One of the problems that songwriters often unwittingly face comes from being so intimately connected with the song they’re working on. Because we tend to focus on the parts of a song that are giving us the most grief, we can lose sight of some of the more important elements of basic song construction. For […]
A verse needs to progress in such a way as to make the chorus feel like the next logical step. By this I mean that verse lyrics, melody and chords should be constructed to build certain tensions that are then resolved in the chorus. But sometimes, moving from the verse to the chorus can seem […]
Part of my job is to conduct performing groups, mostly choirs and orchestras these days. I find myself often using a phrase with performers of music which has particular relevance to the songwriting world: “Don’t let the fact that you’re the only sound going on in the room be the reason why people are listening.” […]
Most song lyrics fall into one of two categories: 1) poetry, or 2) common narrative. My experience is that songwriters often worry too much about trying to create something poetic, when it’s not really necessary. You don’t need to be a T. S. Eliot or a Longfellow to write a lyric that gets the job […]
Point Blank Online Music College is currently running a songwriting competition that looks interesting, and has some great prizes. If you’re an up & coming writer, it’s definitely worth checking this out. The competition offers the opportunity for entrants to write a song onto an instrumental backing track created by songwriter/producer Jony Rockstar, who has […]
Why is it that I hear the term “killer chord progression” all the time, but I hardly ever hear anyone talk about a “killer melody.” Frankly, as long as your chord progression merely works, you’ve got something that can produce a hit song. But melodies – they have to do more than work. They need […]
