A Long, Long Time

June 7 – 11

ETTALONG BEACH NSW

Proudly supported by

ASC wishes to acknowledge the Darkinyung people who are the Traditional Custodians of the land upon which this event is taking place. We pay our respect to Elders past and present, and extend that respect to all indigenous people joining us at ASC this year.

Message from the Founder

Welcome to the 2018 Australian Songwriters Conference. To think it almost didn’t happen!

How do I begin to say “Thank you” to everyone who has made ASC2018 possible? I have to begin with a huge shout out to the group of ASCers who rallied together to make sure ASC2018 would go ahead this year, most especially Elizabeth Usher, Renee Jonas, Terri Rowe, Mary Harrison, Tiffany Gow and Christine Kerr - you are my heroes! Thank you for going above and beyond to get the crowd funding campaign up and running, and for supporting and assisting me all the way through the past few months of event preparation. To everyone who supported the crowd funding campaign and helped to make it a success – thank you so much for believing in this event and funding our campaign. Finally, thank you to the amazing industry professionals, particularly the ‘Core’ Faculty members, for being so incredibly generous and supportive by turning up every year, sharing your time, knowledge and wisdom and being so incredibly humble and easy to work with. This year couldn’t have happened without you all, so I thank you and appreciate you more than words can say.

ASC also wouldn’t be possible without the support of our wonderful partners. Ettalong Beach Tourist Resort always makes us welcome and assist in more ways than you can possibly imagine. My thanks especially to Jerry Altavilla and Alex Quinn. Macron Music supplies our PA system and keyboard for the sessions and showcases and has done so since 2008. Many thanks to Anthony Ursino for his continued support. The Grove Studios supplies our on-site studio and my thanks particularly to Jack Nigro and his team for all they do to help attendees in the on-site studio over the course of the event.

We once again welcome Grammy Award-winning songwriter and International songwriting teacher, Alan Roy Scott, to our shores as he leads the co-writing workshops and helps us to make our songs even better through his Song Surgery sessions. I am thrilled that this year’s ‘newbie’ speakers are Country Music star Gina Jeffreys and hit Country Songwriter and Producer, Rod McCormack. They will join our fabulous Faculty of speakers, mentors and workshop presenters in sharing their knowledge and wisdom with us all.

As always, our program is jam-packed, so pace yourself! We have more workshops than ever, this year, and even more topics relevant to the craft and business of songwriting, so strap yourself in, keep your notebooks handy, and enjoy the ride that is your 2018 Australian Songwriters Conference.

- Lisa & the ASC Team

Lisa Butler Terri Rowe Tiffany Gow Josh White Mason Headford ASC Founder Executive Assistant Event Assistant Event Assistant Event Assistant

2 ASC2018 Event Program

(Please note that whilst every effort will be made to maintain this program, it is subject to change.)

THURSDAY 7th

TIME ACTIVITY ROOM 3.00pm – 7.45 Registration Paradiso Room 8.00– 9.30 Opening Ceremony & Song Contest Awards Paradiso Room 9.30 - 10.30 Founder’s Soiree – Networking and Jam Gusto

FRIDAY 8th

TIME ACTIVITY ROOM 7.45 - 9.00 Breakfast Hafa’s 8.00 - 9.00 Registration/Information Desk open Paradiso Room 9.00 – 11.00 Alan Roy Scott: Group Co-writing Session Paradiso Room 11.05 - 12.30 Jack Nigro: Demo Workshop (in the Studio) Blue Room

12.30 - Late On-Site Studio courtesy of The Grove Studios Blue Room

12.30 - 1.30 Lunch Break Hafa’s 1.30 - 2.30 Caroline McKnight: APRA Services Paradiso Room Hillsong Music Publishing – Nathan Eshman Paradiso Room 2.30 – 3.30 DT Talent Management – Diana Torossian Bi Bi’s Bar Song Pitching TBA On-Site Studio

