Teaching
Elizabeth Ziman &
Michelle Willis present:
Two best pals and song nerds have decided to team up to talk about the thing we love the most, with you!
Over the course of 8 weeks, you’ll have shared 4 new ideas, collaborated with your classmates, heard all kinds of different writing styles and techniques, and been able to talk shop and ask questions with Elizabeth, Michelle or your fellow classmates.
Eight classes will alternate between lectures and song presentation. Every other week we’ll lecture on a theme, and the following week you’ll present your song based on that theme.
We’ll run a Discord page for the class, so chat, sharing, and feedback can continue outside of lesson times. First 16 sign ups are guaranteed space to present their songs live in class, and all others will still be able to share their ideas on Discord and receive feedback.
an 8-week Songwriting Workshop
Classes are ONLINE
Sundays** Oct 5, 2025 - Nov 23, 2025
120 min/each
**except Sun Oct 19 (rescheduled to Sat Oct 18)
12pm EST / 5pm BST
Sliding scale or course auditing rates available - please email boutwillismusic [@] gmail.com if you’d like to take part but have financial difficulty.
Quotes From Students
I felt very motivated to work on assignments… Michelle gave us the tools to empower us to move forward, no matter where we started.
- Student, 10-Wk Songwriting Course
Michelle's class went way beyond my expectations. We learned to approach writing from several perspectives: lyrical, chordal, and from creating and joining parts. Michelle fosters a friendly, non-judgmental class.
- Student, 10-Week Songwriting Course
Michelle is truly an amazing teacher - her kind and inspirational ways of teaching songwriting leave you motivated and confident.
- Student, 10-Week Songwriting Course
This is the second time I have taken Michelle's songwriting class and I will be back again! She has so much to offer songwriters working on their craft and manages to share her knowledge in an enthusiastic and efficient manner. I felt encouraged and nudged towards the edge of my comfort zone, but I always felt like I had been given tools that I could use to complete assignments. In both workshops, I was struck by Michelle's ability to include and teach to folks with all levels of abilities and experience and she models a thoughtful and productive mode of giving feedback that allowed me to get closer to my own way of making music
- Student, 5 and 10-Week Songwriting Course
Working with students across the globe on the task of songwriting is a venture Michelle takes great pride in. Whether it’s one-on-one or leading a class of students, online or in-person, there are always lessons to be learned and new avenues to explore. A graduate of the Humber College Jazz Program, and nearly two decades of performing, touring, recording, and teaching, Michelle brings a wealth of experience from all manner of genre and roles within the music industry. She has taught at Guild Hall School of Music (London), The New School (NYC), University of North Carolina School of Music, Portland State University, Etobicoke School of the Arts (Toronto) and others. Michelle regularly teaches five and ten week songwriting courses for all skill levels which focus on developing new vocabulary, finishing work, collaboration and developing writing community.