If you are looking for a chance to beat the heat with great original music, food and drink and — yes! — air conditioning, come see us at Songwriters in the Round at the Arts at the Armory Café in Somerville. You will leave refreshed in more ways than one.

If you talk with anyone who has come to one of these evenings, they will tell you that the songs, the guitar and piano playing, and the voices are top quality, month after month. Long-time regulars are flabbergasted that there is so much talent in the Boston area. Performers you have never heard of, melting your heart with their music. A variety of styles — rock, soul, funk, country, folk, jazz, blues, theater — that keeps you guessing. We have welcomed dozens of performers and hundreds of listeners in over 16 months. Come join us. You won’t be disappointed.

We welcome Steven Santoro, fresh from recording his new R&B album with an unusual rhythm section: the Turtle Island String Quartet. Thea Hopkins is a nationally recognized songwriter who weaves together threads of traditional and contemporary Indigenous music to create a style she calls “red roots Americana”. Scarlet Keys is a captivating performer whose warm, insightful interviews of Grammy-winning and Platinum-record-selling songwriters have made her podcast What’s In A Song a must-listen. And your host David Thorne Scott will be on hand to perform his jazz-inflected songs and remind you to tip the musicians.

Songwriters in the Round
Wednesday July 19, 7pm-8:30pm
Arts at the Armory Café
No cover charge. Suggested donation for the performers $10-$20.

Four songwriters, trading songs and swapping stories. And you have a front row seat.

Four songwriters take the stage, seated in a comfortable semi-circle. They take turns playing songs, occasionally joining in with each other on harmony vocals or guitar licks. The format encourages conversation between the writers, which gives the audience an opportunity to hear these creative people talk as if in their own living rooms. Inspired by the “guitar pulls” of the legendary Bluebird Café in Nashville.

Hosted by Somerville singer/songwriter David Thorne Scott. Held on the first and third Wednesdays of each month from 7:00-8:30 p.m.

Part of the ROOTED Armory Café Series. Café menu is available here: https://artsatthearmory.org/rooted-cafe/rooted-menu/
Beer and wine also available!

You might hear a young up-and-coming pro, an established mid-career performer and mentor, and a cherished elder of the scene — all sharing music. The growing relationships will warm your heart and enrich your soul. Come every week as the lineup shifts and new friends are made.

Our songwriters this week

Steven Kowalczyk Santoro is a former Atlantic recording artist (signed and produced by Ahmet Ertegun), studio session vocalist, indie producer, touring musician and educator. He has toured as a background vocalist for Sting and as a headliner in Europe performing his original R&B music along with jazz repertoire. Steven is an improvisor in multiple styles, expressing himself musically both in collaboration with live players and as a composer in the digital realm. He recently recorded his original song cycle entitled, “here.gone.” with the Turtle Island String Quartet. As a prolific creator all around, Steven continues to expand his vision with the production of his own music videos and short films. You can watch and listen at www.stevensantoro.com

A member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag tribe of Martha’s Vineyard MA, performing songwriter Thea Hopkins calls her music Red Roots Americana. Described as a “standout writer” by the Washington Post, Thea’s song, “The Ghost Of Emmett Till”, was awarded the 22nd grand prize by the Great American Song Contest in 2021. Her 2018 album “Love Come Down’, was nominated for a 2019 Indigenous Music Award in the folk category, an international competition. She first came to public notice when Peter, Paul & Mary recorded her song “Jesus Is On The Wire” in 2004. Thea was selected by the Western Arts Alliance as a 2019 Native Launchpad Artist. Her program, “In The Roundhouse”: A Celebration of Traditional and Contemporary Indigenous Music” debuted in Providence RI in 2021. www.theahopkins.com

Scarlet Keys is a Professor at the Berklee College of Music and a former staff songwriter for Warner Chappell. She was featured in the Boston Globe recently for her course on the songwriting of Taylor Swift. Scarlet’s songs have appeared on film and TV and garnered her a gold record. She has collaborated with artists such as Chris Stapleton, Eric Roberson, Melissa Ferrick, and local artist Sam Robbins. Some of her students include: Lizzy McAlpine, Charlie Puth, Amy Allen, Ingrid Andress, and Betty Who. Scarlet is the host of the “What’s in a Song” podcast and the author of “The Craft of Songwriting: Music, Meaning and Emotion” but most notably she is a world class parallel parker. https://www.scarletkeys.com

David Thorne Scott is a singer and songwriter in jazz and Americana styles. A 20-year resident of Somerville, he organized Songwriters in the Round to foster a creative, dynamic music scene for his adopted home city. He believes that music can bring a community together like nothing else. “At a time of great conflict in our country – when words often fail us – music has the power to bridge divides… David Thorne Scott explores the intersection of Jazz and Americana, city and country, instrumentation and lyrics to create lush compositions and covers that are unifying, and healing, in their beauty.” – Laurie Fanell, Eponymous Review www.davidthornescott.com