3.45 – 4.45 Anthony Snape: Building a Successful Indie Career Paradiso Room

3.45 – 4.45 DT Talent Management – Diana Torossian Bi Bi’s Bar Song Pitching TBA Bi Bi’s Bar 5.00 – 6.30 Fly On The Wall: Alan Roy Scott, Anthony Snape & Gina Jeffreys Paradiso Room 6.30 - 8.30 Dinner Break Gusto 8.30 – 10.30 Attendee Showcase (Open Audience - All welcome) Paradiso Room

3 SATURDAY 9th

TIME ACTIVITY ROOM 7.45 - 9.00 Breakfast Hafa’s 9.00 – 11.00 Alan Roy Scott: Group Co-writing Session Paradiso Room

10.00 - Late On-Site Studio courtesy of The Grove Studios Blue Room

11.15 – 12.15 Gina Jeffreys: Writing in the Country Genre Paradiso Room 12.30 – 1.30 Lunch Break + Group Photo Shoot (Wear your ASC T-Shirt!) Hafa’s

1.30 - 2.30 Rod McCormack: Co-Writing/Writing with a Producer Paradiso Room 2.45 – 3.45 Matt Donlevy: Publishing Paradiso Room 4.00 – 5.00 Diana Torossian & Colleen Zulian: Artist/Writer Management Paradiso Room : Lessons Learned: How to get to the next 5.00 – 6.30 Barb & Adrian Hannan Paradiso Room level and become a career songwriter 6.30 – 8.30 Dinner Break Gusto 7.30 – 8.30 Cooking Vinyl Australia / Frankdon Music - Matt Donlevy Bibi’s Bar Song Pitching 8.30 – 10.30 Attendee Showcase (Open Audience - All welcome) Paradiso Room

SUNDAY 10th

TIME ACTIVITY ROOM 7.45 - 9.00 Breakfast Hafa’s 9.00 - 10.00 Keys to Unlock a Career in Music (Pt 1) Paradiso Room Workshop Connie Kis Andersen: 10.00 - Late On-Site Studio courtesy of The Grove Studios Blue Room 10.15 – 11.15 Paradiso Room Workshop Doreen Van Bree: Vocal Workshop 11.30 – 12.30 Paradiso Room Workshop Christine Kerr: Beating Writers Block Hafa’s + 12.30 - 2.30 Lunch + Attendee Showcase on outdoor market stage Outdoor Stage 1.30 – 2.30 Cooking Vinyl Australia / Frankdon Music - Matt Donlevy Paradiso Room Song Pitching

2.30 – 3.30 Alan Roy Scott: Song Surgery (Group A) Paradiso Room Workshops Katrena Friel: Business School for Songwriters (Group B) BiBi’s Bar 3.45 – 4.45 : Keys to Unlock a Career in Music (Pt 2) Paradiso Room Workshop Connie Kis Andersen

5.00 – 6.00 Alan Roy Scott: Song Surgery (Group B) Paradiso Room Workshops Katrena Friel: Business School for Songwriters (Group A) BiBi’s Bar 6.30 - 8.30 Dinner Break Gusto

8.30 – 10.30 Attendee Showcase (Open Audience - All welcome) Paradiso Room

4 MONDAY 11th

TIME ACTIVITY ROOM REMINDER: All Luggage to Resort Office before first session this morning. 7.45 - 9.00 Breakfast Hafa’s 9.00 – 11.00 Alan Roy Scott: Group Co-writing Session Paradiso Room

9.00am – 2.00 On-Site Studio courtesy of The Grove Studios Blue Room

Lisa Butler: ASC Moving Forward – A Conversation. Plus Final 11.00 – 12.00 Paradiso Room Announcements & Acknowledgements.

