MAS History

MAS gratefully acknowledges the assistance of John Bennett and Joe Schreifels, the founding presidents of the Minnesota Christian Songwriters Association and the Minnesota Association of Songwriters, respectively, who have confirmed its accuracy. Research continues and new facts will be incorporated as they are unearthed.

1980
John Bennett, Wayne Cox, Larry Havluck, Myke Golben and Tom Lieberman were among the first members of an organization called the Minnesota Songwriters Association (MSA). Bennett was the principal founder and was elected as the first president; in the 1990s he founded and was president of the Minnesota Association of Christian Songwriters. Another MSA member in the early 80s was Minnesota native Jon Vezner, who later wrote the Grammy-winning “Where’ve You Been?” and several other cuts recorded by Nashville stars. Bennett was succeeded as MSA president by Wayne Cox in 1984.

Below:  Promotional ad developed in 1980. Courtesy of John Bennett, who is currently a member of MAS.

In its earliest incarnation, songwriters in Minnesota wanted to perform their songs in public, just as we do today. Below is a poster from 1980 that promoted a show at the Cafe Extempore, then the premiere acoustic music spot in the Twin Cities, where Bob Dylan is said to have "hung out" while he was a student at the U of M. This 11 by 17 inch poster is provided courtesy of Jill Holly.

1988
Tom Lieberman infused a new source of strength into MSA by affiliating it with a national songwriter’s organization called the National Academy of Songwriters (NAS), which formed a chapter here. David Leaneagh became a key leader of the local MSA/NAS group. Both groups declined and eventually disbanded in the early 1990s.

1994
Joe Schreifels and a group of interested people started the Minnesota Association of Songwriters (MAS). Several members of the new organization had also been members of MSA and/or NAS. MAS published its first newsletter on December 18 of that year. The group offered song reviews, education sessions and endorsements (certificates of recognition resulting from reviews) for members’ songs.

1995
On June 17, MAS members organized and performed their first showcase at the “On The Way Café.” That same month, MAS began work on a compilation CD titled “Future Hits,” which would eventually be sent to music publishers around America. Members whose songs had been “endorsed” (a majority vote of members) qualified for inclusion on the recording. In December, the CD release party was held at The Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis.

Below:  The cover of MAS's first CD release, which included songs by Bradlee Jones, Brad Frederickson & Rick Gilmore, James Alex Faber, Rebekka Fisher, Rob Meany,Terry Schubring, Thomas Hipps, David Marden, J.D. Dohnal, Perry Bolin, Tom Buckman, Bruce Arneson, Michael Daugherty, Heather E. Brown, Joe Schreifels & Larry Strom, Donna M. Murray, Brad Kissell, Don Strand and Gil Leduc & Scott Thomas.

This CD is available for $5. To order, email info@mnsongwriters.org
All proceeds benefit the Minnesota Association of Songwriters.

1996
On June 11, a “re-release” party for the first CD was held at The Fine Line. In July, Berklee School of Music songwriting professor Pat Pattison taught his first lyric-writing seminar for MAS. By August, the songs for “Future Hits, Volume 2” had been selected. In November, Pat Pattison returned to offer a second seminar, and “Volume 2” had its CD release party at the Fine Line. By December, a team was in place that began working on the first MAS web site.

Below:  The CD cover for "Future Hits, volume 2," which included 19 songs by Bradlee Jones, Jeff Perry, Gigi Byrd, Joe Frederick & Gil LeDuc & Gigi Byrd, James Alex Faber, David Marden & Heather E. Brown, Rebekka Fisher, Don & Cyndy Strand, Michael Dinneen, Steven G. Tazelaar, Joe Schreifels & Larry Strom, Brad Kissell, Kit McGary, Robert Andrew Huff, Nicco, Tim Feeney, Jeff Cosman & Todd Syring, Eric Clark and Rob Meany.

This CD is available for $5. To order, email info@mnsongwriters.org
All proceeds benefit the Minnesota Association of Songwriters.

1997
In May, plans for “Future Hits, Volume 3” began. Pat Pattison returned in June for his third seminar with the group. The first MAS web site appeared on the Internet.

1998
Another showcase was organized and presented in July. “Future Hits, Volume 3” was completed in October; O’Gara’s Garage in St. Paul hosted the CD release party. In December, Joe Schreifels stepped down as MAS President.

Below:  The CD cover for "Future Hits, volume 3," which included 17 songs by Larry Johnson, Tom Haddox, Gigi Byrd, Ray Barnard & Doug Miller, Jeff W. Schmidt & James R. Baldrica, JD Dohnal, Kit McGary & Todd Syring, Rebekka Fisher, Larry Strom & Joe Schreifels, Ron Long, Leslie Mallery, Gil LeDuc, Emily Youngdahl Wright & Robert Berg, Craig Dahl, Mary Elias, Mike Dinneen, Joe Schreifels & Doug Thompson.

