About us
The Songwriting Studies Research Network unites scholars, industry workers and practitioners in a forum for the exchange of ideas about songwriting. We aim to:
- Establish songwriting studies as an interdisciplinary field in its own right by bringing together diverse groups of participants.
- Foster relationships between academics, industry workers and practitioners through the provision of a space for the sharing of ideas and approaches.
- Produce new insights related to songwriting by exploring key issues, questions and themes.
- Share this knowledge through publications, projects and other initiatives.
The network was originally funded from 2019-2021 by the AHRC.
Founding Team
Principal Investigator
Simon is a Senior Research Fellow at Birmingham City University and is the principal investigator for the Songwriting Studies Research Network. He is also one half of the songwriting team Sodajerker, and co-presenter of their popular podcast featuring interviews with world-renowned songwriters.
Co-Investigator
Mike is Programme Director for MA Music Industry Studies and MA Business of Classical Music at the University of Liverpool. He drew on his experience as a songwriter for 80s band Latin Quarter in the writing of his PhD thesis. In the past few years He has written and directed two musical shows: Where Light Falls: Songs About Joni Mitchell and George Harrison: the Beatles and Indian Music.
Project Coordinator
Craig Hamilton is a Research Fellow at Birmingham City University. His research is built around Harkive and comprises experimental methodological approaches derived from the use of data collection and machine-learning algorithms. Craig is also the co-Managing Editor of Riffs: Experimental Writing on Popular Music.
