Pat Pattison
Berklee College of Music
Songwriting
www.coursera.org/course/songwriting
Learn an efficient, effective process for writing songs that express your ideas and emotions, including a range of tools that revolve around the concept of prosody—the matching of lyrics and music to support your underlying message.
About the Course
If you haven’t written any or many songs, this course will show you an efficient, effective process for tailoring songs to express your ideas and emotions. If you have, you’ll look at your process differently, taking control of aspects of the process you may have not noticed.
The course will start by examining the tools available to you, all revolving around the essential concept of prosody. You’ll learn to use your tools to enhance your message—to work compositionally at the same time you’re developing your ideas.
You’ll be working both lyrically and musically, though musically it’s not necessary that you either read music or play an instrument. If you play, great, and you’ll be encouraged to play and record your musical responses to the assignments. If you don’t play, the course offers you a number of musical loops to work with. All you’ll have to do is sing your melodies over the loops.
Assignments will ask you to post something for peer review—sometimes lyric lines or sections, sometimes melodies, sometimes both. None of it has to be polished. The course is about writing, not performing.
Most important, you’ll have a lot of fun.
Course Syllabus
Lesson 1: The Journey of the Song
By the end of this lesson, you will see how to develop your song idea so it creates an interesting journey from start to finish. You’ll understand your options developing the point of view of your song and will be introduced to the songwriter’s six best friends.
Lesson 2: Stopping and Going
By the end of this lesson, you will understand the concept of prosody as it relates to the number of lines/musical phrases in a section and to line lengths/musical phrases, the school crossing guards of your song. You’ll create both stable and unstable line/musical groupings, using an odd or even number of lines and musical phrases. Using these tools, you’ll write a verse and chorus.
Lesson 3: Sonic GPS—Mapping Your Song with Rhyme
By the end of this lesson, you will understand the relationship of rhyme schemes to prosody. You’ll create both stable and unstable sections, using various rhyme schemes to show your ear the way to go home. Using these tools, you’ll write a new verse and chorus.
Lesson 4: Making It Move
By the end of this lesson, you will understand language rhythms—the difference between stressed and unstressed syllables and how to put rhythm in your lines, preparing them to join into the dance with musical rhythm. Using these tools, you’ll put last week’s verse and chorus to music.
Lesson 5: Writing the Song
In this lesson, you’ll select a new song title and create a worksheet to help develop your ideas. You’ll write your lyric and set it to music, matching your lyric rhythms to melodic rhythms. You’ll create a melody, using stable and unstable notes to support your ideas.
Lesson 6: Crossing the Finished Line
By the end of this lesson, you will understand the role of phrasing to create the body language of your song, using the relationship of your phrases to musical downbeats to create stability or instability. Then you’ll put the finishing touches on your song from lesson 5.
Recommended Background
Suggested Readings
Course Format
- "Still Crazy After All These Years" (Paul Simon) performed by Paul Simon
- "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover" (Paul Simon) performed by Paul Simon
- "Can’t Be Really Gone" (Gary Burr) performed by Tim McGraw
- "Eleanor Rigby" (John Lennon/Paul McCartney) performed by The Beatles
- "The End of the Innocence" (Don Henley) performed by Don Henley
- "For No One" (John Lennon/Paul McCartney) performed by The Beatles
- "The Great Pretender" (Buck Ram) performed by The Platters
- "Hasten Down the Wind" (Warren Zevon) performed by Warren Zevon
- "Heartbeat City" (Ric Ocasek) performed by The Cars
- "How Can We Hang On to a Dream" (Tim Hardin) performed by Tim Hardin
- "I Can’t Make You Love Me" (Mike Reid/Allen Shamblin) performed by Bonnie Raitt
- "In Front of the Alamo" (Gary Burr) performed by Hal Ketchum
- "It Was a Very Good Year" (Ervin Drake) performed by Frank Sinatra
- "Judgement of the Moon and Stars (Ludwig's Tune)" (Joni Mitchell) performed by Joni Mitchell
- "One More Dollar" (Gillian Welch) performed by Gillian Welch
- "Some People’s Lives" (Janis Ian/Kye Fleming) performed by Janis Ian
- "Strawberry Wine" (Matraca Berg/Gary Harrison) performed by Deana Carter
- "Sweet Baby James" (James Taylor) performed by James Taylor
- "Train in the Distance" (Paul Simon) performed by Paul Simon
- "What’ll I do?" (Irving Berlin) performed by Linda Ronstadt
- "Why Can't I Have You?" (Ric Ocasek) performed by The Cars
FAQ
- Do I need to have prior songwriting experience or musical ability?
No. Playing an instrument, such as the guitar or keyboard, is helpful but not necessary.
- Can I work on my own music?
Absolutely. If you do not have your own music, you will be able to use musical loops supplied in the course.
- What do I need in order to submit recording assignments?
During the course, you will be asked at times to submit recorded examples of your song ideas. In order to do this, you will need your computer's built-in microphone or an external microphone plugged directly into your computer (via built-in ports or an external audio interface), in addition to basic audio recording software, such as Audacity, that will allow you to record yourself and save the recording in MP3 format.
