I'm Doing A Course

[snabbu]

Yes Derek he does,and the thing is he is such a good communicator. He really understands how to get concepts across.

I am astounded at the number of people doing this course.. 65,000 amazing.

I have just finished marking ten peer assignments and am still underwhelmed by the quality of the work.

One or two at 70% but most 55 to 60. Considering all you had to do was write a verse with uneven line lengths and an uneven number of lines, create a hook emphasis by manipulating line lengths. Have a verse idea that fits with this unstable structure.

Then do the opposite in the chorus. Have the verse and chorus work together. I did not get one who had written music as that was optional. So that's a bit of a drag. I am looking forward to the next set of lectures.

I am having trouble writing a chorus melody to an unstable chorus for this weeks assignment last week unstable verse stable chorus was much easier.

Cheers

Gary

[snabbu]

Hi

 

Well we are now getting down to the business end of this course. Lesson four this is about something which I probably have only half considered in the past.

Sometimes getting it right by instinct but often getting it wrong. Knowing that a song had not turned out as good as I had imagined it but not knowing why. 

That is the process of "setting". You cant really say setting to music because what we are doing is setting to a melodic rhythm only. Like disregarding pitch. 

Setting is a process of getting the maximum prosody by delivering the song lines in the natural way we speak. Getting the naturally stressed syllables to fall in line with the musical stresses. This is called preserving the natural shape of the language. This determines melodic rhythm so lengths of notes rests etc. So now it's a matter of getting the rhythm right prior to melody writing. Because the assignment was to set the lyrics we wrote last week this was a fairly stark revelation. I was unable to get an unbalanced chorus to sound any good, but having gone back through and set it for stress, the results have been quite amazing. Suddenly it works. My lecture notes appear below.

 

Cheers

 

Gary

 

Lecture one

 

Rhythm in language

 

Line length is is determined by the number of stressed syllables in a line not the actual number of syllables in a line.

 

Language is divided into two types of words; single syllable words and multi syllable words.

 

Multi syllable words

The stressed syllables have a higher pitch than the unstressed when we learn a multi syllable word we learn the vowels and the consonants but we also learn the melody of the word. Words with more than two syllables have a primary stressed syllable and a secondary stressed syllable.

 

Determining stress in multi syllable words. If you ay the word three or four times without thinking about it and then slow it down you will hear the stresses.

Or you can look them up in the dictionary.

 

The primary stress of a word should be aligned with the primary stress in the music. In four four time the beat stresses are primary, unstressed, secondary, unstressed.

This positioning is called preserving the natural shape of the language.

 

Lecture two

 

One-syllable words

Are stressed or unstressed depending on function.

A meaning function is: verbs nouns adverbs adjectives. Always stressed.

A grammatical function is: Articles (a the an etc.). Conjunctions (and but yet if or). Not stressed. Prepositions (in on at into before after etc.) Personal pro nouns (I me then us you). Generally not stressed. Examples of when there is stress is contrasts like “ I understand even if you don’t†Then the I and you would be stressed.

 

Grammatical functions are lower in pitch than the meaning functions.

 

When you have two types of syllables stressed and unstressed you can start making patterns.

 

Lines are organised in rhythmic patterns when songs are written lyrics first. To prepare them for putting to music.

 

Lecture three

Stressed versus unstressed syllables.

Basically just practice at recognising stressed and unstressed patterns in lines.

 

Lecture four

Rhythm

Placing lyrical lines into the context of melodic rhythm.

When first placing lyrical lines into musical context do not be concerned with melodic pitch only musical rhythm.

 

Example: The line; “Humming through the wallsâ€. The stressed syllables in speech will go on the stressed positions in the bar.  Therefore “Hum†will go on beat one and “walls†will go either on beat three or beat one of bar two.

This process is called setting.

 

This will determine if you have a pick up to get the stresses in the right place and the length of various notes and where rests are.

For example. The line “I wish you’d take me travelling†The stresses are wish and Trav with a lessor stress on the verb “take†So the I would need to be a pick up from the previous bar to get wish to fall on the strong down beat of the bar. Then  “You’d falls on the weak second beat, “Take†falls on the strong (but as strong as beat one) third beat, then me falls on the weak fourth beat and “Trav†on the strong first beat of the following bar. If you wanted to diminish the strength of “Take†You can move it forward say half a beat off the third beat towards beat four this makes it weaker.

 

This setting of the lyric to melodic rhythm is done prior to melodic writing.

 

So determine the stresses make sure there are patterns and they repeat and are consistent throughout the piece. Then set it in a melodic rhythm without regard to the melodic movement. I.e. a linear melody of one pitch only with rests and note lengths to get the naturally stressed and unstressed syllables to line up with the stressed and unstressed  beats of the bar.

[Guest]

Hi, Gary...

 

Having read the first paragraph of this latest post, I thought I'd share something with you. (I'm very much a stickler about lyrics preserving the natural flow of speech.)

