With the exception of instrumentals and lyrics only, songs will be evaluated based on the various basic components (melody/harmony, lyrics, flow, structure/contrast) and overall delivery — and not on the production, quality of recording or arrangement. Prizes will be awarded to first and second place (gold and silver) winners in each of 15 categories, while finalists and honorable mention winners also will be selected. This year’s categories include adult contemporary, Americana, children’s, country/bluegrass, folk acoustic, freedom, gospel/inspirational, instrumental, lyrics only, open, pop, r & b/hip hop/urban, rock/alternative, vocal jazz/blues, and video. There is no limit on the number of entries and songs may be entered in multiple categories.

Category winners will be announced on or before December 31. Gold and silver (first- and second-place) winners in each category will be invited to perform their winning songs at a gala event early next year during which a grand-prize winner and second-place overall winner also will be named.

Contest rules and online applications may be found at https://saw.org/contestinfo.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to develop, promote, and encourage songwriters through education, networking, and performance opportunities throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, peer critique sessions, social events, and its SAW Serves community service program.

Devon expressed thanks to her dear friend Chris Dupont, who produced the single and is “responsible for those magical harmonies.” Calling him “a joy to work with,” she said: “He did an amazing job making the song so powerfully heartfelt and sincere.” The Mid-Atlantic Song Contest’s judges apparently agreed, and Devon is “completely blown away and honored” that ‘”Our Garden” won Gold in the Folk/Acoustic category and the Grand Prize.

A previous winner of several Silver awards in the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest, as well as its Young Artist Award, Devon recalled winning her first honorable mention in MASC about seven years ago. “I remember going to the awards gala at Jammin’ Java [in Vienna, Virginia] and being star-struck. This is a dream come true. I am so grateful.”

A graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy and Berklee College of Music, Devon has also been a two-time finalist in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition (2017 and 2018) and has had a couple of her largely introspective and personal songs placed in TV shows.

Here is a link to listen to Teghan Devon’s grand prize-winning song, “Our Garden.”

More information about her may be found at teghandevonmusic.com

Denikos describes “Purple Hearts” as “a song about how ‘hurt people hurt people’ and then realize what’s been lost. It’s a song about coming to terms with all that. It is a self-reflective, harshly so, tune put to a melodic finger-picking blues tune that is intended to be mockingly playful and yet tragically somber lyrically.”

Of his second-place-winning song, Denikos said: “Stylistically, it was obviously inspired by the finger-picking Piedmont blues style that Elizabeth Cotton mastered, as well as the unfortunate life experience of having a long-term relationship/marriage of mine end a few years back in 2018.” Acknowledging “the song cuts pretty close to the bone,” he continued, “If a blues song doesn’t rearrange the marrow a bit, you are really not writing a blues tune as much as you are parroting one. And, in my opinion, nothing is worse than that.”

Here is a link to listen to Tony Denikos’ second-place song, “Purple Hearts.”

More information about him may be found at tonydenikos.com.

Overall and Select Individual category winners in the 2022 contest include:

Grand Prize: Teghan Devon for “Our Garden”
2nd Place: Tony Denikos for “Purple Hearts”
3rd Place: Jim Johnson for “Continental Divide”
Director’s Award: Christie Chirinos for “Empathy” spelling
Young Artist: Ava Della Pietra

