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Thread: Songwriting Techniques

  1. #91
    Stuck on the Border NightMistBlue's Avatar
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Hey, don't knock simple. John Lennon wrote simple melodies. Sting used to write "cute" but he grew and evolved. So will you.

    I like the "Too Simple Melody" - good job. Sounds like a Joe Walsh ballad.

  2. #92
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Quote Originally Posted by NightMistBlue View Post
    Hey, don't knock simple. John Lennon wrote simple melodies. Sting used to write "cute" but he grew and evolved. So will you.

    I like the "Too Simple Melody" - good job. Sounds like a Joe Walsh ballad.
    Thanks for the feedback. (Both NMB and Chaim)

    I think I need to do some Jackson Browne inspired lengthy hard work on it to get rid of some of the over-simplistic repetition. I'm sure some of the too predictable bits can be made a little less predictable with variation. I think if I play real bass on it rather than bass played from a computer (querty) keyboard, then that might up the sophistication a touch.

    I think that the 'strummed acoustic' chords not matching the piano may be a fortunate accident. I'm going to work on simplifying the guitar chords so that there's a more interesting relationship between the two instruments. EDIT: Current version has no guitar, louder strings, drums, and a (very simple thirds) harmony line. I'm going to try to put guitar back in, but it is a mess at the minute.
    Last edited by Annoying Twit; 06-27-2016 at 12:26 PM.

  3. #93
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    I didn't find it predictable - just my tuppence.

    For those who may be interested, the University of Leeds offers a free online course on songwriting. I took it last summer, it was very interesting and introduced me to some things I'd never thought of before. Such as writing out your melody lines on a staff to visually judge if you should introduce more variation and range, or if you could "mirror" an arc of melody in reverse. I think it's called a pitch contour or melodic motion.

    https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/songwriting

    A bit more on melodic motion:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melodic_motion

  4. #94
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Quote Originally Posted by NightMistBlue View Post
    I didn't find it predictable - just my tuppence.

    For those who may be interested, the University of Leeds offers a free online course on songwriting. I took it last summer, it was very interesting and introduced me to some things I'd never thought of before. Such as writing out your melody lines on a staff to visually judge if you should introduce more variation and range, or if you could "mirror" an arc of melody in reverse. I think it's called a pitch contour or melodic motion.

    https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/songwriting

    A bit more on melodic motion:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melodic_motion
    That's why I like using Logic. A click of a button and I see my music drawn as a score. It makes it look like 'real' music, and enables seeing things that aren't so obvious when heard, as NMB points out.

    The book I read yesterday really goes into melodic motion. The first half of the book concentrates on producing melodies that can stand alone before it even goes into harmony.

    I really need to have more dramatic melodic contour in what I do.

  5. #95
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Quote Originally Posted by Annoying Twit View Post
    I really need to have more dramatic melodic contour in what I do.
    Me too. What's the title of the book you're reading?

  6. #96
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Quote Originally Posted by NightMistBlue View Post
    Me too. What's the title of the book you're reading?
    Melody in Songwriting by Jack Perricone. It really does have a lot in it. I'm only about a third of the way through the chapters and I've already learned loads. Putting it into action, that's going to be the tricky bit.

    https://online.berklee.edu/store/pro...229&usca%5fp=t

    The free chapter from the book doesn't give a good indication of what's in it. The free chapter is an overview, the book gets into melody much deeper than the first chapter suggests.

  7. #97
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Oh, I have that book but haven't read it yet Now is the perfect time to start.

    I have another Berklee book but it's so technical and intimidating. The irony is that the author's claim to fame was this awful melodramatic bubble-gum song that was briefly popular when I was a child, "Run, Joey, Run". Even as kids, we laughed at that turkey.

  8. #98
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    Quote Originally Posted by NightMistBlue View Post
    Oh, I have that book but haven't read it yet Now is the perfect time to start.

    I have another Berklee book but it's so technical and intimidating. The irony is that the author's claim to fame was this awful melodramatic bubble-gum song that was briefly popular when I was a child, "Run, Joey, Run". Even as kids, we laughed at that turkey.
    Is the other book you have "Songwriting: Essential Guide to Lyric Form and Structure: Tools and Techniques for Writing Better Lyrics"? I bought the kindle version of it today.

    I've noticed that one problem with how to write lyrics books is that the authors tend to write lyrics ... 'politeness' brain-cells spring into action ... not in the style I like best.

    The melody book is quite technical. But I like that as it gets into things deeper than (say) Jai Josef's 'How to write music for hit songs'.

  9. #99
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    Default Re: Songwriting Techniques

    No, it's the one on Harmony. https://www.amazon.com/Songwriters-W...SRJY2S6PDWS7P3

    Just for fun (and as a signpost of what *not* to do), here is Run Joey Run
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUVZsu36SW4

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