The Writer’s Corner

Hi everyone, welcome to my blog!

A writer of music (composers, arrangers & songwriters) frequently needs to work fast, efficiently and cohesively to get the completed composition, song or film cues to the client before deadline. Over time, it has become clear to me that composers also need many tools, or techniques, in their arsenal to create this music and meet the demand. This is particularly true in the world of commercial music where deadlines, and the threat of “never working in this town again,” are ways of life. The thought of the downbeat, or beginning of the recording session, is at 9 AM and you are still composing the music at 8 AM, can be a scary feeling!

To kick off this blog I would like to explore a few ideas that may help us in the process of writing more efficiently and cohesively. The first is to simply organize aspects of the music that you don’t necessarily need a pen for (or computer keyboard). Depending on your specific writing assignment, some of these would be the following, which I call “Writing Considerations”:

A) Instrumentation / Orchestration
1) Vocal or instrumental melody?
2) Exact instruments needed?
3) Soloist(s) - Who?

B) Style
1) Rhythmic
2) Melodic
3) Harmonic

C) Form
1) Intro
2) Verse / Chorus / Bridge - How many/where?
3) Solo section(s)
4) Ending - specific ending or a Fade ending?
5) Total Length - How long should this song be?

D) Tempo
1) Be specific - the difference between 120 bpm (beats per minute) and 123 bpm can be felt.
2. Don’t use terms such as “up,” “medium,” “adagio,” vivace,” to indicate tempo. Again, be specific.

E) Key
1) For Vocalist - male or female.
2) For Instrumentalist - know the range of the specific instrument.

F) Emotional Contour
1) Direction of the Song
2) Intensity levels / where?
3) Climax of the song / payoff?
a) Psychological effect of fades

G) Format (Media) That This Arrangement Will Be Used For
1) Jingle
2) Motion Picture
3) Television
4) Live Performance
5) Radio
6) CD

H) Budget (how much will you get paid?)

I) Deadline/Due Date

I invite you to comment on the above and let me know if you have anything to add. The underlying idea is that there are a great many things that we can decide upon BEFORE writing anything down. This is but one area that will help to focus your writing.

Until next time,

Jerry