The Pitch Session

Pitch Sessions are events where music industry professionals listen to members' pre-recorded songs as guests of SDSG. Producers, publishers, A&R representatives, managers and artistsuse these events to identify songs or artists of interest.� Pitch sessions take place in front of an audience of San Diego songwriters.� Guests typically listen to a song's introduction, first verse, and chorus, but how long they listen is completely at their discretion. Guests will often provide a critique, again, at their sole discretion. Guests may elect to "pick up" a song, which means they take the song with them for further consideration. At a typical Pitch Session, only a few songs are picked up.

Pitch sessions provide a great chance to learn, not just through critiques of your own compositions, but also through comments offered about the songs of others. Even if you don't pitch a song yourself, you can gather a lot of valuable information at an SDSG pitch.

Our guests are professionals who are accustomed to hearing quality recordings of well-arranged songs. Out-of-tune instruments or vocalists, interminable introductions, or sub-par recording quality can cause guests to lose interest in your song prematurely. For members who have not pitched before, we strongly recommend first attending critique sessions (San Diego NSAI is a great resource) or having someone who has pitched before listen to your songs.

Pitch Session Rules

Unless otherwise specified, Pitch Sessions are held at Studio West in Rancho Bernardo.
Only SDSG members may pitch songs.
Submission fees are $10 per song
Writers may join The San Diego Songwriters Guild on the night of an event by paying the applicable membership fee.
Non-members are charged a $20 door fee, which may be applied to SDSG Membership.
CD's should be clearly marked as to which track to play. Cassette tapes should be cued to within 2 seconds of when the music starts. No live performances at Pitch Sessions.
When you register your submission, sign in all the names of the writers, the song title, and your phone number.
Songs will not be accepted without a lyric sheet, instrumentals excepted. Include contact info on all lyric sheets and CDs/Cassettes
Submissions will not be accepted for the pitch session after the event starts.
The submission limit is 1 to 2 songs per session per writer or team of writers, as announced for each event. If you submit more than one song, mark your first and second selections accordingly so that we may prioritize playback.
The total number of submissions per Pitch Session is determined by SDSG. SDSG reserves its right to further limit submissions at any time.
Due to time constraints, SDSG cannot guarantee that all submissions will be heard in a pitch session. If a submission isn't played during the pitch session and the guest doesn't agree to listen to it at a later time, the fee for that submission will be refunded at the request of the entrant.
Submissions are played in the order they are received. All entrants' first submissions are played prior to second submissions. In-person submissions take precedence over mail-in submissions. Mail-in submissions may be accepted if they are received with appropriate entry fees 3 days before the scheduled event.
Tapes/CD's will be referred to by song title.� Writers may or may not remain anonymous during the pitch session depending on the preference of SDSG's guest(s) for that event.
Song pitches are a good chance to meet potential collaborators. If you hear a song you like, look up the song's name on the event's registration sheet, which should be available on a table outside the room. Feel free to contact the writer(s) regarding potential collaboration if they have marked the "yes" box in the "Interested in Collaborating?" section.
Check the SDSG Website before each session to confirm the event has not been rescheduled or cancelled.

Be a part of your songwriting community.� Join the San Diego Songwriters Guild.

Membership dues are $55.00 annually.� Timely renewals are $50.00 per year.


Home Location Forum Contest Pitch Session Contact History Membership Newsletter	The Pitch Session Pitch Sessions are events where music industry professionals listen to members' pre-recorded songs as guests of SDSG. Producers, publishers, A&R representatives, managers and artistsuse these events to identify songs or artists of interest.� Pitch sessions take place in front of an audience of San Diego songwriters.� Guests typically listen to a song's introduction, first verse, and chorus, but how long they listen is completely at their discretion. Guests will often provide a critique, again, at their sole discretion. Guests may elect to "pick up" a song, which means they take the song with them for further consideration. At a typical Pitch Session, only a few songs are picked up. Pitch sessions provide a great chance to learn, not just through critiques of your own compositions, but also through comments offered about the songs of others. Even if you don't pitch a song yourself, you can gather a lot of valuable information at an SDSG pitch. Our guests are professionals who are accustomed to hearing quality recordings of well-arranged songs. Out-of-tune instruments or vocalists, interminable introductions, or sub-par recording quality can cause guests to lose interest in your song prematurely. For members who have not pitched before, we strongly recommend first attending critique sessions (San Diego NSAI is a great resource) or having someone who has pitched before listen to your songs. Pitch Session Rules Unless otherwise specified, Pitch Sessions are held at Studio West in Rancho Bernardo. Only SDSG members may pitch songs. Submission fees are $10 per song Writers may join The San Diego Songwriters Guild on the night of an event by paying the applicable membership fee. Non-members are charged a $20 door fee, which may be applied to SDSG Membership. CD's should be clearly marked as to which track to play. Cassette tapes should be cued to within 2 seconds of when the music starts. No live performances at Pitch Sessions. When you register your submission, sign in all the names of the writers, the song title, and your phone number. Songs will not be accepted without a lyric sheet, instrumentals excepted. Include contact info on all lyric sheets and CDs/Cassettes Submissions will not be accepted for the pitch session after the event starts. The submission limit is 1 to 2 songs per session per writer or team of writers, as announced for each event. If you submit more than one song, mark your first and second selections accordingly so that we may prioritize playback. The total number of submissions per Pitch Session is determined by SDSG. SDSG reserves its right to further limit submissions at any time. Due to time constraints, SDSG cannot guarantee that all submissions will be heard in a pitch session. If a submission isn't played during the pitch session and the guest doesn't agree to listen to it at a later time, the fee for that submission will be refunded at the request of the entrant. Submissions are played in the order they are received. All entrants' first submissions are played prior to second submissions. In-person submissions take precedence over mail-in submissions. Mail-in submissions may be accepted if they are received with appropriate entry fees 3 days before the scheduled event. Tapes/CD's will be referred to by song title.� Writers may or may not remain anonymous during the pitch session depending on the preference of SDSG's guest(s) for that event. Song pitches are a good chance to meet potential collaborators. If you hear a song you like, look up the song's name on the event's registration sheet, which should be available on a table outside the room. Feel free to contact the writer(s) regarding potential collaboration if they have marked the "yes" box in the "Interested in Collaborating?" section. Check the SDSG Website before each session to confirm the event has not been rescheduled or cancelled. Be a part of your songwriting community.� Join the San Diego Songwriters Guild. Membership dues are $55.00 annually.� Timely renewals are $50.00 per year.
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