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Featured Songwriting Courses
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GEN 110
Preparing Your Audio for Uploading
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
This 15-minute DIY songwriting course video walks you step-by-step through the process of converting one of your songs to a good quality audio file. All songs that you upload to your song locker must be in the appropriat…
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This 15-minute DIY songwriting course video walks you step-by-step through the process of converting one of your songs to a good quality audio file. All songs that you upload to your song locker must be in the appropriate MP3 or MP4 format.
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GEN 120
SongU Pitching Orientation
DIY
About Sara Light
Sara Light has been writing professionally in Nashville since 1996 and was a staff songwriter for both Zamalama Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. Her credits include the John Michael Montgomery title track and the hit single "Home To You," which received an ASCAP airplay award in addition to being named SESAC song of the year for having garnered 2 million spins on radio. She also composed songs for the musical "Urban Cowboy," which opened on Broadway in March 2003 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score.
Other milestones include being awarded the Tennessee Songwriters Association's Songwriter of the Year award and a feature in the Entertainment Power Players Directory: Edition 4. She has performed her original songs regularly at The Bluebird Café and other Nashville venues.
Crossing genres from Country to Broadway to Hip-Hop, Sara co-authored a handbook geared toward urban youth, "The Art of Writing a Hit Song: The Urban Experience" with hit songwriter Jack Knight (Bad Boy Records) that was endorsed by Sheila Davis, Lil' Kim, Mario Winans, among others.
Sara has always combined her teaching background with her love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 2003, she developed and co-founded, along with her husband Danny Arena, the online educational website SongU.com, which offers online songwriting courses, coaching, co-writing, industry connections, and pitching opportunities to an international community of songwriters. She continues to be the main administrator, as well as one of the Lyric Writing and Song Feedback instructors at SongU.com.
Course Description:
Before pitching any songs at SongU.com, all members must review the material in this DIY songwriting course and mark the course as completed. This course covers the important things you need to be aware of when pitching …
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Before pitching any songs at SongU.com, all members must review the material in this DIY songwriting course and mark the course as completed. This course covers the important things you need to be aware of when pitching your songs through the opportunities at SongU.com. Feel free to keep this course handy and revisit it whenever you need a refresher.
Course Content
Lesson 1: Getting Started
Lesson 2: Street Pitches, Fast-Track Pitches, Special Event Pitches and Follow-up Procedures
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Lyric Writing Courses
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LYR 130
Power Rhymes for Lyricists
DIY
About Sara Light
Sara Light has been writing professionally in Nashville since 1996 and was a staff songwriter for both Zamalama Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. Her credits include the John Michael Montgomery title track and the hit single "Home To You," which received an ASCAP airplay award in addition to being named SESAC song of the year for having garnered 2 million spins on radio. She also composed songs for the musical "Urban Cowboy," which opened on Broadway in March 2003 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score.
Other milestones include being awarded the Tennessee Songwriters Association's Songwriter of the Year award and a feature in the Entertainment Power Players Directory: Edition 4. She has performed her original songs regularly at The Bluebird Café and other Nashville venues.
Crossing genres from Country to Broadway to Hip-Hop, Sara co-authored a handbook geared toward urban youth, "The Art of Writing a Hit Song: The Urban Experience" with hit songwriter Jack Knight (Bad Boy Records) that was endorsed by Sheila Davis, Lil' Kim, Mario Winans, among others.
Sara has always combined her teaching background with her love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 2003, she developed and co-founded, along with her husband Danny Arena, the online educational website SongU.com, which offers online songwriting courses, coaching, co-writing, industry connections, and pitching opportunities to an international community of songwriters. She continues to be the main administrator, as well as one of the Lyric Writing and Song Feedback instructors at SongU.com.
Course Description:
This DIY songwriting course for lyricists takes a fascinating look into the world of rhymes, citing examples of hit song lyrics from Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Macy Gray, Sting, Alicia Keys and more. Whether you're a beginni…
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This DIY songwriting course for lyricists takes a fascinating look into the world of rhymes, citing examples of hit song lyrics from Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Macy Gray, Sting, Alicia Keys and more. Whether you're a beginning or advanced writer, you will discover new ways to look at your lyric writing and learn concrete techniques to give your lyrics a professional edge. Topics covered include: assonance, consonance, elongated and diminished rhyme, inner rhyme, and extended rhyme.
