Songwriting Support

by **Daan30** » Wed Apr 06, 2016 11:15 pm

Hey friends,

It has been a number of years since I last posted on here.

I'm a songwriter and although I've been writing for years, I haven't been consistent or intentional about developing my craft. I'm in a season where I'm really keen to grow as a writer so I'm just reaching out and trying to find out if there are any good online communities for song writers?

Thanks again,

Dan

by **Guest** » Thu Apr 07, 2016 9:13 am

This gaff is as good a place as any to start your quest, wot is it you need to know? or feel is lacking, spell it out man, maybe some clever bod 'ere 'as got the info that you require...

by **Daan30** » Thu Apr 07, 2016 7:55 pm

Hey,

Thanks for your response.

I'm just a songwriter looking to grow in my craft. I'm trying to be more intentional about developing the the lyrical content of my songs, I've always been a music first, message second kind of a guy. I've developed my sound musically but now I want to grow in developing a strong message in my songs.

I'm just reaching out to see if there are really great songwriting communities and resources to grow.

Thanks
Dan

by **blinddrew** » Thu Apr 07, 2016 9:24 pm

Might be worth sticking a note in the collaboration section and see if anyone fancies working with you? I've always found that I've made the most progress when I've been working regularly with just one or two other people, you build a relationship that allows you to challenge things more intensely and more productively than with a more diverse / less involved group.
But that's just me :)

by **Guest** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 8:50 am

Hey D-30 me too man, lyrics ain't my strong point, so i cain't help you bruvver as the music comes first and foremost for me also, but being a dance bod i use mainly vox stabs so not so much of a prob to me these days, i think the key to better lyrics is posibly being a bookworm? y'know being into literature, it must rub off on you, just a guess though.

by **blinddrew** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 1:07 pm

See also this other thread: http://www.soundonsound.com/forum/showf ... =1#1198920
Imran500 mentions singers but might be worth looking for songwriters / lyricists too.

by **Wonks** » Fri Apr 08, 2016 2:41 pm

If you are based in or around London, then the London Songwriters would be worth joining.

by **Daan30** » Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:53 pm

Hey, thanks for the suggestion. I'm actually in California :frown:

Thanks

by **Daan30** » Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:54 pm

Thanks, will check this cool.

by **Daan30** » Thu Apr 21, 2016 9:57 pm

Yeah I have thought the same thing too dude. Getting into some book reading again should help.

Thanks
Dan

by **moondoggie53** » Tue Jul 26, 2016 2:35 pm

I will be very general as there are no particulars included:

I would like to think you know your own strengths and weaknesses. 1st and ALWAYS: try something new. Especially if what you've been trying isn't working. If you write alone - find a partner. If you think you are good at lyrics, find a melody partner. Music? Try a lyricist.

Supplying more details might help.

by **awjoe** » Sun Aug 07, 2016 4:24 pm

Daan30 wrote:Hey,

Thanks for your response.

I'm just a songwriter looking to grow in my craft. I'm trying to be more intentional about developing the the lyrical content of my songs, I've always been a music first, message second kind of a guy. I've developed my sound musically but now I want to grow in developing a strong message in my songs.

I'm just reaching out to see if there are really great songwriting communities and resources to grow.

Here's the first result of a Google search for online forums:

https://www.google.ca/search?q=online+s ... ters+forum

You might find that talking to other people about it and sharing ideas and maybe even collaborating can jumpstart or inspire your songwriting, but my experience of online forums on songwriting is that they never go very deep. I suspect that songwriting is basically a solo exercise in discovery in most cases, and it's not something that you can learn from others. Maybe I'm wrong about that.

I think your best resource is existing recorded music. Listen to stuff you like. Not for the sake of copying it, but just to appreciate the beauty and flavor and style of good songwriters. Currently, for example, I'm a huge fan of people like Tom Waits and Jim White. (Interestingly, Tom Waits collaborates on lots of his stuff.) I just find myself paying attention to WHAT they're singing about while the music works its magic in the background. For me, that's a big marker of a great lyric.

I also think that, like novel writing, you have to 'find your voice'. Before you find your voice, you're putting words to music. When you find your voice, you're expressing a point of view in the song. It's not about the words primarily. It's about what the words do, what they express, how effectively they attract the attention of the listener.

And having said all THAT, I also think it's important to remember that in a song, words are just words, and music is king. Just the sound of them, just the sound of the voice, is as important as any intellectual meaning the words carry. Last night I attended a performance of Bach's Mass in B Minor. It was magnificent. One of the big sections is the Credo ('I believe') which outlines, in Latin, the essentials of the Nicene creed. I dipped in and out of the program notes during the performance, but basically I was listening to what it *sounded* like. Yeah, yeah - I get that when Bach put words to his stuff, it was a whole different kettle of fish than when Howlin' Wolf did it, but the principle's the same.

by **artzmusic** » Tue Aug 09, 2016 3:35 pm

Hello Daan,

In my years with the local NSAI I was getting more discouragement than help. There are, of course, some basic elements to be aware of and you can learn these from the group sessions....but more often than not the members want to fit your song into their mold. They all appear to want to be creative but the amateur members in the group really don't understand what that means. Trying to fit your song into a printed outline of theirs is stifling. Many of them have never held down a gig, let alone write for a particular audience.

That being said, it won't hurt to join a local group and see if there is someone there who shares your outlook.

Also I found the annual events in Nashville to be a waste of time from my personal perspective. There are a lot of wannabe poets but interestingly very few musicians. So I was never able to hook with someone who would help me progress further.

What genre of music are you focusing on?

Rick

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Songwriting Support