The Singer-Songwriter Handbook

The singer-songwriter someone who writes and performs their own music is an ever-present and increasingly complex figure in popular music worlds. The Singer-Songwriter Handbook provides a useful resource for student songwriters active musicians fans and scholars alike. This handbook is divided into four main sections: Songwriting (acoustic and digital) Performance Music Industry and Case Studies. Section I focuses on the ''how to'' elements of popular song composition embracing a range of perspectives and methods in addition to chapters on the teaching of songwriting to students. Section II deals with the nature of performance: stagecraft open mic nights and a number of case studies that engage with performing in a range of contexts. Section III is devoted to aspects of the music industry and the business of music including sales contract negotiations copyright social media and marketing. Section IV provides specific examples of singer-songwriter personae and global open mic scenes. The Singer-Songwriter Handbook is a much-needed single resource for budding singer-songwriters as well as songwriting pedagogues.