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March 2009
Posts: 715
| I'm going tonight to meet with a songwriting mentor. It probably won't be a long session (about 4 weeks), but it's something I've always wanted to learn.
I didn't think I would be nervous about tonight, but I guess I am. I tried playing a song that I know that I can play decently, but tonight -- nothing! I can't seem to remember the chord combinations, I'm screwing up on my right hand picking, etc!
Sometimes I wonder if I bite off more than I can chew. I'm just now being able to put singing and playing together on some songs, and now I want to songwrite!
Any advice will be greatly appreciated!
Michelle |
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September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | The advantage to writing and playing your own music is:
Nobody can tell you that you are doing it wrong!
Look forward to hearing how much you enjoy it. |
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December 2010
Posts: 43
Location: Las Vegas | Originally posted by Old Man Arthur:
The advantage to writing and playing your own music is:
Nobody can tell you that you are doing it wrong!
Look forward to hearing how much you enjoy it. "Perfect." |
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April 2004
Posts: 13303
Location: Latitude 39.56819, Longitude -105.080066 | Start easy...plenty of famous/#1 hit tunes that are no more than 3 chords. |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Thanks guys! I think the first lesson went well. I've got a few things to work on, and I'm having just thinking about the writing I'm going to do.
The one thing that worries me is that I won't be able to do the lessons long term because of money. But I did make the teacher aware of that before this lesson.
Michelle |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Oh, and I forgot to mention that the teacher was very impressed with my Patriot!
Michelle |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | Originally posted by Guitarzannie:
Oh, and I forgot to mention that the teacher was very impressed with my Patriot!
Michelle Hope his teaching abilities are as good as his taste in guitars. Best of luck to you. |
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October 2005
Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Have fun!
Listen to songs, really listen. You'll hear all kinds of things such as chord progressions, alterations to the progressions, little fills and embellishments, and how the melody is structured in different ways. This will help you come up with ideas if nothing else. |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Originally posted by Mark in Boise:
Originally posted by Guitarzannie:
Oh, and I forgot to mention that the teacher was very impressed with my Patriot!
Michelle Hope his teaching abilities are as good as his taste in guitars. Best of luck to you.
He has a Lowden that sounds really good. I just love the reactions I get with the Patriot, though.
Michelle |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Originally posted by FlySig:
Have fun!
Listen to songs, really listen. You'll hear all kinds of things such as chord progressions, alterations to the progressions, little fills and embellishments, and how the melody is structured in different ways. This will help you come up with ideas if nothing else. Thanks! The one thing that will be good about this is that I will have to get out my chord chart and try out chords that I haven't played in a long time.
I've gotten in a rut with "cowboy chords" (not that there is anything wrong with them) and would like to try out different chord combinations.
And I've been listening to different songwriters to try to see what I could use in songs. Lately I've been listening to Jackson Browne and John Denver.
Michelle |
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April 2010
Posts: 1227
Location: Connersville, Indiana | Michele, I think you will find a great feeling writing music. I know I have. Don't get disgusted and remember, for every good song I have written I have 10-20 that sucked. But don't throw anything away. Keep everything you write. Because when your writing a song, you can go back to other songs you wrote and didn't like and use parts of those either chord progression or lyrics to finish you song your writing. I done this many times where I was stuck and I went back over other songs I did not like and used a part of those to complete the one I was working on. Enjoy and have fun.
Kit |
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November 2005
Posts: 4833
Location: Campbell River, British Columbia | Books I can recommend on the subject:
Tunesmith by Jimmy Webb
Successful Lyric Writing by Sheila Davis
Good luck!
The first 100 are the hardest. |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Thanks guys! I will have to check out the Jimmy Webb and Sheila Davis books.
One thing that seems to be a problem with me is that I have a melody in my head, but don't know how to play it because I don't know what chords I'm hearing.
A melody came into my head as I was listening to someone else tonight. I don't know chords they were, and when I tried to play it, I didn't have any luck.
But I did come up with something different, and that suited me fine. I came up with G, D, A7, D7 and G. It was really fun to play this, but it sounds more like and ending to a song than a beginning.
Michelle |
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October 2005
Posts: 4081
Location: Utah | Originally posted by Guitarzannie:
A melody came into my head as I was listening to someone else tonight. I don't know chords they were, and when I tried to play it, I didn't have any luck.
But I did come up with something different, and that suited me fine. I came up with G, D, A7, D7 and G. It was really fun to play this, but it sounds more like and ending to a song than a beginning. Sounds quite normal to me. Many times I come up with a little riff or a chord progression, but it isn't a whole song. It has to simmer for a while, maybe even years, before it reveals where it should go.
My songs never end up how I first hear them in my head, either. |
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March 2009
Posts: 715
| Originally posted by FlySig:
Originally posted by Guitarzannie:
A melody came into my head as I was listening to someone else tonight. I don't know chords they were, and when I tried to play it, I didn't have any luck.
But I did come up with something different, and that suited me fine. I came up with G, D, A7, D7 and G. It was really fun to play this, but it sounds more like and ending to a song than a beginning. Sounds quite normal to me. Many times I come up with a little riff or a chord progression, but it isn't a whole song. It has to simmer for a while, maybe even years, before it reveals where it should go.
My songs never end up how I first hear them in my head, either.
Michelle |
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Trying my hand at songwriting
