NESR Bios & Courses

Ellis Paul:

(Permanent staff)
NESR Founder & Host
Songwriting Instructor

Ellis Paul Bio:
Ellis Paul doesn’t just write songs; he’s a guitar-carrying reporter who covers the human condition and details the hopes, loves, and losses of those he observes. He turns their stories into luminous pieces of music that get under your skin and into your bloodstream. And much like the artists who have influenced him (everyone from Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan and Paul Simon to the singer-songwriter who is undoubtedly his greatest inspiration, Woody Guthrie), Paul weaves deeply personal experiences with social issues and renders them as provocative works that are as timely as they are timeless. Born and raised in Maine, Paul attended Boston College on a track scholarship and in the evenings became a fixture on the city’s open mic circuit. After winning a Boston Acoustic Underground songwriter competition, he caught the ear of folk luminary Bill Morrissey, who produced his indie album Say Something in 1993. This led to a seven album contract with Rounder Records and the 1994 album, Stories. His songs have appeared in several blockbuster films (Me Myself and Irene, Shallow Hal, Hall Pass) and have been covered by award-winning country artists (Sugarland, Kristian Bush, Jack Ingram). Through a steady succession of albums of his own—a remarkable 23 releases so far—and a constant touring presence around the world, Paul’s audience has grown into a loyal legion of fans. Along the way, he has picked up an impressive number of awards including the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Award, 15 Boston Music Awards, An Honorary Doctorate from the University of Maine, the 2019 International Acoustic Music Awards Artist of the Year and most recently his album, The Storyteller’s Suitcase, was named the 2019 NERFA Album of the Year. His new album “55” touches on the necessity of gratitude in a difficult era of the pandemic and divided political stances on his own imprint, Rosella Records. He is the Founder and Co-Host of the New England Songwriters Retreat. ellispaul.com

Songwriting Course #1—ELLIS PAUL
"The Thermodynamics of the Snow Globe"

A truly great song pulls the listener into the songwriter’s creation, their world, their emotions. It triggers the listener’s own sense of creativity, as they find their own story in yours. You pull them inside a snow globe that you have have created, and a song becomes an important part of their lives. It becomes their song as much as yours. When you write a song that vividly captures a moment, you can capture a listener for life.

But how do we make that happen?

Thermodynamics is the study of heat, work, and energy. I like that.

Let's work on your song—beyond the lyric, melody and chords. Let's decide where we can put in extra energy, to heat your song up!

This class is not about thermodynamics. But it IS about dynamics, as well as editing, and performance—the often-overlooked elements beyond lyric, melody, and chords.

We tend to think of songwriting as adding things: another line, verse, chord, melody, or hook. But great songwriting is just as much about deciding what to leave out, what to reveal, what to repeat, what to emphasize, and when to let the song breathe.

Dynamics aren't simply volume. They are tension and release, time shifts, exploration of space, modulation, and more. They determine whether or not a listener leans in, relaxes, laughs, hurts, or suddenly feels that the song emotionally resonates.

A good band can do this naturally, weaving in and out of the song, but a solo performer must consciously make some arrangement choices, and intentionally author their dynamics.

Lyrics, chords, and melody are the foundation of the architecture you are building. Dynamics are the details—the things people feel more than see or hear. Despite their subtlety, they are the key to triggering emotional responses.

We will review the editing process, and illustrate how edits, even small ones, can completely transform the impact of a song.

Let’s draw the audience into the snow globe of your song—and shake it up, baby!

Laurie MacAllister:

(Permanent staff)
NESR Retreat Coordinator & Co-Host

Performance Instructor

Laurie MacAllister Bio:
Affectionately dubbed "Mama Bear" by NESR IV Students, Laurie handles the logistical aspects of NESR Online. Ask her anything—she's happy to help: newenglandsongwritersretreat@gmail.com. In late 2024, Laurie MacAllister embarked on an exciting new chapter, launching a solo career with a sold-out performance at the legendary Club Passim. Two decades earlier, she co-founded the beloved Americana trio Red Molly, which released seven acclaimed albums and toured both the U.S. and internationally, including appearances at MerleFest, Cayamo, and Boston Symphony Hall. Along the way, ad executives heard Laurie’s voice on the Red Molly album “Never Been to Vegas” and invited her to sing the iconic Folgers Coffee jingle for a national TV commercial. Her 2018 self-produced solo album "The Lies the Poets Tell" is a heartfelt tribute to the contemporary folk music scene, celebrating a handful of its best songs and songwriters. It features duets with six male artists, including the late Americana master Jimmy LaFave. SiriusXM praised the album as “Defining. A curated collection packed with emotional vibrancy.” Laurie’s earlier solo album "The Things I Choose To Do” was produced by folk luminary Cliff Eberhardt and was first released independently. Hearing it, Barnes & Noble re-released it as an exclusive on their label, saying, "MacAllister wholly inhabits these songs as subtly as a chameleon, convincingly taking on the persona's skin, quite simply singing her heart out.” From a young girl with a quiet dream of becoming a singer, Laurie’s journey has unfolded one song at a time. Over more than two decades, she’s made her dream into a reality. Laurie is in the studio in 2026, recording her next solo album, to be released in 2027. She’s headlining a limited number of solo concerts across the Northeast, bringing her soulful, loving voice and presence to fans old and new. She’s also doing a number of special shows in Fall 2026 as co-bills with acclaimed singer/songwriter Seth Glier. lauriemacallister.net