Lesson 1: Perfect And Near Rhymes
Lesson 2: Elongated And Diminished Rhymes
Lesson 3: Simple Inner Rhyme
Lesson 4: Extended Rhyme
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LYR 140
Creating Lyrical Contrast to Elevate Your Songs
DIY
About Sara Light
Sara Light has been writing professionally in Nashville since 1996 and was a staff songwriter for both Zamalama Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. Her credits include the John Michael Montgomery title track and the hit single "Home To You," which received an ASCAP airplay award in addition to being named SESAC song of the year for having garnered 2 million spins on radio. She also composed songs for the musical "Urban Cowboy," which opened on Broadway in March 2003 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score.
Other milestones include being awarded the Tennessee Songwriters Association's Songwriter of the Year award and a feature in the Entertainment Power Players Directory: Edition 4. She has performed her original songs regularly at The Bluebird Café and other Nashville venues.
Crossing genres from Country to Broadway to Hip-Hop, Sara co-authored a handbook geared toward urban youth, "The Art of Writing a Hit Song: The Urban Experience" with hit songwriter Jack Knight (Bad Boy Records) that was endorsed by Sheila Davis, Lil' Kim, Mario Winans, among others.
Sara has always combined her teaching background with her love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 2003, she developed and co-founded, along with her husband Danny Arena, the online educational website SongU.com, which offers online songwriting courses, coaching, co-writing, industry connections, and pitching opportunities to an international community of songwriters. She continues to be the main administrator, as well as one of the Lyric Writing and Song Feedback instructors at SongU.com.
Course Description:
This songwriting course for lyricists focuses on several techniques to add interest to your lyric by incorporating contrast. Using examples of lyrics by artists such as Alicia Keys, Alan Jackson, Sheryl Crow, Bob Dylan a…
(read more)
This songwriting course for lyricists focuses on several techniques to add interest to your lyric by incorporating contrast. Using examples of lyrics by artists such as Alicia Keys, Alan Jackson, Sheryl Crow, Bob Dylan and more, you will see how contrasting rhyme sounds, patterns, rhythm, pronoun emphasis and detail can make your lyrics stand out from the rest.
Lesson 1: Contrast Using Rhyme Sounds
Lesson 2: Contrast Using Rhyme Patterns
Lesson 3: Contrast Using Rhythm
Lesson 4: Contrast Using Pronoun Emphasis
Lesson 5: Contrast Using Detail
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LYR 160
Lyrical Devices Course I
DIY
About Sara Light
Sara Light has been writing professionally in Nashville since 1996 and was a staff songwriter for both Zamalama Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. Her credits include the John Michael Montgomery title track and the hit single "Home To You," which received an ASCAP airplay award in addition to being named SESAC song of the year for having garnered 2 million spins on radio. She also composed songs for the musical "Urban Cowboy," which opened on Broadway in March 2003 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score.
Other milestones include being awarded the Tennessee Songwriters Association's Songwriter of the Year award and a feature in the Entertainment Power Players Directory: Edition 4. She has performed her original songs regularly at The Bluebird Café and other Nashville venues.
Crossing genres from Country to Broadway to Hip-Hop, Sara co-authored a handbook geared toward urban youth, "The Art of Writing a Hit Song: The Urban Experience" with hit songwriter Jack Knight (Bad Boy Records) that was endorsed by Sheila Davis, Lil' Kim, Mario Winans, among others.
Sara has always combined her teaching background with her love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 2003, she developed and co-founded, along with her husband Danny Arena, the online educational website SongU.com, which offers online songwriting courses, coaching, co-writing, industry connections, and pitching opportunities to an international community of songwriters. She continues to be the main administrator, as well as one of the Lyric Writing and Song Feedback instructors at SongU.com.
Course Description:
This songwriting course for lyricists suggests several pro-level techniques to develop the lyrical plot of your song and/or add interest to your lyric. By looking at examples taken from rock, pop and country music, you w…
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This songwriting course for lyricists suggests several pro-level techniques to develop the lyrical plot of your song and/or add interest to your lyric. By looking at examples taken from rock, pop and country music, you will explore creative lyrical devices such as the use of lists, rotating choruses and time-capsule songs.
