Songwriters are usually looking for as many ways as possible to improve what they do. Listening to great songs, reading interviews with veteran songwriters, reading books that dissect the craft of composition, and so on. One of the best ways I know to improve songwriting skills is to get an honest critique from a respectful […]
An upward leap makes a melody exciting and memorable. _______________ Great melodies make good use of stepwise motion, which means that the tune moves from one note to the one next to it (a C moving to a D, for example), mixed in with occasional leaps. The melodic leap, particularly the upward-moving one, has a […]
In the world of professional songwriting, good means you aren’t rising above the rest. _____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ In my eBook “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting”, I draw an analogy between writing a great hit song and playing a game of football. In that description, I make the […]
Good chord progressions are not about where you’ve been — they’re about where you’re going. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and build your audience base! _____________ It’s no accident of terminology that we call a set of chords used in a piece of music a progression. If you think of progressions as simply one chord followed […]
Using the same instrument all the time when composing can limit your creativity. _____________ Everyone’s got an instrument that’s “theirs.” It’s the one they feel the most comfortable playing. If you’re a songwriter, it’s also likely to be the instrument that you feel the most comfortable writing songs with. The benefit of using that one […]
Is it possible to choose a compelling song topic when pretty much everything has been sung about? ________________ As pop music evolves, the one thing that seems to have remained constant is: love sells. Whether it’s love as a religious experience (“Locked Out Of Heaven” – Bruno Mars), love that’s not working (“I Knew You […]
