About John R Burr
John R Burr (jazz piano and songwriting) is a musician with uncommonly broad range of musical interests and experiences. He is equally at home with traditional jazz as well as pop, bluegrass, blues or rock and has been recently nominated for a Grammy Award. He has performed and recorded with such artists as Robben Ford, Steve Smith, Dennis Chambers, Maria Muldaur, Jackie Ryan, Paul MacCandless, Jimmy Witherspoon and Kenny Rankin.
John R has been a mainstay in the quartet of Grammy Award winning Banjo virtuoso Alison Brown. His solo album “Piedmont Avenue” on Compass Records features his lyrical approach to the piano in both the solo and duo format. He has over thirty years of experience teaching people of all ages with a particular emphasis on Jazz and Blues piano.
The Art and Craft of Songwriting leads you through the songwriting process, from inspiration to recording studio. The course is open to students of all ages and abilities.
No musical experience is required.
How is a song written? What is a hook? What makes Rhyme? Which comes first, melody or lyrics? How do I make a demo? These questions and many more will be answered in this exciting 6-week course “The Art and Craft of Songwriting”. Join John R Burr as he leads you through the songwriting process, from inspiration to recording studio. The course is open to students of all ages and abilities. No musical experience is required.
The craft of songwriting also shares many parallels with improvisation and that is where John R Burr really shines. John will lead the class through an exploration of styles from blues to jazz to pop while enlightening students in the ways of improvising a melodic line and then creating a rhythmic and harmonic structure for it.
Ages 12 and up
