4200 Wisconsin Ave, NW PMB 106-137
Washington, D.C. 20016

Sponsored in part by

Washington Area Organizations

Convergence – A creative community of faith and venue resource as studio, gallery, rehearsal and performance space to local artists in the community.

Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington - Dedicated to sustaining and increasing regional leadership, appreciation, support, and resources for arts and culture.

DC Blues Society -An all volunteer organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the blues.

Focus - Committed to bringing folk and acoustic music to a growing audience through performance, education and participation in the musical folk arts.

Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts - Provides education, advocacy and volunteer legal services through workshops and seminars, legal clinics for artists and arts organizations, and pro-bono referral services.

Washington Area Music Association - Committed to raising the profile of the region's diverse music community. WAMA's main goal is to promote Washington area music in general and to achieve national recognition of the region as an important center for live and recorded music.

National Organizations and Resources

American Federation of Musicians - Committed to raising industry standards and placing the professional musician in the foreground of the cultural landscape.

ASCAP - A membership association of more than 320,000 U.S. composers, songwriters, lyricists, and music publishers of every kind of music. ASCAP protects the rights of its members by licensing and distributing royalties for the non-dramatic public performances of their copyrighted works.

Association of Independent Music Publishers - The organization's primary focus is to educate and inform local music publishers about the most current industry trends and practices by providing a forum for the discussion of the issues and problems confronting the music publishing industry.

BMI - A performing rights organization, which collects license fees on behalf of its songwriters, composers and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed.

Copyright Office – An information packed site and the first step for songwriters ready to copyright their music.

Folk Alliance performers, agents, media, record companies, merchandisers, presenters, and individuals actively promoting and fostering culturally diverse traditional and contemporary folk music, dance, storytelling, and related performing arts in North America.

Nashville Songwriters Association International - Committed to protecting the rights and future of the profession of songwriting, and to educate, elevate, and celebrate the songwriter and to act as a unifying force within the music community and the community at large.

Recording Industry Association of America – A trade group that represents the U.S. recording industry. Its mission is to foster a business and legal climate that supports and promotes our members' creative and financial vitality.

SESAC – A performing rights organization with headquarters in Nashville and offices in New York, Los Angeles, and London.

TAXI – An independent artist and repertoire company. TAXI has specializes in giving artists, bands, and songwriters real access to the people in the music business who have the power to sign deals.

Songwriting Tools and Services

Acoustic Axis Instruments A local store buy, sell, trade and consign acoustic and electric instruments, amps and all kinds of musical gear. They also offer lessons for guitar, bass, piano, strings, voice, woodwinds and brass.

Disc Makers - A CD replicator, which offers other services like authoring, encoding, graphic design, and menu design.

Masterwriter - Software dedicated to the needs of songwriter and composer. Includes a rhyming dictionary, an alliterations dictionary, thesaurus, a datababase for your soungs and lyrics, a stereo recorder for recording melodic ideas, an online date-of-creation song registration service, a library of over 250 tempo adjustable MIDI drum loops, and full-function word processing.

Oasis Disc Manufacturing - Oasis is a replicator of CDs and a full-service resource for independent musicians and record labels.

Traditions Radio Show - Mary Cliff is one of Washington, DC's local heroes and a friend an supporter of SAW. She's an incredible supporter of acoustic musicians from all over the world and hosts the longest-running radio show devoted to Acoustic & Folk Music.

Omega Recording Studios - Omega Recording Studios is a full service recording studio, capable of recording, editing, mixing and mastering of forty piece orchestras to jazz trios and voice-overs. Omega Recording Studios' offers extensive hands-on training for anyone with an interest in audio engineering, live sound, and music business.

Songwriter’s Market – A songwriting reference that beginners and professionals have turned to time and time again to help start and build successful songwriting careers. Songwriter's Market resource listings where songwriters can network and find support, including music Web sites of interest, organizations, and song contests.