Writing Songs. Building Community.
Longhorn Songscape is a one-of-a-kind project that captures the hearts and imaginations of students and chronicles life at UT through their eyes. Each year, the program partners with a different student community to co-write a collection of original songs rooted in their personal experiences at UT.
The songs are professionally recorded with student musicians, and the full creative journey is documented by students from journalism, photography, and media programs. The resulting materials will be permanently archived at UT Austin.
CREATED AND LED by songwriter and UT alum Darden Smith, Longhorn Songscape changes lives. As UT’s inaugural Songwriter in Residence, Smith says, “Longhorn Songscape builds confidence and agency, alleviates stress, fosters greater self-awareness, gives students a sense of connection to the larger community on campus. When students hear their words, their story, sung back to them, they sit up straighter. The pride in who they are, where they are and where they can go expands before your eyes. It truly is profound. Longhorn Songscape makes an impact that will last far beyond their time at UT.”
WHY LONGHORN SONGSCAPE MATTERS
• Students find their creative voice—many for the first time—boosting confidence, communication skills, and connection to UT.
• Students build real-world experience in storytelling, songwriting, music production, and journalism and working collaboratively across communities and disciplines.
• Longhorn Songscape is a treasure of artifacts representing student life—songs, images, and stories that capture the heart of the UT experience, available for research, online for viewing and sharing.