My Song Pitching Choices

PUBLISHER TIME ROOM SONG

My ASC Connections

Name Phone Email

Seminar & Workshop Descriptions

Co-Writing Workshops Alan Roy Scott Over the course of the 4 days of the conference, Alan will lead daily co-writing sessions and activities that teach the critical aspects of “hit” songwriting including song structure, melody craft, chord contrasts, lyrical forms & the importance of titles and rhymes.

Song Surgery Alan Roy Scott As well as leading the daily co-writing sessions at ASC2018, Alan will also run his popular “Song Surgery” sessions where detailed “live” evaluations and suggested revisions will be offered on the spot to attendees, aimed at improving your existing songs.

Home Recording and Mixing/Mastering Jack Nigro An important part of being a professional songwriter is the demo recording process. This is something that can be an affordable and simple process you can do from your home.

Join audio engineer Jack Nigro in the On-Site Studio as he takes you through some simple techniques and tricks you can use in your home recording set up to get the best sonic results for your demos and home recordings. These tips and tricks can significantly enhance your songs potential when pitching to the industry.

This 1.5 hour workshop is broken into 5 parts:

 Setting Up Your Home Studio  Fundamental recording do’s and dont’s  Introduction to audio tools  Creating a simple mix  Mastering and file formats.

Beating Writer’s Block Christine M Kerr It’s the fear of every writer, that inexplicable obstruction to our creative flow; writer’s block. In this session, Christine Kerr will share the processes that have helped her to complete several national and international song challenges (50 Songs In 50 Days etc) and more recently, win the Adult Contemporary category of the UK Songwriting Contest.

If you regularly suffer with writer’s block – or you are concerned about it happening to you, this session is a must.

6 Business School for Songwriters Katrena Friel Discover why artists struggle in business.

Find out your personal strengths and challenges on how to take your business to the next level. We want songwriters to learn that business is creative while getting the latest thinking in branding, social media, marketing, business process and systems, event management, strategic partnerships, sales, pricing and mindset. You will work through a real live example for your own business and your unique business opportunities, tactics and behaviours in your specific marketplace. The idea is to give you a great learning experience, so you respect business and steer away from the starving artist mentality of the past.

A FREE Business Coaching Session is offered after the session so you can determine if you are on the right track to commercial success and what areas you need to be focusing on this year.

Vocal Workshop for Performing & Non-Performing Songwriters Doreen Van Bree Doreen will conduct Singing Workshops to help you learn more about the vocal ‘instrument’ and how its used, so you can write songs to compliment any voice. Doreen’s workshops are fun, interesting and educational, and all workshop participants will receive a free copy of her booklet “Basic Vocal Exercises For Singers”. Doreen will also be available at various times during the event as a Conference Mentor.

Keys to Unlock a Career in Music Connie Kis Andersen A workshop designed for those who dream of a career in music and songwriting but can’t quite shake their everyday reality.

Mindsets, skill sets, knowledge base and networks are just some of the doors we need to unlock before we can step into a career in the music industry. The keys to these doors are all unique to our own situation, but they share a common template, irrespective of our age, gender, ethnicity and ability/disability. Delivered in two sessions, Connie will enable you by helping you to identify your keys – from covering the technical aspects of songwriting, emotional challenges of the songwriter, along with the business acumen and knowledge needed for a profession in the industry.

Lessons Learned Adrian & Barbara Hannan How to get to the next level and become a career songwriter.

Adrian and Barb Hannan have written/produced songs in multiple genres for artists, major record labels, TV, film, books, advertising and major corporate clients.

They will share their journey of how soaring with your strengths, quality, being flexible, moving with the times, discernment diversification and writing in multiple genres and medias has allowed them to have a successful career in the Australian music industry for almost 40 years.

