Write a character-driven song It’s not about the vibe or the production, not about the musicianship or even the story line. Character-driven songs take a deep dive into the central character’s personality. It’s not what happens, it’s how he or she reacts to what happens. A good character song can describe an actual person, but […]
Write a song in the voice of another performer On an audio clip aired sometimes on The Beatles Channel (Sirius satellite radio), Paul McCartney remembers fooling around with a melody and trying to play and sing like Ray Charles. The result was “The Long and Winding Road.” He wrote, played and sang like Little Richard […]
Key changes for dramatic effect Last time we did this assignment I noticed that several members had inserted the key change without taking full advantage of its capability. Nothing wrong with that — a key change can help to hold the listener’s interest in the song, and in many famous songs that’s enough. But what […]
Bass lines for songwriters — write a bass line into a song Giving a song a bottom end isn’t just the responsibility of the bass player. Songwriters can improve the structural stability of their songs, and their catchiness, by writing in a bass line as the song is being crafted. The bass line is the […]
Write a song with a false ending. Why start stopping and start up again? A song that seems about to resolve but unexpectedly rebounds recaptures the audience’s attention. Just as they’re about to start clapping, or expect the next track to begin, the song returns with a familiar musical phrase and the brain eagerly reconnects. […]
Monthly Assignment March 5, 2019 Rework a popular song in your own style. Monthly Assignment March 5, 2019 Rework a popular song in your own style. What? Play a cover at a meeting of songwriters? Last couple of times we did this, members found that the way they reinvented other writers’ songs revealed much about […]
For Feb. 5 Write a song with a lyrical intro that does not repeat in the song. This type of intro isn’t a chord progression or the first words of the first verse. A lyrical intro sets the tone of what’s to come with lines that generally feel almost separate from the song, usually ending […]
Jan. 8, 2019 Next Songwriters Circle meeting NOTE: The first Tuesday of the year is a holiday, New Year’s Day, so we’re meeting at Hambone’s on the second Tuesday, January 8th. Alex Meleshenko’s (alex.meleshenko@gmail.com) songwriting assignment idea is to write a song that includes “new” or “new year.” Think new opportunities, new you, new ground, […]
The suggested assignment for Tue., Dec. 4 is to write a holiday song celebrating Christmas, New Year / First Night, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, family holidays, Blue Light Specials, glittery displays of secular capitalist culture … Whatever you do at the end of the year, write a song about it.
Monthly Assignment For Nov. 6 Write a song in one week. The idea is borrowed from The Acoustic Guitar Project, a global songwriting program being hosted in Pittsburgh by the Songwriters Circle. The premise: Give a songwriter a guitar and a week and see what happens. Learn more about The Acoustic Guitar Project at theacousticguitarproject.com.
