The Formal Structure of Popular Songs: Adapting Freytag's Pyramid

There is a dramatic arc that we encounter in plays and TV dramas, and that arc applies to music as well. _______________ Written by Gary Ewer, author of “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-ebook Bundle. _______________ If you are a playwright or work in film or TV drama, you may be familiar with the term “Freytag’s […]

Songwriting: Practicing Creativity

Songwriters need both imagination and creativity. And no, those two words are not synonymous. _____________ The two main elements that come into play when writing songs are imagination and creativity. We often use the words interchangeably, but they are quite different. Think of the imagination as a pool of thoughts and ideas, generated within our mind and […]

Writing a Chords-First Song: Creating Layers

Written by Gary Ewer, author of “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-ebook Bundle. _______________ Many songwriters like the chords-first approach to songwriting. That’s mainly because the chords do such a good job of establishing a mood, and for many, getting the mood right is an important first step. No matter how you start, songwriting usually becomes […]

7 Things to Check When Songs Aren’t Working

There’s often a very fine line between good songs and bad ones. Here’s a short checklist to get a weak song working. _______________  “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 10-eBook Bundle will strengthen your songwriting technique, and take you to a new level of musical excellence. It comes with an 11th free eBook, “Creative Chord Progressions“. Read more.. ________________ […]

Take a Break – Before You Sit Down to Write Music

Written by Gary Ewer, author of “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-ebook Bundle. _______________ In my book “Beating Songwriter’s Block: Jump-Start Your Words and Music,” I make the case for writing music even when you don’t feel like it. I outline the scientific evidence for this as a good strategy for keeping the creative juices flowing. […]

Songwriting Excellence Usually Starts With the Lyrics

Mary Gauthier’s “False From True” is a demonstration of how a simple lyric can pack a powerful punch. ______________ In my previous blog post, I wrote about why some songs seem to fade quickly from public consumption, and it often has to do with a combination of things from the dated sound to the dated song […]