Adult Contemporary: Gold – Jillian Matundan for “Frozen”, Silver – Louis Café for “Shot in the Dark (Roll of the Dice”)
Americana: Gold – Jim Johnson for “Continental Divide”, Silver – Tony Denikos for “Purple Hearts”
Children’s: Chris Hardy and Katherine Hardy for “All the right Vehicles”, Silver – Bett Padgett for “Where Did Papa Go?”
Country/Bluegrass: Tedd Swormstedt and Victoria Banks for “Shade of Blue”, Silver: Andrew Wolf and Elizabeth Wolf for “All I’m Hearing is Goodbye”
Folk/Acoustic: Gold – Teghan Devon for “Our Garden, ” Silver – Ron Fetner for “Down a Gravel Road”
Freedom Songs: Gold – Will Diehl for “Sunflowers,” Silver – Domingos Muekali, Jr., Kavi Lybarger, and Natalie Fitzen for “America”
Instrumental: Matthew Holsen for “Goodbye to All That,” Silver – Seth Kibel for “How Will I Know?”
Lyrics Only: Charles McCullough for “Reservation Blues,” Silver – Roderick Deacey for “Maybe Later”
Open: Gold – Jacob Rubin for “The Cars in My Mind,” Silver – Chris Hardy for “I Wish I Knew You”
Video: Gold – Juliet Lloyd for “Ghost Light,” Silver – Kevin Lucas for “Cahokia Winds”
Vocal/Jazz/Blues: Gold – Seth Kibel for “Robert Johnson in 1972,” Silver – Mike Franke and Larry Sakayanna for “Key Lime Pie”

A full listing of the winners, finalists and honorable mention recipients in the preceding and other categories may be found at saw.org/masc.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to develop, promote, and encourage songwriters through education, networking, and performance opportunities throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, peer critique sessions, and social events, and its SAW Serves community service program.

The show can be viewed online at Harbortown Music’s Facebook page or YouTube channel. It may also be shared via the AcousticMusicScene.com group on Facebook. Although there is no set fee to view the livestream, tips for the artists would be most appreciated (suggested donation: $20) and may be made via paypalme.com/harbortownmusic.

About the Artists:

One of the most acclaimed voices in contemporary folk music, Amy Speace was discovered in 2006 by Judy Collins and signed to her record label. The Americana Music Association UK named the title track of her album Me and the Ghost of Charlemagne was named International Song of the Year in 2020. Speace’s latest release, 2021’s There Used To Be Horses Here. chronicles the year between the birth of her son and the death of her father. A new album, Tucson, is set for release this year. Collins, Red Molly, and Blues Hall of Famer Sid Selvidge among others, have also recorded her songs. Speace founded the East Nashville Song Salon in 2010 and teaches songwriting and performance at conferences, institutions, and privately. For more information, visit amyspeace.com.

Accompanying herself on piano, Kate Klim, whose songs mix her folk and pop sensibilities, was a winner of the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition in 2010, has been part of the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artist Showcase, and has been a finalist in the Mountain Stage Newsong Contest, the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest and the Telluride Troubadour Competition, among others. After a hiatus of a few years surrounding the birth of her two sons, she returned to the studio in early spring 2020 to begin recording her fourth album. Released earlier this month, Something Green is an album about hope, love, change, and new growth. For more information and to listen to some of her songs, visit kateklim.com.

Both artists also have YouTube channels. Here’s a link to view an official video of Amy Speace performing the title track of There Used To Be Horses There. And here’s a link to view the official lyric video for “Something Green,” the title track of Kate Klim’s new release.

About Your Hosts:

Michael Kornfeld, a veteran strategic communications and public relations professional – whose clients have included a number of independent recording artists and labels – launched AcousticMusicScene.com in 2007 to provide news, information and commentary for the folk, roots and singer-songwriter communities. The longtime president of the Folk Music Society of Huntington, a nonprofit presenting organization on Long Island, NY, Kornfeld also serves on the boards of Folk Alliance International and NERFA, curates the annual Huntington Folk Festival, emcees concerts, and hosts showcases and mentors artists at various music conferences and festivals.

Kathy Sands-Boehmer is an enthusiastic and tireless presenter, promoter and supporter of independent musicians. For years, she booked and promoted artists, new and old, at a well-respected 225-seat venue north of Boston, Massachusetts; was an active leader of the Boston Area Coffeehouse Association (BACHA); and has also mentored and managed artists. She blogs about all kinds of great music for Everything Sundry and recently launched Harbortown Music as a resource for musicians and venues — building community, while promoting and presenting high-quality music. Sands-Boehmer works with Stephen Bach of The Digital Docs, who engineers all of Harbortown Music’s virtual shows and lends his technical expertise to the participating artists as well.

