Living In The Moment

I know this through direct experience. On August 19, 2011, I was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. On October 12th I had major surgery to remove the cancer, from which I am still recovering. That’s why I haven’t updated Serve The Song in over a year. It sure feels good to be back. If you’re a regular reader, thanks for your patience.

After my surgery I couldn’t play guitar for a while, but I could play the ukulele. That ukulele was such a gift to my sanity. It kept me going for weeks and weeks during what was often a long, slow, painful recovery process. I’m so thankful that 1) I’m gonna be ok and 2) that I had a joyful, fun activity to pursue that helped me heal.

From October to March I recorded dozens of uke-based song ideas into my iPhone. I don’t know if any of them are worth keeping and I actually don’t care. It’s the doing of it that made me happy. I had forgotten that simple joy. Cancer shakes you to your very core and forces you to focus only on the things that truly matter. Everything else falls away. For me it’s my family, my health and my music. The challenge is carrying this feeling forward as things get back to normal. I want to feel this way all the time.

Remembering What Is Possible

I certainly would never wish what happened to me to fall on anyone else, however I want to use the experience for good if I can. I’ve been given a second chance to live life on my own terms. It’s so easy to fall back into old habits that keep us from our dreams. If you’re like me, perhaps you have a day job, family, or other responsibilities that prevent you from writing music as often as you would like.

I want Serve The Song to be a useful resource for DIY musicians who want to make things happen despite the everyday challenges life throws their way. I used to get really frustrated by my own time constraints, but now I’m learning to embrace them and use them productively. While things don’t always go exactly as planned, I feel like I’m heading overall in the right direction.

John Lennon said a long time ago that life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans. Life will continue to happen all around you and your music. But if it’s important enough to you you’ll make time for it.

Why Do You Write Songs Anyway?

As an aspiring or professional songwriter, of course you want your music to appeal to a mass audience and fit the needs of the market. But if it doesn’t also rock your own socks aren’t you just selling your soul? Where is the joy in that? You’ve got to be authentic and find your own voice first. Then, when you can express your highest and best self through your music, your audience will naturally find you. And that’s the real brass ring.

Over To You

Have you ever experienced healing through songwriting? How did it impact you and what did you learn from it? Please leave your thoughts in the comments.

photo credit: iStockphoto

This is a guest post from Nathan Allen, head engineer at Last Drop Mastering in San Francisco, CA. He can be contacted at www.lastdropmastering.com/contact

We hear how important audio mastering is, but why? For any artist or label looking to make a career out of music, mastering is essential. In short, it’s the final (and in many ways most crucial) step of music production -the stage where dull, lifeless tracks are transformed into polished masterpieces.

The Benefits Of Using A Mastering Engineer

Being a mastering engineer requires a special ear—one that can carefully analyze a recording and make delicate adjustments to bring it to its full potential. A skilled mastering engineer is the key to creating commercially successful recordings. On the other hand, a poor mastering engineer can be responsible for diminishing the work of a quality artist. For this reason working with a seasoned mastering specialist is a necessity.

Think of mastering like cutting diamonds. Until a diamond is cut into shape, all it has is potential, and lots of it. The same is true for your music; until the right engineer polishes and finalizes your project, it’s only a fraction of what it could be.

If Your Song’s Not Mastered, Your Song’s Not Finished

These days, a lot of times either the recording studio bumps up the signal and does a quick “hot master” for artists, or the artists take care of the mastering themselves. While it is possible to achieve great results outside of a mastering facility, for the sake of your project reaching its full potential, it’s best to use the talents of a skilled mastering engineer.

The good news is that there are more super-affordable pro mastering options than ever. The proliferation of “do-it-yourself” mastering software and “budget facilities” has actually forced the old-school mastering houses to either cut their rates way back or call it quits altogether.

Gone are the days of spending $2,000-$10,000 on a stellar mastering job. You can get it done now for a fraction of that. Not only are there plenty of options, but many places will provide you with a free test song. You can’t beat a “try before you buy” offer.

