Week 2

Week 2Songwriting 1

Learning OutcomesAt the end of the session, students will be able to: Identify and describe their current methods for writing songsEmploy 5 different strategies for overcoming writers blockUnderstand a method that uses lyrics as a starting point for songwriting

Object Writing WarmupSightTaste TouchSmellHearingOrganicKinaesthetic10 minutesBeehive

Current MethodsDiscuss: What are our current methods for writing songs?How do you start writing a song?How do you make sure you finish the song?

Writers BlockWhat is writers blockHow can we overcome it?

Tool #1 - Songwriting GamesSing along with hit songs from any era and make up new lyrics. Give yourself permission to come up with silly phrases. Be less seriousWatch a TV show with a relationship theme - chose a scene and write a title and chorus that could be used to underscore it. You have 20 minutes to write lyrics and melody. Set a timer and go. It doesnt have to be good - just do it.

Find a headline in todays newspaper and write a chorus using all or part of the headline. Sing the chorus of a hit song and change the notes of the melody. Change the pitches. Hold some notes longer or shorter. Add pauses or take them out. When you have a new melody, make up a lyric for it.

Tool #2 Ghost SongsUse an existing, contemporary hit song as a pattern for writing your own original song. Use the same formUse the same chord progressionChange the melodyChange the lyrics

Imagine - John Lennon

Bliss - Megan Berry

Tool #3 - Reverse EngineeringSee the Song Studies assignment descriptorhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A8gRNY6vjg

Tool #4 KaraokeFind a karaoke track to a song you dont knowIdentify where the song sections are by listening for when the energy increases and decreases. Write a chorus for the high-energy sections, and verses for the lower-energy sections

Tool #5 - Find a Title

Pick 5 or so words from a word listArrange them in pairs or short phrasesPick the one that appeals to you most and write a song about it

Writing from a titleAnswer the questions the title asksWho?What?When? Where?How?

WorkshopPick one of the 5 Songwriters Tools, and use them to write a complete song (or as close as you can get in the time frame). You may work in pairs if you choose. You have 45 minutes. Go!

Why start with the lyric?Starting with a lyrics gives us an opportunity to really think about what we are trying to achieve with our songA lyric will have a natural melody, which will imply a chord progression

ImagineJohn Lennon Power to the People The HitsiTunes 10.1, QuickTime 7.6.6