Ryan told AcousticMusicScene.com that as a songwriter he tries hard “to explore ideas and stories I hope are both compelling and unique.” He believes “Between Heaven and the Ground” fits that bill. “Story songs are always a challenge because you have a very limited amount of time to introduce characters and tell their story in a meaningful way,” said Ryan, a rural Oklahoma native whose evocative lyrics, keen eye for detail, and capacity for crafting songs replete with vivid imagery has drawn comparison to such noted songwriters as Slaid Cleaves, Jeffrey Foucault and Robert Earl Keen. “In this song, I tried to capture the human emotions of the story by telling it in the first person from Orville Wright’s perspective,” he continued.

From a musical perspective, Ryan couldn’t be happier with the way the song turned out. “It features some really unique guitar chord voicings over a lovely piano part,” he said. “I was lucky enough to have some incredible musicians contribute to the track — including Kipyn Martin, who sang beautiful vocal harmonies and Tiffany Shanta, whose fiddle part set the perfect mood for the story,” he noted.

“It’s an understatement to say I’m humbled and thankful to know my song was selected as the very best from all the great songs submitted by talented folks from all over the world,” said Ryan, who previously won both the Grand Prize and took the Gold (first place) in the Folk-Acoustic category in the 36th annual Mid-Atlantic Song Contest, as well as Gold in what was then the Folk-Rock/Americana/Roots category two years earlier.

Ryan has received a bevy of other awards and accolades. Among them, he was the First Place overall winner in the Dallas [TX] Songwriters Association Songwriting Contest and a two-time finalist in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition. He has been a Silver and Bronze Medal Winner in American Songwriter Magazine’s Lyrics Contest, was a finalist in the Grassy Hill-CT Folk Songwriting Contest (2014), secured an official juried showcase at the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA) conference in Austin, TX, had two songs selected for inclusion in the Top 20 Songs of the Year in 2018’s Texas Troubadour Songwriting Competition, and was the third-place winner in the 2020 Songwriter Serenade in Schulenberg, TX.

Here is a link to listen to Mike Ryan’s grand prize-winning song:

https://soundcloud.com/mikepryanmusic/between-heaven-and-the-ground-1?si=992d2ea46e4b456fafea2a24a8e0e61c&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

More information about him and his music may be found at mikepryanmusic.com.

Individual category winners in the 2021 contest include:

Americana: “I Will Follow You” – Josh Orange – with Gordon Burke, Andrew Weiss, Alex Miller, Shane McLaughlin, and Bruce Munnings (Gold); “Painted Sky Café” – Andrew Wolf (Silver); Country/Bluegrass: “For Sale Sign” – Kevin Dudley (Gold), “Missing My Baby Blues” – Jeff McClellan; Folk-Acoustic: “Between Heaven and the Ground” – Mike Ryan (Gold), “Politics” – Robinson Treacher (Silver); Freedom Songs: “The True Story of Civil Rights Martyr Viola Liuzzo” – Ray Gamse and Joseph DeNatale (Gold), “Liberation Music” – Dumi Right (Silver); Instrumental: “Natural Compromisation” – Yana Nikol (Gold), “Zig’s Groove” – Michael Potts (Silver); Lyrics Only: “Trestle Walker Blues” – Charles McCullough (Gold), “Stolen Moments” – Tim White (Silver); Open: “Think Too Much” – Breezy Love (Gold), “Wasting Time” – Chris Hardy (Silver).

A group of video categories also was included in this year’s contest, with “Tavi’s Song” by Carrie Ferguson capturing the Gold, and “Dinosaurs” by Jessica Smucker the Silver in the overall Video category. Ferguson – along with Samara Sawyer and Garrett Sawyer – also was honored for Best Animation for “The Grumpytime Club.” Louisa Hall and Annie Nardolilli’s “Sexy Sea Shanty” was named Best Comedy; White”s “I Didn’t Know” received the award for Best Single Camera, while Lynne Swisher Spears, Jon Shain, Diana Thalheimer, Andrew Berinson, Omar Ruiz-Lopez and FJ Ventre’s video for “Bump” was honored for Best Found Images.

