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opinion

08.25.09

Songwriting isn’t lyric writing, even for Bowie Lyrics, Other People, opinion | (6)
This morning on the today program I heard an interview with Nick Troop, a songwriter who claimed to be doing a psychological study of songwriting to investigate psychological health or... something. A brief investigation took me to Nick's websites, and the first thing to point out, as Nick does, is that his analysis is not supposed to be scientific, and not supposed to be taken to seriously. It's a bit of fun, although I'm sure it would be interesting to genuinely investigate the interaction between psychological health and songwriting. His website 'The Gospel According to David Bowie' analyses Bowie's songs ...
08.24.09

Songwriting Pet Hates Other People, opinion | (0)
Great post over at Martin Austwick's blog: Song pet hates #1 Martin says his first pet hate in songwriting is rhyming. Specifically: 1. Rhyme is not a substitute for meaning 2. A good, clever or complex rhyming scheme is not a sufficient or necessary condition for a song being good My own pet hates are Beatles rip-offs and old fashioned harmony. Though I suppose I could have gone for my real big, genuine number 1 hate - Anything Bob Dylan has written. Ever. Of course, I probably shouldn't admit to disliking Bob Dylan. But I do. Passionately. Anyway, ignore me and go and read Martin's ...
08.13.09

Songwriting: Expression, Communication, Art, Compulsion opinion | (0)
After trying valiantly, but only moderately successfully to voice my disatisfaction with songwriting being described as 'communication', I feel I've little choice but to leave you with the thoughts and comments that other's have sent me: T.C.Elliot, whose songs can be heard here and here, said: To me a rock or a carving or a beautiful sunrise is nothing if it does not communicate something more than what it is...What makes a picture of a sunset art instead of a document of a particular time and place? Does it communicate something more to you than merely a photographer was here at such ...
07.29.09

Is Songwriting Communication or Expression? opinion | (4)
Interesting post over at Eric Beall's Songwriting and Publishing blog. He talks in his post about songwriting as a form of communication, and contrasts this with music as a kind of personal expression. He admits that songwriting very often begins as a form of personal expression, and this passage had me nodding in agreement: In fact, when meeting with developing songwriters, the theme of personal expression comes up more often than anything else. There are lengthy explanations of the situation or relationship that brought the song about, then usually a long, introspective and hopefully in the end, cathartic lyric. Then finally, there ...
06.08.09

Is Music a Form of Communication? opinion | (1)
Twice in recent days I've come across the notion that music is a form of communication. One was on an interesting thread over on this website, the other was in the new Uk national curriculum for music. I know what people mean when they say this, but I don't think it's quite right, or at least, I think that's only one use for music. Communication is deliberately passing on an idea to someone else. By making music, can I communicate? Well, obviously if there are words I can pass on whatever those words are, and the mood of the song will ...
06.06.09

The Real Songwriter opinion | (0)
The real songwriter writes what moves him. The real songwriter hones his craft. The real Songwriter knows conventions, but isn't bound by them. The real songwriter respects the listener. The real songwriter builds on the work of others. The real songwriter uses chords and melodies you've never heard. The real songwriter develops.
06.06.09

The Fake Songwriter opinion | (0)
The fake songwriter writes for others. The fake songwriter never learns. The fake songwriter repeats the work of others. The fake songwriter has no respect for the listener. The fake songwriter never strays from convention. The fake songwriter uses chords and melodies you've heard before. The fake songwriter stagnates.
06.01.09

Ultimate Songwriting Lessons – Songwriting Hooks and Songwriting Meat Chords and harmony, Lyrics, Melody, Other People, opinion | (0)
I just stumbled across this video, via this post. It's from this website. First off, let me make clear that I have a very low opinion of sales pages like this one. I know they've been shown to work, that they're 'good marketing,' but I really don't like them. However, don't take that us an opinion of the book, as I haven't read it, I've just seen the video. A few thoughts occured as I watched, and I made some rough notes: The narrator equates artistic worth with 'lyrical depth'. Personally I would argue that lyrics are not the main conveyor of meaning in popular ...
02.20.09

You’ll never be a good songwriter if you don’t play opinion | (0)
I've worked with lots of singers and I've noticed something: the singers who are easiest to work with are those that play an instrument. They might not have the greatest voices (some definitely do) but singers who also play instruments have a real advantage when working as part of an ensemble. They understand about chords, about beat, about all the ensemble playing and instrumental skills that pure singers sometimes don't. I guess this is because having a wider musical background makes you a better musician. I also think something similar can be said for songwriters - you'll never be as good as you ...

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