 

Stevie is ---I think--- one of the greatest songwriters alive; I'm very comfortable calling him a "genius." Yet he has turned out some of the most awkward, unnatural lyrics imaginable. Some of them are so [ahem] bad that I can't do anything but shake my head (and smile at the stark contrast of such seemingly hideous word choices in the midst of melodic brilliance)!

 

My favorite example comes from "Do I Do," From his album The Original Musiquarium. (It's actually not so much an accent/stress infraction ---although he makes plenty of those--- but, rather, a total disregard for syntax!) Here's the line:

 

I don't care... how long it will take

'Cause I know the wo-man for me you I'll make

 

Huh?!?!?! The woman for me you I'll make?!?!?!?!

 

Rhyme at all costs, I assume...

 

 

But, hey... It's STEVIE!!!

Edited August 15, 2013 by Skylark

[Just1L]

My favorite example comes from "Do I Do," From his album The Original Musiquarium. (It's actually not so much an accent/stress infraction ---although makes plenty of those--- but, rather, a total disregard for syntax!) Here's the the line:

 

I don't care... how long it will take

'Cause I know the wo-man for me you I'll make

 

Huh?!?!?! The woman for me you I'll make?!?!?!?!

 

Rhyme at all costs, I assume...

 

 

But, hey... It's STEVIE!!!

 

 

Yes, but Yoda-speak was pretty popular at that time with The Empire Strikes Back coming out in 1980. 

[Guest]

Hahaha!!! Well, then... There ya go!!

 

[snabbu]

Hi, Gary...

 

Having read the first paragraph of this latest post, I thought I'd share something with you. (I'm very much a stickler about lyrics preserving the natural flow of speech.)

 

Stevie is ---I think--- one of the greatest songwriters alive; I'm very comfortable calling him a "genius." Yet he has turned out some of the most awkward, unnatural lyrics imaginable. Some of them are so [ahem] bad that I can't do anything but shake my head (and smile at the stark contrast of such seemingly hideous word choices in the midst of melodic brilliance)!

 

My favorite example comes from "Do I Do," From his album The Original Musiquarium. (It's actually not so much an accent/stress infraction ---although he makes plenty of those--- but, rather, a total disregard for syntax!) Here's the line:

 

I don't care... how long it will take

'Cause I know the wo-man for me you I'll make

 

Huh?!?!?! The woman for me you I'll make?!?!?!?!

 

Rhyme at all costs, I assume...

 

 

But, hey... It's STEVIE!!!

With him it's all about the music and I think the lyric is just there. I mean he stresses pronouns no one speaks like that unless they're making some point. But tunes are his go for sure.

Us mere mortals now find we can create musical rythem from the natural stresses in the lyrics how cool is that. All you have to do then is a bit of pitch here and there, and the odd cadence. Bloody marvellous.

Cheers

Gary

[snabbu]

Week five was a lot of revision really there were so many videos to watch. After five weeks we've finally discussed music but not in much depth.

The quizzes this week have really been screwed up. The answers are just plain wrong. And the scoring is weird. The course work this week was quite a lot with a full song to write. The one musical concept discussed that was interesting was using stable and unstable notes on particular words to suit prosody. 

[snabbu]

Ok so it's over and we are just waiting for the results.

I modified the front post and added my last assignment.

 

Cheers

 

Gary

[Lisa Gates]

Hi Gary!

Week 6 assignment was my highest graded assignment!

My certificate was issued on Friday and I got a 92% overall for the course. I'm pleasantly surprised. I bet you did better!

I can't thank you enough for your help and the postings here on Songstuff.

 

See you around on the forums!

 

Lisa

[snabbu]

Hi Lisa

I also got 92 % for my last assignment , I don't know what I got for the course, I thought the results were out on the 12th. I did a quick calculation and figured I would have done enough to get a certificate. Pat is coming to sydney in January I am going to do a weekend seminar, so that should be good.

The only thing I am really having difficulty with is phrasing. Like to do the back heavy and get back onto the main beats for the strong words and still have it sound natural. At the moment I am working up a proper recording of my week six assignment. I hope to be finished by Friday. I actually printed out sheet music to the lead line so I could look at the phrasing. I think after two hours working on the second verse when I finally got it right I sort of got better at it. I am hoping to fix the first verse in about ten minutes. One of the things is you sing something one way and then you have to do it another and it is difficult to get right. I feel quite positive about the course despite the winges about peer review. I think I might now punt out some ok songs.

I have just gone and looked at the results how can you get 104% a percent is a percent is it not.

I guess they are song writers not mathematicians. I think I got extra for doing coaching on the forums.

Are you doing your assignment as a song to post?

Cheers

Gary

[Lisa Gates]

Congrats! I knew you'd do well! They did give extra points for the Discussion Forums. Very cool that you will go to Pat's seminar!

As a singer I get the phrasing a lot easier. I can really hear the difference in songs now. I can really feel the difference now.

My song was sung to a loop so it doesn't qualify for contribution to any post. If I ever put it to real music I would. But heck, I might just submit it to the movie that the song was originally made for...hmmm will think on that.