Photo by , left to right/De gauche à droite : Tiana Feng (photos of/de Rob Carli, Sarah Slean); Aaron Sambey (photo of/de Tyler Shaw); Brad Ardley (photo of/de David Foster).

Inaugural Song & Score Week delivers opportunities, awards for music creators

Story by Howard Druckman | Monday September 26th, 2022

SOCAN was pleased and proud to be one of the organizing entities for the first-ever Song & Score Week, Sept. 19-24, 2022, in Toronto, dedicated to helping songwriters and composers achieve and share their musical and career goals. Song & Score Week provided educational programming to build skills, supported industry growth, delivered opportunities to connect, and presented awards to recognize music creators.

Song & Score Week was organized collectively by the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, Music Publishers Canada, the Screen Composers Guild of Canada, SOCAN, the SOCAN Foundation, and the Songwriters Association of Canada.

The week was jam-packed with exciting events and activities (all held at downtown Toronto’s El Mocambo, unless otherwise noted).

Indigenous Song Camp
From Sept 20-22, a dozen-odd Indigenous singer-songwriters and producers gathered at the downtown Toronto offices of Kilometre Music to write, make demo recordings of, and share new songs together.

On the Clock with Murdoch
On Wednesday, Sept. 21, award-winning screen composer Robert Carli worked with live musicians to capture the score for the latest, unreleased episode of the CBC series Murdoch Mysteries – in front of a live audience. It was a rare opportunity to experience a real scoring session for one of Canada’s top-rated series.

Scores, Songs, & Screens: Pulling Back the Curtain
Later the same day, Carli and his colleague screen composers Darren Fung, Aaron Paris, Alexandra Petkovski, and Sarah Slean discussed the various approaches and styles to composing music for the screen, and how that role now encompasses an extremely wide range of responsibilities.

Canadian Screen Music Awards (CASMAs)
That night, The Screen Composers Guild of Canada (SCGC) celebrated its first-ever Canadian Screen Music Awards (CASMAs) in a live ceremony, with the proceedings live-streamed for those unable to attend in person. Screen composers Steph Copeland and Todor Kobakov won two awards each, while other winners were Janal Bechthold & La-Nai Gabriel, Steffan Andrews, Layal Watfeh, Phil Strong, Trevor Morris, The Canadian Film Centre, and The Slaight Family Foundation. For a complete list of winners and their awards, click here.

How To Optimize Your Vocal Recordings
On Thursday, Sept. 22, Dr. Amandine Pras, Lecturer in Sound Recording and Music Production at the University of York, U.K., discussed acoustics, microphone placement, and manipulating audio files when recording vocals.

Indigenous Music Protocols: Developing Industry Standards, Guidelines, and Best Practices
Later that day, this event furthered a key mandate for the Indigenous Music Office: to gather and share best practices, and to develop, maintain, and serve as keeper of industry protocols, supporting artists and industry in ensuring appropriate protocols are both known and followed.

Songwriters Circle
That night, SiriusXM Canada presented a Songwriters Circle, featuring Fefe Dobson, Tyler Shaw, Tim Hicks, TOBi, and Ruby Waters, who shared their songs and the stories behind them.

Women In The Studio National Accelerator
On Friday, Sept. 23, Music Publishers Canada (MPC) welcomed six participants for the first day of a three-day event offering women, gender-fluid, non-binary, and gender-non-conforming participants a series of curated workshops, educational sessions, and networking opportunities with music industry leaders.

NXTGen Mixer
Later that day, Music Publishers Canada invited their new NXTGen members to Song and Score Week. NXTGen is a new MPC membership level created to foster the next generation of music publishing leaders across the country, representing all intersections of industry professionals.

David Foster Master Class
That night, David Foster – one of the most successful songwriters and record producers in history – was joined by Ralph Peer at the piano, to reflect on an illustrious songwriting and producing career.

Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala
On Saturday, Sept. 24, Alanis Morissette, Bryan Adams, Jim Vallance, David Foster, and Daniel Lavoie were indicted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, during a gala held at Massey Hall in downtown Toronto. The event was hosted by Marie-Mai, with tribute performances from Corey Hart, Chad Kroeger and Ryan Peake of Nickelback, Alessia Cara, Charlotte Cardin, Jessie Reyez, Deborah Cox, Serena Ryder, Ruby Waters, Pierre Lapointe, and more.

