Songwriting Lessons

Songwriters create new songs by combining melody, lyrics, rhythm, and harmony. Many music lovers and musicians explore this area of self-expression, either on its own or to deepen their expression when playing their primary instrument. While there are no hard-and-fast rules to song writing, an MTN teacher can help a student acquire some fundamental skills and concepts that will help them become the sort of songwriter they want to be.

Example Lesson Progression

A good song starts with a good idea, whether it is a catchy melody, or a powerful phrase, a story or a larger theme like love or loss. Songwriting lessons, then, first focus on the development of ideas. If the student is already a musician, these might be musical ideas, but it doesn't require any previous musical experience to start coming up with ideas for lyrics. An MTN teacher will start with questions and directed writing activities that help the student come up with ideas of things to write about. Writing in a journal every day and listening to a lot of music is also very helpful for this part of the process. Once an idea or theme has been selected, the student might free-write a description or story about that theme, which than then be crafted into a lyric. The teacher will help the student adjust their text for flow, clarity, creativity, and focus. Form and rhyme scheme are important tools for a songwriter, and activities like listening to favorite songs and writing down the rhyme scheme and form of the lyrics, or starting with a given rhyme scheme and constructing a lyric to fit it, will help the student learn how various forms work select the best one for their lyrics.

Once the lyrics have taken shape, it's time to work on crafting the music. Students will become familiar with the concepts of key and mode, the basic scales of different styles, chords, and chord progressions. These concepts form the foundation of melody writing and song structure. Just as lyrics have a poetic form, songs have a musical form, or song structure. Common examples include 32-bar form or AABA form, where the verse forms the "A" section and the main melody, with a "bridge" or "B" section between the second and last verses; verse-chorus form, where verses alternate with a repeated chorus; and the twelve-bar blues, where the same music is used for both verse and chorus, but the lyrics differ. The teacher will help the student become familiar with the various song structures and select the best one for their lyrics. Once the song structure is determined, the focus turns to melody writing. This part of song writing is often the most personal-no two people are likely to come up with the same melodies using the same method. Some songwriters start with a melody and add chords that fit it, and some go the other way around. A teacher will help the student find which approach suits them best and craft effective melodies to fit their lyrics.

The "hook" is an essential part of songwriting. The hook is the part of the song that catches the listener's attention and makes them remember it. A hook can be a powerful turn of phrase, a memorable bit of melody, an unusual chord progression, or even a particular song structure. Sometimes it is the first part of a song to take shape; other times it becomes clear in the middle or even near the end of the writing process. Whatever it is and whenever it takes shape, the hook should be the highlight of the song. A teacher can help the student adjust the components of the song to complement and emphasize the hook.

Get Started!

Learning to write songs may seem like a challenge, and it is, but all it takes to get started is a love of music and the desire to write. Becoming a songwriter takes patience and practice, but it is well worth it. Learning how songs are written will deepen your understanding and appreciation of the music that's already out there, and is a wonderful avenue for self-expression and discovery.