Education to Write Songs

Song writing tips are widely available on the internet but how much of it can you actually use practically? I always looked for step by step song writing tips when I started out and always seemed to end up reading pages and pages of music theory or people just telling me to “write from the heart” and “use your emotions” without giving me any advice on how to actually DO that. No song writers sit down to write and think “Ok, I’m just going to write from the heart and everything will be fine.” They all have a set of techniques they use to tap into their creative energy so they can consistently write great songs!

Here are a few PRACTICAL song writing tips you won’t hear anywhere else to get you started writing great songs straight away…

ONE: Choose a topic to write about, say you want to write a song about a recent relationship gone wrong. Take a few sheets of paper and brainstorm words, phrases and lyrics that all relate to it. You’ll need at least two or three sheets so keep writing for as long as you possibly can. Then…put it to one side and leave it alone for a while.

TWO: Grab your instrument and create as many musical ideas as you possibly can. Aim for ten, twenty or even more ideas, chord sequences, riffs, melodies get them all out and most importantly record them on a simple tape recorder. The most important thing here is that you’re not editing ANY THING, you’re recording all of your ideas even the bad ones. Then once you’ve finished, put them to one side and do something else.

I always leave some time after my initial idea session before I try to write the finished song just to allow my mind to sort through the ideas. Often I’ll get ideas pop into my head while I’m not even thinking about song writing even a few weeks after the idea session. When I do come back to my ideas, I’ll take my brainstormed lyric sheets and spend time singing my favorite lines over all of my favorite musical ideas. If things aren’t working out, I’ll move onto the next idea, then the next and the next. Trust me, it will only a matter of time before you hit upon the combination that could lead to your next hit record!

If you want to be a more effective song writer, there are some things that you will have to bear in mind when you are writing songs. You definitely do not want to make any terrible mistakes as it will take out a lot of your time and effort. Here are the 3 things that you have to consider when you are writing songs.

1) Be Aware Of Your Target Audience

This is the first thing that you must do as you will want to identify the group of people that you are targeting. If you are writing a song for old people, you will want to make sure that you have a song that will communicates in a way that they can understand your message. There is a saying “The Simplest Things Works”. You do not have to over complicate the whole process as simple song might be better.

2) Be In A Environment Where You Will Have Inspiration

You will want to identify the environment that will trigger your inspiration and you will be creative. For example, if you feel that you get the most inspiration during the night, you will want to make sure that you have a good environment around you so that you can be creative. Do make some effort to identify the best time and places where you get the most inspiration and you will be surprised by the creativity that comes from you.

3) Do Not Be A Perfectionist

The biggest mistake that people make is being a perfectionist. If you are going to keep on going through the process of creating the song, nobody other than you will be able to listen to your song. If you feel that your song is 85% ready, you can try to ask for opinions from your friends or even to the major video directories where you can get valuable feedback. This will greatly helps to improve your songs better.

Here are the 3 things that you will have to consider when you are writing songs. Do follow it through, closely, and you will be able to write good songs fast and effectively.

Writing songs on the keyboard or piano.

As a song writer, you will always end up with a method that works best for you, whether or not you learn the art of songwriting from a professional songwriter.

I can only speak from my own experience as far as songwriting is concerned, so for myself, playing the guitar and a little piano has helped a lot in my own personal style of songwriting.

For someone just starting out with songwriting, I would suggest buying a small keyboard to help get ideas down.

The nice thing about the piano or keyboard is that if you stick to the key of C, the chords are very easy to play.

Another very usable feature for writing songs on the keyboard is the auto accompaniment function. Setting a good beat and style for a song before you write it can work very nicely towards getting inspired.

A note of caution though, is to remember not to use the one finger feature when creating chords, as you won’t know what it is that you played.

Why I write songs on the guitar.

The main reason why I write songs on a guitar is because that’s my main instrument. Many people who play guitar, even if they are novices at it, somehow, like myself, seem to prefer it as a song writing tool.

As a fairly advanced guitarist, and I’m not trying to blow my own trumpet here, heck, I don’t even own a trumpet.

(more…)