Performance Workshop—SETH GLIER & LAURIE MACALLISTER:

"Make Them Feel Something—The Art of Live Performance"

The most powerful live performances aren’t just heard—they’re felt. In this class, we’ll explore what makes a live performance authentic, compelling, and unforgettable.Whether you’re an experienced performer or just beginning to step onto the stage, this class will help you connect more deeply with your material, your audience, and yourself. We’ll explore the essential ingredients of a powerful live performance, including:

• Authenticity: How to inhabit a song so that your performance feels genuine, believable, and emotionally connected.

• Audience connection: How to create a sense of intimacy and communication with the people in the room.

• Stage presence: How your body, voice, energy, movement, and stillness can all contribute to the story you’re telling.

• Storytelling: How to make the audience care about what you’re performing and take them on a journey with you.

• Phrasing, dynamics, and musical choices: How intentional variation can create surprise, tension, emotion, and impact.

• Dealing with stage fright: Understanding what happens when nerves take over—and practical ways to move through them, so you can stay present and perform at your best.

• Creative risk-taking: How making unexpected choices can bring greater personality, spontaneity, and spark to a performance.

• Practice and preparation: How to prepare thoroughly, while still leaving room for the magic and unpredictability of a live performance.

We’ll demonstrate concepts throughout the class, using live examples to explore what makes a performance connect. A few students will volunteer to perform for the group and will receive supportive, constructive feedback. This will be a warm, encouraging, judgment-free environment where experimentation is welcome and growth is the goal. You’ll leave with practical tools, more confidence, and a deeper understanding of how to make your next live performance more honest, engaging, and memorable.

Seth Glier:

(Permanent staff)

"Director of Human Resources"

Performance Instructor

Seth Glier Bio:

The earth speaks to us in a myriad of ways — through ice cores, through uplift and erosion, through tree rings — languages we have the potential to restore our literacy in. Reconnecting with these quiet messages has set Seth Glier, an avid mushroom forager and a Grammy-nominated artist from Western Massachusetts, on a path of channeling nature’s longing for communion with humanity into song. His new album Everything is a collection of eight songs inviting us to imagine a future in which humans and the planet are re-aligned into mutual restoration. Each song presents a practical climate solution with concrete optimism.“What if this is the beginning, not the beginning of the end,” the album opens with bristling energy and hope on “Rise,” an anthem about rewilding. “Finally Home” is a celebration of regenerative farming with driving doo wop vocal harmony. “Mammoth,” written from the perspective of a wooly mammoth being brought back to life from frozen DNA, invites us to consider the blip of human history against billions of years of evolution. The album’s guest stars Crys Matthews, Hayley Reardon, and Windborne elevate the record with surprise from the stark choir arrangement of “Birches” recorded a capella in an old church to “My Body Remembers,” a flowing meditation on the transmission of healing, EMDR & The Language of Trees. The album’s title track was inspired by an experience Seth had while foraging. “When I picked up the chantarelle mushroom and brought it towards my nose I first smelled sweet apricot and then my spine straightened suddenly. The feeling was like déjà vu. It was a first time, yet somewhere inside of me I had done this once before. I was reconnecting to a knowledge I had already known.” The album is an acknowledgement of the sacred connections that exist between all living things and is an active questioning of what might be possible collectively. Everything is a reminder that the future is something we always have an influence over. Seth’s gifts are an innate curiosity and a fierce desire to connect with other people. His musical acumen provides him with a vehicle for both. He was worked as a cultural diplomat for the US State Department and collaborated with musicians in Ukraine, Mongolia, China, and Mexico. Seth has shared the bill with a diverse list of artists ranging from the likes of Ronnie Spector, James Taylor, Ani DiFranco, & Glen Campbell. As a producer, music director, or studio musician he has collaborated with Sophie B. Hawkins, Tom Rush, Antje Duvekot, Richard Shindell, Doctora Qingona, Dar Williams, Nick Carter, & Cyndi Lauper. Seth is a five-time Independent Music Award winner and received a Grammy nomination for his album The Next Right Thing. With a commitment to using songwriting as a tool for positive change, he has written with the students in Parkland, FL for the “Parkland Project,” cowritten with soldiers at Walter Reed, and is an advocate for autism awareness citing his autistic brother Jamie as his greatest non-musical-musical influence. sethglier.com