The beginnings of a Song Baby

Hello, Everyone,

You will be working independently today, each of you at your own computer using headphones. Your job is to begin considering how you might craft an original song that will show clear influences of several others. The criteria you should consider are:

Chord Progression

Groove (rhythmic style, how instruments interlock/interact)

Melodic ideas (the way melody hotes move against chords, phrasing)

Timbre (particular instrument choice and specific sound qualities)

Form (structure - sections of the song)

Go online (YouTube, TheoryTabs, Spotify, etc.) and do some active, critical listening to four songs of your choosing that you are interested in. On your blog, take specific notes with regard to the above criteria for each song, pointing out any ideas that you think are noteworthy. Theorytabs may be able to help you identify chord progressions and melodic ideas. You should end up with a brief write-up for each song. 

You will ultimately be writing a new song that may, for example, use a part of a chord progression from one song, played with the rhythmic groove from another, using the instrument sounds of another, and perhaps a melody line/shape from another. After writing your listening notes on your four songs, make some creative choices as to which part from each song you would like to use as a basis for a new song. Post your current thinking to your blog with the understanding that your ideas will change as you work on this. Nothing's in stone at this point, and you will surely need to try out your ideas in upcoming classes to see how things work.

Try to complete as much of this as possible in class today, and finish the rest for homework. You should be prepared to share your ideas at our next class. Please let me know if you have any questions.