Jun7

Jen Kearney @ Songwriters in the Round

Songwriters in the Round, Somerville, MA

Four songwriters, trading songs and swapping stories. And you have a front row seat.
 
Four songwriters take the stage, seated in a comfortable semi-circle. They take turns playing songs, occasionally joining in with each other on harmony vocals or guitar licks. The format encourages conversation between the writers, which gives the audience an opportunity to hear these creative people talk as if in their own living rooms. Inspired by the "guitar pulls" of the legendary Bluebird Café in Nashville.
 
Hosted by Somerville singer/songwriter David Thorne Scott. Held on the first and third Wednesdays of each month from 7:00-8:30 p.m. Suggested donation is $10.
 
Part of the ROOTED Armory Café Series. Café menu is available here: https://artsatthearmory.org/rooted-cafe/rooted-menu/
Beer and wine also available!
 
You might hear a young up-and-coming pro, an established mid-career performer and mentor, and a cherished elder of the scene -- all sharing music. The growing relationships will warm your heart and enrich your soul. Come every week as the lineup shifts and new friends are made.

Our songwriters this week

Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Jen Kearney has spent some time seasoning her particular style of original music. Her sound is truly an amalgamation of musical styles including Soul, R&B, Funk, Rock, and Latin.  Kearney’s music and attention to lyrics and has met critical acclaim nationally and internationally. Kearney released an EP entitled “Atlantic” in March of 2022.  She has recorded and released six studio albums and has done session work on many other projects.  She is a 2022 New England Music Award nominee for soul/r&b act of the year.  Kearney tours both as a solo act and with a full band. She spent 2018-2020 living in London touring the UK/ Europe with her own act and with a 9-piece Latin band called Snowboy & the Latin Section.  She has shared the stage with the likes of Maceo Parker, Los Lobos, Daryl Hall, Mavis Staples, John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, The Derek Trucks Band and more. https://jenkearney.com/

As a community builder, teacher and songwriter Rene Pfister has worked with kids and families for over 30 years creating original musicals. He is Co-founder director of the company Make your life a Musical, an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music and  Artistic Director of The  Berklee Theatre Arts Collaborative (BTAC) where he combines his love of teaching and musical theater to help students around the world create.  He has taught internationally in Argentina, Europe, China, India, and Africa and started the Broadway Around the World program at Berklee. Since 2018, Pfister has performed a series of his one-person shows including What I Learned From All My Ex-Boyfriends… If Anything! and What I Learned From Years of Therapy.. If Anything! Pfister is currently working on his new book “Make your life a musical” about his work creating musicals in community and “I talk to myself” a series of comic essays about life as an LGBTQ artist in these crazy times. renepfistermusic.com

Alizon is a truly seasoned musician with decades of experience as a performing and recording multi-keyboardist, vocalist, songwriter, and arranger. She is a professor at Berklee College since 1997, teaching harmony, piano, and yoga.  Alizon co-produces Storytellers with Didi Stewart, a popular annual concert at Berklee, featuring the vocal and songwriting talents of students. She has earned regional and national accolades, ranging from critical acclaim in Musician Magazine to Boston Music Awards’ Outstanding Keyboardist.  Alizon released So What About You, a self-produced CD of twelve original songs. Among her other recording credits are four discs with The Love Dogs, an established jump swing rhythm & blues group that has been performing domestically and internationally since 1994. https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063329612004

David Thorne Scott is a singer and songwriter in jazz and Americana styles. A 20-year resident of Somerville, he organized Songwriters in the Round to foster a creative, dynamic music scene for his adopted home city. He believes that music can bring a community together like nothing else. “At a time of great conflict in our country – when words often fail us – music has the power to bridge divides... David Thorne Scott explores the intersection of Jazz and Americana, city and country, instrumentation and lyrics to create lush compositions and covers that are unifying, and healing, in their beauty.” - Laurie Fanell, Eponymous Review www.davidthornescott.com