Songwriting Week 4

hy hello my little turtles,
Thank you for reading... :-)

Week 4 has passed with a blink of the eye as they say.. (they do you know!) and again my knowledge and understanding of songwriting/music within an industrial context and also technically is growing - although my god, there is so much more I need to know. Monday saw a 3 hour seminar, listening to and discussing songwriting within a historical context - this week mostly looking at Lennon/McCartney songs (ace!) and I'm starting to develop skills so I can begin to analyse things like structure slightly more than before. I found a lot of the songs we listened to had such varying concepts and surprising elements. For example in 'Can't buy me love' and 'She loves you' there's this idea of a double chorus which for me brings a new layer to the song's and keeps the momentum going - both such great song's for me where all sections (verse, chorus, another chorus etc) are so fantastic - you don't believe that they can keep adding these emotive, catchy melodies!
It was such a great session - especially being more familiar with these songs and finding more resonances between ideas, sections, concepts of other songs and mine.

Tuesday saw 2 guest speakers join 2 of our already knowledgeable lecturers which altogether was a fantastic range and depth of experience - answering all the questions we could ever want to ask.
Will Hicks and Jez Ashurst were guest speaking and discussions regarding writing for radio took place - and top tips for doing so! Being able to ask Will (whom not only did this same course last year and now whom works within production and also from an A&R perspective) what kind of direction he see's the popular music industry heading was so interesting, we got to hear about the kind of artists his company is working with at the mo. It appears that there has been such a great influx of edgy, ballsy female artists (Think Florence and the Machines, La Roux, Little Boots, Lady Gaga etc to name a few) in recent times, that this now seems to be creating space and demand for male artists/bands - although this inevitably will perhaps swing in another new direction at any given time. We discussed so many topics - the difference's between the British music industry and say the American, Japanese and European markets - and the whole session was so important for us because this is learning the industry firsthand - invaluable!

Tuesday also saw the solo songwriting module continue - Jez joined us in this module this week and I performed my new song for him and the group. My god it was nerve wracking. The night before, I was still working out the melody and what bits i wanted where... it was about 2 in the morning, still not close to being happy with it and i was like... RIGHT I GIVE UP!! - I'm just going to play an old song I've written previously! Because you kinda want to make a good impression on these people right??! Not turn up tired, nervous and garbling strange sounds. But if there's 1 big improvement I know I need to make, its extending my catalogue of songs - and by keeping up this momentum of writing new songs, it can't be anything but goodfor my progress really. So I stuck with the new one. I performed my song 'Only you' (well, just about!) and got some really good feedback and really useful thoughts on how I can improve it.

I think the more you begin to critique other's work and listen to what people say about yours, it really starts to make some sense in discovering your strengths and weaknesses - it feels ilke it opens you up to be able to start looking within, and work out what it is you really want - what part of you it is that wants to express itself. And I think the strengths we learn about ourselves give us reason to keep going!! For me - I love melody. When I listen to music I hear the overall concept of the song - and the melody for me tell's the story - creates and brings emotions to the surface. Whereas although I have always loved writing lyrics - on a first time listen of a song they take the back seat a little. I feel its so important for me to recognise these things about my writing - and I'm looking forward to many more observations to come as I keep exploring styles/genres/structures and writing methodologies.

Well, I'm sure I have kept you long enough. So again - ta for reading and come back to me next week??

Farewell
from the dissolving, dusky, directionless, drafty, dramatic duck
x x x x

Songwriting Week 3

Okay, so it's actually week 4. But only just so it's all goooood.

Ups, downs, highly blessed feelings, low down doubts. Part of this adventure feels like I'm in a bubble - caught up in good spirits, greatly inspiring people and nourishing freedom. Other parts of it give a sense of being disconnected, on a tangent, blurring at the edges so time skips past.

I think there's so much comfort in doing a course like this that I know already I won't want to leave. But on the other side, perhaps at all starts from there. So much I want to do, achieve. I want a top 40 hit. A song on the radio that gets played till even I get sick of it. I want 20 hour days that take it out of me. I want to be able to perform live and enjoy it rather than wanting to hurl. I want to collaborate, and be good at it. I want to write, write, and write some more. I want to be good. Really good.
But I want to change the 'want' into a word that comes somewhere close to 'am.'

Changing tack (which unrelated, I find an odd expression,) I feel I am finding my direction a little more. My first in depth 'remote' critique arrived, which helped place the song within a genre (Yes it's Pop. I think maybe I always knew) and this I am happy with.

This weeks blog is short I know. next week will be longer and better I promise

With love
the cracking, cuddling, cone shaped caterpillar x x

Songwriting - week 2

October 16, 2009 - Friday
Week 2 - Songwriting
Current mood: blessed

Well hello there.

