Recap of the 4th Songcraft Session on 27th July - A Musical Gathering of Friends

Thanks to Jeremy, who (in his usual style) posted a comprehensive round-up of the previous Songcraft session.

[Photo credit: Betty]

He never fails to crack me up with his summary blog posts. There's always something I'd find funny (even the sessions I've not attended).

This one best lah. Right after I proudly presented my latest composition, Ivan gives the ultimate comment: “This sounds like…a beer song.” (You can hear the actual comment at the end of the clip above.)

That was followed by many blank stares going “huh?”. Then Ivan went on to explain that he means it sounds like a song people would sing in an Irish pub.

But you know what’s the worst thing? He’s actually right!!! Now that he mentioned it, I realised my song is actually an Irish pub sing-along anthem. Cos shortly after, Ivan played this song on the guitar, slowed down the tempo, and invited everybody to sing along with him…and boy did it sound like a pub full of Irish people!

(After last Friday’s session, I’ll never look at this song the same way again. Sigh.)

You can listen to that particular song, here (posted as a YouTube video -- that's Jeremy, heh).

Don't worry, Jeremy -- I'm laughing WITH you, not AT you! And I do want to sing a cover of that song. The lyrics are very meaningful. He said he wrote it in one sitting, within 40 minutes. Wow.

Betty and Hui Leng presented yet another collaborative effort. Those two ladies are fast becoming the Stars of Songcraft, in my opinion! And I think Betty ought to volunteer at the library and try this song of hers with the kids at StoryTime.

Reading his summary post, I got the impression that Jeremy has some doubts if the Songcraft session could be sustained, as attendance seems to be falling.

Jeremy should look at things holistically.

For one, attendance isn't everything. Give me the fun and spontaneity of a group of five, rather than the silence of fifty (which is often the case, for a big group).

And look at the number of core members who show up regularly. There's about five to seven of them. From what I know, that's about the average for a book discussion group. So the songcraft meetup isn't that far off the mark.

Besides, the group is not even a year old. And we're all doing this voluntarily. Give it more time and see how it goes.

I appreciate Jeremy's effort in putting every session up, as well as highlighting the off-line contributions and creations by members to the Songcraft blog. He's also profiled some of the regular members. I am very sure that he too, will be glad he made the effort to document and archive the sessions.

Here's the most important thing that has resulted from the meet ups. And it's not the attendance figures.

It's the comments, critiques, the ideas, inspiration, and collaborative efforts (song covers included) that has resulted from the songcraft sessions. They have resulted from interactions that have taken place during face-to-face meetups, as well as from the online discussions.

And Jeremy has the archived materials to prove it. : )