Our Teachers in 2025
The curriculum will include
- Songwriting courses from Cosy Sheridan, Pat Wictor, Taina Asili, David Roth, Sue Riley, & Steven Prasinos
- Vocalizing with Sloan Wainwright
- Guitar from Vito Petroccitto and Charlie Koch
- Mentoring with Glen Roethel, Mark Dann, and Julie Snow (also sharing an art class!)
- More TBD!
SONGWRITING (1)—coming soon—
Cosy Sheridan Bio
Cosy Sheridan has been called one of the era’s finest and most thoughtful songwriters, and also “a buddhist monk trapped in the body of a singer-songwriter”. Her music regularly tops the folk radio charts. Her CD, Pretty Bird, was listed among Sing Out Magazine’s Great CDs of 2014. Her concerts are wide-ranging explorations: ragtime guitar and social satire, modern renditions of mythology (meet Hades the Biker) and tales of modern adulthood. Her alter ego, Chlamydia, sometimes appears with songs such as “Botox Tango” or “Multiply Pierced.” The Cornell Folksong Society wrote: “Sheridan is frank, feisty, sublimely and devilishly funny. She fuses myth with modern culture; Persephone with Botox.” A guitar student of instrumental luminaries Guy Van Duser and Eric Schoenberg, and a voice student at The Berklee School of Music, she brings a depth of experience to her craft. She plays a percussive bluesy guitar style – often in open tunings and occasionally with two or more capos on the guitar. She first caught the attention of national folk audiences in 1992 when she won both the Kerrville Folk Festival’s NewSong Award and The Telluride Bluegrass Festival Troubadour Contest, and then released her critically acclaimed CD Quietly Led on Waterbug Records. Since then she has released more than 13 CDs and written a one-woman-show. Her songs appeared in author Robert Fulghum’s multi-media novel Third Wish. In 2011 when she released The Horse King, The Chicago Examiner wrote: “You can’t make it into double digits, and continue touring for twenty or so years, unless you know what you’re doing, and do it well. Rarely do you find a CD where every song is memorable. It happens, just not often. It happens here.” She is the director and founder of Moab Folk Camp in Moab, Utah. She has taught classes in songwriting, performance and guitar at workshops and adult music camps across the country.
—coming soon—
Pat Wictor Bio
“…Pat Wictor walks onstage. He places a Guild DV-52 flat across his lap and begins playing slide guitar. The sounds are snaky and sizzling….” – Richard Cuccaro, Acoustic Live
Pat Wictor first burst on the folk and acoustic scene as an innovative slide guitarist known for fresh and memorable interpretations of traditional and contemporary songs. Since then he has made his mark as a singer-songwriter penning lean and poetic songs that honor and extend rural blues and gospel traditions. For seven years he toured as one third of Brother Sun, the powerful harmonizing trio with Joe Jencks and Greg Greenway, garnering critical acclaim, two #1 CDs on the Folk DJ charts, and a continent-spanning tour schedule. Wictor’s newest recording, FLARE, a concept album about political division in America, was called “brilliant” by WFUV’s John Platt, and reached #1 on the Folk-DJ charts in 2022. His duo album titled Counterpoise was a collaboration with jazz vocalist and multi-media artist Deborah Latz. The two first sang together at a vocal improvisation workshop led by Bobby McFerrin. His previous solo release, This is Absolutely Real: Visions and Versions of Phil Ochs, reached #2 on the Folk-DJ charts and was nominated for Best Tribute Album by the Independent Music Awards. His monthly e-mail column, “A Few Choice Words,” is read by thousands of subscribers. He is a music educator of note, teaching workshops on writing and interpreting songs, slide guitar and other guitar techniques, vocal and instrumental improvisation, body percussion, and various topics of music history. Recognition and honors have followed Pat for years: he won the Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist Showcase, was nominated for Emerging Artist of the Year by the Folk Alliance, was nominated for Gospel Song of the Year by the Independent Music Awards, and was a finalist in the Kerrville New Folk songwriting contest. His current CD FLARE was #1 on the Folk-DJ chart, and “How Will They Tell It” was the #1 song. His other CDs also received wide play on folk radio. This Is Absolutely Real and Sunset Waltz both charted at #2, and Heaven is so High and Waiting for the Water both reached #4.