Week 2 of the course and I can't believe how much I have learnt already.

This week we listened and discussed lots of Hank Williams, Robert Johnnson and even some Johnny Cash :-)

I managed to grasp more info about the Music Industry in 2 and a half hours than I have ever before in my lifetime!!

However, with every question answered, another unfolds...

I'm thinking a lot about commercial music - the balance between writing for what matters to the songwriter and writing to have a 'hit'. To make money. Is there a middle ground? Does a songwriter have to like what they write?

I found an article, discussing how songwritings are being to encourage to explore new genres. Rather than take on genre specific writers, the writers they have are being pushed to write for new genres:

"But Warner/Chappell Music has set out to match some of its genre-specific songwriters with artists outside of their traditional musical scope. The idea is to diversify songwriters' talent and ultimately find success on the charts, says Greg Sowders, senior VP/head of A&R (artists and repertoire) U.S. at Warner/Chappell Music.
"Pop music today is a mishmash of everything -- it's a hip-hop song next to a rock song, with maybe a Taylor Swift country ballad that sneaks in," Sowders says. "So to compete with the way things are now -- and to keep up with the iTunes market, where it's clearly a singles-driven business -- we had to take our writers and decide how to move forward."
(http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5790UW20090810)

Does this diminish the hope for new songwriters? Or is it indeed hopeful that the music industry is fighting back to stay with the different times?

Another module that we take, encourages us (or forces us!) to write a new song for the group each week and crticique each other's work and receive a critique from the course tutor. Last week, I struggled somewhat. With all the new information my unexercised brain has recieved regarding AABA structures or ABCDE or AAA, making sure a song has momentum to keep moving forward (be it through the lyrics or the chord progression) and all the music we listened to from the 1920's to 1950's. Combined with reading about balanced and unbalanced verses, the number of syllables one can/should/not use, and where the primary and secondary stresses are... I became a bit overloaded!!! - and I think I began to focus on everything apart from what the song meant to me.

So after several 'half' songs I wrote 'Let the sunshine' which was simple in structure, and really summed up the happiness I have felt over the past couple of weeks.

In other news, I have started to explore the wonders and confusion that is the mac and the recording software of Logic. This has been fun.(hmmm) Would have been better if I'd known what on earth I was doing. But with the tutorials that begin next week I know that a whole other side of songwriting is going to open up for me... ooh I can't wait!!!

The people I am starting to get to know are holding in me in more awe than ever.
And the family,friends and boyfriend I have already, I appreciate more than I could have imagined.
I think doing a course in what you love is soul strengthening. My main focus of my life at the moment is on everything I want it to be - And not many people get to say this.

I am fully aware that this kind of thing isn't something I can take for granted and life can drop you hard as quickly as it lifts you up.
But for now I am the biting, barmy, ballooning, bouncing baffled blighter.
Much love
Linzi x x x

Songwriting - Week 1

October 7, 2009 - Wednesday

Week 1 - Songwriting Current mood: gallantCategory: Blogging

I thought I would document my progress as a songwriter this year.
I am in my 1st week of an MA Songwritng Course (Well the only MA Songwriting course in fact) This week I have...
Been overwhelmed by the options open to me.
Been overwhelmed by the competition out there.
Been intrigued by listening to some work from many great songwriters - particularly Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter, George and Ira Gershwin, Lennon/McCartney, Ellington and artists such as Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell.
Listened to songs written by my fellow students and have been so impressed and proud to be working with some great charcters and souls.
Received my 1st Critique of 'Happy for you'- some really useful feedback and comments.
Discussed recent activity within the music industry.And have pretty much grinned non-stop all week at the exciting year I have ahead of me.
I have been thinking this week about areas of the industry that interest me - commercial music in particular. How much of the top 40 is considered to be 'great songs'? How much is considered to be 'well written songs'? How many of these songs will our children hear? How disposable is popular music now? Does any of it reflect our culture and make a difference to current issues within society? Is the top 40 even a true representaion of popular music anymore? Do people still buy music when they have a worldwide library at their fingertips? Maybe these questions will be explored over the next few weeks. Maybe none of the questions can be answered?
It's been a great week. And its only Wednesday.
I've never woken up so early with so much enthusiasm.
I've felt a lot of apprehension - and at many points self doubt has crept into my mind, perhaps more than before. But I'm not letting it have too much effect on my actions - my brain has far too many other things going on!
Thank you for reading this.
And please get in touch if you can think I could write about any other things that may be of interest.
Yours trulyLindsay the airy, animalistic, accepting, apparently able anchovy.
(I never said I wasn't a bit odd.)
xxx