How a Bridge Melody Differs from Verse and Chorus

Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website __________ The bridge of your song is usually the section that builds energy beyond what the chorus can do for you. Not all songs have bridges, and actually, whether your song needs one or not is more an issue of lyrical development than it […]

Songwriters: Identify the Goal, then Work Backwards

Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. _______ There’s a somewhat romantic notion out there that the best songwriters are the ones who just somehow create music without even knowing how they do it. It just flows. But that’s really not how it happens. True, there are songs that come together […]

Sia's "Soon We'll Be Found"- Two-Part Verses and Other Goodies

Written by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. Follow Gary on Twitter for songwriting tips, news and more. ___________________ If you don’t know the music of Sia, you’re missing a real treat. Her music is a perfect example of how songwriters need only venture minimally outside the box to create fantastic music. […]

Building Energy: There's a Progression For That

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: _____________ In general, the energy near the end of your song should be more than the energy at the beginning. That rising energy is not a constant; it ebbs and flows in a generally-upward direction, much like a successful stock market chart. The latter part […]

It's Hard to be Unique if You're Using the Same Tired Formula

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 […]

Composing from the Chorus Backwards

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 […]