What I've learned so far about Songwriting

[Miskatonic]

I've been writing songs in conjunction with learning how to play guitar/drums. I tend to learn best when doing hands on activities as opposed to reading books that explain the how to's, and I've come to a conclusion (probably obvious for many) during this time. I am slowly making sense out of some of the music theory I've come across, but when it comes down to it the most important factor for me is how pleasing the note/chord selection is to the ear. I can't pinpoint the closest scale equivalent for the group of notes I use for a melody (unless I purposely choose a scale) but they gel and flow without sounding out of place. The only problem I'm having is when I stumble upon a chord that I like (screwing around and trying different finger placements) and I want to know what scale will work best with it. Other than that it has been a very enjoyable experience, thanks in part to http://www.all-guitar-chords.com/guitar_scales.php and http://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/.

[blue2blue]

Some other great guitar/stringed instrument sites are www.chorderator.com and www.scalerator.com, really nice little online utilities that can help you construct chords and scales in any number of tunings/string counts, and a subsite I find really useful for putting a name to the wacky chords I come up with, the Chord Designer.

 

They're all from Songwriting Forum regular, Eddie Boston, and they're really useful, seems to me.

[Miskatonic]

Cool, I'll check em' out!

[Stackabones]

 

The only problem I'm having is when I stumble upon a chord that I like (screwing around and trying different finger placements) and I want to know what scale will work best with it.

 

 

Knowing scales is sometimes a faster way of figuring out what works, but it isn't necessarily a better way. Ear first, brain last.