Lesson 1: List Songs
Lesson 2: The Rotating Chorus
Lesson 3: The Time-Capsule Lyric
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LYR 161
Lyrical Devices Course Il
DIY
About Sara Light
Sara Light has been writing professionally in Nashville since 1996 and was a staff songwriter for both Zamalama Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. Her credits include the John Michael Montgomery title track and the hit single "Home To You," which received an ASCAP airplay award in addition to being named SESAC song of the year for having garnered 2 million spins on radio. She also composed songs for the musical "Urban Cowboy," which opened on Broadway in March 2003 and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score.
Other milestones include being awarded the Tennessee Songwriters Association's Songwriter of the Year award and a feature in the Entertainment Power Players Directory: Edition 4. She has performed her original songs regularly at The Bluebird Café and other Nashville venues.
Crossing genres from Country to Broadway to Hip-Hop, Sara co-authored a handbook geared toward urban youth, "The Art of Writing a Hit Song: The Urban Experience" with hit songwriter Jack Knight (Bad Boy Records) that was endorsed by Sheila Davis, Lil' Kim, Mario Winans, among others.
Sara has always combined her teaching background with her love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S. and Canada. In 2003, she developed and co-founded, along with her husband Danny Arena, the online educational website SongU.com, which offers online songwriting courses, coaching, co-writing, industry connections, and pitching opportunities to an international community of songwriters. She continues to be the main administrator, as well as one of the Lyric Writing and Song Feedback instructors at SongU.com.
Course Description:
In Part II of this songwriting course for lyricists, you'll learn more techniques to develop the lyrical plot of your song in interesting and skillful ways. Lyrical devices such as parallel form, developing a lyric throu…
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In Part II of this songwriting course for lyricists, you'll learn more techniques to develop the lyrical plot of your song in interesting and skillful ways. Lyrical devices such as parallel form, developing a lyric through questions and third-person vignettes will be explored. Examples will be given from rock, pop and country music including songs by Aerosmith, Matchbox Twenty, Dixie Chicks, Faith Hill and many others.
Lesson 1: Using Parallel Form
Lesson 2: Using Questions
Lesson 3: The Third-Person Vignette
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LYR 220
Thinking As A Songwriter
DIY
About Pam Oland
Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Selena, Frank Sinatra, the Jacksons, Gladys Knight, Nikka Costa, and Reba McIntyre, are among artists who’ve recorded over 450 Pamela Phillips Oland songs. Anne Murray’s “Duets,” nominated for 2008 Best Album and Best Pop Album Juno Awards, features Anne’s re-recording of Oland & James Dunne’s Grammy-Nominated #1 song "Nobody Loves Me Like You Do." Claire Dela Fuente’s current #1 record, "Something In Your Eyes," co-written with Richard Carpenter, is the most requested song in the Philippines. A forthcoming duet with Philippine Idol winner Sarah Geronimo and Back Street Boys’ Howie Dorough is one of 3 songs recorded for Sarah’s forthcoming album. Also current: "Bird’s Eye View" appears on alternative artist Simon Lynge’s debut album. "Mad About You" is on Danish TV star Sascha Dupont’s album, and "Daydream Nightmare" is a single by Eurovision winner DQ .
Oland’s Awards include a Best Song In a Motion Picture Genie Award-nominated title song co-written with LeVar Burton for "Blizzard," a Best Kids Album Grammy nomination for "Be Bop Your Best"-an album co-written with artist Red Grammer, a CMA Best Country Duet award, an Accolade Award, and a New York Festivals Silver medal for the song score of "Legend of the Three Trees".
Her extensive movie work includes the end-title to "Puerto Vallarta Squeeze," the "Digga Digga Dog" opening and end-title song to 102 Dalmatians, and main themes to "Coming To America," "Gideon," "Burglar," and "I’m Gonna Git You Sucka." Her t.v. work includes "Reaper," "Bad Girls Guide," "Little Miss," "J*A*G," "The Sopranos, themes to "Thunder In Paradise," and "Dexter’s Lab," "Xena: Warrior Princess (3 songs for the cult favorite "Bitter Suite" episode) and all songs (music & lyrics) for the award-winning Kids Ten Commandments.