Preparing Your Song For Mastering

When preparing your song for mastering, make sure you or your engineer know to leave any limiting or compression off the master track when bouncing out – basically anything that would boost the volume. What you need to provide the mastering engineer is a rough natural-dynamic mix, preferably in .WAV or .AIF format. 3 or 4dbs of headroom is ideal.

When selecting places to send a sample song to, try not to get too hung up on gear lists and even credits. While these things are definitely important, what really matters is the sample you get back.

All the gear in the world doesn’t mean a thing if you don’t know what to do with it. Hopefully their site has an upload form for easy song submission. If not, you can always safely deliver your song via www.yousendit.com.

Checking Your Mastered Track

When you receive your sample song back, compare it carefully to the original, and in a few different listening environments. Once you have made a decision on a facility, look for customer references and talk to people you know who may have worked with them previously. Pay close attention to customer service and turnaround times, as these aspects of the process should not be overlooked.

Find out their policy on revisions – it’s always good to make sure you have at least 2 included, so that you can get your project dialed in just right. Know that even with seemingly low rates, there is always room for negotiation. If you have a large project, or more on the way if all goes well, bring that to their attention during the negotiation process.

Then put together a list of notes for your project. Fade timings, song order, reference songs with a particular sound that you’re shooting for, etc. Also let them know if you need an actual red book master disc, as many bands these days just use digital downloads.

If you have a specific deadline let the facility know beforehand. Find out the best way to deliver your project to them. Many places allow you to zip up the whole thing and upload it directly to their server. Be prepared for a wait as it uploads…though hopefully it will be nothing compared to using the mail!

Finally, it’s always nice to credit the engineer and facility in your release notes. A link back to their site is always much appreciated as well.

Good luck!

Helen Austin is a singer-songwriter based in Vancouver Island, Canada. Helen’s music can be heard on MTV, CW’s One Tree Hill, and most recently on a Korean Dunkin’ Donuts commercial. She has been described as singer-songwriter with the DNA of Simon & Garfunkel and CSN&Y clothed in Iron & Wine and a folkier Feist. In the following Serve The Song interview, Helen discusses her journey into commercial music and offers candid advice to anyone who wants to successfully place their songs in film and TV projects. Learn more about Helen Austin at http://helenaustin.com.

1. How does a classical flute player become a stand-up comic turned singer-songwriter? In other words, tell us a little about your background.

My classical fluting took me to do a performing arts degree where I learned to sing and did some comedy classes and ended up in a singing acapella comedy duo. But music was always my my passion, so when I moved to Canada I saw it as a chance to do what I had always wanted to do.

2. What prompted your move from the U.K. to Vancouver Island in 2002?

We wanted a quieter place to bring up kids and loved to ski which brought us to Vancouver Island.

3. How many instruments do you play and perform live?

Let’s see, vocals, guitar, ukelele, flute, piano and I dabbled in stand-up bass!

4. You are a performance and promotional machine, with a busy performing schedule, a website chock full of videos, music awards, community service, song placements and new music releases. Oh, AND you’re a mom. How and when do you find the time to write new material?

I write fast! Not having a lot of spare time makes you do the things you want to in a more efficient way… so if I have a spare 30 minutes before school pick up I will start a song.

5. What is your songwriting process like?

Like I said… fast. I tend to start and idea and see it through to the end before I lose the idea. If I don’t like the end result I shelve it, but I try to get from first idea to finished song quite quickly.

6. Do you record everything at home? What is your studio setup like?

Almost everything. If something needs a fuller production then I use a guy called Scott Feldman in L.A. I use a Mac with a Mackie interface, Joe Meek preamp and Logic.

7. What are the best and worst parts of being a self-contained singer-songwriter?

It doesn’t feel like there are any bad parts. I have been in bands and duos and I have discovered that I really like doing it all myself. That way I only have myself to blame if it’s not good. I love the solitary nature of being at home writing and recording. I get so much input and noise in my life from my family that I really enjoy the contrast of the 2 worlds.