A full listing of the winners, finalists and honorable mention recipients in the preceding and other categories may be found at saw.org/masc.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to develop, promote, and encourage songwriters through education, networking, and performance opportunities throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, peer critique sessions, and social events, and its SAW Serves community service program.

With the exception of instrumentals and lyrics only, songs – which should not exceed four minutes in length — will be evaluated based on the basic components (melody/harmony, lyrics, flow, structure/contrast) and overall effectiveness, and not on the production, quality of recording or arrangement. Prizes will be awarded to first and second place (gold and silver) winners in each of 16 categories, while finalists and honorable mention winners also will be selected. Among the categories are folk/acoustic, Americana, country/bluegrass, children’s, instrumental, lyrics only, vocal jazz/blues, and the newly established ones for COVID-19-related songs, freeform and video. There is no limit on the number of entries and songs may be entered in multiple categories.

Category winners will be announced on or before December 31. Gold and silver (first- and second-place) winners in each category will be invited to perform their winning songs at a gala event early next year during which a grand-prize winner and second-place overall winner also will be named. For the past three consecutive years, the Gold winners in the folk/acoustic category have also won the grand prize: Stephen Coffee (2019), Mike P. Ryan (2018) and John Wort Hannam (2017).

Contest rules and online applications may be found at https://saw.org/masc.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to further excellence in songwriting through presenting educational programs and providing/promoting networking and performance opportunities for its members.

Susan Cattaneo (Photo: Dave Rackley)[/caption]Her latest recording, The Hammer and The Heart, a double album with an electric side and an acoustic side, was among the top five albums on folk radio in August 2017, according to charts compiled from radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in all folk-based music on the radio. The album’s “manifesto” song, “Work Hard Love Harder,” tied for the most-played song on Folk Radio that month. The album also charted at #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers Northeast Chart.

A two-time finalist in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition (2018 and 2015), Cattaneo also was one of 24 artists/acts who participated in the Emerging Artist Showcase at the 2016 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. (Grassy Hill Entertainment also sponsors both of these.) She also was a finalist in the 2016 Wildflower Arts and Music Festival’s songwriting contest and was the Director’s Choice winner in the 2015 Mid-Atlantic Song Contest, presented by the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW).

Cattaneo has been teaching songwriting at Boston’s Berklee College of Music for more than 15 years. She was formerly a part of the western Massachusetts-based trio The Boxcar Lilies.

As the songwriting competition winner, Cattaneo received a $150 cash prize and will have a performance slot in next year’s festival produced by the nonprofit organization CT Folk (www.ctfolk.org).

Editor’s Note: It was my honor and pleasure to again serve as one of the five judges in the competition. Choosing a winner from among the impressive finalists, culled from an initial pool of nearly 150 entrants, was not an easy task.

An Azalea City Recordings artist, Kibel, whose song also took top honors in the contest’s instrumental category, is the founder and leader of The Alexandria Kleztet and has worked with other klezmer, jazz and swing bands. Kibel has been received 28 Washington Area Music Awards (Wammies) over the years.

Second Place Overall honors went to Owen Lyman-Schmidt (Driftwood Soldier) for “Upstanding Citizen,” a song that also captured the Gold in the vocal jazz/blues category, while Third Place Overall went to the songwriting team of Ryan Martinez, Mike Westbrock and Debra Gussin, whose “U So Mean Nothing 2 Me” was the top winner in the r&b/hip hop/urban category. Carolann Solebello, a Brooklyn, New York-based singer-songwriter, received the Director’s Choice Award for “Matches,” which also was the Silver Award (second place) winner in the folk/acoustic category.

