Tips ‘n Tricks: Chord Progression Guidelines for Songwriters

A bad chord progression can bring cause an otherwise excellent song to fail. Here are some basic tips for creating good progressions. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ When songwriters go looking for a “killer” progression, what they’re really looking for is something that’s unique, and something that really […]

Why Chord Progression Formulas Work So Well

While “formula” is often a bad word in songwriting, it’s a good thing when it comes to chords. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ As a composer of music you learn that writing according to a fixed formula is often a bad thing. And while that’s usually true, you […]

5 Songwriters’ Ideas For Getting Through the Next Few Months

The festive season will inspire you as a songwriter, but what do you do during the non-festive months? ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ There’s an 80-20 rule that applies to songwriting. Well, who knows the exact percentages, but suffice it to say: 20% of the music you write […]

Reducing Instruments in a Song Intro Keeps People Listening

The intro can be the most important part of a song; if you don’t grab the listener quick, they’ll move on. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ Back in the days of the early Classical musicians, say around 1750 or so, a composer would write an intro to their […]

5 Basic Pointers For Adding Chords to Melodies

You’re working out the melody for your next tune, but the chords just aren’t happening? Here’s a basic set-by-step for harmonizing a melody. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ It doesn’t matter how good your melody is if your chord progression doesn’t work. A chord progression is like the […]

Downward Key Changes Might “Brighten” a Song – Here’s How

If you’re looking for ways to brighten the feel of a song, moving the key downward might (paradoxically) work. Read on.. ____________ Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-eBook Bundle, and increase your song’s HIT potential. _____________ I’ve written about the matter of changing key within a song before, and most of the time I talk about ways to […]