8. You’ve spent much of the last few years getting your songs placed in film and TV projects. How long did it take between the time you decided to go for it and getting your first deal?

I decided in September of 2008 when my youngest went to school full time, to work at getting my songs placed. I got my first placement in September of 2009 and then in 2010 it really started ramping up.

9. Once you got that first deal how long did it take to get paid?

A few months.

10. How many placements do you have now?

30+.

11. What is the one promotional vehicle that has worked best for getting your music heard?

Some of the MTV shows have really brought people to my music… especially The Real World.

12. How important is the use of social media to your success?

Very. I use it to follow music supervisors on Twitter, get my news out to people who want to hear it and to generate interest in my music.

13. How do you plan your time between writing, recording, performing and promoting your music?

I don’t really plan. The kids go to school and I just do the next thing that has to be done. If my publisher sends me an email asking for a song about “Sunshine”, which they did the other day, then I do that. If there is nothing urgent then I look around the web for the next step, or send emails to music supervisors or look through the Taxi listings. When I get stuck, I clean the house

14. How have you been able to do all of this and raise a family?

I have been able to do it because of my family. I have a great husband with a normal job and kids that inspire me every day. I love both aspects of my life so much and look forward to each of them every day.

15. What are your plans for this year and beyond?

I am going to keep doing what I am doing, writing, recording… and I may tour a bit. I take each thing as it comes along. I believe very much in being prepared for opportunities.

16. What’s the best advice you could pass along to someone getting started as an independent singer-songwriter?

Treat it as a job and not a hobby. Get up early, work hard and keep going if you really believe that this is what you are supposed to be doing.

Many Serve The Song readers have asked me to listen to their songs and give them my opinion, so I’ve decided to launch a song critique service. It’s really simple. For $4.95 I will listen to your song (it must be less than 5 minutes total in length) and send you an email with thoughts/suggestions for how to improve it. This post should answer any questions you have about the new service.

What Will Be Included In My Song Critique?

Your critique will cover everything that I hear in your song, including vocal performance(s), musical performance, recording quality, lyrics, and overall song structure. Here’s a sample critique (used with permission).

What Makes You Qualified To Critique My Song?

While I’m not a million-selling recording artist or Grammy-winning songwriter (yet), I have sold thousands of my own independent records and written music for corporations that have reached over 250,000 consumers. Several of my songs have received radio airplay and won songwriting contests. I also have solid relationships with working producers, songwriters, and other musicians who are currently making hundreds of thousands of dollars with their music. I’d love to help you with my experience and knowledge.

Why Do I Have To Pay?

Serve The Song is already packed with tons of free content that can help you become a better songwriter. I think $4.95 is an awesome deal to get direct, honest feedback from someone with years of industry experience who can help you take your songwriting to the next level. For $4.95, you can either buy a song critique or get a Big Mac value meal. At the end of the day, which is going to help you move forward with your music?

What If I Don’t Like The Critique?

If you don’t like it you don’t pay. It’s that simple. I’ll give you your money back.

Sign Me Up!

Ready to get started? Great! Here’s how it works. Order your song critique(s) using the PayPal order button below. As soon as I receive payment confirmation I will contact you by email to schedule your critique within 24 hours. From there you may either email me an .mp3 along with the lyrics or send me a link to your music. I look forward to hearing your work!

photo credit: istockphoto

Unless you’re an established working songwriter, chances are good that songwriting is something you do in your spare time. Whether you’re doing it for fun, to complete an album or EP project, or you hope to win a Grammy one day, it’s important to establish a regular writing routine. But how can you do it in the midst of a day job, band, family responsibilities and walking the dog? In this post I’ll give you five strategies to help you block out distractions so you can effectively focus on following your dream.