With the exception of instrumentals, songs were evaluated based on five basic elements: melody/harmony, lyrics, flow (the mood, rhythm, dynamics), structure/contrast (between verse, chorus, bridge, etc.), and overall effect. Prizes were awarded to first and second place (gold and silver) winners in each of 12 categories — including folk/acoustic, folk-rock/Americana/roots rock, country/bluegrass, instrumental, open, and vocal jazz/blues — while finalists and honorable mention winners also were selected.

Gold and silver winners in each category were invited to perform their winning songs at the gala event during which the grand-prize winner and second- and third-place overall winners were named; each of the three received, among other prizes, cash awards and free registration to the 2017 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) and Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) conferences. The grand-prize winner also received a free registration to this year’s Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM) Conference. The top two songs in each category will be included in a MASC Winners compilation CD, while Focus Music will invite one or two winners to perform in concert during 2017 in either Maryland or northern Virginia. Young Artist Award recipients were also named — Ross Monteith and Calvin Langman coming in first for their song “Dirty Imbecile,” while Taylor Gayle took second place for “Sophia’s Song.”

Below is a list of winners, finalists and those who received honorable mention for songs in the contest’s folk/acoustic and folk rock/Americana/roots rock categories. These are preceded by a listing of the winners in select other categories that may be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers.

Adult Contemporary: Heather Mae, Gold, for “Stand Up;” Lara Herscovitch, Silver, for “Wonder Wheel”
Children’s: Lea Morris, Gold, for “Sweet Summer Days,” David and Jenny Heitler-Klevans, Silver, for “Treehugger”
Country/Bluegrass: Laurence Baer, Gold, for “White Pass Railroad,” Jeff Moxcey and Michael “Max” McGee, Silver, for “She Makes The Rain Shine”
Gospel/Inspirational/Christian: Laura Zucker, Gold, for “Say Yes;” Kevin T. Hale, Silver, for “Come Unto Me”
Open: Kipyn Martin, Gold, for “God Is Love;” Chris Hardy, Silver, for “Endless Possibilities”

Folk/Acoustic:

Gold: “Best Of You,” Crystal Hariu-Damore, Peter Damore (Ordinary Elephant)
Silver: “Matches,” Carolann Solebello
Finalists: “Bad For Me,” Emily Henry; “God Is Love,” Kipyn Martin, and “Grant And Lee,” Lynne Taylor
Honorable Mention: “Before The Fire,” Jane Fallon; “Caliber,” Heather Aubrey Lloyd; “Fais Do Do (A Cajun Lullaby),” Mike P. Ryan; “Found,” Owen Lyman-Schmidt (Driftwood Soldier); “Grand Canyon,” Brad Yoder; “Last Goodbye,” Austin MacRae; “The Bravest Thing,” Lara Herscovitch; “The Tribe,” Sharon Goldman, and “Up In Flames,” Austin MacRae

Folk Rock/Americana/ Roots Rock:

Gold: “Fais Do Do (A Cajun Lullaby),” Mike P. Ryan
Silver: “Incantations,” Christopher Mark Jones
Finalists: “On My Own,” Allison Dietz and Scott Smith; “Swamp Thing,” Denny Hemingson, Abel James and Dean Brown; and “Wherever You Are,” Tyler Shafer
Honorable Mention: “All In The Same Boat Now,” Byron Walls and Judith Walls Freeman; “Arkansas,” Emily White; “Drunken Eyes,” Olivia Greene; “Jacksonville,” Susan Kane; “Let Me Keep You Warm,” Allison Dietz and Scott Smith; “So Far From Home,” Ryan Minton, Chip Johnson and Michael Dasher; and “Someone New To Disappoint, Scott Ramminger

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to further excellence in songwriting through presenting educational programs and providing networking and performance opportunities for its members. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, and monthly peer critique sessions. It also publishes a monthly e-newsletter.

