Music conference

This is why I love what I do. I get to hang out with nut cases like this for a week at a time. I went to Atlanta to meet with some of the top people in the sacred choral world to present some songs and learn about the publishing biz. My father-in-law Paul is the one on the front row left with a beard. There was a top arranger (Brant Adams), an editor from Shawnee press (Joe Martin), and a Nashville contract songwriter/arranger from Word Music. The last guy, Rob Sterling, had written and produced for Point of Grace among other groups. Ah, the six degrees of separation from OBU has begun. I thoroughly enjoyed my week, I learned a LOT about publishing from the inside. I got to meet with the editor from Shawnee, who saw a lot of potential in one of my songs, Home. He's going to take it and work on some fine points of piano accompaniment and choral part-writing (not my native gift, I'm the first one to admit it), and once his name is associated with it it'll be a matter of time before it's published. Meaning, in about 2 years, if past patterns hold true. But hey, published is published, I'm not knocking it, I can't tell you how excited I am!
I presented a new piece to the whole conference panel, the one I posted earlier, and got a lot of positive feedback on it, lots about good lyrics and love your melodies. So the next day I'm feeling good and proceed to my private meeting with Rob Sterling to show him my favorite songs like King of All of Me and You are More. I got a large slice of humble pie handed to me, so you can never keep too big a head about you in life. It was all true, dangit, so I can't pretend that he was just a stuffed shirt ripping on praise and worship music. Anyway, even humble pie goes down well with lots of Cool Whip, yet another use for my favorite topping.
I also got to hang out with some of the most fun people, from as close as 5 minutes from the conference area to all the way from Korea. Who knew Korean opera composers like to do the maraca dance and ride around in convertibles with the top down? I love it! It was a truly inspiring, enjoyable conference (who gets to say that about business conventions?), and I'm SO there for next year. Craig Courtney and Mark Hayes will be there, I'm all over it! Do you like my street cred? Word.