master class

sign up for a three week mini-intensive in august

Exactly one year ago, I published the first of two pieces on songwriting. These essays grew out of a realization that, as much as I love to teach, there simply weren’t enough hours in the day for me to keep up with private students. A year later, requests have begun to trickle in again, and while I’m continuing to be protective of my time, I thought I’d do an experiment and run a three-session master class next month.

This intensive will run for three hours on three consecutive Sundays: August 10, 17, and 24, at the following times:

12pm-3pm | Los Angeles  
3pm-6pm | New York
8pm-11pm | London 
9pm-12am | Berlin 

(with apologies to those in Australia and East Asia)

The creative focus of this intensive will be determined largely by the work that’s brought in by its participants. My hope is that we’ll address topics relating to songwriting, arranging, and composition, as well as the role of the artist as citizen. This initial pilot intensive will be open to fifteen participants, each of whom will receive 30-40 minutes of individual feedback on their work.

Pricing:

Full participant — $250 for the complete intensive (nine hours over three consecutive Sundays, with 30-40 minutes of individual feedback) - participants will be able to “unmute” to ask questions even when they are not presenting their own work. This tier is limited to fifteen individuals to ensure that everyone receives personalized attention. Register now. Update 7/17: this tier is sold out, but please leave a comment if you’d be interested in a future workshop. I will likely open up registration for another one soon!

Observers — $100 to observe the complete intensive. Observers will not present their own work. Register now.

(Zoom links will be sent via email in the days leading up to the event.)

Discounts:

I’m offering the following discounts to paid subscribers, so if you’ve been on the fence about taking the plunge, perhaps this is your moment:

Founding level ($150/yr) subscribers are eligible to receive $100 off full participant fee; free admission to observe - use code FOUNDER when registering for the intensive.

n.b. founding members to the newsletter also receive a code to download my complete digital discography (9 LPs, 3 EPs, 6 singles)

Annual subscribers ($50/yr) are eligible to receive $50 off either full participant or observer fee - use code ANNUAL when registering for the intensive.

Please note that registration will automatically cut off at fifteen participants (no limit on observers), so if your desire to upgrade to a paid subscription is contingent on getting an active spot in the workshop, please register first to claim your spot so as to avoid buyer’s remorse. The discount codes operate on an honor system. If you’re not a paid subscriber and you use the discount, I’ll know. ;-)

If you aren’t able to secure a spot in the workshop because it’s sold out, please leave a comment, and as soon as there’s a critical mass of interest, I will plan to open up registration for a second workshop, possibly as soon as September.

Scholarship:

If you want to participate but can’t afford the fees, please email me. I may not be able to accommodate you, but will do my best.

Regarding paid subscriptions to this newsletter:

While your financial support truly makes this newsletter possible, if you are not in a position to become a paid subscriber, there are other actions you can take to help it thrive:

1. click the like button on posts — this helps with algorithmic discovery on the Substack app.

2. share posts — same as above, plus, of course, the benefit of organic growth!

3. recommend this newsletter to your friends and family

That’s all for now. Thank you as always for reading, and for your support!! Please put any questions you have about the intensive in the comments; it’s possible that I will have already answered your question there.

I’ll be back with more writing next week.

And in case you missed it, people seemed to enjoy my latest essay, about how we survive as artists amidst late-stage capitalism.