Performances through Zoom
PMN Members and invited guests may use this registration form to sign up to share a song or a poem during this online event. All PMN members who register to perform will receive an e-mail message with a link to PMN's Zoom video conference account. Everyone performs through their own computer connection.
Registration Deadline
The deadline to register is Monday, May 25 at 8:00 PM. The order of performance will be released the following morning. You may still register for this event after this time, but you will be added to the wait list.
The Topic: An Evening of Nueva Canción
In this Song and Poetry Swap, the People's Music Network invites singers and poets to share music of Nueva Canción, which translates in English as “New Song”). For decades, Nueva Canción has been and continues to be a vital component of PMN Winter and Summer gatherings.
Nueva Canción is a rich, internationalist social movement and musical genre that emerged in multiple countries throughout Latin America and Spain. Nueva Canción artists worked to recover their traditional melodies and developed musical forms with poetic lyrics that emphasized local experiences, as well as the human rights struggles of poor and working people.
The songs were often outlawed for public performance and prohibited from television and radio. The music spread through singing in community groups, peaceful demonstrations, festivals, and prisons where many activists were locked away. Some Nueva Canción artists were exiled from their countries. Others were tortured and executed by U.S.-sponsored military dictatorships. Since the early 1960s, Nueva Canción has inspired popular and revolutionary movements throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, and beyond, and continues to do so to this day.
The People’s Music Network invites artists today who sustaining this tradition by singing the music to join us for an evening dedicated to Nueva Canción. For persons tuning in, this is an opportunity to hear music sung almost entirely in Spanish. Much (but not all) of the conversation in between songs will be in English. Where possible, we will post English translations to enhance the understanding of those not fluent in Spanish.
Eligibility to Perform
Performers in this swap must:
1) register using this form
2) have a computer with functioning video camera and microphone.
3) be able to present a song of Nueva Canción.
* In this event, PMN is primarily reaching out to artists beyond the PMN membership. If you would like to perform and you are not already a member, please reach out to us at <ben.grosscup@peoplesmusic.org>, and you will be given the guest registration code. If you wish to joing PMN, you may do so here: https://www.peoplesmusic.org/join-PMN
How we Select the Performers
Every PMN member wishing to perform at this event is invited to register and to do so sooner than later. Selection for the final performer list, however, is not first-come first-served. Instead, we will give priority to new PMN members as well as PMN members who have not yet performed in one of our previous online swap events. In cases where the topic is specific, the relevance of a submission to the topic at hand may also be considered. We hold these song swap events regularly. If you miss one, anticipate more opportunities soon!
Tech Run Through
If you are selected to perform in this swap, you will receive an invitation to a tech run through taking place on Thursday, May 28, from 7:00-8:00 PM. We will discuss how to get the best sound when sharing music on Zoom (more about this in next section). Each person will have a chance to sing a verse of their song and receive feedback from the group on audio quality. Artists who are new to zoom are strongly encouraged to attend this, because it can be a big confidence builder to learn how to use these tools.
Improving the Audio Quality of your Performance
Using your computer's built in mic with Zoom's default audio settings is sufficient to participate and be heard. The sound of a person singing normally comes across on Zoom somewhat better than a telephone. Zoom applies audio compression filters to the sound of meetings by default. The filters reduce background noise and echoes, but they also distort the frequencies of musical instruments and backing tracks. Using a headset with a built in mic will increase the sound of your voice, because it puts the mic close to your mouth, but it won't improve the audio quality of instruments and backing tracks. It is possible to significantly improve the audio quality of both voice and instruments by using an external USB mic or a USB audio interface device. (See PMN discussion forum on, "What kind of External USB mic are you using to play music live online?"). Once you have the hardware in place, it is necessary to switch on an audio setting in Zoom under “Advanced”, which is called "enable original sound". Enabling original sound removes Zoom's default audio compression, improving the sound of your performance. Please see here for a useful tutorial about how and why to enable original sound in Zoom.
You can create a free account on Zoom that allows you to record videos and hear how your sound comes across to others when using different settings and equipment. Here is a video created by Ben Grosscup that demonstrates how using a USB mic and enabling “original sound” in Zoom can improve the audio quality of your performance (enter this password to unlock it: P9.0v1!B).
Broadcast through Facebook Live
Anyone may tune in to the live swap at no cost, via PMN's Facebook Page, which is https://www.facebook.com/Peoples.Music.Network/
Get onto the page and scroll down until you find the video post with the word “Live” in the upper right corner. (Note: The livestream post won't pop up on the PMN page until 7:30pm (EST) on the night of the event. If it is after 7:30pm EST and you don't see the livestream right away, keep scrolling further down until you see it.)
After the event, click on the “Videos” tab on the left side of the page to access a recording of the event.
Help Publicize!
Tell your friends how they can tune into this online musical event for progressive culture. Share this event on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1299418056914444/
This same link is where you can find the performer list, which becomes available by the morning of Thursday, May 28.
©2017-2021 People's Music Network for Songs of Freedom and Struggle is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