7 Meet The Faculty

ALAN ROY SCOTT Main Seminar Facilitator: Our ‘Mystery Megastar’ in 2010, and Main Seminar Facilitator in 2016, we are extremely pleased to announce that Alan will be returning in 2018 in this leadership role. Alan is an L.A.- based Grammy Award winning songwriter whose songs have been recorded by Celine Dion, Luther Vandross, Notorious B.I.G., Gloria Estefan, Cyndi Lauper, Patti LaBelle, Neville Bros. Roberta Flack, Cher, El DeBarge, Tiffany, Patti Austin, The Spinners, Oak Ridge Boys, Ricky Martin (Menudo), Anne Murray, Johnny Mathis, Pointer Sisters, Sheena Easton, and Ray Charles and many others. Alan will be presenting workshops over the course of the weekend including his ‘Song Surgery’ sessions that were so popular in 2016.

GINA JEFFREYS Speaker (Country): The Princess of Australian Country Music, Gina’s career had spanned almost 30 years and her hit albums and singles have earned her Gold and Platinum including Golden Guitar awards, MO Awards, an APRA award – the list is almost endless. Gina also runs performance workshops for young, talented performers. We are thrilled that Gina will join us at ASC2018 to talk about writing in the Country genre and share her knowledge and wisdom with us all.

ROD McCORMACK Speaker (Production/Songwriting): A world-class musician, songwriter and producer, Rod has written over thirty #1 Country hits and he has produced numerous high selling and award-winning albums for artists such as Wendy Matthews, The McClymonts, Lee Kernaghan, Gina Jeffreys, Adam Harvey, Beccy Cole and Paul Kelly. Named CMAA Producer of the year in 2004, 2008 and again in 2010, Rod will be sharing his knowledge about production and songwriting in his talk to attendees this year.

DIANA TOROSSIAN Speaker/Mentor (Management): Having spent most of her working life in the Australian music and publishing industries and being responsible for signing some of Australia’s top artists and songwriters over the years, Di is our expert in all things Publishing and A&R. As manager for some of Australia’s most talented hit songwriters, Di will speak about artist and writer management and answer questions from attendees.

8 ANTHONY SNAPE

Speaker/Mentor (Building a Successful Indie Career): If you want to make a living as an indie artist, you won’t want to miss this valuable session! A successful Australian Indie artist living in the USA, Anthony will share his extensive experience of connecting with fans and building a loyal fan base, running successful crowd funding campaigns, and the ins and outs of international touring. Time permitting there will also be a Q&A session.

MATTHEW DONLEVY Speaker/Mentor (Publishing): Matt Donlevy’s history in the music industry is long and distinguished. He spent 30 years as Managing Director of Peer Music, runs his own successful business, Frankdon Music, and recently was named the head of the new publishing division for Cooking Vinyl Australia. He is also a Director on the Board of AMPAL (Australasian Music Publishers Association). Matt has been involved in our Publisher Pitching Sessions since 2008, so we are thrilled he is sharing his knowledge and insights at ASC2018, and spending the event with us as a Mentor to attendees.

ADRIAN & BARBARA HANNAN Workshop Presenters/Mentors: A brilliant writing/production team, the Hannan’s own and run successful recording studio and accommodation facility ‘The SongStore’ in Victoria, Australia. They have written/produced for Vanessa Amorosi, Taxiride, Gabriella Cilmi, Delta Goodrem, Lee Harding, Steven Rossitto, Neighbours, TV AFL, The Voice, X Factor, and Idol Artists. The Hannans will be mentoring and running career workshops over the course of the event. You’ll also find Adrian helping in the On-Site Studio assisting attendees with their production questions.

CAROLINE McKNIGHT Speaker (APRA Services): Caroline will join us again this year to talk to attendees about the services APRA provides to songwriters. APRA is free to join and is Australia’s only royalty collection agency, as well as being considered our peak governing body. Don’t miss this informative session.

9 COLLEEN ZULIAN Speaker/Mentor (Management): Melbourne-based Artist Manager, Colleen Zulian, is a highly respected Music Industry professional. She was President of the Australian Songwriters Association for six years, Event Director for the Melbourne International Blues Festival and Australian Music Week, and she has worked extensively in Publishing. Together with Songwriter Manager, Diana Torossian, Colleen will be delivering a talk about the ins and outs of artist and writer management and answering questions from attendees. Colleen was a wonderful Mentor at the 2016 ASC, and we look forward to her sharing her wisdom and knowledge with us again in 2018.

