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INTERVIEW: Dena Marchiony of
the Philadelphia Songwriters Project The doors to the Ted and Stevie Wolf Stage at the Wilma
Theater are closed and they won't be opened tonight. Instead this
evening's show will take place in the lobby of the theater. Show setup
is underway for the Emerging Songwriters Series, just one component of
the Philadelphia Songwriters Project (PSP). From the back of the room
the light sounds of a harp can be heard.
"... The program was created in November 2002 by Dena Marchiony and Stu Shames. "We kind of just had this idea, wouldn't it be great to have songwriters in an atypical situation where people were actually listening instead of competing with bar noise and latte machines, where people were focused on the performer," Marchiony says. In January of 2003 PSP launched its first show at the Adrienne Theatre. The shows were held on Sunday nights and continued for a year and a half. The Emerging Songwriters Series began at the Manayunk Music Exchange. It was an old consignment shop where instruments hung on the walls with a small stage and room for 30 people. This venue gave developing songwriters an opportunity to interact with a listening audience and improve their craft. PSP has made several connections along the way, collaborating with the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the Philly Folk Festival and the Wilma Theater. This year PSP plans to perform at Musikfest in Bethlehem. "Basically always trying to put songwriters in a listening environment," Marchiony says. Tonight's show features four songwriters ranging from a harpist who once lived in Switzerland to a spoken word artist. Songwriters interested in the program submit demos and PSP assembles shows of four or five performers. PSP is different from other venues in that its sole concern is not how many people a performer can bring in. "We're looking for production values, were looking for who's interesting, who would be a good mix, who's ready for a certain venue," says Marchiony. In the past just about every genre of music has been covered. From hip hop, to country to blues, jazz and folk. Each songwriter brings a unique personality to the stage. The first performer, a guitarist, not only writes powerful lyrics, but also impressively impersonates Regis Philbin, Christopher Walken and Chewbacca. Harpist Gillian Grassie says she wanted to play the stringed instrument for as long as she can remember. "My parents wanted me to play the piano or the guitar, but I wasn't having any of it," Grassie says. She started out playing Celtic music and even studied in Edinburgh, Scotland. She's been doing freelance work at weddings and at hotels and restaurants. "With the harp there is high demand and low competition," says Grassie. She eventually hopes to make a living as a musician. Since the music industry is such a competitive one, PSP has designed an education component known as the Mentoring Series. During this monthly program PSP discusses a variety of music and business issues that face the artist. The mentors are community members who are experts in the particular subject that is being discussed. One individual who benefited from PSP and probably the project's most notable story involves a gentleman named Mutlu. It was PSP's anniversary show, January 2004, and Helen Leicht from WXPN was in the audience. Leicht immediately fell in love with Mutlu's music and started playing him on the radio. Soon he became WXPN's artist to watch. He's played the WXPN Festival and also performed at the Kimmel Center. According to Marchiony, he's been taken to the next level. "The angle we like to take on all of this is that this is a great opportunity to see people," says Marchiony. "It's like seeing The Beatles when they were in Germany playing in the basement." PSP works to promote the variety of talent found right here in Philadelphia. The essential and critical issue facing PSP is funding. The program is now in its third season and Marchiony plans to continue what she started. "We've done it three years or three seasons of music, really kind of hand to mouth," says Marchiony. It's been a full time endeavor on a volunteer basis and she continues networking on behalf of the songwriters. Without funding none of this would be possible. Another area that PSP is looking to expand is songwriters in film. They'd like to see original music written for theater as well as film. But again it takes time to develop those relationships and contacts. As the evening's show came to a close, Marchiony had one final message for the audience, "Support the arts it's truly a treasure and a joy." 
© 2005 Drunken Mermaid Entertainment Limited. All rights reserved.
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