Taina Asili Bio
Taína Asili, a dynamic New York-based Puerto Rican singer, composer, interdisciplinary artist, and educator carrying on the tradition of her ancestors, fusing past and present struggles into one soulful and defiant voice. She is celebrated by NPR, Rolling Stone, and Billboard for her soulful, genre-blending music echoing calls for love and liberation. With powerful vocals and a multi-genre fusion traversing salsa, rock, reggaeton, Afrobeat, and other global sounds, Asili’s music is both unique and deeply rooted. Accompanied by her brilliant ensemble, she delivers energetic performances at diverse venues nationwide – from iconic stages such as Carnegie Hall with Toshi Reagon, to renowned festivals like the main stage of San Francisco Pride, to historic events like The Women’s March on Washington, to numerous colleges and conferences – inspiring audiences to dance to the heartbeat of social change. KC Orcott of The Source writes, “Taína is a true talent, and a true social justice warrior.” Her songs and music videos inspired by social and climate justice movements have been lauded by the likes of Rolling Stone, Billboard, Mic.com, and Latina Magazine, and her music has aired numerous times on Democracy Now!. With her last three albums War Cry (2010), Fruit of Hope (2014), and Resiliencia (2019), Asili uses an expansive multi-genre and multilingual approach to connect with a variety of audiences. In an interview with Paste she says, “For me, it’s really important to use my bilingual voice, singing and speaking in Spanish and English, to reach as many people as possible.”
SING HEART, BODY, & SOUL
Singing is fun! Inside each of us lives a beautiful and unique instrument! In this workshop, we will move our bodies, soften our hearts, open our mouths, and let our voices out to play! With an emphasis on vocal health and self-care, we will use a combination of vocal warm-ups and workouts, to help relax and strengthen the voice – making it more flexible and reliable. I’ll provide individual attention and support to each person in class and to the group as a whole.
Sloan Wainwright Bio
Folk-pop artist Sloan Wainwright belongs to a musical dynasty of impossibly gifted singer-songwriters. Her family tree (brother and folk-music luminary Loudon Wainwright, sister-in-law Kate McGarrigle, nephew Rufus Wainwright, nieces Martha Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche) reads like a who’s who of contemporary folk music. Sloan’s incredible gift is not only her unique songwriting ability but her dramatically voiced rendition of her original songs. Defying standard categorization, Sloan consistently demonstrates her easy command of a variety of American musical styles — pop, folk, jazz, and blues — held together by the melodious tone of her rich contralto. The end result is a unique and soulful hybrid. With a solid and impressive discography of 11 original CD releases to her credit, Sloan continues to write, sing and perform live. In addition, Sloan has written numerous musical compositions for theater and dance and teaches at many of the best-known master songwriter series and workshops. Her open spirit and first-hand experience are welcomed year after year in the musical classrooms of such prestigious song camps as Richard Thompson’s Frets and Refrains, Moab Folk Camp, The Swannanoa Gathering, SummerSongs, the Cape Cod Songwriters Retreats, WUMB Radio’s Summer Acoustic Music Week (SAMW), and Lamb’s Retreat (MI). sloanwainwright.com
GRAIN OF SALT
Stuck somewhere in the middle? Here’s an interactive and participatory workshop for any songs or parts thereof that you might wish to have some input on. We’ll hear these songs-in-progress and become a collective think-tank about what’s working so far and what might benefit from a closer look. It’s also an opportunity to hone your listening and feedback-giving skills as we work with each songwriter in pondering the many elements – lyric, rhythm, chord progression, key, arrangement, intangibles, etc. – that make a song click.
David Roth Bio
David Roth is a singer, songwriter, recording artist, and enthusiastic instructor who has taken his songs, experience, and expertise to a wide variety of venues in this and other countries full-time for more than three decades. His work has found its way to Carnegie Hall, the United Nations, several Chicken Soup for the Soul books, the Kennedy Center, Peter, Paul, & Mary and Kingston Trio CDs, the Kerrville (TX) New Folk Award, NASA’s Goddard Space Center, the Rise Up Singing and Rise Again (sequel) songbooks, 5 Posi Awards (Empower Music and Arts), the 2015 Unity “Grace Note” for Outstanding Contribution to New Thought Music, and 15 CDs on the Wind River and Stockfisch (Germany) labels. David has taught singing, songwriting, and performance at SummerSongs (where he serves as Executive Director), the Augusta Heritage workshops (WV), Common Ground on the Hill (MD), the Woods Dance & Music Camp (Ontario), Moab Folk Camp (UT), the National Wellness Institute (WI), the Swannanoa Gathering (NC), and for many other songwriting groups and associations around the country. David annually leads musical tour groups to Ireland and Scotland and is creator/director of the Cape Cod Songwriters Retreats which began in 2014. He’s also organizer/host of the Cape’s Full Moon Open Mic which since 2005 has provided a forum for musicians to connect/be heard while at the same time collecting donations ($17,000 to date) for local non-profits to help neighbors in need.
SHADOW SONGS
In psychology “shadow” is a Jungian term referring to unfamiliar or unwanted aspects of the self. By exploring one’s shadow the songwriter can find inspiration. This exploring requires courage. Without this courage we are in a rut or have writer’s block. With this courage we find the seeds for songs that are fresh and energetic. Such songs are healing for the songwriter and for like-minded listeners. In this week-long class we will study the process of converting shadow material into song. We will see how compassion and curiosity make the shadow less threatening. Each class will begin with a meditation cultivating these attitudes. We will practice transforming shadow seeds into songs that may be confessional (direct), narrative (stories), silly (exaggerated) and so on. We will see how surprisingly universal shadow material is. In a playful, supportive and confidential environment students will be free to choose to share their explorations or not. The student will likely leave the class with a compelling song and a clearer understanding of how inspiration works. The class is not group psychotherapy but rather a study how the heroic songwriter ventures into the cave of oneself for the sake of art.
