VOCAL Newsletter

February 2008

In this issue

> February Greeting
> Regular Membership Meetings
> Member Happenings
> Membership
> Showcase Past & Future


February Greeting

Well the year is off to a great start! VOCAL member Jim Uzel is preparing for his CD release this month and the Executive Committee is preparing for some great performance opportunities for VOCAL members in 2008.

February and March will see two special VOCAL membership meetings and we are looking forward to establishing more special events to keep things interesting. If you haven’t been to a VOCAL meeting or have been out for a while, take time to come out and keep up with current events. You’ll get to experience some good discussion, you can present your thoughts about the upcoming events and you’ll hear the latest news about VOCAL activities before it’s published.

We hope to see you all soon!


Regular Membership Meetings http://www.vocalsongwriter.org/meeting.html

January’s meeting was an informative look at presenting your material on the Internet and ideas for drawing attention to that material. Thanks to our panel participants Matthew Costello (VOCAL webmaster), Steve Nuckolls and Glen King.

For February, we are proud to present Chuck Kerwath, who will present his program The Connection of West African Music to American Roots Music. Follow the link above for the full description of the meeting and directions to our meeting location

February’s meeting has a temporary schedule change **Tuesday, February 12, 2008. We’re back to the second Monday for March.

Regular meetings continue to be held at the Roundhouse at Byrd Park. Follow the link above for directions and more information.

7:00 – 7:30 Executive Meeting – all are welcome, but we’ll take care of Committee business during this time
7:30 – 9:00 Chuck Kerwath’s presentation



March Meeting

If you go to the meeting page on the VOCAL website, you’ll see that we have a special location for the March 2008 meeting. In Your Ear Studios www.lobe.com will be hosting the meeting. The activities will include a tour of In your Ear Studios and a short talk by In Your Ear President Carlos Chafin on the recording class that he teaches. Following the presentation, VOCAL will kick off the return of the quarterly in-house open mic night. This will be a feature of VOCAL’s meetings once per quarter. Do not miss your chance to share your material and get an inside look at an outstanding recording facility right in Richmond, VA.


Member Happenings

Jim Uzel is taking February’s Showcase stage for a CD Release event February 18, 2008. See http://www.vocalsongwriter.org/showcase.html and the Showcase article below for details.

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VOCAL member John Ellis will appear at Chester Bistro for a full evening of live music including original songs. Chester Bistro (nickname CBCC) is a restaurant/club with a friendly atmosphere a wide selection of beverages from coffee to your favorite adult beverage and great food. And a great stage!

John Ellis and Point of Rock
www.myspace.com/virginiaroadsong

February 22, 2008
Chester Bistro http://www.chesterbistro.com/

$5 admission

7:00PM – Doors Open
8:00PM - Zach Artis
9:00PM – John Ellis and Point of Rock until about 11:30PM


Membership http://www.vocalsongwriter.org/membership.php

If you’re not already a member or your dues have expired, why not take a moment and sign up now?! If you have a PayPal account, you can almost sign up with one finger! Just point and click the above link and the website will walk you through the registration and take you to the PayPal site or offer you other methods of payment.

Dues are only $35 per year. Some of the benefits offered:

Ø submit your material for consideration for the VOCAL website
Ø music critiques at meetings
Ø submit your name for live performance opportunities including the monthly Showcase
Ø announce your performances in our Member Happenings in the newsletter
Ø more benefits to come......including an on-line critique panel

Members need to perform at a meeting or submit material for review before signing up for performances, but you do not have to be a professional performer to get on the stage, as long as you present yourself professionally. Material is reviewed for proficiency of the performance and to see if it is suitable for the venue.

Head to the website and sign up today!


Showcase Past & Future http://www.vocalsongwriter.org/showcase.html

January’s showcase featured Glendora Woodard, Drew Routh and Steve Nuckolls who put on a fantastic show. It was a night of great variety and wonderful songwriting. Read all about it on the Showcase Review page.

February’s showcase is the location for Jim Uzel’s CD release. Jim will be teaming up with Gary Shaver, Frank Lucas and Tim Stanton for his performance.

8:00PM Frank Lucas
8:30PM Jim Uzel

Be sure to get to the TapHouse Grill early for fine food and beverage, as well as the company of your fellow songwriters!



Until next month ~~~John Ellis

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