The career lyricist defies categorization, working in all styles and genres. She’s currently co-writing with Tom Harriman a major musical based on the Oscar-nominated film "Soldier of Orange," for a projected 2009 opening in the Netherlands; and has finished the novel, "The Downfall of Oliver Hepz," just optioned by Deep Muddy Productions for a feature film. She also has two television shows optioned and currently being shopped. Oland and Harriman, her partner in TOPA Music, wrote and produced the CD-art package "Van Gogh by Van Eck" featuring Diederick vanEck for Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum. It became a part of the Van Gogh & His Fellow Expressionists Exhibition. She is also the author of the popular music industry books, "The Art Of Writing Great Lyrics," and "The Art of Writing Love Songs," (Allworth:NY), Oland participates in songwriting and music seminars around the country and abroad, as well as offering lyric evaluations and career consultations. She frequently co-hosts "Samm Brown’s For The Record," a Sunday music industry interview show live at 2:00 pm PST on KPFK 90.7.
Her website is at www.PamOland.com.
Course Description:
Thinking as a songwriter requires a unique mindset and the ability to blend art with craft. In this songwriting course for lyricists, you will be taken on a sensate journey to practice examining the world around you in a…
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Thinking as a songwriter requires a unique mindset and the ability to blend art with craft. In this songwriting course for lyricists, you will be taken on a sensate journey to practice examining the world around you in a more creative way. You will be given practical skills to incorporate your artful discoveries into well crafted songs. Examples from pop, country, musical theatre and rock will illustrate the points made throughout the course.
Lyric Lesson 1: Transcending the Limitations of Your Own Experiences
Lyric Lesson 2: Re-Learning the Art of Observation
Lyric Lesson 3: Becoming Proficient At Creating Time, Place And Characters
Lyric Lesson 4: Getting The Knack Of Inventiveness
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Music Courses
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MUS 130
Musical Elements Of A Successful Song
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
This information-packed songwriting course examines what successful songs have in common from a musical standpoint and learn to write songs for the commercial market. Whether you are interested in pop, rock, country or R…
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This information-packed songwriting course examines what successful songs have in common from a musical standpoint and learn to write songs for the commercial market. Whether you are interested in pop, rock, country or R&B, you will be given insight into musical timing issues, how to develop a stronger melody and how create effective harmonies and rhythms that add memorability and interest to your music.
Lesson 1: Do You Have The Time?
Lesson 2: Memorability
Lesson 3: Contrast
Lesson 4: Variation
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MUS 150
Essential Music Theory Course For Songwriters
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
Specifically geared toward songwriting, this popular songwriting course gets down to the essentials of music theory without a lot of technical or fancy jargon. Hit song examples from Chuck Berry to Bob Seeger to George S…
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Specifically geared toward songwriting, this popular songwriting course gets down to the essentials of music theory without a lot of technical or fancy jargon. Hit song examples from Chuck Berry to Bob Seeger to George Strait and more help illustrate the fundamentals of constructing effective chord progressions in rock, pop and country music. In addition, you will discover how the use of chord substitutes can make your songs more creative and interesting. Finally, you will learn the basics of reading and writing charts for your own songs.
Lesson 1: Introduction To Music Theory
Lesson 2: The Big Three: I, IV, V
Lesson 3: The Chord Substitutes: iim, iiim, vim
Lesson 4: A Complete Song Example
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MUS 220
Prosody: Writing Music To Lyrics Songwriting Course
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
A beautiful marriage of music to words can be a challenge even for the most experienced composer. A good musical setting of a lyric will ensure that the lyric is easy to understand and communicates the intended emotion. …
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A beautiful marriage of music to words can be a challenge even for the most experienced composer. A good musical setting of a lyric will ensure that the lyric is easy to understand and communicates the intended emotion. In this songwriting course, you'll learn specific techniques to help your music convey the content and meaning of the lyric. Examples by artists such as the Everly Brothers, Brian McKnight, Kathy Troccoli, Faith Hill and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, among others, are used to illustrate key concepts.
Lesson 1: The Right EM-phasis
Lesson 2: Word Weighting
Lesson 3: Phrase Breaking
Lesson 4: Motif Matching And Mood Matching
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MUS 240
The Nashville Number System for Songwriters
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
In addition to being used by musicians around the globe, the Nashville Number System continues to be the predominant method for "charting" songs in Nashville. From the basics of charting simple major and minor chords, to…
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In addition to being used by musicians around the globe, the Nashville Number System continues to be the predominant method for "charting" songs in Nashville. From the basics of charting simple major and minor chords, to the writing of more complex charts that include inversions, time signature changes and production changes, you'll find it in this songwriting course. Learn by example as you discover this unique and relatively easy way to chart your own songs.
