Greetings friends! I hope that the end of 2017 has you reflecting on as many fun and creative moments as I am. This past summer marked the fourth year that Young Songwriter Programs have been running summer camps throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. We held nine camps altogether beginning in Los Angeles, CA for a private workshop at The Lab for Learning and ended in Southington, CT. This year I have relocated from Austin, TX to Bellingham, WA which will now be the home base for Holistic ArtVentures and Young Songwriter Programs. We are now offering songwriting workshops and camps to homeschool communities, private and public schools and children of all ages year round. Songwriting programs work well as an after school activity, during winter and spring break or as an artistic component to any academic curriculum or team building event. Email Havilah today at havilahrand@gmail.com to explore the possibilities!

Here is a photo and video recap of our amazing summer of 2017!

We began on Whidbey Island in June with a youth group called the Earth Guardians. Hosted at a beautiful home complete with gardens and farm on gorgeous Whidbey Island, our songs centered around protecting the Earth and all of its creatures.

The next stop on the songwriting train was The Methow Valley to work with a small powerhouse trio of young ladies at The Methow Valley Community School.  Our songs also centered on animals, friendship and….crazy librarians??

We returned to Whidbey Island for a week at Full Moon Rising Farm with seven incredible songwriters spanning ages 6 – 14. I was amazed at how well everyone got along despite the age gaps. The idyllic setting complete with nature trails, farm animals, and yurt to work out of made this camp extra special and we can’t wait to return in 2018!

The ferry to Vashon Island from Seattle is always one of my favorite highlights of summer travels. The Vashon Center for the Arts always gives me a warm welcome with friendly smiles and a group of eleven excited songwriters. This week was bustling with activity as we wrote over thirty songs using our urban explorations and theater activities as inspiration.

Camp Cody in Bellingham, WA never disappoints with a refreshing cold pond to swim in, a treehouse to practice melodic ideas and draft lyrics and trails aplenty for exploring and finding creative inspiration. We were extra lucky this year to have award winning songwriter Johann Wagner join us as a mentor and we look forward to his return summer of 2018!

We ended our Northwest camps in beautiful Seattle at The Bertschi School with a small but astoundingly talented group. We spent the week sleuthing for lyrical ideas in the surrounding neighborhood, through watercolor painting and instrument making.

Then I got on a plane to my childhood stomping grounds of Southington, CT to lead a camp hosted by my very own Aunt Mary and her newly opened art center called Southington Community Cultural Arts Center. I was joined by my songwriting and touring buddy Bruce Salmon who did a tremendous job of coaxing some beautifully raw and rockin songs out of our songwriters. We’ll be back next year!

Creating this post brings me so much joy and gratitude for the work I am blessed to do. Looking forward immensely to hear the songs and meet the songwriters of 2018!

Greetings and Happy New Year from Havilah, the founder and creator of Young Songwriter Programs. First, I want to thank the many friends and supporters who gave to our Indiegogo fundraising campaign in November and December. Together we were able to raise $2500 which will go towards paying for recording equipment, instruments and providing scholarships for five young songwriters this summer. (by the way you can STILL donate so check out the link HERE) So far I’ve been a one woman machine but now I feel like I truly have a team of supporters and believers behind me. Now, more than ever, it’s so important to give young people the opportunity to tap into their own innate creative talents and express themselves without fear or judgement. After years teaching in both public and alternative learning classrooms, I know the stark difference between a child whose true potential is being stifled or awakened, whose self confidence is being torn down or lifted up and whose desire to create is being supported or squelched.

My dream is that the philosophy and guiding principles of the Young Songwriter Programs will be embodied in a curriculum that can be integrated into public and private school learning communities. For now, the summer camps and workshops are flourishing. The after school workshops at both Integrity Academy and Austin Village Academy culminated with over twelve songs about everything from fossils to minecraft to the fear a tightrope walker must feel when hovering over a city. I also led several private workshops at birthday parties, Christmas parties and a New Year’s Day gathering. These were beautiful moments when I was able to facilitate groups of both young people and adults co-writing a song that was of course recorded and given to each participant.

If you know me, then you know I have itchy feet and have to move around frequently. I’ll be in Austin, TX till May with a quick jaunt to the Colorado area in April. I’m available for private coaching, small group workshops and homeschool programs so contact me if you are interested! Then in June I will offer a Cirque De Soleil summer camp at Integrity Academy from May 30 – June 3. This will be a blast as we write our own music, practice dance and acro-yoga to create an incredible performance. I’ll then take off for the Pacific Northwest and lead summer camps in Twisp, Seattle, Vashon Island and Bellingham all in Washington State. Check out the Summer Camp 2016 page for more details.  In August, it’s off to Alaska. Then a tentative plan to head to the east coast and Europe in the fall. I’ll keep you posted and please reach out if you are interested in helping put together a workshop, house concert, or combination in any of these parts of the globe.

Much Gratitude to all and may 2016 bring you many opportunities to be creative, to sing songs and to manifest your dreams..

Love, Havilah