idea joggers for song writers - 12/03/11 06:32 PM
trying to write a new song, but you have writer's block? here are a few ideas to get some momentum going. Add your own to keep the list useful for others
1) BIAB users can always start with a style demo and modify it to achieve a new sound
2) take an existing song's chords and...
a.) use the melody generator to find a new melody for those chords.
b.) reverse the order of the chords
c.) substitute the relative minor for major chords, and vice versa
d.) sometimes just moving a familiar chord pattern to a new style presents new ideas
3) use an online anagram engine to generate words containing the letters of the keys A-G, then use those words to define the chords in your song
4) take an existing melody and use BIABs ability to generate new chords that fit the melody. Once you have the chords, ditch the old melody and create a new one.
5) start with a drum track, and let it mesmerize you. Add subsequent tracks as the stream of consciousness allows. Record your various accompaniments to different tracks and don't think too much about it until you have some stuff to listen to. Then start revising intelligently on the best of the ideas.
6) listen to music you don't normally seek out... different styles and even different cultures. When something sparks an idea, immediately go and record at least one tyrack of your idea. You can expand on it later. The important thing is to capture the idea
7) join a songwriters forum, or read the comments PGMusic's user showcase to see what others were thinking as they wrote their songs
8) go to places like SONGRAMP where you can hear a thousand ideas in a day. SOMETHING there will either inspire you, or challenge you to do a better job than they did.
9) add your own ideas to this thread
1) BIAB users can always start with a style demo and modify it to achieve a new sound
2) take an existing song's chords and...
a.) use the melody generator to find a new melody for those chords.
b.) reverse the order of the chords
c.) substitute the relative minor for major chords, and vice versa
d.) sometimes just moving a familiar chord pattern to a new style presents new ideas
3) use an online anagram engine to generate words containing the letters of the keys A-G, then use those words to define the chords in your song
4) take an existing melody and use BIABs ability to generate new chords that fit the melody. Once you have the chords, ditch the old melody and create a new one.
5) start with a drum track, and let it mesmerize you. Add subsequent tracks as the stream of consciousness allows. Record your various accompaniments to different tracks and don't think too much about it until you have some stuff to listen to. Then start revising intelligently on the best of the ideas.
6) listen to music you don't normally seek out... different styles and even different cultures. When something sparks an idea, immediately go and record at least one tyrack of your idea. You can expand on it later. The important thing is to capture the idea
7) join a songwriters forum, or read the comments PGMusic's user showcase to see what others were thinking as they wrote their songs
8) go to places like SONGRAMP where you can hear a thousand ideas in a day. SOMETHING there will either inspire you, or challenge you to do a better job than they did.
9) add your own ideas to this thread