学生将通过本课程学习快速高效的谱曲方法，从而准确表达自己的思想和情感，包括以韵律学概念为中心的一些作曲工具，实现歌曲与歌词的相互匹配，让音乐能够传达作者的隐含信息。
课程概述
如果您没有写过歌曲或经验有限，那么参加本课程，您可以学习快速高效的创作方法，编织美妙的乐章，抒发自己的情感和思想。即使您经验丰富，本课程也可以引导您换个角度审视自己的创作过程，重拾以前被忽略的部分。
本课程以韵律这个基本概念为中心，首先介绍音乐创作必备因素，学员们要学习如何灵活运用这些概念，扩展思维，提高音乐素养。
虽然我们不要求学员能读懂音乐或者会弹奏乐器，不过课程内容依然涉及词曲两个方面。如果您会乐器，很好，我们会布置作业，鼓励您上传弹奏录音。如果您不会乐器，课上我们会提供一些旋律，您只需要跟随节奏哼唱自己的歌曲。
作业方面，同学们需要上传词或者曲或者词曲结合，课程重在创作，而非表演，所以无需特别修饰。
最重要的是，学习中充满无限乐趣。
课程大纲
第1课：歌曲的奇幻之旅
体会音乐带给我们的乐趣，通过学习，您将了解如何激发音乐灵感，扩展思路，还会认识歌曲作家的6个“好朋友”。
第2课： 声音的抑扬顿挫
曲调与乐章中的乐句数量和乐句长度密不可分，通过学习，您将对这些概念有所了解，学习运用奇偶数线和奇数或偶数乐句组成格调不变和多变的曲调，掌握这些理论，学员可以编写主歌和副歌部分。
第3课：声音导航——描绘歌曲的韵律
通过学习，了解押韵与节奏的关系，运用各种格律创作格调不变和多变的乐曲，掌握了这些概念，学员可以谱写出新的主歌和副歌。
第4课：流动的音符
体会节奏语言，了解重音和非重音的区别，在乐句中加入不同的节奏，形成流畅又富于动感的曲调；通过学习，学员可以将主歌和副歌组合成乐曲。
第5课：歌曲创作
课上学员可以选择一个新的歌曲名称，以表格的形式扩展音乐思维，编写歌词，然后运用格调不变或多变的旋律、做出符合音乐内容、匹配歌词节奏的曲子。
第6课：后期润色
体会乐句对创作和谐乐章所发挥的作用，灵活运用节拍的高低强弱，编写出格调不变或多变的曲调；通过学习，学员将完成对第五课所写歌曲的后期润色。
背景知识
参考资料
授课形式
- “Still Crazy After All These Years”（“多年后依然疯狂”，作曲：保罗·西蒙），保罗·西蒙演唱
- “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover”（“离开爱人的五十种方法”，作曲：保罗·西蒙），保罗·西蒙演唱
- “Can’t Be Really Gone”（“挥之不去”，作曲：盖瑞·伯尔），蒂姆·麦克洛演唱
- “Eleanor Rigby”（作曲：约翰·列侬/保罗·麦卡特尼），披头士乐队演唱
- “The End of the Innocence”（“告别纯真”，作曲：唐·亨利），唐·亨利演唱
- “For No One”（“不为谁”，作曲：约翰·列侬/保罗·麦卡特尼），披头士乐队演唱
- “The Great Pretender”（“伪君子”，作曲：伯克·兰姆），五黑宝合唱团演唱
- “Hasten Down the Wind”（“乘风追赶”，作曲：沃伦·泽方），沃伦·泽方演唱
- “Heartbeat City”（“心跳城市”，作曲：里克·奥卡塞克），汽车合唱团演唱
- “How Can We Hang On to a Dream”（“如何让梦不醒”，作曲：蒂姆·哈丁），蒂姆·哈丁演唱/li>
- “I Can’t Make You Love Me”（“无法让你爱我”，作曲：迈克·里德/艾伦·谢柏林），邦妮·瑞特演唱
- “In Front of the Alamo”（“面对阿拉莫”，作曲：盖瑞·伯尔），哈尔·凯彻姆演唱
- “It Was a Very Good Year”（“曾经美好的那一年”，作曲：欧文·德雷克），弗兰克·辛纳屈演唱
- “Judgement of the Moon and Stars”（“星月见证（Ludwig的曲调）”，（作曲：琼尼·米歇尔），琼尼·米歇尔演唱
- “One More Dollar”（“一美元”，作曲：吉兰·威尔奇），吉兰·威尔奇演唱
- “Some People’s Lives”（“某些人的生活”，作曲：珍妮斯·艾恩/凯恩·弗莱明），珍妮斯·艾恩演唱
- “Strawberry Wine”（“草莓酒”，作曲：Matraca Berg/盖瑞·哈里森），Deana Carter演唱
- “Sweet Baby James”（“甜心宝贝詹姆斯”，作曲：詹姆斯·泰勒），詹姆斯·泰勒演唱
- “Train in the Distance”（“远方的雨”，作曲：保罗·西蒙），保罗·西蒙演唱
- “What’ll I do?”（“我该怎么办”，作曲：欧文·柏林），琳达·朗丝黛演唱
- “Why Can't I Have You?”（“为何不能拥有你”，作曲：里克·奥卡塞克），汽车合唱团演唱
常见问题
- 是否需要具备谱曲经验或音乐能力？
如果学过乐器，如吉他或键盘，会对本课程有所帮助，但不是必要条件。
- 可以用自己的音乐吗？
当然可以，如果没有，您可以用课上提供的音乐。
- 上传录音作业，我需要准备什么？
学习过程中，有时需要学员上传自己的创作录音，所以您的电脑要有内置麦克风或可以（通过电脑内置端口或外部音频接口）直接连接电脑的外置麦克风。另外，还要安装一些基本的录音软件，如Audacity，可录制音频并以MP3格式保存。
