How do I begin songwriting?

[shorty]

Nov 13, 2009, 9:05am, kevinmathie wrote:Bill:Those are some really great tips! Thank you. I love the idea of free writing! I know, that probably sounds very basic to all of you, but this is the kind of thing I was looking for. Telling myself to "write some lyrics" is intimidating. But, telling myself to free write for 10 minutes is a very doable task, and I can see how that could generate lots of great ideas that I can then shape using the rest of your bullet points. Also thanks for the links. I'll definitely check them out.Bete:Yes, you are right. I'm mostly focused on musical theatre writing. Here's the thing: I've written music in other genres before, but I have two friends in particular who chuckle at me a lot. Every time I write a rock song, let's say, they always tell me, "Wow, that sounds like musical theatre." Or, when I try to write in the country genre, "Hmm.... sounds like musical theatre...", Or jazz: "Man, everything you write sounds like musical theatre!"LOL! So, I figure if that's the feedback I keep getting, I might as well go with it. True, there's not much call for that genre on Taxi or with music libraries, but fortunately I have other connections and avenues in which to market myself in the musical theatre world. After all, being a music director for musical theatre is my "day job," so to speak. That's where I earn the majority of my income.thesongcabinet:Quote:But you might not want to studi HIT songwriting, which is a whole different beast (allthough it's very useful).Interesting. So, there is a difference between "hit" songwriting and musical theatre writing? What would you say the biggest difference is? Off the top of my head, I'd assume the major difference would be that musical theatre song writing is designed to serve the plot, and musical theatre songs can't always stand on their own outside of the play. And, I've noticed the form doesn't always seem to be the same as songs on the radio (i.e., musical theatre form often tends to be ABAA or something along that form, rather than verse chorus verse chorus bridge chorus chorus.)Are there other differences I should be on the lookout for? Thanks for the tip on "Lyrics on Several Occasions." I'll check that book out.The thing I love about Rodgers and Hammerstein, is that a lot of their music can and does survive outside of the plot of the play itself. A lot of their music ended up being 'popular' music. Not only were their songs catchy, but they could be applied to many different situations. Several songs are still re-recorded and played in commercials, movies, specials, etc. "My Favorite Things" comes to mind. Rodgers and Hammerstein fit a lot of the 'hit' patterns in pop music. Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus, Chorus... Imagery, prosody, etc... The Sherman Brothers wrote Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, and their songs are sung by many outside of the context of the musical. Disney musicals are a great example of 'hit' songwriting used in the context of a musical. Specific to the story, yet generic enough to be sang outside of the plot. I love Sondheim, but I find that I have to watch the play in it's entirety to 'get' the songs. There are a few songs that survive outside of the musicals, "Send in the Clowns" most notably. If your purpose is to serve the story alone, fabulous! But, if you are looking for songs to be able to stand alone outside of the context of the play, studying 'hit' music patterns would help you immensely.I've found that Jason Blume's books are the best that speak to me. He's got some great exercises at the end of a lot of chapters that really utilize some great tools.

[hammersmith]

I find it strange for someone to "decide" to become a writer. I don't decide to write the same way I don't decide to breathe. Perhaps your experience with composition is the same?Well, if you decide to take the plunge, prepare yourself for great difficulty and maybe try some of these suggestions...Songs can be broken down the same way as you describe breaking down your musical compositions. In musical theatre, you'll probably write a story first and decide which themes or ideas of the story are expanded into songs and what is the function of that song for plot or character development. Titles are always a great place to start. Once you have a title experiment with different ways of singing it and different placements of the title within the structure of the song. This should lead to the development of the chorus. Verses should tell the story, lead logically (and inescapably) to the chorus, and provide some type of contrast to it.That's a start. Good luck.

[ren]

Since Christmas is coming, you might ask a loved one to get you Master Writer 2.0. Its got awesome tools for when you're just about ready to bang your head against a wall searching for just the right word. And it hurts less, too!

[ncc1701]

The best tip I can give you is one I learned from working at a newspaper: Write short, and write strong.I used to hate my attempts at lyrics and was embarrassed to keep trying to write them, until I learned how to write for news. It's the same principle: Get the reader's (or listener's) attention and make them want to keep reading (or listening).Kathleen

[jdhogg]

Tunesmith by Jimmy WebbA must have book imho.Buy all that have been mentioned and see how different parts of each resonate.

[bigdaddy123]

My only advice would be to become a singer if you're not already. That way you can hear right away what the words sound like with a particular melody when sung . Try to write the lyrics and melody as a single entity ( Lyrical melody ) Hope this helps - Cool thread by the way !

[len123]

Once I've completed the music for the song, I then play it about a hundred times through, usually humming or vocalizing along often times with unintelligible phrasings,lol, eventually a few intelligible lines come out of that, usually hooks, and then the theme becomes more apparent and ideas flow from there. Sometimes I already have something I want to say, and the phrases flow from there. The downside is that you might stray from a genre or some songs are sort of x-rated and the song is already in your head and heart. If I write lyrics to no music, they sound like poems, and poems are not lyrics at all imho. Poems use brain rhythms, and lyrics use heart rhythms. That's why when lyrics are read they sound goofy, and when poems are put to music they sound boring.

[charlie2]

What I do is I write the melodies first. From this I get the rest of the music.
Then I honestly ask myself what the music reminds me of to get the theme. This could take a few hours or or could take months.
From this theme I now have all the lyrics, just by free associating on it

[Guest]

P.S. Getting the theme also includes getting the title which is extremely important. Once I get the title the words flow freely.
So to sum things up. Write melody, ask honestly what it reminds me of, get the title then get the words

[charlie2]

Once I've completed the music for the song, I then play it about a hundred times

I try not to play my newly written music over and over too much.

I want this new music to turn me on right away. If it doesn't then it won't turn on anyone else right away. This is one of the tests I give my new pieces.