Songwriters Workshop

Sunday, December 10, 2017 at 4pm

Jennie Lee Hansen Recital Hall, Mary Baker Russell Music Center

Pacific Lutheran University

School of Arts and Communication / Department of Music presents

Songwriters Workshop Jeff Leisawitz, director

Sunday, December 10, 2017 at 4pm

Jennie Lee Hansen Hall, Mary Baker Russell Music Center

Welcome to Lagerquist Concert Hall.

Please disable the audible signal on all watches, pagers and cellular phones for the duration of the concert.

Use of cameras, recording equipment and all digital devices is not permitted in the concert hall.

PROGRAM

Let It Be by the Beatles ............................................................................................................................. Khrysster Ipalari

Let It Be was a song written by Paul McCartney and originally sung by The Beatles. The song was recorded in Apple Studios

and released on March 6, 1970. I decided to make a cover of the song because it is really popular. In my cover, I added

piano, drums, bass, and strings. I began with the chord progression laid out with a nice tempo so that it was easier to work

with, then added the bass and drums so that the song sounded more full. I added the strings last, making it a “topping of the

ice cream.” Overall, making a cover of this song was challenging because it is a song that is well known. I did not want to

butcher it or else people who know this beloved song would dislike my cover. Although it was a challenge, it was also fun

because I was able to make my own version of a great song.

A Song For You .......................................................................................................................................... Khrysster Ipalari

A Song For You is a song written and produced by me. Making my own song was definitely a challenge because it is really

hard to put your feelings into a song because of vulnerability. However, letting those words out felt really good. To make

the song, I thought of a chord progression first with the piano and recorded it with just plain chords. After recording the

chords, I added a melody that would be the foundation of the song; this became the intro and chorus. In the chorus, I added

different piano parts that interlock very nicely, which made the chorus sound happier. After that I added the bass to get the

lower sound along with the drums to make the song catchy. Then, I added the strings to give that distinct tone in the chorus

to separate it from the verses. After finishing the instrumental, I added the lyrics that portray my feelings, later on recorded

with the microphone. Mixing was the next step, which made the song complete, adding effects to the tracks to make it sound

professional. Overall, making the song was great because it showed my creativity.

Wake Up ........................................................................................................................................................ Brett Rodriguez

Wake Up is a song about the beauty and peace of life. Specifically, it speaks to fullness of the present moment and how it

is often avoided by our busy minds. For so many people, the present moment can be demonized and turned into something

dreadful or unpleasant. My intent with this song is to show others that unnecessary resistance to life typically results in

dissatisfaction, and that the alternative perspective of acceptance is much more fulfilling.

Soldier Boy ........................................................................................................................................................ Taylor Rimer

Soldier Boy is a blues jazz inspired song featuring the tenor and baritone saxophone. This song was written as an attempt to

capture the personality of one of my good friends, Madison Willis, who also beautifully crafted the lyrical and vocal

interpretation of this song.

She ..................................................................................................................................................................... Taylor Rimer

She is also a jazz inspired song that focuses on a hopeless, melancholy state of being as opposed to Soldier Boy. Also

beautifully sung by Madison Willis, She narrates a story of loss, heartbreak, and emotional coping.

Sunday Morning by Maroon 5........................................................................................................................ Chris Conway

I chose to do Sunday Morning because it’s pretty hype and the chords as rhythm are really jazzy, but it’s still considered

pop. There aren’t a lot of substitutions in terms of different instrumentation but just a few places where there is added

harmony during the chorus.

Miss Fortune .................................................................................................................................................. Gillian Dockins

Miss Fortune was written because I needed an anthem for myself to listen to when I was feeling down about my own life.

It’s about not allowing yourself to be dragged down by self-pity and self-victimization, and to have agency over how you

respond to life’s struggles. Production-wise, I focused on creating a bouncy synth-pop sound. Big thanks to Luke and Aiden

for their backing vocals.

Please Don’t Go/Deep Peace ......................................................................................................................... Gillian Dockins

This song’s journey began a year-and-a-half ago, following the death of a close friend. The sung lyrics represent my initial

reaction to Christina’s death, a grasping denial of the fact that I would never see her again. The spoken word, excerpted

from a Gaelic rune that we sang together each spring in our children’s chorus growing up, represents the peace I have found

and hope she has found as well. The production mirrors the text of the Gaelic rune, a spacey, satellite sound representing

Christina’s movement from this world to somewhere beyond, the incomprehensible spoken word representing the

incomprehensibility of loss.

Blue Water ..................................................................................................................................................... Jeffery Steehler

This is a song I wrote about whitewater kayaking and what it is like to go out every weekend. As I grew up I was always an

adrenaline junkie and this was one way I got my fix.

American Idiot by Green Day ...................................................................................................................... Jeffery Steehler

I chose this song as my cover because it was one of my favorite songs as a rebellious middle schooler. It was fun and

interesting doing this cover as it is my first and I revisited a song I hadn’t heard in a while.

Happy for You .............................................................................................................................................. Ian Lindhartsen

Cristina Flores and Chris Gettel-Gilmartin, voices

The idea behind this song was to take the common theme found in pop music in which a “nice-guy” loses a prospective

partner to someone considered a jerk, and instead considers the person that the girl chooses to be with as a genuinely good

person. Therefore, instead of it being a song arguing why the girl should be with the singer, it explains the inner conflict of

the person coming to terms with the situation and moving on from it. The music has an overjoyed feel to it, while the lyrics

are rather saddened as a way to illustrate this conflict.

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) by Eurythmics .................................................................................... Ian Lindhartsen

Caroline Goodwin, 1st soprano

Rachel Tseng, 2nd soprano

Despite the minimalist lyrics and rhythms of this song, its use of hocket in its arpeggiated synth voices, and its peculiar

vocal harmonies make this song rather complex in relation to other pop tunes. While trying to accentuate these elements of

the original song, this version brings a heavier, more modern electronic feel in order to compliment the almost aggressive

confidence of the song.

Anymore ......................................................................................................................................................... Alyssa Lyngaas

This song is a way for me to express my feeling of inadequacy. I personally grew up being considered “gifted.” When I hit

high school I started to plateau, yet my parents have continued to expect nothing but the best from me. The words throughout

the song are written in incomplete sentences, which matches my own lack for a proper way to explain this feeling to anyone.

Mass Effect 3 (Sound Design) .......................................................................................................................... Marc Harper

This project was an attempt to originally design the entirety of sounds within the Mass Effect 3 video game trailer. All of

the sounds were either created by myself, or found through sound libraries online.

We Are the Ones ..................................................................................................................................................... Class Song

Ian Lindhartsen, drums

Chris Conway, chords

Marc Harper, bass

Nate Tunheim, synth

Alyssa Lyngaas, vocals

As Yet Untitled ........................................................................................................................................................ Class Song

Brett Rodriguez, drums

Khrysster Ipalari, chords

Taylor Rimer, bass

Jeffery Steehler, synth

Gillian Dockins, vocals