With the exception of instrumentals, songs will be evaluated based on five basic elements: melody/harmony, lyrics, flow (the mood, rhythm, dynamics), structure/contrast (between verse, chorus, bridge, etc.) and overall effect. Prizes will be awarded to first and second place (gold and silver) winners in each of 12 categories — including folk/acoustic, folk-rock/Americana/roots rock, country/bluegrass, instrumental, open, and vocal jazz/blues — while finalists and honorable mention winners also will be selected.

Gold and silver winners in each category will be invited to perform their winning songs at a gala event during which a grand-prize winner and second-place overall winner will be named; both will receive, among other prizes, cash awards and free registration to the 2017 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) and Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) conferences. The grand-prize winner will also receive a free registration to next year’s Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM) Conference. The top two songs in each category will be included in a MASC Winners compilation CD, while Focus Music will invite one or two winners to perform in concert during 2017 in either Maryland or northern Virginia. Young Artist Award and Director’s Choice Award recipients will also be named.

Andrew Tufano, a Nashville-based performing songwriter, was the 2015 grand-prize winner for “Fall,” which also took top honors in the Adult Contemporary category. Another Tufano composition entitled “Fireflies” was the Gold winner in the Pop category. 2nd Place Overall went to Washington, DC’s Jess Eliot Myrhe, of the band Bumper Jacksons, for “Pretty Mama Put A Spell On Me,” which also topped the Vocal Jazz/Blues category. Other 2015 category Gold winners included Letitia VanSant in Folk/Acoustic for “The Field,” David Goldman in Folk Rock/Americana/Roots Rock for “Going To America (All For One, One For All & All For All),” Michael “Mac” McGee and Katey Laurel Lawson in Country/Bluegrass for “Diamond,” Joseph A. Peragine and John Muccino in Instrumental for “Montage (Approaching The End of Time)” and Drew Jacobs in the Open category for his humorous song “There’s An App For That.” Last year’s Director’s Choice Award recipient was Susan Cattaneo for “Abide,” while Connor Seavey won the Young Artist Award for “Wrong.”

For more information on the 2016 Mid-Atlantic Song Contest, rules, fees and applications, visit www.masc.saw.org.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to further excellence in songwriting through presenting educational programs and providing networking and performance opportunities for its members. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, and monthly peer critique sessions. It also publishes a monthly e-newsletter.

Having drawn more than 300 entries in the Folk/Acoustic category, contest organizers opted to split the category in half with different judges for each one. Karen Dahlstrom, a New York-based singer-songwriter who also is part of the group Bobtown, took Gold in one of them for her song “The Miner’s Bride,” while Shenandoah Valley-based Kipyn Martin captured the Gold in the other for “Dance Across The Sky.” Martyn’s song also was the Silver winner in the Open category, in which Anna Dagmar and Kevin Wansor took the Gold for “Cutest Nudist.”

Here’s a list of winners, finalists and those receiving honorable mention for songs entered in the contest’s folk/acoustic category:

Gold: Karen Dahlstrom – “The Miner’s Bride”
Silver: Rebecca Rego – “Bury My Body”
Finalists: Mary Gordon Hall – “Fine Start of the season,” Carolyn Fischer – “The Lucky Ones,” and Katie Larson (The Accidentals) – “The Silence”
Honorable Mention: Laura Baron and Paula Monks – “A Little Note,” Lynn Hollyfield – “Because of You” and “Winter’s Gift,” Madeline Clark – “Change My Mind,” David Glaser – “Concrete River,” Daniel Weber – “Goodbye To Day,” Laura Zucker – “Home,” Jamie Kallestad and Ben Cosgrove – “Many Rivers East,” and Mike P. Ryan – “Sidewalk Romance.”

