Chairman's Report

9/7/08

Dear Members,

Well, Song Contest 2008 has just reached the first stage of completion, with every entry having now been received and dealt with. As I speak, all categories are at the first level of judging. It is a long and involved, but thorough process, aimed at bringing the very best songs to the fore.

After that the Board will go into overdrive in our quest to prepare for the ASA National Awards Night. The Evening just seems to get bigger and better each year, and 2008 promises to be no exception. As we await our category winners to be decided, the ASA ‘Hall Of Fame’ recipients for this year have taken shape. The team of Brewster/Neeson/Brewster is to be inducted this year. Of course individually and together brothers John and Rick Brewster and Doc Neeson are incredible songwriters, and they have contributed immensely to Australia’s Music Scene throughout the last thirty years or so. Their combination produced many hit songs recorded by ‘The Angels’, including such classics as ‘Show Me The Way To Marseilles’ and ‘Am I Ever Going To See Your Face Again’. As in other years, there will also be a hot ‘Contempory Act’ featured at the Awards, playing and talking about their approach to songwriting. This, of course, is in addition to the Category Winners of the 2008 Song Contest jetting in to Sydney from all over Australia to perform. The National Awards Night will be on Thursday 28th August, at Wests Ashfield Leagues Club, as it has in the last few years. The Club has been recently renovated, and is ‘state of the art’ venue. The CEO Andy Timbs, together with the rest of his staff, always go out of their way to make the event a great success, and their support is greatly appreciated. Stir in Presenters from APRA and ARIA (amongst other Producers/Publicists/Personalities etc), with a whole host of Celebrities, and it spells out one incredible night. Tickets for the event will go fast, so to avoid missing out, you should book now via the ASA National Office (asanationaloffice@bigpond.com).

In the meantime, Director Alan Gilmour has now become the ASA’s Financial Officer, with Director Clare Burgess slotting in as Interim Part-Time Secretary. Vice Chairman Gary Luck has also taken on the role of Liaison Officer for all of our Regional Coordinators (RCs).

Speaking of Regional Coordinators, Kelly Ophel (who used to be Coordinator of our ‘Fresh Wax’ shows) has assumed the mantle of ASA Sydney NSW Metro RC, whilst Jessica Dix recently became our Hobart/Tasmania RC. This is in addition to our two Victorian RCs, Trevor Shard in Melbourne, and Peter Sheen in the Warrnambool Region. Latest news is that Peter Murphy has also joined our ranks, to represent the ASA as RC for Wollongong NSW.

In the last few months I’m pleased to report, that the ASA was represented at APRA’s Song Summit Sydney (S3) Conference at the Royal Hall Of Industries, in Moore Park, Sydney. This event ran for three days, from Thursday 3 April to Saturday 5 April 2008. Your Board took turns manning the ASA booth, signing up new Members, distributing material, selling merchandise, and spreading the word about our ‘Wax Lyricals’ and Song Contest 2008. With shirts, caps etc, adorning the walls, and our 2006 and 2007 Awards Night DVDs showing on screen, the stall looked cool, and served to get the ASA message out to all attendees.

APRA ran the Conference in connection with the NSW Government, and Peter Garrett officially opened the show as the keynote speaker. There were workshops, panels and showcases, and for the ASA it proved a worthwhile and very beneficial experience.

The subsequent Song Contest 2008 Launch was awesome, with a lot of S3 visitors swelling out the songwriters present on Monday 7 April 2008, at a jumping ‘Kellys On King’ pub on King Street, Newtown. Jimmy, the Manager, put on a special sausage sizzle and free drinks for a couple of hours. He is a great guy, and his friendly attitude makes for a wonderful atmosphere. A DVD of Simon Shapiro being crowned APRA ASA’s Songwriter Of The Year at the 2007 Awards was shown, and then the man himself stepped up to the microphone, and thrilled the audience with his incredible songs (and voice). The night coincided with Kelly Ophel’s first Wax Lyrical as our new Sydney Metro NSW Regional Coordinator, so there was a big crowd in attendance. It was an excellent Launch for what has proved to be a near record breaking Song Contest.

Speaking of Conferences, Director Alan Gilmour was also the ASA rep at the Australian Songwriters Conference, held over the four days of the June 2008 long weekend, on the NSW north coast. Whilst there, he was able to distribute membership application forms, and took part in a business discussion. He spoke at length about the ASA, and our annual Song Contest.

On behalf of the ASA, I have also been involved in many months of talks with officials of APRA, Songsalive, and the Songwriting Society Of Australia, regarding the formation of an ‘umbrella’ organisation, to be called ASONG (Australian Songwriters Official National Group). The object of this group would be to represent all the major songwriters associations, and have much more ‘clout’ when dealing with the ‘big issues’. They include such things as having appointees on every Government Committee making policy regarding songwriters and music, and when applying for Government grants. Among other things, combined annual Concerts held under the ASONG banner have also been debated. All in all, it seems to be positive for the ASA. However, the discussions are in their formative stage, with a lot of work still needing to be done before anything comes to our Directors for perusal. We will keep you posted via the Website regarding further developments.

This year the Board are looking into the ASA having a bigger presence at Festivals, Conferences, etc. However, we do need more Regional Coordinators. If anyone is interested in becoming one of our RCs, and helping to run ‘Wax Lyricals’ in your local area, please get in touch with Interim Part-time Secretary Clare Burgess, through the ASA National Office (asanationaloffice@bigpond.com).

The next few months will be exhausting, but exciting, as we find out the winners of Australian Song Contest 2008, and then celebrate them at the National Awards Night. Our Major Sponsor APRA will help us crown APRA's ASA Songwriter Of The Year on that date. It will be a fabulous evening, so don’t miss out on it.

Until then, hope to see you at a Wax Lyrical. Remember, if you are a Songwriter, you should belong to the ASA.

Regards

Denny Burgess

Chairman

Australian Songwriters Association

ASA News

The ASA in recent years went through a very exciting transformation, from a committee setup to a more professional structure of a Board and a paid executive. We still operate as a non-profit organisation, but now employ part-time office staff to help raise the level of service available to all members. The Board, consisting of unpaid volunteers elected annually at the AGM, consistantly work at seeking further industry and strategic alliances to maximise recognition of and benefits to the Australian songwriting community. The ASA, Australia's only truly national songwriters' association, is buoyed by power of the song and the extensive amount of talent to be found in this nation.

The ASA National Office is located at 50 Enmore Rd, Newtown (Sydney).

Member News

The ASA's National Awards Night  which honours the Australian Songwriting Contest's successful songwriters, is held in August each year. This gala industry event not only unveils the ASA Songwriter of the Year, but also features the induction of the country's finest songwriters into the Australian Songwriters Hall of Fame! Limited seating is available for this dinner-style event, so get in early! Book via email: asanationaloffice@bigpond.com .

Industry News

The new sponsor of the ASA's Songwriter of the Year Award in the Australian Songwriting Contest is APRA (Australasian Performing Rights Association). This organisation provides composers and publishers with the invalable service of collecting their copyright fees and ensuring the money gets passed on to them. This is why APRA membership is essential for all songwriters. It's free - just go to www.apra.com.au