1. Get Up An Hour Earlier

You’ve heard this one before, but it really works. Steven Memel, an L.A. voice/performance coach and author of the Science of Switching On, encouraged me to do this and it has made a huge difference. I give myself enough time to make a cup of coffee and grab something to eat, then make sure I’m in my studio writing by 6:30 am. I wish it didn’t have to be so early, but it’s the only way I’ve found to protect my precious writing time from work/family interruptions and distractions. The great news is I seem to be most creative during this time, and have come up with over 50 song ideas within a month. Now I just gotta finish some of ‘em.

2. Find A Dedicated Place To Write

It really helps with consistency if you write in the same place each day. Hopefully you have a home studio, but even if you don’t, a desk or kitchen table will do. Wherever you write, make sure your writing tools are handy, which may include pen, paper and a pocket recorder. If you’re a regular Serve The Song reader you’ve probably heard me talk about the importance of having a dedicated creative space before. It’s critical if you want to establish any kind of regular writing routine. Find a place in your home that is off limits to family, friends and any other distractions such as TV, computer or phone. Make it a special gift you give yourself to make time to write there every day.

3. Set Clear, Measurable Goals That Stretch You

What is the purpose of your dedicated writing time? Why are you doing it? It’s one thing if you’re simply exercising your creative muscles. It’s quite another if you want to go for a Grammy or get a song placed in a film. Knowing your desired outcome will give you the motivation you need to keep writing on a regular basis. Are you working on an EP or album? When do you want to release it? Work backwards from that date to figure out how long you will need to produce and package the recording, and then even further back to determine when you need to have your songs finished. Write these goals down and put them somewhere prominent where you will see them each day.

4. Find An Accountability Partner

Get yourself a cheerleader in the form of an accountability partner. This could be a fellow songwriter, bandmate, or friend who knows you well. This person needs to be a positive force in your life to cheer you on and help you stay on track when you need it. It’s best to have someone outside your immediate family who understands the ups and downs of the music business. That way they can remain objective as you work through the inevitable ups and downs of songwriting and recording.

5. Include Your Most Important Relationships

Even if you’re a budding Grammy winner, at the end of the day nothing is more important than taking care of your most important relationships. Whether it’s friends, parents, children, or a significant other, these people make up the fabric of your life.

Your songwriting efforts will be far better supported by a family/friend/roommate/spouse/partner who understands how important songwriting is to you. Let them know what you’re up to and see if they’re willing to give you the time and space to accomplish your goals. In return, it’s your responsibility to come out of the studio once in a while and spend time with them. You’ll enjoy happier, healthier relationships and might just come up with that monster hit as a result.

photo credit: istockphoto

Cliff Goldmacher is a songwriter, producer, session musician, engineer, author and owner of recording studios in Nashville, TN and Sonoma, CA. Cliff’s site, http://www.EducatedSongwriter.com, is full of resources for the aspiring songwriter and his company, http://www.NashvilleStudioLive.com, provides songwriters outside of Nashville with virtual access to Nashville’s best session musicians and singers for their songwriting demos.

You can download a FREE sample of Cliff’s eBook “The Songwriter’s Guide To Recording Professional Demos” by going to http://www.EducatedSongwriter.com/ebook.

Why do professional recordings sound, well…professional? There are a number of reasons, including high quality microphones, pre-amps, an experienced engineer and a well-designed studio space. One of the single most important elements in a great-sounding, professional recording is the performance of the session musicians. There is a reason that the job of the session musician exists. It’s these musicians whose talent and studio experience contribute in a major way to the polished sound of a recording. In this article I’ll show you how using session musicians specifically applies to songwriting demos.

Shouldn’t I Be Able To Do This Myself?

While I am a big proponent of wearing as many hats as you can in your musical career, there are certain areas where it makes much better sense to rely on experts. First of all, it’s extremely important that you take ego out of the equation. There is no shame in having someone else play on your demo.

