There’s more to a song hook than meets the ear… a lot more. “Hooks and Riffs: How They Grab Attention, Make Songs Memorable, and Build Your Fan Base” is a vital manual for any serious songwriter. A bridge is an optional section of a song that usually happens either: …after the second chorus in songs […]
When it comes to the performance of a song, you’re probably very well aware of the importance of musical energy. Much of the time we might safely equate energy with loudness, though the true definition involves a lot more than just loudness. If all you need are tons of progressions to try out, you need “Essential Chord […]
The best songwriters are the ones who are the most curious. Curiosity makes you wonder. When you hear something amazing or unusual, curiosity is that drive inside your musical mind that makes you ask, “How in the world did they do that??” By being curious, you develop the ability to take other musicians’ ideas and modify […]
It’s hard to write every day if you’re a songwriter, because you find yourself either running out of ideas for songs, or running out of inspiration. What can you do to keep creativity from drying up? Let’s deal with the inspiration part first. There are lots of sources for inspiration, but the kind of inspiration […]
Whenever you make something — whether you’re building a chest of drawers, sewing a dress, painting a picture or composing a song, you’re bringing together two important aspects of human endeavour: craft and art. Craft refers to the technical skills involved in actually constructing something. If you’re painting a picture, craft would refer to one’s […]
Over the past twelve years of me doing this blog I’ve written probably hundreds of articles that focus on chord progressions – how to create them, how to partner them up with a melody, how they impact the mood of music, and so on. If you’ve had problems with the chord aspect of your songwriting, […]
