Music Professionals Making Tracks to CPP Songwriting Summit

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Clockwise from top left: Songwriters Ken Stringfellow, Joe Pernice, Chris Hillman, Shelly Peiken, David Z. Rivkin, Jess Furman, Bleu McAauley, Will Bissic AKA MC Prototype, Nate Campany, and Vicki Peterson will spend an afternoon teaching a free master class in songwriting at Cal Poly Pomona. The class is open to the public.
Clockwise from top left: Songwriters Ken Stringfellow, Joe Pernice, Chris Hillman, Shelly Peiken, David Z. Rivkin, Jess Furman, Bleu McAauley, Will Bissic AKA MC Prototype, Nate Campany, and Vicki Peterson will spend an afternoon teaching a free master class in songwriting at Cal Poly Pomona. The class is open to the public.

The Cal Poly Pomona music department will host its second Songwriting Summit, which will bring experts from the music industry to teach a day of master classes on Wednesday, Feb. 25.

The workshop will be hosted by music Professors Kelly Jones and Arthur Winer and offers students a chance to work one-on-one with professionals who will help them prepare for the 12th Songwriter Showcase in the spring quarter.

Two professionals, Ken Stringfellow and Joe Pernice, will give a power-pop and rock concert in the evening to raise money for student scholarships.

Stringfellow is a founding member of The Posies, who have toured worldwide and still continue to perform and release albums. He also toured and recoded with R.E.M. for ten years and appeared on several albums and was seen in many live performances.

After releasing four solo albums, he was praised by Billboard as “one of the most underrated songwriters of our generation.”

Stringfellow has worked with Damien Jurado, Neil Young, Ringo Starr, Snow patrol and many others. His discography covers approximately 200 albums.

Pernice has fronted several bands, including the Scud Mountain Boys, and more recently, The Pernice Brothers. They released their first album in 1998, titled “Overcome by Happiness.” Most recently, the band released “Goodbye Killer” in 2010.

In 2009, Pernice published his first novel: “It Feels So Good When I Stop,” along with a solo album of cover songs of the same name, released as the soundtrack to the novel.

Other experts are:

  • Chris Hillman: Original member of The Byrds and a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee.
  • Shelly Peiken: Composer of hits such as Christina Aguilera’s “What a Girl Wants.”
  • David Z. Rivkin: Music producer and engineer, and member of Lipps, Inc., known for the song “Funkytown.”
  • Vicki Peterson: Founding member and songwriter for The Bangles, the artists behind “Walk Like an Egyptian” and “Manic Monday.”
  • Nate Campany: Pop songwriter and musician who has written for The Backstreet Boys and The Afters.
  • Wil Bissic aka MC Prototype: He is an alumnus of the Music Industry Studies program who has competed on two National Poetry Slam teams.
  • Bleu McAauley: An independent recording artist, songwriter and producer who has toured with John Mayer, Train and Switchfoot.
  • Jess Furman: Songwriter and producer who scored the international award-winning short “The Problem of Gravity.”

The Summit is free and open to the public, and will be held in the Music Recital Hall, Building 24, room 191, from 2 to 5 p.m.

The concert will be in the Music Recital Hall, at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 general admission, and $10 for students. Tickets are available at the Music Publicity Office, or online at www.csupomona.tix.com. All proceeds will go to scholarship opportunities for students participating in the 12th Songwriter Showcase in spring quarter.