Gold: Kipyn Martin – “Dance Across The Sky”
Silver: Tom Goss – “Illuminate The Dark”
Finalists: Eric Scott and Mike Stacey – “Break Me Open,” Tom Manche – “He Calls Me Man,” and Carolyn Fischer – “The Sextant”
Honorable Mention: Brittany Jean Valint – “Arms & Legs,” Andrew Hardin and Jeannie Burns – “Down The Deep Well” and “Gentle Rain,” Carolyn Fischer – “Fifteen Years Ago,” Brad Colerick – “Late Winter Snow,” Becky Warren – “Louie and Rosalee,” Karen Dahlstrom and Kenny Siegal – “One More Time,” Daniel Rauchwerk (The Lords of Liechtenstein) – “The Last To Die,” and Christopher Mark Jones – “The Trapper’s Wife

Winners also were named in eight other categories. Of particular note to readers of AcousticMusicScene.com, Cathy Fink captured the Gold in the Children’s category for “Twins,” while Frank Solivan, lead vocalist, mandolinist and fiddler for 2014 International Bluegrass Music Association Instrumental Group of the Year Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen, won Gold awards in the Country/Bluegrass and Instrumental categories for “Cold Spell” and “Chief Taghtanic” respectively.

The first place (Gold) winners will receive cash awards. The top winners in each category also will be invited to perform during the awards gala and, along with the contest’s overall winners, will be included in a winners’ compilation CD sponsored by Oasis CD Manufacturing. A list of winners, finalists and honorable mention recipients in all categories may be found online at www.saw.org, along with information about the gala for which tickets are available.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to further excellence in songwriting through hosting educational programs and providing networking and performance opportunities for its members. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, and monthly Songwriter Exchange peer critique sessions. It also publishes a monthly e-newsletter.

According to contest director Loralyn Coles, the contest is designed to help songwriters receive recognition for their work and to further excellence in songwriting by providing funds for educational and networking opportunities in the art and business of songwriting.

Becky Warren of Nashville, TN, was named the grand prize winner for her song “I’ve Been Thinking about Mexico,” the gold winner in the Adult Contemporary category. She and Brad Hammer also penned the silver award-winning song in that category, “Stay Calm, Stay Low.”

Australian Rick Webster captured second place overall for his instrumental piece “Looking Glass,” which also was the Gold winner in the Instrumental category. Lena Pennino-Smith of West Babylon, NY took third place overall for “I Love U,” which also was the gold winner in the Children’s category.

The grand prize winner and second place overall winner will receive, among other prizes, cash awards and free registration to the 2014 Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NERFA) and Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) conferences. The grand prize winner will also receive a free registration to next year’s Folk Alliance Region Midwest (FARM) Conference. NERFA President Cheryl Prashker helped to emcee the Jan. 19 gala event.

Andrea Pais of Annapolis, MD received the BMI Songwriter’s Award for “Chasing Forever,” the Gold winner in the Pop category. She also took silver in that category for “Free.” The Director’s Choice award was presented to Kipyn Martin of Columbia, MD for “Nightbird,” the gold winner in the Open category. The Silver award in that category went to Anna Dagmar and Kevin Wanzor of New York for “Hang a Paper Lantern on the Moon.”

Previously named as winners in the Country/Bluegrass category were Renee McCullough (gold) for “Catastrophe” and Karyn Oliver (Silver) for “Magdalene. Paddy Mills struck gold in the Folk/Acoustic category with “Bayview Massacre,” while Dan Weber took silver for “Hank and Jesus.”

Finalists and Honorable Mention also were named in each category. AcousticMusicScene.com co-creator Glen Roethel received Honorable Mention in the Country/Bluegrass and Folk/Acoustic categories respectively for “Sweet Cider” and “The Family Tree.” He also shared Honorable Mention with Sue Riley, Penny Nichols and Chris Kunstadter in the Open category for “Dandelion Dreams.” A complete list of winners in all 11 categories may be found at www.saw.org.

Established in 1979, the Songwriters’ Association of Washington (SAW) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to further excellence in songwriting through hosting educational programs and providing networking and performance opportunities for its members. SAW hosts open mics and showcases, workshops on the art and business of songwriting, and monthly Songwriter Exchange peer critique sessions. It also publishes a monthly e-newsletter.