by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: ____________ Structure is everything in songwriting; without structure, you’ve got a song that listeners just won’t understand and can’t get into. It’s why we talk so much about the form of a song. An easily discernible form makes it more likely that listeners will remember […]
by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website; __________ Every songwriter goes through a rough patch, when writing the next tune seems all but impossible. Despite our best efforts, it happens. And even though you may do the things most people – including me – will offer as solutions (setting a regular time […]
Written by Gary Ewer, Senior Instructor, Dalhousie University, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. • Follow Gary on Twitter • Good songs sell! Check out “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle – available now at a 50% savings! ________________________________ When I adjudicate performers at festivals, I love pointing out that good music is often more about […]
Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. _____________ It’s not unusual for songwriters to get the chorus of their new song working before any other section. After all, it’s the hooky part that often coalesces before the other sections become apparent. But once you’ve got that great hook, how do you work backwards […]
Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. Gary is the author of several songwriting e-books that will get you writing better songs. Read more about them here. _______________ When we write music, we often find ourselves fixated on the melody, chords and lyrics. But it’s the controlling of musical energy in […]
Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. ________________ Part of my job at Dalhousie University is teaching an entry-level music theory class. Many of the students who take it are non-music Arts students, many of whom are songwriters, taking it as an elective. And so if you don’t want to take […]
