Song structure for instrumental film / TV cues

[larrymagee]

I'm getting such great answers here that I though I'd try another one.

Do you guys stick with just a repeated "A" section for the most part on your cues? I'm very drawn to AABA but I'm wondering if that's the best approach. AAAA gets pretty boring. I just did a cue that was ABAB for that swamp music listing. Thanks...

[Russell Landwehr]

I generally go AAAA or AAA with a touch of A, but ABAB is really good too, and I do that as long as the "A" and "B" don't FEEL different.

Just make sure your As are different... kinda like AaäÀáÃãÅâÄàÂåÁ (and the Bs too: "bßB")
Not a good idea to put c or C or Ç or ç or © in Cues.... (you might wanna put "©" in the metadata, though)

Russell

[PeterD]

I kinda like "a A B A A" (if that's such a thang)

For me, it usually results in a quick production with decent feedback. I'm not sure the form is solely responsible for the good feedback though.

I agree with Russ! Make sure you fit a © in there someplace

[Russell Landwehr]

Come to think of it, though, I will do AbaAbA sometimes too.

[larrymagee]

Thanks, guys. I put the @ (copyright by) in the metadata but then when I convert it the mp3 it goes away, so I was adding @ 2015 by Larry Magee to the title (I mean file name). Sounds like that's not a good idea.

[funsongs]

When writing for a Flintstonian cue... try YaBBA-DaBBA-Doo
may work well for any prehistoric listing, for that matter.

[PeterD]

What form are:

Take a Chance on Me
Fernando
The Winner Takes it All
and Dancing Queen

written in??

[funsongs]

What form are:

Take a Chance on Me
Fernando
The Winner Takes it All
and Dancing Queen

written in??

oooo!...oooo! call on me!! I know!!...
In Sweden!!??

[billhullett]

Larry.... I just did one for the same listing that I used the AABA formula so we're dead wrong or dead right!! Either way "I got your back man"!
Bill Hullett

[VanderBoegh]

I usually go A-A-A-A, but if you look at it in terms of growth throughout the piece, it's more like A-a-a-A where the middle two sections are much more sparse and the last A section is all balls-to-the-wall. So maybe it would look like this:

A - a - a - A

Sometimes I do B's, but never C's. Ya know, just like college, C's may get degrees, but you wanna shoot for straight A's with the occasional B so you don't seem like a super nerd! Maybe even put a football section in there somewhere, for the chicks.

~~Matt