Remember that a songwriting demo is supposed to put your song in the best possible light in order to “sell” it to prospective artists or place it in films and TV shows. It is not supposed to be proof of your studio musicianship. Recording your instrument in the studio requires an entirely different skill set than playing live.

For lack of a better description, studio recording is more like music surgery than a musical performance. While you might be comfortable playing guitar in your living room or even on a stage in front of hundreds of people, it’s an entirely different ballgame to sit in a four by six-foot booth wearing headphones and listening to a clicking sound. Giving a note-perfect, dynamic and in-time performance in this kind of unnatural setting requires a special set of skills.

Isn’t It Cheaper if I Do It Myself?

Given that we all have to keep an eye on the bottom line when it comes to our recording budget, there is the temptation to save money by playing on the demo yourself. The problem with this method is that often it will take an inexperienced musician twice as long to get a viable take as it would a pro. One of the many advantages of using session musicians is that they are not only good at what they do but fast.

In other words, the price you pay to hire a session musician translates into savings on studio time compared to playing the part yourself. Being fast in the studio is useful for another reason as well. When a session bogs down with take after take, it starts to feel a lot more like work. When things go quickly and smoothly, they stay musical and fun.

Don’t discount the need for a session to stay enjoyable. My experience has been that everyone does his or her best work when the atmosphere in the studio is light and productive.

Great Expectations

When it comes to recording a demo, it’s essential that you keep your listening audience in mind at all times. In the music industry, there is a certain level of “polish” that record labels, publishers, managers and producers have come to expect from the demos they listen to.

By bringing in the same musicians that play on hundreds of songwriting demos and major label record projects, you’ll be giving these industry types what they’re used to hearing. We’ve all heard from time to time industry professionals say that they can “hear through” your rough recordings.

My recommendation is NOT to take that chance. You’ve only got one opportunity to make a first impression and you should give yourself every advantage. Also, even if there is one industry professional willing and able to hear through a rough recording, you’ll hopefully be pitching this song to a number of industry people many of whom will be expecting a professional sounding demo.

The Care and Feeding of Session Musicians

When it comes to working with session musicians, there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, if you’re not comfortable writing out a chord chart, professional session musicians are perfectly capable of listening to your rough recording and writing out their own charts.

For session musicians, charting is quick process that should take no longer than 10-15 minutes at the most. Then, when it comes time for the them to play, always suggest that they try it their way first. There are two reasons for this. First, you’ve hired them to make your demo sound great so you should give them a chance to go with their instincts before you offer any direction.

Second, by letting them do what you’ve brought them in to do with a minimum of interference, you’ll create goodwill that will go a long way towards the overall vibe in the studio. In almost every case, what the session musicians come up with will be better than you ever expected.

However, if you’re still not getting what you want after they’ve tried it their way, you’re 100% entitled to politely ask them to try it the way you were hearing it. The ONLY appropriate response from a session musician to your request is “absolutely.”

Conclusion

It can be intimidating to work with such talented musicians, but remember, they’re working for you! One of my favorite expressions is “the best ones have nothing to prove.” In other words, when you hire pros not only will they be great at what they do but they should be a pleasure to work with as well.

There is no reason to hire even the best session musician if they have a bad attitude. This is extremely rare but if it happens, I’d recommend never using that musician again. There are way too many wonderful, friendly and talented session musicians out there to ever settle for one with a chip on their shoulder.

Finally, if you’ve never used a professional musician on your songwriting demo, do yourself a favor and try it out. You’re in for a treat and you’ll end up with a great demo.

Good luck!

Mary freezing on the beach, but loving the Traveler Guitar!

The Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light is the smallest, lightest full scale travel guitar around. It’s an ideal solution for the home studio songwriter/music producer who is pressed for space or needs an option for mobile recording. With its solid maple body and shadow piezo pickup, this tough little axe lets you write and record anywhere in the world. We took the steel version for a test drive and were very impressed with the results.

