BEGINNING SONGWRITING For members of Rivier Institute for Senior Education (RISE)

Welcome RISE participants to Beginning Songwriting! This page has been designed as a supplement and support for you during our beginning songwriting course. In addition to announcements, there are downloadable handouts and also links to resources to augment our time together. (This page is "hidden" on my website, which means that only those who have the link can access it directly.) That said, please feel comfortable to access/read anything on the website and download or print any of the music that interests you. Don Gnecco Click here to learn more about me as your facilitator.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Our first Zoom class meeting will be 10 - 11:30 AM on Wednesday, October 15th, 2025. The subsequent classes will be held at the same time on:
October 22nd October 29th November 5th November 12th
LINKS
The links below will take you to other resources online. (If you come upon resources that you think would be of interest to others in the class, please email them to me: dongnecco@gmail.com.)
FOR YOU TO DO...
Please help me better understand more about the group's collective knowledge and experience with music and songwriting. Download this questionnaire (Microsoft Word), save it on your computer, add your responses, and then email it back to me (dongnecco@gmail.com). Thanks.
HANDOUTS
Since our class is meeting remotely via Zoom, I will not be able to distribute handouts during our weekly meetings. Consequently, I will post them here. You will then be able to download and read them and/or print them out.
RESOURCES
Ultimate Introductory Guide to Piano (Matt Hodge) Free PDF download!
This 24-page download is a real treasure trove for anybody who is beginning to learning about music scales, cords, and notation. I have found this to be SO helpful! Click here to visit Matt's YouTube channel where there are many wonderful videos that are inspiring and amazingly easy to follow. This guy is the real deal!
The Songwriter's Handbook (Cliff Goldmacher) (PDF) Free PDF download!