Lesson 1: Introduction To The Nashville Number System
Lesson 2: Slashes, Splits, Boxes and Dots
Lesson 3: Sevenths, Inversions, Walkups and Walkdowns
Lesson 4: Diamonds, Stops and Breakdowns
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MUS 310
The Composer's Bag Of Tricks
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
This advanced songwriting course covers several "tricks of the trade" that will help your music stand out above the crowd and sound more professional. Song examples from several different genres of music will be used to …
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This advanced songwriting course covers several "tricks of the trade" that will help your music stand out above the crowd and sound more professional. Song examples from several different genres of music will be used to illustrate how to successfully incorporate techniques such as chord substitutions, inversions, pedal point and modulation into your own music.
Lesson 1: Review Of Chord Substitutes
Lesson 2: Seventh Chords
Lesson 3: Seconds, Ninths And Suspended Chords
Lesson 4: Inversions And Pedal Point
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Tech/Production Courses
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TECH 130
Home Studio Recording Techniques
DIY
About Jack Sundrud
Jack Sundrud came to Nashville, TN in 1981 and spent several years as a touring bassist/vocalist with Vince Gill, Poco, Gail Davies, Michael Johnson, Nicolette Larson, Gary Morris, Kathy Mattea, Dickey Betts, The O’Kanes and others. In 1991, Jack - as a member of Great Plains - wrote or co-wrote all ten tracks on the band’s Columbia debut, including the hit single "Faster Gun" (with Gary Burr). In 1996, Great Plains released the album Homeland on Magnatone Records, also featuring ten Sundrud compositions, including the title track (co-written with Keith Miles) which was named Farm Song of the Year in 1996 by The Farm Journal (the award was shared with Billy Montana's "Clean Mind and Dirty Hands"). Also in 1996, along with Michael Johnson, Jack penned "Cain’s Blood," the debut hit for 4Runner. In 1998, "It Must Be Love," co-written with Craig Bickhardt and recorded by Ty Herndon, became a number one country radio hit.
Jack continues to perform with Poco (check out their new release at www.poconut.com) and write songs for Curb/Magnatone Music Publishing in Nashville. He and his sweetheart Sue live in East Nashville with a pack of stray dogs.
Course Description:
This course will take you through the basics of setting up a home recording studio, acquaint you with terminology and functions of the different component parts. Finally, you will be guided through the process of how to…
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This course will take you through the basics of setting up a home recording studio, acquaint you with terminology and functions of the different component parts. Finally, you will be guided through the process of how to make basic professional sounding demos from your own home. This includes mic placement techniques, compression settings and various other nuances to make the most of your home demo sound.
Course Content
Lesson 1: Your Environment
Lesson 2: Hook Up, Power Up, Meet Your Gear
Lesson 3: Guitar/Vocal Recording Techniques
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Commercial Songwriting Courses
Click to collapse
SONG 100
Commercial Song Forms
DIY
About Danny Arena
Danny Arena is a Tony Award nominated composer who has worked as a staff songwriter for Warner/Chappell Music and Curb Magnatone Music Publishing. He holds degrees from Rutgers University in both computer science and music composition. He is currently an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University and has previously been a member of the faculty at Rutgers University in addition to a guest lecturer at the Berklee School of Music and Belmont University. Together Danny and Sara collaborated on composing songs for the Broadway show "Urban Cowboy: The Musical" which was received an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Original Score. Throughout his career, he has continued to combine his teaching background with his love of songwriting and has given countless songwriting seminars throughout the U.S and Canada. He is also one of the co-founders of the online educational website www.SongU.com which provides multi-level songwriting courses developed and taught by award-winning songwriters, song feedback and mentoring, one-on-one song coaching, co-writing, unscreened pitching opportunities and more.
Course Description:
This songwriting course identifies and studies several of the most commonly used commercial song forms in rock, country and pop music by using examples of hit songs from Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Garth Brooks, Toni Braxton,…
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This songwriting course identifies and studies several of the most commonly used commercial song forms in rock, country and pop music by using examples of hit songs from Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Garth Brooks, Toni Braxton, JoDee Messina, Sister Hazel, U2, and more. You'll learn the various pros and cons of the different song forms as well as how to incorporate the different song forms into your own writing.
