The city girl came to the country last week, arriving with a song in her heart and some helpful hints for would-be singers and songwriters. Tina deVaron, a professional singer/songwriter and jazz pianist who has a weekend show at the sophisticated Carlyle Hotel in New York City, spent last Thursday at the Foxcroft School, under the auspices of the Helen Cudahy Niblack '42 Lecture Series that was established last year.

deVaron has been called the "The First Mother of Songwriting" because of the original songs she has written about motherhood, but she has also composed popular songs that went to the top of the Billboard charts. In addition, she's an accomplished jazz pianist and singer who has performed all over the country and is currently working on a Broadway show built around her songs.

deVaron shared some of her musical expertise and personal story with Foxcroft students during the day then gave an hour-long public evening concert in FoxHound Auditorium.

"What a wonderful concert," said Foxcroft Head of School Mary Louise Leipheimer. "Tina is one talented lady and we are delighted to have had her visit."

The day began early for deVaron, who met with the combined theater production and Chorale classes at 8 a.m. She led the girls through a series of warm-up exercises designed to help them relax and increase their vocal extension. She then explained how a song is put together from its creation until the time it is actually recorded and released to the public.

"It usually takes about three years from the time the song is written until it is published and released to the public," said deVaron, who has recorded two CDs of original music and composed dozens of songs for others, including "Adore You," which reached No. 1 on the Christian music chart and "If I Close My Eyes," which was No. 2 on the dance song chart. Her most recent release, "Water Over Stones," contains 14 original songs about motherhood, raising teens and grown-up love.

After an informal lunch with a dozen students, deVaron addressed the Foxcroft community of students and teachers at a workshop on songwriting that focused on music from "Tin Pan Alley."

The small area in downtown New York where virtually every music publisher had offices during the early part of the 20th century, Tin Pan Alley produced many of the songs that created America's popular musical culture.

deVaron's talk on lyricist E.Y. "Yip" Harburg and composer Harold Arlen, who wrote the score for the film The Wizard of Oz among other distinguished works. She asked the audience to sing "Over the Rainbow" with her and then, with the students' help, dissected the song made famous by Judy Garland, explaining both the construction of both lyrics and melody.

She did a similar exercise with "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime," a 1931 song by Harburg and Jay Gorney that became the signature song of The Great Depression.

During the evening's "Post-Holiday Stress Disorder Relief" concert, deVaron performed some of her songs accompanying herself alternately on piano and guitar.

Six Foxcroft students– Ally '08, Juliana '08, Candice '10, Ericka '10, Michelle '11 and Annabella '11 – sang backup several of the numbers, which were inspired by deVaron's role as a mother of two boys.

deVaron, who graduated from Princeton University with a degree in English, is the daughter of Lorna Cooke deVaron, former conductor of the New England Conservatory Chorus who still conducts at the age of 87. Tina lives in New York City with her husband, author Peter Lerangis, and their sons, Nicholas and Joseph.

The Helen C. Niblack Lecture Series brings a variety of literary, performing and fine artists, artisans and designers to Foxcroft to share their work and experience – much as the Alison Harrison Goodyear Lectures have brought intriguing intellectual and political individuals to campus over the past 35+ years.