In Tune Out Of The Box

Besides their small size and sound, my biggest frustration with travel guitars has been keeping them in tune. This is no problem for the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light. The guitar actually arrived in tune out of the box, which was quite an achievement. Like any new guitar, it took about a day for the new strings to settle into the icy New England climate where I live. That was over a week ago and the guitar has stayed in tune ever since.

When the guitar first arrived I was shocked by how small it is. I put it next to my Washburn concert acoustic and was floored by the difference between the two instruments. Despite its seemingly tiny size, the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light is full scale at 24 3/4 inches and weighs less than 3 pounds. That said, it takes a little getting used to when you first play it. There’s no head stock or guitar body to hold against you as you play, so it feels a little weird even with the lap rest attachment.

The guitar also has a strap pin that doubles as the input for the piezo pickup so you can play standing up. But be careful. After a lot of playing, the strap pin can occasionally loosen and cause an annoying buzz. But it’s easy enough to tighten once you know the source of the noise.

Road Worthy and Travel-Friendly

The Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light comes with a high quality gig bag that stood up quite well to a weekend road trip with my family, including my 12 year-old Labrador retriever. I’ve never been comfortable cramming sensitive instruments into a fully packed car, so it was really nice not to worry about it for a change.

The Ultra-Light also fits in the standard overhead bin of most airlines. This is a huge benefit for traveling musicians who hate to put the fate of their beloved instruments into the hands of baggage claim personnel.

Recording With The Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light

When we arrived at our destination I broke out my backpack recording studio and set to work writing and producing a new song. The piezo pickup in the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light is exactly like the one installed on my Guild D-25 acoustic guitar and does a great job. You will need to play with your recording system’s EQ settings to get the tone where you want it. I found it to be a little tinny without some help, but once I found the sweet spot everything sounded fine.

Even though this guitar is meant specifically for acoustic music, I wanted to see how it might sound with some stomp box effects and was very pleased with the results. It won’t replace your Fender Strat, but you can capture ideas quickly and easily. The two mp3s at the end of this post feature 1) a full song written, recorded and produced in my father-in-law’s guest room, and 2) a test recording using a few stomp box effects. Both were recorded using the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light Steel, the Apogee One and GarageBand.

Playing Outside

Next, it was time to take the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light out in the open air. The company proudly displays pictures of the guitar at the top of Mount Everest, so I wanted to see what it would be like to play it on a frozen Cape Cod beach, mostly because I’m nuts and should have written this review during the summer.

We drove out to one of our favorite spots and I grabbed the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light. It was a surreal experience. I can’t count the number of times I’ve wished I had my guitar with me in a beautiful, inspiring place such as the beach or mountains. Now it’s a no brainer.

Great For Practice Anytime

With the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light Steel I found myself practicing guitar more in the last week than I have in the last year. I don’t know if it’s because this guitar is just so easy to have around, I wasn’t afraid of waking up the family late at night or I was just struck by its novelty factor. It doesn’t matter. My hands are sore and my pentatonics rip again!

Kids Like It Too

Another plus is how kid-friendly this Traveler Guitar is. My seven year-old wanted to play it immediately, which was a shock since she hasn’t touched her own half-size guitar in over a year. She had a blast playing this full-scale instrument and may now actually ask me to teach her to play for real. I can hardly contain my joy.

Summary

Overall, the Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light Steel is an excellent songwriting, recording and traveling companion. Learn more about their entire line of travel guitars at www.travelerguitar.com.

Traveler Guitar Ultra-Light Steel test recordings:

Going Sane

Traveler Test

credit: istockphoto

Rewriting a song means accepting that the beautiful inspiration you just poured out of your soul might need some extra work. It takes courage, humility and patience to rewrite a song effectively. Here are 10 reasons why rewriting your latest song is a good idea.

1. New, Better Ideas Are Waiting To Be Discovered

It’s a wonderful feeling when you’ve just written a brand new song. There’s really nothing else like it. But have you ever noticed that you need to take time to learn it, just like when you’re adding a cover song to your set list? Rehearsing your new song often gives you an opportunity to make improvements and polish it further by making the lyrics more singable or the music more fluid.