Lesson 1: Introduction To Song Forms
Lesson 2: The AAA And AABA Song Forms
Lesson 3: The Verse/Chorus And Verse/Chorus/Bridge Song Form
Lesson 4: The Verse/Lift/Chorus Song Form
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SONG 110
Six Elements Of A Complete Song
DIY
About Kim Copeland
Kim Copeland's songs have been recorded by numerous artists in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. She is a performing songwriter, producer, publisher, teacher and author of The Writer's Goal Book, The Songwriter's Little Book of Big Thoughts, and The Personal Songwriting Workshop Series. She also co-authored a songwriting lesson plan for NSAI (Nashville Songwriters Assoc. Intl.) which is currently in use by over 100 regional chapters. When Kim is not writing or performing great songs, she enjoys sharing the benefit of her experience with up and coming songwriters. She runs a private song evaluation service and a consultation/mentoring service. She also teaches songwriting through the Country Music Foundation's "Words and Music" program, as a counselor at "Camp Summersong" and “NashCamp”, and as a participant and/or host of songwriting workshops all over the country. Kim is one of thirty writers featured in Susan Tucker's book, The Soul Of A Writer-Intimate Interviews With Successful Songwriters. She is co-owner of Sage House Music, and Journey Publishing Company and is is an active member of ASCAP, NSAI, NARAS, and WEM (Women in Entertainment and Music). These days, Kim spends much of her time in the studio producing two new country acts, as well as many custom and demo projects. She is the manager of Keith Norris, a traditional country artist, and Flybilly, a hip new country duo.
Course Description:
This songwriting course identifies and studies the six essential elements of emotionally and commercially satisfying songs. You will learn how to discover more unique song ideas and develop them into well-crafted songs t…
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This songwriting course identifies and studies the six essential elements of emotionally and commercially satisfying songs. You will learn how to discover more unique song ideas and develop them into well-crafted songs that will inspire listeners and increase your chances of commercial success.
Lesson 1: Finding Unique Ideas
Lesson 2: Finding A Universal Theme
Lesson 3: Writing Believable Lyrics
Lesson 4: Writing Memorable Hooks
Lesson 5: Focusing Your Lyric Using A Lyrical Hook
Lesson 6: Matching Your Music And Lyric
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SONG 120
Whats In A Name: The Central Importance Of The Song Title
DIY
About Pat and Pete Luboff
Pat and Pete Luboff are songwriters/publishers with recordings by Snoop Dogg ("Trust Me," the first single from the platinum-selling album "Top Dogg") Patti LaBelle (gold album), Bobby Womack (No. 2 on Billboard's Black Music chart), a featured song in the John Travolta movie "The Experts," and more. They have traveled throughout the United States teaching songwriting workshops since 1979. Pete taught a songwriting workshop every Monday night for 20 years through the National Academy of Songwriters and an advanced songwriting course through UCLA Extension. They currently reside in Nashville. They also travel to other towns to conduct workshops and are available for songwriting and music business consultation and individual instruction for songwriters in person and on the phone. They are the authors of the Writer's Digest book 101 Songwriting Wrongs and How to Right Them and 12 Steps to Building Better Songs, which they self-publish.
The Luboffs created the Grammy Pulse magazine for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS, the Grammy organization), the L.A. Record for NARAS' Los Angeles Chapter and the California Copyright newsletter. They were Research Editors of Songwriter Magazine. Both have served on the board of the National Academy of Songwriters; Pete as Vice Chairman and Pat as President. Pete also served as a governor and 1st Vice President of the Los Angeles Chapter of NARAS. For more information, visit their web site: www.writesongs.com. Pat and Pete teach Song Feedback and Mentoring at SongU.com.
Course Description:
This songwriting course explores the many reasons why choosing a strong title will help you write a strong song. By examining the attributes of existing hit song titles, including songs by Patti LaBelle, James Ingram, L…
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This songwriting course explores the many reasons why choosing a strong title will help you write a strong song. By examining the attributes of existing hit song titles, including songs by Patti LaBelle, James Ingram, Lee Ann Womack, Lennon and McCartney and many others, you will see how a title can evoke interest in a song. You will also learn how to collect interesting and unique title ideas and you'll find out how to use a title as the foundation and focus for your song. The final lesson covers the legal aspects of song titles.
Lesson 1: Finding And Choosing Strong Titles
Lesson 2: How The Title Defines The Structure Of The Song
Lesson 3: Working From the Title To Write Your Song
Lesson 4: The Legal Aspects Of Song Titles
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