Crossroads of Creativity
New York Sessions, ASCAP's one-day career-boosting event, brought together top music creators, music technology companies and music creators from throughout the Northeast
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Rob Thomas and Playback Editor in Chief
Erik Philbrook
Photo by Rick Miller |
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SPONSORED BY�
Many sponsors and exhibitors joined forces with ASCAP to help make New York Sessions a success. Special thanks go to Cakewalk for their demonstrations and their help in creating the "Home Studio Master Classes," and to ole Music Publishing, SoundExchange, Cherry Lane Music Publishing, MillerCoors, Shure Microphones (The Official Mic of the NY Sessions), ArtistForce, Gibson, Auralex Acoustics, Notion, Broadjam, MusicPro Insurance, USAlliance Federal Credit Union, Disc Makers, Harry Fox, The Music Business Registry, Nimbit, The Musician's Atlas, MachTech Music, Behringer, Blue Microphones, iZotope, Solid State Logic, Korg and the USA Songwriting Competition, for partnering with ASCAP to help build a more creative, productive and successful future for music creators. |
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On March 10, following ASCAP's General Annual Membership Meeting in New York City, the Society presented ASCAP New York Sessions, a one-day career boosting event designed to strengthen the skills, knowledge and craft that music creators need to succeed in today's music business. The event was held at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, and featured an insightful keynote interview with Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Rob Thomas, in addition to educational panels and informative technology demos and exhibitors.
In a loose, funny and insightful interview with Playback Editor in Chief Erik Philbrook, Rob Thomas, spoke at length about his formative years in Florida, how he rose to success with his band matchbox twenty, how he approached writing for artists such as Mick Jagger, Carlos Santana, Willie Nelson and others, and the inspiration behind writing songs for his solo projects, including his soon-to-be released album Cradlesong .
After the Thomas interview, registrants had a choice of attending a variety of educational panels, sponsored by some of today's top music technology and service businesses, covering such topics as: Marketing from the Driver's Seat (Presented by ArtistForce); How Music Creators Can Make the Most from Digital Streaming (Presented by SoundExchange); When Demos Turn Into Masters: The Importance and Relevance of Project Studio Recordings (Presented by Cakewalk); and Your Dream Team: Manager, Label, Publisher and Attorney working together for You (Presented by Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company, Inc.)
An ASCAP Super Panel entitled Crossroads of Creativity: A Meeting of Musical Minds, moderated by ASCAP SVP/Domestic Membership Randy Grimmett, featured a diverse and multi-talented group of East Coast-based songwriters, composers and producers, representing a cross-section of genres, who discussed the common rewards and challenges they all have faced in forging successful careers. Panelists included songwriter/ producers Adam Schlesinger, Sam Hollander, Carvin Haggins and Ivan Barias (Karma Productions), songwriter Kristal "Tytewriter" Oliver and composer, arranger, conductor and pianist Nico Muhly.
In addition to an exhibit area featuring many of today's top music service organizations and music technology companies, other highlights of New York Sessions included a Cakewalk-sponsored demo room as well as a Home Studio Master Class operating throughout the day. This "teaching studio" was staffed by a working producer and engineer who developed a piece of music in a series of cumulative sessions. Also, attendees were able to utilize a Mobile Application sponsored by ole Music Publishing that supplied additional information about the day's programming. Capping the day was a networking mixer across the street at the Hudson Hotel bar, with drinks courtesy of MillerCoors, where attendees could connect and talk more about the sessions.
