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 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 […]
It seems that the songs that everyone really wants to hear during the Christmas season are the classics — the ones that have been around for the past 7 or 8 decades, or even longer. It begs the question: Can anyone write a new holiday tune that has a hope of taking its place along […]
When you’ve written a song, it might seem like a logical next-step to ask someone, “What do you think of it?” You might post it online, and hope that others weigh in on what the song sounds like to them. The hope is that the feedback will allow you to dig back into the song […]
What are the main differences between a verse and chorus that you should be concerned about as a songwriter? You’re likely aware of all the commonly-known ones: Keep the verse melodic range a bit below the chorus. Allow melody notes of the chorus to elongate, especially on title words. Prevent your verse lyric from getting […]
