1 Standard Progression, 5 Cool Effects

If your chord progression is boring you, don’t toss it. Here are five things you can do that will make any tired progression sound new. _____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and build your audience base, starting right now! _____________ You can’t be faulted for trying to find a “killer progression.” Every […]

The Best Way to Use Chord Inversions

For every key there are seven chords that naturally occur. You find these chords by building triads (i.e., 3-note chords that consist of a root, 3rd and 5th) above each note of the scale. So if your song is in A major, the seven naturally-occurring chords are: A, Bm, C#m, D, E, F#m, and G#dim. […]

The Special Charm of V7: With the 7th in the Bass

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle, and kick-start your songwriting career! ____________ Most of the time, we use chords in root position, which means that the root of the chord is the lowest sounding note. An inverted chord is one in which the root of the chord is not at the bottom: some other […]

Turning Basic Chords Into Something That Grabs Attention

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle, and kick-start your songwriting career right now! ____________ Chord progressions are usually the most predictable element we use in the creation of songs. It’s not easy to know what the next line of lyric will be, or even what direction the melody will take from one note […]

For Song Momentum, Inverted Chords Need a Purpose

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-ebook bundle, and get HUNDREDS of chord progressions, and TONS of songwriting advice! An inverted chord is one in which the root of the chord is not the lowest-sounding note. Every chord consists of at least 3 notes: a root, a 3rd, and a 5th. Above this basic triad, […]

Chord Progression Dilemma: When Roots Move By Step

Written by Gary Ewer, Senior Instructor, Dalhousie University, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. • Follow Gary on Twitter • “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle is available now at a 50% savings! ________________________________ If you’re looking for chord progressions that really work well, you’ll discover that the strongest ones feature a majority […]