从教室到莱娜咖啡的舞台

One of the more unique benefits of attending school at 火博体育大学 is the campus’s proximity to the longest continuously running folk music venue and coffeehouse in 美国. 坐落在萨拉托加斯普林斯市中心的一个鸡棚旁边 Lena has hosted some of America’s most renowned songwriters; Nobel Prize winner Bob Dylan, award-winning creator of the Broadway musical “Hadestown” Anaïs Mitchell, and folk legends Arlo Guthrie and Don McLean are just a few of those who have played there. 感谢杰出的驻场艺术家教授的课程 Joel Brown, Skidmore’s talented student songwriters are earning college credit as they take 那里的舞台也是.  

When Professor Brown, an acclaimed classical guitarist who has been at Skidmore for nearly four decades, was approached about teaching a songwriting course, his intention was to create a supportive environment where everyone could share their work and exchange feedback. At the end of each semester, the students perform the original songs they 这是我第一次在莱娜咖啡馆为观众写课堂文章.  

Charles DeVos ’25, a psychology major and music minor from Litchfield, Connecticut, decided to take Professor Brown's 歌曲创作研讨会 because he’d heard so many 它在校园里有很多好处. 查尔斯主要弹钢琴，但也唱歌和唱歌 他说他“涉猎”口琴、尤克里里琴和鼓. 虽然他写过音乐 whole life, he started taking songwriting seriously in his senior year of high school 他认为这个课程是培养他才能的绝佳机会.  

I think the biggest thing I learned about myself as a songwriter (this semester) is that I often doubt myself without even knowing it; the workshop has really helped 我对自己的歌曲创作和演唱更加自信.

查尔斯·德沃斯25岁

Each week, the small group of students (each class only has about six or seven seats) 是否有一个新的主题，比如爱情、食物或时间. 他们被要求写歌 based on the prompt and then present their work in class, where their classmates offer 建议和建设性的批评. 

Sarah Libov, 24岁, a business major from Ridgewood, New Jersey, initially decided to take the songwriting class as a way to engage academically with a longtime hobby; she had been writing 她从14岁开始就唱的歌. “我对这个机会非常感兴趣，也很兴奋， 特别是考虑到有多强 音乐系 “在这儿吗?”她说.  

Sarah remarked that partnering to write songs with classmates was one of her favorite parts of the class, since it gives students a chance to branch out and combine styles 和别人在一起. “合作创作的歌曲通常是最好的一些来自 semester — the energy of two people writing together tends to create something really special.”  

She expressed how beneficial the workshop format of the class has been to her learning. “One week I came to class with a verse of a song I ended up finishing and playing 在我们的节目中. My classmate suggested I incorporate the words ‘passenger seat’ into the song. When I went to finish the song later that week, the phrase fit right in, and I ended up putting it in the first line of the chorus,” Sarah explained. 

The November performance 在莱娜咖啡馆 went “amazingly,” as expected. 莎拉说, “I was so excited to see the different ways that everyone grew this semester, and I had a deep connection to each of the songs I created, so I had a great time performing 他们在舞台上. Despite this being my third time taking the class, this show has been my favorite.”  

查尔斯附和萨拉的看法. “这太有趣了! 每个人都打得很好 过得很愉快，”他说. 

Professor Brown explained that the end-of-the-semester performance is a big part of 是什么让这个班硕果累累.

Caffe Lena is a nationally known venue; it has a rich history of presenting some of 最好的词曲作者. 知道我们将有机会来展示 our work there makes everyone take their songwriting much more seriously.

乔尔·布朗，杰出驻地艺术家

Teaching the class has had a positive impact on Professor Brown, too. “这是真的 great to hear what my class is thinking about when it comes to some of our topics,” he said. “时间就是我们观点不同的一个很好的例子. But I’ve also learned to recognize the uniqueness of each student through the ways that they 表达自己的.” 

This class has proven to be successful over its short lifespan — in large part due to the community of respect and support it fosters for its students. 证据: students’ dedication to their classmates can be seen in their commitment to the Caffe Lena performance; this year, it occurred on the second day as Skidmania这是火博体育深受喜爱的音乐传统. 布朗教授和几个学生在 当然，包括查尔斯在内，都参加了这两场活动.  

Students in Skidmore’s Small Jazz Ensemble program, coordinated by saxophonist and Associate Professor of Music Russell Haight, also perform at the historic venue, which hosts an eclectic range of other musical genres in addition to folk. 今年的爵士乐 音乐会在词曲作者音乐会的第二天举行.  

In addition to Caffe Lena, 萨拉托加温泉市 is home to other celebrated cultural venues, 包括 萨拉托加表演艺术中心 (SPAC) and 文物保护馆; Skidmore students have partnered with both. 火博体育也是广受好评的家 亚瑟·赞克尔音乐中心这里是火博体育著名音乐系的所在地.