If you are interested in contributing your skills to a collaborative piece, contact me at joe.robinson@hamkicker.com. Poets are encouraged to submit poetry. Songwriters are encouraged to work with poets and their poems to develop songs. Performers are encouraged to interpret or reinterpret songs.
We currently have a small pool of artists involved. For most collaborations, a poet contributes poetry, for which a musician writes, performs, and records a song. But our ambition is to foster a wider variety of collaborative relationships. If you have any idea for a project, we would love to hear it.
Best Regards,
Joe Robinson
joe.robinson@hamkicker.com
Some questions you might have:
How does it work?
The nature of your collaboration is up to you and your co-collaborator(s). You get to decide how you want to create work. The simplest way is probably the following: a poet writes poetry, a songwriter writes a song for that poetry, and a performer performs and records it. That is where we suggest you begin, but there are many other possibilities.
I do not read music. Will that prevent me from participating as a songwriter?
No. We ask that contributing songwriters make thoughtful and deliberate choices, respectful of the thoughtful and deliberate choices that contributing poets have made. The inclusion of musical transcriptions is intended to highlight and clarify the thoughtful musical ideas being put forth. If you need support putting your musical ideas on paper, we will be happy to help. And partial transcription may be more appropriate for some songs.
Can I submit poetry that has been previously published?
Yes.
I want to work with poets to write songs, but I do not have the means, skills, will, or confidence to perform and record them. Will that prevent me from participating?
No. That sort of specialization is what Ham Kicker is all about. If songwriting is what you want to do, then that is what you should do. We are willing to post songs without recordings, and we can help you find musicians who are interested in performing and recording your songs.
I like to perform music, but I am not very interested in writing music. How can I participate?
Performers are encouraged to create their own interpretations of work from other contributors. Get in touch with the artists first and ask for permission, but you should expect to be met with enthusiasm. If you want to contribute your performance skills to new pieces, we will help you find a good match. Singers, for example, may find songwriters are happy to work with them.
What are my ownership rights if I submit poetry or musical work?
That is for you and your co-collaborators to decide. Ham Kicker’s goal is to promote a process, not a product. We will not assert any authority over your work, and you may have you work removed from the site if you choose. Some artists may want to consider Creative Commons licenses as an alternative to Copyright. However, if ownership issues are a major concern for you, then we suggest that Ham Kicker may not be the right aesthetic for you and your work.
If I submit poetry, how will I know if it has been accepted?
Whatever you submit, we will share with potential collaborators. We will not pick and choose. Whether your work stands out to those potential collaborators serves as a natural editing process.