Iona College announced that it will host a showcase for songwriters and singers to exhibit their talents. The event, hosted by The Council on the Arts, will be Oct. 23 at 9 p.m. in the EndZone.

In the past, the Council on the Arts has hosted master classes in voice and a “Compose Yourself” workshop for poets and musicians. But this is the first year that the Council will offer a master class and workshop performance for songwriters.

Numerous students have auditioned, but only eight talented students were selected to take part in this special event. Students sent samples of their music to Nicole Alifante, the lead mentor of the songwriters’ workshops.

“I wanted this process to fit into the students’ schedules and not be a source of stress,” Alifante said. “But at least, [I want it to be] the start of something that they are proud of.”

The chosen eight will meet with Alifante individually and will have two sessions in which they discuss bars of music and song concepts. The performers will then have a dress rehearsal, as well as individual practice using MP3’s.

Even if students do not play an instrument, they may have a friend play one for them, and therefore, they may still be able to participate in the showcase.

“Anyone can hear a melody in their head, write a lyric and sing a song,” Alifante said. “A heartfelt song sounds good no matter what; as long it comes from a real place.”

Each of the eight students selected for the show will each present one song. The showcase will also feature four or five of the mentors performing a song of their own.

“All of the students are talented, proactive and excited about the work,” Alifante said.

Alifante and Madalyn Barbero, the co-mentor for the songwriters’ workshops, come from professional theater and singing backgrounds. They came up with this idea together.

“We’ve been musical partners for a year now, and Nicole and I have so much share with young songwriters,” Barbero said. “I wanted to find a way to work with Iona students and came up with this master class idea.”

Barbero teaches Shake Your Soul yoga dance classes every Saturday at Iona’s Hynes Center, while Alifante has been focusing on songwriting with a variety of professional partners.

Together they have already released their first self-titled album on CDBaby.com and will release it to iTunes in the coming weeks.

Alifante and Barbero are excited about mentoring the Iona students and transforming them from college students to stars of the stage.