By Andrew Hughes

The Keep Looking Up: Songwriting Retreat officially wrapped late on the evening of Saturday, September 20th. On behalf of our coordinators and instructors, I want to sincerely thank everyone who joined us this past weekend, whether you attended for one or both days. We had a wonderful time singing and creating together, and we hope you did too. With Joe Peters and Justice Fuller serving as our instructors, along with Scott Greeson coordinating, we were in safe hands.

Our two-day event began at The Arts Federation on Friday evening. The beautiful upstairs gallery was a special place for us to kick things off and get to know each other. The chairs were set up in a circle rather than rows to cultivate this friendly atmosphere. We were joined by special guest Tae Hong Park, music chair at Purdue University, who gave a short presentation on creativity and the implications of artificial intelligence in music. We were also pleased to have the company of Mr. David Bunte, whose late wife Mary made the quilt that gave this retreat its name. Our article titled “SAMI Keeps Looking Up!” explores this backstory in further detail if you're interested.

After dinner, attendees had the option to share a verse and a chorus and receive feedback from instructors Joe Peters and Justice Fuller. Some accompanied their voice with a guitar, others with piano, and others sang acapella. We heard an eclectic array of original ideas, many of them never before performed to an audience. With so many original compositions coming to light, and so many receptive ears, it was a perfect opportunity for songwriters at all levels to share their ideas and receive thoughtful feedback. Given how personal our songs can be, we admire the bravery of those who chose to share. We went later than expected, but we finished tearing down in no time thanks to the help of our attendees.

The weather was perfect during our time at Ross House. It was the first time many of us had visited the site, and we were excited to enjoy the beautiful space. Our nature walk in the morning allowed us to do just that. The journey was treacherous in places, but entirely rewarding, especially for those who ventured down to the riverbank. Those brave individuals may have gotten some mud on their shoes, but they got some inspiration along the way.

One of our goals in arranging this retreat was to collaborate with fellow writers and musicians, and that's exactly what we did right after lunch. We split off into groups of four or five and spent about an hour composing a partial song. Participants brought in a series of images from their nature walk, including stone archways, exposed tree roots, and mussels on the beach. It's not easy to work in such circumstances, so all things considered, we were incredibly impressed with the results! Multiple attendees tell us that they've continued thinking about or working on those songs after the retreat was over.

Those who popped into Joe's afternoon lecture on tuning and riffs learned how a well-written song starts with small ideas, and how long those ideas can take to find the right context. It was such a good conversation that it ran longer than expected, but we still made time for Scott Greeson, Patrick Nycz and Jason DuFair to host a round table discussion about cover songs. One might consider that counterintuitive in a retreat about songwriting, but adapting a cover to your personal style is a skill in its own right. While these lectures were happening, attendees had the option to explore the grounds and create, either alone or in groups. Thanks to everyone who hung around to help us clean up the house and wrap up our time at Ross Hills Park!

The evening performance at the Purdue Railyard was a spectacular way to end the proceedings. A good majority of participants had a chance to play a full song for a receptive audience, often joined by fellow guitarists, vocalists and percussionists. SAMI President Scott Greeson closed the set with a performance of "Riverside", and he was joined in the chorus by attendees and event-goers alike. It was a long but eventful evening, and we want to thank everyone who joined us in the audience. We're also grateful to Greg Deason and David Beering, who arranged for us to use the incredible space.

We've already received some feedback, and as usual, we will continue to accept any feedback we receive. Feel free to let us know what you liked and what you think could be improved. That way, if we do this again, we can make the event even better next time!

Overall, we were incredibly lucky to have such a talented group in one place, and with such perfect weather. One last thanks to everyone who helped us with setup or tear down throughout the weekend. You made our jobs so much easier just by being there.

Thanks everyone, and keep looking up! We hope to see you at SAMI next month, either in-person or online.