"The sheer volume and variety of American song is daunting, so many traditions, genres, subgenres, even different ways of crafting music, from the lone singer-songwriter clutching a guitar to long-distance collaborators emailing each other sequencer patterns."
"We began by seeking the wisdom of the crowd: We sent out ballots to hundreds of experts, asking which songwriters they considered America's greatest."
"They offered up over 700 nominees, covering a wild range: household names and deep-cut experimentalists, behind-the-scenes industry stalwarts and people making tapes in basements."
"To sort through the hundreds of nominees, we assembled a group of six Times-affiliated critics for several hourslong sessions."
Choosing the 30 greatest living American songwriters is a complex task due to the vast array of musical traditions and genres. The process began by gathering opinions from hundreds of experts, including musicians and critics, who nominated over 700 songwriters. The aim was to reflect the current state of songwriting and include voices from various backgrounds. A panel of experienced critics then filtered these nominations to identify the most frequently mentioned songwriters as contenders for the final list.
Read at www.nytimes.com
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