Darren Manzari
Audio By Carbonatix
New Orleans musician Anders Osborne has been hooked on songwriting since he was eight years old and created an evocative melody on his parents’ pump organ. He began writing poetry, and in his early twenties, he worked as a roadie, dishwasher and ranch hand, picking up odd gigs and collaborating with local bands.
Since that humble beginning, Osborne has made quite the name for himself, with three albums, countless tours and performances, and a fistful of awards under his belt. His musical prowess has earned him multiple “Best of the Beat” awards from OffBeat magazine – Best Songwriter of the Year, Best Guitarist and Best Producer, to name a few.
Now budding songwriters will get the chance to learn from Osborne during High Camp Hut’s Nature and Songwriting Workshop, a four-day, three-night retreat in September in Telluride, surrounded by Colorado’s glorious San Juan Mountains.
High Camp Hut is a two-story cabin on 320 acres of luscious private land a 2.5-mile trek off Highway 145. The ideal setting for escaping from the hustle and bustle of city life, the hut is nestled amid the 2 million acres of the San Juan National Forest. The very definition of “glamping,” the cabin includes double-occupancy rooms, a composting outhouse and an outdoor, pumped hot tub and sauna, which High Camp Hut calls the “camp shower.”
Views from the High Camp Hut’s idyllic 320 acres, site of the Nature and Songwriting Workshop with Anders Osborne.
Courtesy of High Camp Hut
The retreat will walk participants through the creative process of songwriting, how to find musical inspiration, common lyrical themes and the healing power of music. Community campfire jam sessions, morning tea and coffee, an intriguing meal coined “Super Breakfast” and hikes in the surrounding mountains are just some of the activities included in the backcountry retreat.
Osborne already has his curriculum planned out; he’ll go through five different core aspects of songwriting, with assignments and writing practice sessions for campers. “Hopefully the end result is that you feel super inspired and that, if you were not an avid songwriter before this, at least you leave with a song,” Osborne says.
He’ll provide students with the tools to realize their musical ideas, helping them craft compositions using instruments, varying chord structures and the magic combination of melody and poetry that creates a lyrical flow. One of his goals is to educate participants on how to monetize their music by discussing commercial writing, writing for television and movies, and songwriting for personal projects.
“Is it a story? Is it a catchy pop tune with a hook and a chorus, or is it more of a traditional folk song like Woody Guthrie and traditional working songs? Is it blues? I can guide in these aspects and give the tools,” Osborne says. “If someone wants to get more commercial breaks, I can also guide them in publishing companies, how to approach these people, and how to get through the different gates to get to a person that actually matters.”
To Osborne, one of the most integral parts of songwriting is knowing who you are – something he’s achieved through intensive self-inquiry and soul-searching. “[Songwriting] is something that you create the space for inspiration to happen, and you have to keep an open mind, you keep an innocence about your heart so that you can absorb what’s happening,” he says.
Every time Osborne participates in workshops and retreats and collaborates with a multitude of other music-hungry souls, he leaves with new knowledge and a spark of inspiration. “There’s so much individual experience and wisdom from other people,” he says. “So when you get this close and this intimate with a group of people, you always learn something. There’s always one person who’ll tell me something that inspires me to write.”
He estimates around a dozen people will attend the workshop and considers the intimate size of the retreat a big plus, explaining that workshops like this often lead to lifelong friendships. “We get to talk and hike and discuss life matters – deep and shallow things, laugh, play music. … The whole experience is going to be absolutely magnificent,” he says.
Osborne is looking forward to connecting with workshop participants on a deep, personal level, and hopes to leave them with three vital lessons about songwriting: “Learn to love the process, accept and work with your shortcomings, and find your own voice.”
The Nature and Songwriting workshop runs September 11-14 and costs $2,495 per person; find out more here.