This CD is available for $5. To order, email info@mnsongwriters.org
All proceeds benefit the Minnesota Association of Songwriters.

1999
Gigi Byrd Swanson volunteered to serve as interim President, a post she held until the fall of 2000. For several years, MAS held annual holiday parties, which enabled members to network in large numbers. Gigi also initiated Minnesota not-for-profit status for MAS.

2000
Leonard John is elected President.

2002
Vicki Logan is elected President. Vicki reinstated songwriting workshops at each monthly meeting.

2004
Char Engen is elected President. Char focused on finding venues for MAS showcases.

2005
Claire Van de Crommert is elected president. She not only built songwriting skills among members, but also enhanced member knowledge about the business of songwriting.

2006
The MAS web site is rebuilt under Claire’s leadership, with the assistance of Wayne Hamilton, and meetings included both workshops and song reviews.

2007
Wayne Hamilton, who first joined MAS in 1998, is elected President. In 1999, Hamilton had founded and for five years led the Twin Cities Chapter of Just Plain Folks (justplainfolks.org). Monthly MAS meetings continue to feature workshops, guest speakers and song reviews.

2008
Hamilton expanded the Board of Directors and worked with BMI to acquire a "grassroots" grant for MAS, part of which was used to sponsor a two-day workshop with Pat Pattison from the Berklee College of Music. Showcases occurred frequently, with the help of board member Nigel Eccleston. Board member Brad Dunse put technology in place to allow member songs to be streamed from the MAS web site. Hamilton continues to focus on workshops, song reviews and the continued growth of new memberships.

2009
MAS returns to twice-monthly meetings for the first time since 2001. Each month, a meeting is scheduled in both Minneapolis and St. Paul. MAS showcase coordinator Nigel Eccleston schedules an unprecedented 17 showcase performances for members at several venues in the Twin Cities metro area.

2010
MAS Secretary Trish Painter applies for and receives the first grant ever awarded to MAS by the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (MRAC). Grant money will be used to sponsor workshops with four songwriting professionals (Cosy Sheridan, Craig Bickhardt, Steve Gillette & Pat Pattison) in 2011.



Trish Painter and MAS Vice President Jill Holly arranged for a workshop with Nashville songwriter Buddy Mondlock in October. Nigel Eccleston passed the baton as showcase coordinator to Jim Anderson, who continues to schedule numerous showcase events throughout the year, including the first MAS showcase at the Minnesota State Fair. In December, the Board voted to make online membership application forms and payments via PayPal available to members. MAS technical director Brad Dunse was instrumental in assuring the smooth implementation of new technology.

2011
At different points during the year, three elected officers stepped down due to personal or family concerns:  Secretary Trish Painter is replaced by Chris Gimm; VP Jill Holly is replaced by Chad Sharp; Treasurer Tim Zbikowski is replaced by Mark Grim. In February, MAS first offered song evaluations via email, enabling members who live anywhere in the world to submit MP3 files and lyric sheets for evaluation. In March, the MAS board of directors added a new position:  Social Media director, which will enable MAS to take advantage of advanced communication methods, such as posting music files and performance videos, offered by Facebook, YouTube and other social media. In April, the MAS board established a scholarship, to be awarded annually to an upcoming Senior in songwriting and composition at McNally Smith College of Music. In May, the first of the MRAC workshops featured Cosy Sheridan, who offered ways for performing songwriters to improve their acts. In June, MAS produced the first of a series of video showcase programs, called "Minnesingers", to be aired on public-access cable networks in the region; member Rita Fox directs member performers and trained volunteers at the studios of NWCT. In July, songwriter Craig Bickhardt presented an eclectic workshop on writing story songs and some of the business concerns of the songwriting industry. In its second year of State Fair showcases, MAS members performed three, four-hour showcases that featured 24 sets by MAS performing songwriters. In September, folk icon Steve Gillette presented a 5-hour workshop on the basics of songwriting. In October, Mary Kealy-Falk joined the board of directors in a new position, Education and Outreach director, wherein she schedules speakers for the "last Wednesday" monthly meetings; she also contacts CATV stations about the MAS Minnesingers show and distributes DVDs to interested stations. Wayne Hamilton was elected to another term as President, and Chris Gimm is elected Secretary after serving as an appointed officer for several months; Chris assembled the final report on our workshop grant to MRAC. In November, master lyric-writing teacher Pat Pattison returned to conduct our final MRAC-funded workshop.