KATRENA FRIEL Workshop Presenter/Mentor (BSchool For Artists): ASC is proud to present International Speaker, Award Winning Author, Trainer, Coach, and Business Mentor, Katrena Friel. Katrena has had years of experience working with artists, songwriters and musicians. She will be presenting a workshop in 2018, titled ‘Business School For Songwriters’, designed to help songwriters take their business to the next level. Katrena will also offer FREE Business Coaching Sessions to attendees after the workshop!

JACK NIGRO (The Grove Studios) Onsite Recording Studio: A huge thanks to Jack Nigro for contributing his time, talents and mobile studio for this important feature of the event. He does an amazing job, and together with our other faculty producers, will be on hand each day to assist attendees with demo production info, tips on working effectively with a producer – and you can even lay down some tracks. Jack will also present a 90 minute workshop on home recording and demo production.

CONNIE KIS ANDERSEN Workshop Presenter/Mentor: Hailing from Western Australia, Connie has become part of the ASC’s ‘Core Faculty, and we are thrilled she is joining us again in 2018. A talented singer/songwriter and workshop presenter she will be presenting a songwriting workshop and mentoring at the event.

10 DOREEN VAN BREE Workshop Presenter/Mentor: Vocal Coach and ASC Faculty regular, Doreen Van Bree runs vocal workshops for songwriters over the course of the weekend. These workshops assist songwriters to understand how the vocal ‘instrument’ works; crucial knowledge for writing vocal melodies that allow an artist’s voice to shine.

CHRISTINE M KERR Workshop Presenter: ASCer, Christine Kerr, is not a hit songwriter – yet! She is, however, a prolific songwriter, having successfully completed many national and international songwriting challenges (50 Songs In 50 Days etc), so she knows how to avoid writer’s block and just keep going! Christine will share her processes with attendees in this one hour workshop. You’ll never suffer writer’s block again!

2018 PUBLISHERS & MANAGERS:

Cooking Vinyl Australia / Frankdon Music (Matthew Donlevy - Managing Director) Hillsong Music Publishing (Nathan Eshman - A&R Manager/Producer) DTME Talent Management (Diana Torossian - Songwriter Manager/Publishing) Asia Sounds Pty Ltd (Colleen Zulian - Artist Manager)

11 About Ettalong

Location Ettalong is a small sea-side village about 90 minutes north of Sydney. It's a satellite village of Woy Woy and can be reached by car, train, or ferry from Palm Beach. Ettalong has experienced a population and popularity boom in the last 15 years with the development of new resorts, accommodation and holiday attractions.

History Ettalong is an Aboriginal word meaning "drinking place". The Central Coast was home to the Dharruk and the Darkinyung Aboriginal people, who occupied the area for at least 11,000 years.

European exploration of this coastal area began soon after the arrival of the First Fleet. The first European settlers were attracted by the local cedar, forest oak, blue gum and other hardwoods. The area is now part of a semi-continuous coastal settlement around the fringes of Brisbane Water.

Things To Do The nearby villages of Umina, Pearl Beach and Patonga offer the seaside charm of beaches, lagoons, waterways and safe swimming for children. It is a popular fishing beach, with good boating facilities and whiting in season. Ferries and charter vessels run regular trips around the majestic Brisbane Water, providing a unique scenic experience. Take a bushwalk or enjoy the wildflowers in nearby Brisbane Water National Park and Bouddi National Park.

Swimming - and water sports at the many beaches in the area Ettalong Markets - each Saturday and Sunday, Ocean View Rd Cinema Paradiso - and Function Centre Village Shopping - Boutiques, cafes, antiques, restaurants

12 WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THE SUPPORT OF OUR 2018 PARTNERS