, culminating in recording a final song to be released on all streaming platforms.
You can support the arts, put freelancers back to work, assign your kids some unique “home” work, while connecting them with peers from all over the city—AND help innovate education at a time when it’s most needed.
If you are interested in registering your student
for our next workshop, fill out the form below!
See below for a step by step outline
of the workshop.
AMPLIFIED INSIDE
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
WAV sessions focuses on building self-esteem, character, and collaboration skills aligned to SEL strategies. Through interactive activities, small group discussions and music, students get to know themselves and develop: respect for themselves and others; awareness of self and emotions; self-regulation skills; critical thinking and problem solving skills.
SONGWRITING WORKSHOP
DAY 1: Survey Day (60 minutes) - Before this session begins students will already have completed an initial workshop survey that assesses their individual opinions of what they like about music, what speaks to them in the music they like, and why.
They will also answer a series of sliding scale questions to establish a baseline of their Social Emotional state as related to sharing their opinions and ideas, and collaborating with others in their peer group.
There will be a 60 minute group discussion of their responses facilitated by the producer/mentor in Zoom. The producer will introduce the program, and explain what the songwriting process will look like. Students will then share their opinions and ideas about what makes song lyrics meaningful to them, what gives music its power, and what their previous experiences have been like collaborating with others. They will also begin to discuss what their theme of their song might be.
DAY 2: Listening Day (60 minutes) - Before this session, students will already have listened to a playlist created by the producer and shared with the group containing all songs listed by the students on the survey forms. The students will also have completed a playlist survey rating their reactions to each song, what they liked and didn’t like about each song, and what they felt the meaning of each song was.
There will be a 60 minute group discussion to determine shared musical interests, and build a consensus for the musical direction of the song. Producer will lead a discussion around everyone’s responses to the songs, and start to build a vision for what their collective song will sound like.
DAY 3: Essence/ Theme Day (60 minutes) - Producer will lead a group discussion with students to determine a theme or essence for their song based on discussions from the previous sessions, and led by the students ideas and interests. By the end of this session the group will have agreed upon a theme for their song.
DAY 4: Writing Day (60 minutes) - Before this session begins students will have already responded to writing prompts shared by the producer. These writing prompts will dwell on the theme agreed upon during the last session. It will give the students an opportunity to share personal experiences and/or observations with the group. These writing prompts are the Critical phase of SEL exercise. Students share personal thoughts, feelings and experiences in continued group discussion and writing exercises based around the chosen theme to create the lyrics for their song.
At this stage the producer creates a demo version of the song for the students to hear using the words and ideas from sessions 3 and 4, and musical direction from session 2.
DAY 5: Demo Day (60 minutes) - Before this session begins students will have already listened to the demo recording of their song, and completed the feedback from below that asks them to evaluate what aspects they like and dislike and why. The producer will then lead a group discussion to revise and edit their work, making any requested changes collaboratively, and building a consensus around a final version.
The producer will make requested changes to the demo recording and prepare for the studio session.
DAY 6: Studio Day (150 minutes) Students will join the producer on a zoom session in the recording studio as they work alongside professional musicians and engineers to create a final version of their song. They will provide feedback on vocalist performances and guide the vision for the final recording of their song. The students will also record an interview about their experience writing the song which will be incorporated into a short radio module of the song that will air on 90.5 WCBE.
At this point the song and workshop are complete. The students will answer a brief exit survey to assess their SEL gains over the course of the workshop. The final version of the song will be sent out to the students along with the radio module of their song including their interviews. The students will agree on a release date that they would like their song to be released for online streaming.