Song Arrangement Technique Question

Razor7Music · Post by **Razor7Music** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 12:14 pm

Hi Everyone!

Have an arrangement question and I hope it's not OT for this songwriting forum.

We all know about building momentum in a song to keep the listener interested, etc. We've also heard the phrase, "Don't bore us.
Get to the chorus."

Well, I'm working on a track where I'm building momentum and I'm doing that with not only the verses, etc. but the choruses as well. Each chorus has a little more energy from the instruments than the one before, and is sung with more energy as well.

Is this smart, or should every chorus go boom from the start?

What are your thoughts?

PS. Don't be surprised if you hear me ask this question in one of the breakout sessions at the Road Rally!

Paulie · Post by **Paulie** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 3:14 pm

Personally I think each section needs to grow, even if just a little bit. Add something new such as a different synth piece, guitar part, percussion, etc. You can pull stuff out as well, the main goal in many cases is to not have everything be the same.

Casey H · Post by **Casey H** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 5:24 pm

+1 to what Paulie said. Make them build and grow in most cases.

That being said, you need to WRITE a strong chorus to begin with so that it stands out and shines even before the build. The first chorus of a song makes or breaks you. That's where the A&R person decides whether or not to keep listening.

Best

Casey

Len911 · Post by **Len911** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 7:24 pm

In music one doesn't make the end of a composition, the point of the composition. If that were so the best conductors would be those who played the fastest, and there would be composer's who only composed finales. People would only go to concerts just to hear one crashing chord,lol, so that's the end! ~Alan Watts

"Don't bore us, get to the chorus",

Don't worry, if the intro or verse is boring, they'll never get there unless the song starts with the chorus.

That phrase and terms like momentum and building, are really meaningless descriptions of anything or nothing, without any further explanation or technique.
Beginning with a whisper and ending in a shout, may or may not be the best technique.

Tension, release, and rhythm are really the foundation for interest and emotional momentum. You'll never arrive at a climax if you never build tension. The art of composing is how you balance those variables.

Tension is more or less the degree of consonance and dissonance. For example, in a major key, the order of tension for chords is primarily;
I>vi>iii>IV>ii>V>vii

"There's not enough contrast between the sections of the song, too static" is something you may also hear, which is again mainly to do with the tension and release. I forgot what else I was going to say,lol!

I'll leave it here.

Paulie · Post by **Paulie** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 7:31 pm

Michael talks about the chorus all the time during listening sessions. He says screeners and sups listen to the lyrics, are they consistent, telling a good story, and does the song keep building right up to that killer dream chorus that makes you say "YES!". If there's no big mushroom cloud of emotion, you probably have missed the mark.

Len911 · Post by **Len911** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 7:34 pm

Is this smart, or should every chorus go boom from the start?

The chorus gets it's "boom", or release, from the effectiveness of the tension provided by the verse. They are not separate. You can't just paste a "boom" chorus after any 'ole verse.

Razor7Music · Post by **Razor7Music** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 8:20 pm

Thank you all. These are all the excellent types of tips I get when I get on this forum and go to the RR, and are totally consistent with the writing books I've read.

I guess I just wasn't sure if the chorus was the exception to the momentum and build technique, as far as compared to each other. Simple answer, no. Choruses are not the exception to the build or momentum technique. Thanks for that assurance.

I agree though with the entire composition needing to be compelling. It doesn't matter how great the chorus is if the listener turns the track off before they get to it!

Many thanks!

I'm guessing you're all going to the RR? Casey, I know you are.

lesmac · Post by **lesmac** » Thu Oct 29, 2015 10:32 pm

What about the ol' drop chorus and has anybody heard of "don't bore us get a thesaurus".

Len911 · Post by **Len911** » Fri Oct 30, 2015 12:19 am

lesmac wrote:What about the ol' drop chorus and has anybody heard of "don't bore us get a thesaurus".

ROFL!

Len911 · Post by **Len911** » Fri Oct 30, 2015 12:37 am

I agree though with the entire composition needing to be compelling.

You must remember this
A kiss is still a kiss
A sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by

As time goes by, I have discovered that yes, a song just has to be good, as they say in a nutshell, but the real meat of the nut will be found by applying the fundamentals to your own understanding and discovery.

There's far too much cliche and regurgitation that in some ways inhibits understanding. imo

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