2. You’ve Got A Great Chorus But Weak Verse/Pre-chorus

You want to make your song as strong as it can possibly be. So don’t settle for verses or a pre-chorus that don’t properly setup your amazing chorus and hook line. Keep working on these elements until they leave listeners begging for the chorus.

3. Your Chorus Doesn’t Payoff

Your verses and/or pre-chorus work hard to setup your chorus, so make sure there’s a solid payoff when you launch into it. If not, revisit it and tweak it until it’s worth listening to. How do you do it? Try to make it as punchy and memorable as you can, in a way that clearly connects it to the material that came before it.

4. Bridge Over Troubled Water

The purpose of a bridge is usually to give your listeners a break in the action and provide a re-cap of the overall storyline. Not all songs need a bridge, so if yours isn’t working to support the overall song it may be best to edit it out. At the end of the day everything needs to point to and support a memorable chorus/hook.

5. A Chance To Improve Your Production Values

Sometimes after you’ve spent long hours toiling away on your latest creation it pays to come back a little later with fresh ears. For example, when you listen to a mix after one or two days away you may discover a great opportunity to tighten the bass and guitar, or find just the right way to let the vocal sit in the mix without dominating the other instruments.

6. Addition or Subtraction Equals Better Songs

Along the lines of number five above, intentionally adding and subtracting production elements can really draw the listener in and make a good song sound great. See if there are places where adding or subtracting instruments or vocals might add more emotional intensity to your song. You want to maximize every chance to connect with your listener and this is a great way to do it.

7. Add More Contrast

Do you have enough contrast between your verses, chorus and bridge? How do the chord progressions change? If they are too much alike the lister will lose interest. Make a clear distinction so listeners know which part of your song is playing at any given moment.

8. Prosody Wins The Day

Loosely defined, prosody has to do with how everything fits together in your song to communicate your message. In very broad terms, if you are writing a happy song you want your music and lyrics to sound happy. If your lyrics are sad, the music should also communicate sadness. Each part of your song works together to reinforce everything else. If your breakup song sounds like “If You’re Happy And You Know It” you may want to consider a rewrite.

9. An Unexpected Collaborator Makes A Great Suggestion

You may play your new song for a colleague who in turn makes a great suggestion that totally improves the quality of the original composition. This is quite often one of the best reasons to rewrite a song.

10. You Just Need A Fresh Start

Sometimes an old dog just doesn’t want to hunt and it’s best to walk away for a while. Come back later with a fresh head and see what you can come up with. After all, Rome wasn’t built in a day.

Your Turn

What are your best reasons to rewrite your song? Please leave your thoughts in the comments.

February Album Writing Month (FAWM) officially started today at midnight wherever you live. For the last 8 years, the site has provided a platform for songwriters to write 14 full songs during all 28 days of February. Members (or FAWMers as they like to call themselves) think of the event as a big, free, international songwriting workshop that allows people to participate remotely instead of in person.

FAWM welcomes beginner and advanced songwriters from all styles of music and walks of life. The focus is on songwriting, so rough demos are encouraged over slick production values. The point is to get new material written and ready as soon as possible.

FAWM has quite an active and impressive online community. Writers are encouraged to write as many 3-minute songs as they can within the shortest month of the year. As of this writing (about 3pm EST) there are already almost 200 submissions to date. Listen to them here on the FAWM jukebox.

The organization tracks progress by song title, so there’s no need to post an .mp3 of each song unless you want to. Many FAWMers post fully produced demos with lyric sheets so they can get feedback from other members. It’s a great way to get encouragement from your peer group.

To help cope with writer’s block, the site also offers weekly challenges, such as this week’s challenge to write a song about numbers. They also tweet daily song ideas at http://twitter.com/fawm. These activities are purely optional and only offered to help writers get their creative juices flowing.

