OUR STAFF:
Andy West, Music
Course Director: MA Songwriting
Personal statement:
My current academic interests lie within the development of the teaching and learning of Songwriting in Higher Education. I have been teaching songwriting at Bath Spa since 2004 and in 2007 I designed the World's first Master's Degree in Songwriting. I was made a teaching fellow in 2009.
315 of my songs have been published.
Professional Qualifications:
MA Professional Learning.
Membership of Professional Bodies/Subject Associations:
Performing Right Society (since 1992)
American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (since 2001)
Teaching Specialisms:
Songwriting, Musicology, Music Industries.
Key Publications/Exhibitions/Performances:
My songwriting career began in 1990 when I joined Hugh Cornwell (The Stranglers) and Roger Cook (Blue Mink) to form Cornwell, Cook and West. After recording live sessions for Radio One and GLR and performing in London at Ronnie Scotts, the Bloomsbury Theatre, Jazz Cafe, the Palladium and then around England and Europe we made an album 'CCW' in 1992.
Between 1993 and 1996 I wrote songs for Carlin Music in London and in 1997 I moved to Nashville and signed to Warner-Chappell as a staff songwriter. In 2001 I set up my own publishing company, Mersey Beaucoup, and in the following year the US-based Infinity Cat label released a solo album of my songs titled 'Sundays and Birthdays'.
While resident in America I played live and recorded original material with a number of talented musicians including Clive Gregson, Ian Wallace (Bob Dylan), Joey Spampinato (NRBQ), Michael Rhodes (Elton John, The Beach Boys) Garry Tallent (Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band), Pat Buchanan (Dixie Chicks) and Kenny Vaughan (Lucinda Williams). In 2003 I produced Julie Lee's 'Stillhouse Road', a CD featuring guest appearances from Grammy award winners Alison Krauss and Vince Gill.
In recent years my songs have been used in TV shows including 'Lost' (in 'Left Behind' Series 3 Episode 15) and 'Heroes' (in 'Fallout' Series 1, Episode 11), in the Spanish Soap Opera El Cor De La Cuitat, the award winning Japanese Anime 'Tsuribaka Nisshi' and in acclaimed director Lars Von Trier's film 'Dear Wendy'.
Waltz Without Whispering was featured throughout minisode 3 of the Golden Globe and Grammy Award winning HBO series 'True Blood', broadcast on May 11, 2010.
Other songs have been on 'Oprah' and 'Friends, BBC1, BBC2, BBC3, ITV1, Channel 4 and Sky and in films made in Australia, France, Canada, Greece, Poland, New Zealand, Holland, Mexico, Sweden and Spain.
My songs have also been recorded by some of my favourite artists including Joe Brown, Stackridge, Jamie O'Neal and Leslie Mills. Leslie included 'Higher' and 'My Favorite Year', both of which are co-published with Paul McCartney's MPL tunes, on her 2007 album 'Everlasting Road'. Austin based Colin Boyd recorded 'Like A Miracle' on his 2008 CD 'Shine' on the Happy Cat label and in 2009 Kevin Ahart cut four of my songs for his forthcoming album 'Songs in the Key of Love'. In 2010 Polish singer Petra Janu translated 'Higher' into Polish as 'Cekam' on her new record released by Supraphon 'Kouzlu'.
I regularly teach at the International Songwriting Festival held in Bath, where I have shared the stage with Iain Archer, interviewed Chris Difford, reviewed songs with Richard Thompson and listened to test cricket on the radio with Dominic King.
Current Scholarship:
I am currently writing a PhD paper on the teaching and learning of songwriting in Higher Education.
Research:
2006: 'An Investigation into the Epistemology and Pedagogy of Songwriting with a view to Informing the Development of a Curriculum to Support the Implementation of a Postgraduate Award'. This research compares how professional songwriters develop songwriting knowledge with how songwriting knowledge is facilitated in Higher Education Worldwide. The paper is held at the Bath Spa University Library.
2007: 'Creating an MA in Songwriting'. In May 2006 I was awarded PALATINE funding to undertake further research into the teaching and learning of Songwriting. This research, which includes qualitative interviews with UK-based songwriting students and music publishers, focuses upon key pedagogical debates in the subject area. Findings were published on the PALATINE website in March 2007.
2008: 'Does Songwriting Belong in Higher Education?'. Paper delivered at 'Creativity and Employability', a conference held at Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts on March 27th 2008.
2009: 'Key Pedagogical Influences on the Teaching and Learning of MA Songwriting'. Paper delivered at Fimpac, a conference held at Leeds College of Music on February 20th 2009.
Contact Andy West by using the form below
