SONG WRITING by Diana Tumewa

Assignment : Independently choose 2 resources/articles from various
medias on the topic "SONG WRITING" and create a condense summary,
giving a personal opinion on the topic and/or comment on the
reliability of the article. Include the list of resources.

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THE ART of SONG WRITING

Song writing is an art that existed since the dawn of men, and have
developed & evolved accordingly through eras & with the advancement of
technology & inventions. New medias & techniques keep evolving through
time.


Brief History of Song Writing Medium :
During the antiquities music & song was written on flat surfaces, such
as rocks (cuneiform of the Sumerians) & walls (hieroglyphs of the
Egyptians), and developed to Neumes in the Medieval era. Today, song
writing is done through various methods. We can see to the result of a
composer's work in a form of musical notation, even digitalized &
immortalized in the world wide web.


Form as the Fundamental Song Writing Technique
Anything that is built or made must have a structure, and this
structure in a composition is called musical form. Some examples
include:

i. through composed
It means there are no repetition of sections. Eg. Schubert's lieder to
The Beatles' "Happiness is a Warm Gun", to the operatic & musical
recitatives of Stephen Sondheim & A.L Webber.

ii. strophic
A Greek word, meaning turn; it is based on repeating verse/chorus. Eg.
"Michael Row the Boat Ashore"

iii. rondo
Derived from the French "rondeau", also can be called refrain. It is
distinguished by the alternating of contrasting theme, called
"episodes". Eg. Beethoven's Piano Sonata, Op.13

iv. verse-chorus
It is the most common musical form in popular music since the rock era.


Within these forms are the detailed elements, which differ from
individuals to individuals, depending on preference & social cultural
background. A song can be composed around a set of scale or
progression, even spontaneously, such as in Jazz Improvisation, which
progression is known, but the lyric & melody shall be composed as it
is played. The writing of such spontaneous act is called transcribing.


Practical Advices for Writing Songs :

i. Personal Opinion
The first thing to do before one should write song is to study music
theory & a musical instrument. Learning the basics will certainly
allow one to create a work of art that has a depth; a convincing &
persuasive art that move hearts. Even took up a course on writing
poetry, which helps in expressing one's own heart into lyric.
Second thing to do is to figure out the aim of writing the song. For
commercial one hit wonder? or for self-pleasure? or to speak of the
unspeakable, & to change what seems to be unchangeable? This will
determine how much passion, knowledge & time required to be invested
in order to create those pieces of audio art work.

ii. Learning from Precedence
In order to be successful in any fields we do, we have to learn from
our precedence. In this case, songwriters that made a hit in the past.
From reading biographies of great composers such as the Austrian
pianist, W.A. Mozart, who wrote sonatas, symphonies, concertos &
operas, it is obvious that a great talent need to be accompanied with
harsh training & great dedication. Sharing the same karma is Michael
Jackson whose musical exposure & training began at such an early age.
Learning from J.Hendrix, who idolize Elvis Presley, we can draw up a
conclusion that having an inspiration & passion for learning music &
instrument is the start of his writing songs.
Inspiration for song writing can definitely come from personal
experience, such as family issues, religious views, hardship during
childhood, etc. This life-based experience can be found in Johnny
Cash's compositions.

iii. Simple Tips by Current Song Writers
According to T.C. Elliot, honesty is one of the important aspects of
song writing. D.F Taylor, Scottish songwriter, agreeing with his idea
of "Being True".
Another fellow composer, H. Robertson stated, "Freedom is Slavery", in
a way, it is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Perhaps it
can perceived that during the process of writing song, lack of
decision making can lead to blunder & waste of time.

And finally, the best tip one could find in song writing is to have
fun! After all, music is a therapeutic art, and each process in making
it, writing it, performing it, should bring an experience one can
share with the community, and bring a certain wave of positive
atmosphere.



by Diana Tumewa
Performing Arts Degree Semester 5



Resources

Main resources
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_composition
www.songwright.co.uk/tom/10tipsforsongwriters.pdf
www.bioraphy.com/people/groups/musicians/songwriters/

Minor resources
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/strophic
www.ed.wikipedia.org/wiki/rondo
www.biography.com/people/johnny-cash-9240610
www.biography.com/people/jimmi-hendrix-9334756