According to the site’s FAQ page, song posting is officially unlocked at midnight at the end of Feb 1 on the international date line. That’s 9:00pm in Tokyo, 7am in New York, and 3am in Los Angeles. You can post songs all month long up until the same time on March 1.

There’s no winners or prizes associated with FAWM. The only reward is the satisfaction you get out of writing 14 full songs in one month plus the admiration of your fellow songwriters and fan base. So what are you waiting for? Get your songs on and join FAWM now at http://fawm.org.

credit: iStockphoto

Even though I’ve been writing songs for over thirty years, I recently decided to take a songwriting class at Berkleemusic.com. I figure I’m never too old to learn, and I can share what I’m learning with Serve The Song readers. So far it’s been a great investment and has inspired me to spend a lot more time in the studio. In this post I’ll show you the process I’m using for my weekly writing assignments to help you build up your own song catalog.

Begin With An Emotion

With each writing assignment, our instructor tells us the feeling or vibe he wants the song to convey. The course is geared toward writing music for TV and Film, so he often plays the role of music supervisor looking for a song to support the visuals. Along with these instructions, he also may reference the style of song we need to write, such as “Americana with a hint of Creedence” or something similar.

I like the idea of writing on assignment since it helps me focus. But even you’re just writing for yourself, having a solid idea of the feeling and overall concept you want your song to convey will really help you communicate clearly. After all, music is the language of emotion. Try to envision what you want the listener to feel when they hear your song. That will help you get into that same state of mind.

Find A Singable Chorus Melody

Once I know the emotion, I’ll turn on my recorder and start humming a tune which will eventually become the chorus. I like to “find my melodies first” before embarking on a chord progression. While I will usually wind up supporting my melody with a familiar chord progression, everything tends to sound the same if I start there. Starting with the melody also makes the tune more memorable, since all I have for reference at this stage is my voice, piano or guitar.

Sometimes I’ll also use a drum loop while I do this. It all depends on the style of music and the mood I want to communicate. The important thing is to try to come up with a bunch of different melody lines before deciding on a winner. Don’t just settle for the first thing that pops in your head. Play around with it, riff on it and repeat. When you have a good feel for the chorus, it’s time to figure out the overall structure of the song before you move on to the verses, pre chorus and bridge (if you have one).

Building The Perfect Beast

To be competitive, your song will need to have a familiar structure. Deciding on your song’s structure can be tough. Having a reference song makes it much easier. I’m not suggesting for a moment that you copy anyone directly, but I am suggesting you pick an existing song you like and try to emulate the style.

Most of the hits from the last fifty years follow one of three common structures – verse/chorus/bridge, verse/verse/bridge/chorus, or verse/pre chorus/chorus. Listeners have been conditioned to these patterns for years, so it only makes sense to structure your song in a familiar way.

Lay Down The Lead Sheet

Now that you’ve got a chorus melody and a structure in mind, start playing with chord progressions, tempo and time signatures. Most popular songs on radio, TV and film are in 4/4 time, so this is a safe bet. You can of course venture off into other time signatures depending on your songwriting goals. But for the purposes of this post we’ll play it safe and keep to 4/4 time. Using a piece of paper or a sequencer, start organizing your song into a lead sheet.

Once you have a chord progression for the chorus that you like, start roughing out the verse melody and its underlying chord progression. Make sure it has plenty of contrast to the chorus. This can be done through varying the rhythm, harmony, or melody, or a combination of all three.

Next, decide whether or not to include a bridge in your song based on the overall structure. Just be sure to give it plenty of contrast from the verse and chorus melodies.

Writing Lyrics

At this point your song should be well-formed musically, and this is when I usually start writing the lyrics. Please see my previous post about writing better lyrics. When I first started writing songs, I used to either start with lyrics or try to write everything at once. While everyone has different approaches, starting from the chorus melody and working out from there has worked really well for me, especially when writing on assignment.

Over To You

What’s your overall approach to songwriting? Do you agree or disagree with this method? Please let us know in the comments.