 

Photo by Grant W. Martin Photography. Left to right/De gauche à droite : Deborah Cox, Alessia Cara, Andy Kim, Bobby Bazini, Serena Ryder, Dan Hill, Corey Hart

Bryan Adams, Jim Vallance, David Foster, Alanis Morissette, Daniel Lavoie inducted into Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame

Story by Howard Druckman | Monday September 26th, 2022

Bryan Adams, Jim Vallance, David Foster, Alanis Morissette, and Daniel Lavoie were inducted into Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (CSHF), on Sept. 24, 2022, at Massey Hall in Toronto.

In his acceptance speech, David Foster said, “Quincy Jones used to say, the three ingredients to make a hit record are: the song, the song, and the song. So to come home and be recognized for songwriting, it’s the highest praise a musician can hope for… Especially for this occasion, most importantly, a big Thank You to the greatest publishers a songwriter could ever ask for: Ralph Peer, Kathy Spanberger, and the entire peermusic team.”

Jim Vallance thanked SOCAN and said, “I was on the SOCAN board for decades, and let me tell you, these people care deeply about Canadian songwriters and Canadian music. So thank you.”

Alanis Morissette said, “When I write it, it’s for me, but then when I share it, it’s yours… What we are as writers, and songwriters specifically, is, we mark things. We mark a feeling that’s intangible, and really hard to describe… I know I am privileged, I am so privileged, to  be able to do what I do, and that there were so many incredible opportunities to my left and right as I moved along, and I’m really grateful for that… I think when someone supports the songwriter, they’re supporting the person.”

Daniel Lavoie, who spoke in both English and French, said, “Most of us [songwriters] know how to write a good song… None of us, maybe David Foster excepted, knows how to write a great song. The great songs are decided by you, the public… I have been very privileged to have been chosen by you a few times, and it has changed my life… I am very grateful, and I thank you.”

The inductees were honoured with live performances their hit songs, video tributes, and a presentation speech by someone close to them. Grammy Award winner and Billboard magazine Woman of the Year Olivia Rodrigo introduced Alanis Morissette, saying “I was 13 when I first heard Jagged Little Pill, and my life was completely changed. Alanis’ songwriting was unklike anything I had ever heard before, and I haven’t heard anything quite like it since… I became hooked for life.”

Musical highlights among the many live performances included an explosive version of Alanis Morisette and Glen Ballard’s “You Oughta Know” by Serena Ryder; Charlotte Cardin;’s passionate reading of the Bryan Adams-Jim Vallance co-write, “Heaven”; Deborah Cox’s incredible vocal performance of David Foster’s “I Have Nothing”; and a soulful cover of Daniel Lavoie’s “Je voudrais voir New York” by Clerel.

Other artists who appeared at the Gala included Jessie Reyez, Pierre Lapointe, Corey Hart, Chad Kroeger and Ryan Peake of Nickelback, Lawrence Gowan, Jim Corcoran, JP Saxe, Bruno Pelletier, Chicago’s Neil Donell, Bobby Bazini, Maurice Moore, Tafari, Divine Brown, James Baley, and Ruby Waters.

Previous songwriters who’ve been inducted into the CSHF include Leonard Cohen, Édith Butler, Neil Young, Claude Dubois, Bruce Cockburn, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Robbie Robertson, Gordon Lightfoot, and Joni Mitchell.

Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard

Video: The Pros – CRi shares his advice

Story by Marie-Michèle Bouchard | Thursday September 22nd, 2022

Our video series The Pros introduces you to leaders in their fields who share some of the information they’ve learned by creating music in their careers.

Producer CRi won the Electronic Music Award at the SOCAN 2021 Gala, in addition to winning, the same year, the Electronic Music Album of the Year Award at the ADISQ, and the prestigious Félix as the Breakthrough Artist of the Year. As a matter of fact, he became Québec’s first electronic musician to win that trophy.

In this video, CRi shares his tips and tricks to give the best possible live show: the working conditions required for a successful electronic music performance, the state of mind most conducive to a successful show, and the advice he wishes he’d had before he started playing shows.