There’s something about reliving bad moments in our lives that we find good, in a weird sort of way. Sad songs work for that reason, and in fact, a recent study shows that we love to be reminded of sadness in our lives, if those reminders happen in song. If you’re trying to make your […]
The best songs pull you in by making you wonder what’s going to happen. You hear a nice crescendo in the instrumentation… where’s it leading? You hear a captivating twist in the chord progression… Why? Where’s it going? The lyric describes a circumstance or situation… what’s going to happen next? Good music keeps us riveted […]
I haven’t been doing a lot of writing over the past week or two, but that’s normal for me when it comes to those couple of weeks around Christmas and New Years. I love writing, but it’s not necessarily my go-to activity for relaxing. Are you trying to make your lyrics more important in your […]
I want to wish each one of you a very merry Christmas, and hope that, like me, you get to spend it with friends and family. And I hope that you’ve been able to use your musical talents to write songs that can become a part of your family sing-alongs for years to come. That […]
If you’ve got a melody, but don’t know how to add chords to it, you need to read “How to Harmonize a Melody.” It will show you, with sound samples, a clear step-by-step for adding chords that will make your melody sound great. In most pop songs, the chord progressions you’ll find yourself using will […]
If you write a bad song, you’re in good company. Every songwriter writes a bad one. Writing a lousy song is not a reason to stop. It’s not even proof that you’ve done something wrong. Sometimes, songs just don’t work out. If you’re ready to take your songwriting to its highest level possible, you need […]
