SONGWRITING SIMPLIFIED: Music Theory, Melody & Creativity

Don't be afraid!  Music theory is not as complicated as you think!  If you can do SIMPLE math, you can learn music theory.  We'll be focusing on practical theory.

Let's start by looking at the piano keyboard to help understand the basics. 

In this Lecture you'll learn a surprisingly easy way to play Major and Minor Scales on the Guitar and the Piano.

Write down 5 song ideas that you might want to use later to write your song!

Let's talk about how the musical alphabet works.  You'll learn a great trick that'll get rid of any confusion when it comes to figuring out the names of the notes.

Let's look at how the musical alphabet works on the Guitar and Piano.

You'll learn how to use intervals to easily create any Major, Minor, or Diminished Chord you like!

Those of you at intermediate or advanced levels of Piano and Guitar playing ability:  You may be able to skip the next 3 Lectures, but I recommend watching them - you may pick up a few new & interesting details.  Also, a pro Udemy tip for ya!

Complete charts and explanations for all basic Major Chords on Guitar and Piano

Complete charts and explanations for all basic Minor Chords for Guitar and Piano

Complete charts and explanations for all basic Diminished Chords for Guitar and Piano

Remember your 5 song ideas from the last section?  Write down ONE WORD that describes the emotion that fits best with each one of those ideas.

A quick and easy explanation of Barre Chords and how they are used for Guitar players.

Complete charts and explanations for all basic Major Scales for Guitar and Piano

Complete charts and explanations for all basic Minor Scales for Guitar and Piano

Let's talk about Chord Progressions.  This is where many pro songwriters start the process of writing their songs. Let's look at C major to start.  Progressions can't be copywrited, so study your favorites!

In this Lecture you'll learn the simplest and most popular chord progression of all time.  The "I IV V."

Here are some more examples of  I IV V Progressions on GUITAR - since they're not as easy to visualize as they are on Piano.

Here are a couple more examples of  I IV V Progressions on the PIANO - in 2 different Keys.

Now let's talk about how to mix up the order of the "I IV V" Progression to create a bunch of different and cool song ideas.

Adding just one more simple Chord (the "minor iv") to the "I, IV, V" opens us up to creating countless new song ideas.

Now let's learn ALL of the basic chords you can use to write in any Major Key you like.

PIANO PLAYERS: Another MAJOR KEY example, and more details on playing beyond the I IV V. 

GUITARISTS: Another MAJOR KEY example: playing beyond the I IV V. 

Now let's learn ALL the basic chords you can use to write in any Minor Key you like.

PIANO PLAYERS:  Let's try the Key of B Minor, to help you understand how to play ALL the chords in a Minor key!

GUITARISTS:  Let's try the Key of G Minor, to help you understand how to play ALL the chords in a Minor key!

In this Lecture we'll talk about Relative Key is and how you can use this concept to control the emotional tone/feel of your song.  Each key is actually 2 keys.  A major key and a minor key! 

Let's talk about how you can easily transpose (change) the key of your song into any other key you like, to fit your vocal range.

No music theory course would be complete without a discussion of beats and rhythm.

STEP ONE!  Write 2 different Chord Progressions in the same key.  We'll be using these later to write your complete song!

Let's talk about how chord progressions are related to different musical styles.

In this lesson you'll learn how countless hit Pop songs were written!

Major Keys: I IV V’s…. I V vi IV…. I IV vi V….  I vi ii V…. I iii IV V

Minor Keys: i VI III VII….  i VI VII…  i VII VI VII…  i III iv VII

In this lesson you'll learn how countless hit Country songs were written!

Maj Keys: I IV V’s... IV I V I…. I IV I V… I vi IV V

In this lesson you'll learn how countless hit Rock songs were written!

Minor Keys: VI VII i….  i VI VII… i VII VI… i III VI VII...

Major Keys: I VI V... I V vi iii IV I V

Now that you have even more knowledge, do you want to edit/improve the Chord Progressions you wrote at the end of the last section?

Let's talk about what a "hook" is.

Learn about the importance of the vocal melody and how to create a catchy one for your song. (5ths and octaves always work great to create a hook!!)  And... the vocal "EKG!"

New to scales on the Guitar?  Here are very specific details on how to play Major and Minor Scales in any Key on the Guitar.

Let's talk about Major scales on Piano & Guitar and how you can use them to create vocal lines with a hook!  We'll also introduce the "moveable" 2 octave scale pattern for guitar.

Let's talk about Minor scales on Piano & Guitar and how you can use them to create vocal lines with a hook!  We'll also introduce the "moveable" 2 octave scale pattern for guitar.

Let's talk about "cadence" (rhythmic flow) in your vocal melodies.  This will make them so much more interesting!  

Time to learn some cool, and different ways to move through your scales.

Guitar-specific explanations on how to play those Threes, Fours, and Thirds you just learned in the previous lesson - "Melodic Movement."

If you transpose your Chord Progression to another Key, you'll have to Transpose the vocal melody along with it of course!

Now that you have an even better understanding of how scales work, it's time to use them to write some cool Vocal Melodies for the Verse and Chorus of your song.

One more quick tip on writing a Hook for your melody!

Call me cheesy, but there is only ONE you!!

Here are some tips on coming up with a unique and memorable title for your song.

Sure, we all know that singing can be scary, but so can writing a song.  Let's talk about how to put down on paper what you really feel, without mental blocks.

In this lesson we'll talk about several different, cool ways that you can rhyme your lyrics.

Let's talk about the definition of this word and how important it is to you as an artist/musician/songwriter.

Let's talk about how to use these concepts to get attention, and when to be careful with them.

Two of the most helpful and popular tricks used in all types of writing, to help make your lyrics sound more poetic.

You'll love these.  They will help immensely you when you get writers block or feel uninspired!

Now that you have a Chord Progression, AND a simple Melody written for both your Verse and your Chorus, it's time to write Lyrics for those melodies!  You only need one Chorus (lyrically) because that'll repeat, but you'll need more lyrics for your Verses.  Each verse tend to be different lyrically.  P.S. The lyrics may change the cadence of the melody!

In this lesson you'll learn what a Verse, Chorus, Bridge, etc... is and how to use them in your songs.

Here are four basic song structures that you can use to put your whole song together. But don't be afraid to experiment!!

It's time to finish your song!  Since you've written your Verses and the Chorus it's time to choose a structure for the entire song!

Here's my finished song for you, so you can check it out!  I've included the lyrics as well.

If you listen closely enough, the song will tell you what it wants to be.

More cool stuff to think about when writing a chord progression!

Choosing the right Key, Tempo, Time Signature, and Feel for your song

In this Lecture let's talk about the importance of editing.  I first learned this trick as a kid, at an ice cream shop! 

This is so important!  You could lose some very cool song ideas that just happen off the cuff, if you don't record the writing process itself!

Analyze your favorite tunes with all of your new knowledge!  There's no better way to learn how great songs are constructed. AND... be eclectic. This is one of my favorite words. It means to select from (or be influenced by) a variety of different styles.

Now that you've learned even more songwriting tips, see if you can make your song even better!!  Then it's time to write another one... then another one.  THAT'S how you get good.  :)  And find YOUR own process!