Audrey Bussanich
About
I am a professional songwriter, recording artist, and educator with four years of experience teaching songwriting at Berklee College of Music. I’ve worked with students at every stage of their creative development—from beginners finding their voice to advanced writers building professional portfolios. My music has been placed in over 50 episodes of CBS’s Emmy-winning series The Young & the Restless, giving me firsthand experience navigating the world of film and television songwriting.
My musical background began in classical piano and composition, and has expanded into jazz, folk, alt-pop, contemporary pop, and CCM. This wide stylistic range allows me to meet you wherever you are creatively, no matter your preferred genre, helping you strengthen your craft while remaining true to your artistic identity.
Teaching Style
My teaching philosophy centers on two equally important goals:
craft mastery and artistic voice.
In our lessons, we work on the technical tools that make great songs work—melody, lyric, harmony, rhythm, structure, and prosody—but always in service of what you want to express. I help you learn how to generate strong song ideas, shape them into finished works, and develop the habits of a working songwriter. This includes lyric writing, melodic development, revision strategies, demo recording, and understanding how songs function in the real music industry.
Since I am an active artist myself, I also place strong emphasis on your identity and voice. I don’t believe great songwriting comes from copying trends, it comes from learning how to translate your own experiences, emotions, and perspective into music that connects with others. My goal is not just to help you write better songs, but to help you become a confident, distinctive artist who knows what they sound like and how to keep growing.
Whether you’re writing your first song or preparing to release your own music, I’m here to help you build both the skills and the artistic clarity to bring your best work into the world.
Curriculum
My teaching style is workshop-based, creative, and highly interactive. In our sessions, you’ll spend a lot of time actually creating: writing lyrics, experimenting with melodies, doing guided creative exercises, and building a growing library of song ideas.
I use techniques drawn from professional songwriting programs to help you generate strong “song seeds” through journaling, sensory writing, and observation of everyday life, and then show you how to transform those raw ideas into fully formed songs that connect with listeners.
In our sessions, we listen closely to artists you love and analyze how their songs are built—looking at melody, lyric, harmony, structure, and emotional impact—so you can understand not just what works, but why it works and how to apply it to your own writing.
We also do regular workshop-style feedback, where we listen to your songs together and talk about what’s working, what could be stronger, and how to revise with clarity and confidence—just like in a real songwriting community.
Recommended Student Text
Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison
This is the core text I recommend for developing your lyric craft, offering practical tools for imagery, emotional clarity, and strong song structure that we actively apply in lessons.
Credentials & Affiliations
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Songwriting Faculty, Berklee College of Music — Four years teaching songwriting, lyric writing, and artist development
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Bachelor’s Degree in Songwriting — Berklee College of Music
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Film & Television Placements — Music featured in over 50 episodes of CBS’s Emmy Award–winning series The Young & the Restless
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Charting Recording Artist — Go for a Drive charted in the Top 100 on Americana Music Association (AMA) Radio
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Notable Collaborators
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Rodney Alejandro (The Script)
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Lizzy McAlpine
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Abigail Osborn
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Davin Kingston (Laufey)
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Sponsored Artist — Kurzweil Music Systems