Take Your Song to the Next level: Write a Countermelody

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A countermelody is a second melody that gets played or sung at the same time as your main melody. It’s best used in choruses, to heighten the energy level of the song, and for this reason will usually appear toward the end of a song. A countermelody is not the same as vocal harmony. In creating background vocals, you are simply writing vocal lines that usually stay completely behind the main melody, allowing the focus to remain forward. A countermelody, on the other hand, competes for attention as a rival melody.

If it’s used too often, countermelodies in popular music genres can be too gimmicky. Used occasionally, they’re a great way to energize your song and take it to a higher level.

Here’s the simple 5-step process for creating a countermelody. This process assumes that you’re writing a countermelody for an existing chorus melody:

1. Write down your chorus chord progression.
2. Construct a new melody that works well with the chords. This will be hard to do, because you’ll likely have your chorus melody riveted in your mind. But with a few attempts you should have something that sounds different from your chorus. This new melody is your countermelody.
3. Add words to your countermelody. This is where it can start to get really interesting. You can allow the words to be like the answering lines of a conversation, where the main melody presents thoughts, questions and comments that are answered by the countermelody. Or you can use countermelody words to reinforce the thoughts and opinions of the main melody.
4. Adjust the rhythm of the countermelody. This is another important step. Countermelodies work best if you use note durations that are opposite to the ones you used for the main melody. For example, anywhere the main melody uses shorter notes, allow the countermelody to use longer ones. If the main melody has a section that features long, soaring notes, use that moment to allow your countermelody to become more rhythmically active.
5. Record your original melody and chords, then play it back while singing your CM. You’ll discover that you may need to adjust notes in your CM to make them all work.