Steven Prasinos Bio
Steven Prasinos, is a retired psychologist, author and singer/songwriter. He had a successful psychotherapy practice for over 35 years and, as an author, has published numerous professional articles, often exploring the integration of psychology and spirituality. He has given talks on dream interpretation, psychology and the soul, and the psychology of music. He is also a published science fiction author and watercolorist. Steven has been writing songs for over 30 years and has placed first or second in several songwriting contests. He performs throughout the area as “Dr. Steve, the Psinging Psychologist”. Steven lives with his wife Nancy in rural Connecticut. They have 2 lovely daughters.
MENTOR-AT-LARGE
—coming soon—
Mark Dann Bio
I got hooked on tape recorders as a young child. Quite a bit later, I started recording songwriter-oriented albums in the Greenwich Village music scene. That led to opening a pro-level recording studio in NYC that I ran for over 31 years. In the midst of countless recording projects of all kinds and scope over all this time, I’ve been constantly playing gigs, and building and repairing guitars.
COLLAGING A SONG
Leave behind your instruments and your words and come explore the world of collage. We will be using simple tools and supplies – scissors, glue, paint, paper, images from newspapers and magazines – to see what compositions emerge when we are feeling relaxed and spontaneous. Maybe a story will appear or a design that expresses a feeling, and maybe, towards the end of the week, we will see if any of our creations inspire songs!
Julie Snow Bio
Julie Snow has been coming to SummerSongs since we began in 1999. She is a singer/songwriter with two CDs made later in life following a long career as a clinical social worker. She started taking a mixed media art class over 6 years ago which continues to inspire her ongoing explorations in collage.
MENTOR-AT-LARGE
Guitar? Performance? Songwriting? Cowriting? Harmony? Arranging? Production? Bands, duos, trios, websites, YouTube? Copyright, BMI, ASCAP, SESAC, publishing, CDBABY, SoundExchange? … When I first attended SummerSongs, the one-on-one sessions were invaluable! Hey, you’ve got questions too. Sign up for a time slot, and let’s get busy.
Glen Roethel Bio
Glen Roethel, guitarist/vocalist/songwriter/entertainer/producer and founder of streamable.cc (for livestreamers) and dreamable.cc (musician support for any creative or marketing effort) helps kindle the energy of the SummerSongs experience and keep creatives afloat. Study Party Guitar, ensemble playing, songwriting, slow jam, harmony, guitar, performance, livestreaming, and more with Glen at SummerSongs (NY), Cape Cod Songwriters Retreat (MA), Moab Folk Camp (UT), emPower Music Festival (MO), or Cosy Sheridan’s Song Sessions (NH); let loose in a late-night jam-singalong-dance party after a joyful day of learning and performance. Glen is an award-winning songwriter, a jury-selected performer at NERFA and the Singer-Songwriter Cape May festival, and a Gold prize winner (and 2024 finalist) at the Mid Atlantic Songwriting Contest (MASC) with Us! (his socially-minded trio with Summies Judy Kass and Amy Soucy). Roethel is also a Grace Note Award and Posi Award recipient at the emPower Music Festival. You’ll see or hear his songs in a Presidential Museum and also in New Thought music and Hal Leonard Corp songbooks. To Glen’s credit are multiple self-produced CDs and beautiful compilation CDs, plus instrumentation, vocals, production, and co-writes on gorgeous and award-winning recordings by Penny Nichols, Sue Riley, David Roth, Sloan Wainwright, Jan Garrett & JD Martin, and many others. Oh, and come to Ireland with Glen, Sue Riley, and Sloan in October 2025 and 2026!
SONGWRITING 101
Do you feel drawn to songwriting and wish that you understood how to get started? Are you looking for some guidelines about how to craft your poem into a song? Do you wonder where melody comes from? Are you already writing songs and want some tips on how to better understand the craft of songwriting? Do you have the beginning of a song and wonder how to come up with a catchy chorus? I’ll give you some ideas on how to embark on the wonderful path of songwriting. We’ll go over some basic structure ideas, do some free writes to get to the heart of what we want to write about, and then create our songs. Bring paper and a pen to class. Let the songwriting begin!
Sue Riley Bio
Sue believes in the power of music to touch hearts and heal lives. As one of the co-founders of emPower Music & Arts, Sue helps host the yearly empower Music Festival and Posi Awards recognizing excellence in songwriting for artists who create songs with messages of peace, interfaith, and joyous living. A prolific singer-songwriter, Sue has created 8 CDs of original, award winning, uplifting positive music. Her newest CD There Are Moments was produced by Glen Roethel and released in 2020, just in time for the Covid shut down. Sue is a grateful member of the SummerSongs Board of Directors.
CHARLIE KOCH
GUITAR
—coming soon—