The purpose of writing songs

Many people have fantasized throughout their lives with the idea of ​​composing songs. And a good handful of them, at one time or another, have tried it. Yes, among these people we find the so-called songwriters or song writers. But why did you decide to create an artistic object of this type? What pushed you to compose a song?

What is your reason? If we wanted to make a list of the motivations that can lead a human to put themselves in the situation of bringing together words and music in a single composition, we would probably get a very long one. But, if something is true, it is that each person who writes songs or aspires to do so has their own reasons, their values, their principles and wants to achieve something by composing them.

The reasons

Every head is the world, as they say, and every heart is a sky or an abyss, so when you ask someone who writes songs why they do what they do, it is easy to hear generalities like “to express myself”, but also more concrete answers. like “to fight for an ideal”, or “to get fame and money” or, simply “to flirt more”. I am not going to discuss each person's motives, much less consider these or those purposes better or worse. In my opinion, whatever your goal, writing a song is one of the best things you can do. In fact, if you haven't tried it yet, I invite you to do so. You are going to discover a fascinating world.

Benefits of knowing our purpose

Returning to the question, knowing the reason(s) that led us to write a song or want to do so is much more than a philosophical matter or a curiosity. Creative processes have the peculiarity of moving in open terrain, of being oriented towards exploring novelty in forms and, to a certain extent, breaking established rules. Composing music or songs, although it may repeat sound formulas more or less already discussed in the past, usually aspires to offer a different vision of a theme or a universal idea, even in revisionist styles. A love or protest song or any other type will generally sound different, in its lyrics and music, from other previous songs that focused on those themes and will try to connect with the tastes of the people and the spirit of the time in that is composed. But even so, there are so many possibilities and so many occasions to get lost along the way. I am going to comment on two practical aspects in which our motivations as composers are going to help us a lot.

The focus

One of the main benefits of being clear about our purpose when writing songs is focus. Focusing our attention and our effort on exactly what we are doing and not on other things, no matter how related, will turn the jungle of creative thinking into something more like a path through the forest.

Focus Common situations such as getting distracted or procrastinating, or trying and testing elements and sounds without a defined direction, wasting time and energy, in short, will be much easier to avoid if we know with some precision why we are doing what we are doing. we are doing. Organizing our work time better, detecting and taking advantage of the ideas that arise or making the creative process more fluid and finishing our works more frequently and safely, for example, are some of the consequences of knowing why we set out to work. write a song

The decisions

The other related issue that will benefit if we are aware of our purposes is decision making. If there is anything absolutely crucial and inevitable in the art of songwriting, it is the fact that we are forced to constantly decide.

Decide Questions such as longer or shorter, denser or lighter, more direct or more indirect and many many more are the daily bread of creative activities and an inexhaustible source of insecurity and doubts. Keeping in mind why we are making songs and why we are composing this or that in particular will greatly facilitate us in choosing a solution over others in the infinite world of artistic possibilities. By asking ourselves what we want from our song or what environment it will have to operate in when it is released, we will clarify the landscape a lot and we will be able to glimpse more efficiently and effectively what and how each piece of our compositions should be. Choosing a note or chord in music, specifying the structure of a song or defining the meaning or tone of the lyrics of a song will be much easier with this detail in mind.

Podcast episode titled “The Importance of Purpose”

Conclusions

If you are thinking that you are not capable of writing a song or that it is easier said than done, I have to say that you are wrong. I'll give you just one example. Have you ever whistled a tune? Have you hummed a song that you only half remember and completed it in your own way? If the answer is yes, I have to inform you that you have been composing without knowing it. Believe it or not, these games, these attempts, these improvisations are the daily life of musical composition professionals, they are the source of ideas for new works and also a part of what we know as the art of writing songs. What separates an aspiring composer from a professional is practice and a handful of concepts learned along the way. Nothing else. Not even inspiration, nor means of any kind. And everyone has their reasons, let's not forget. And those reasons are, practically always, the answers to our doubts, to the confusion, to the thousand questions that arise in the process of creating, of making something valuable not only for ourselves but also for others, to explain and sing with meaning this human existence that so often seems meaningless. Think about your purpose and let yourself be guided by it. At the end of that road your next song is waiting. #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_form { } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_column_with_background { padding: 10px; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_form_column:not(:first-child) { margin-left: 20px; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_paragraph { line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 20px; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_segment_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_text_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_textarea_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_select_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_radio_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_checkbox_label, 3 .mailpoet_list_label, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_date_label { display: block; font-weight: normal; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_text, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_textarea, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_select, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_date_month, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_date_day, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_date_year, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_date { display :block; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_text, #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_textarea { width: 200px; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_checkbox { } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_submit { } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_divider { } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_message { } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_form_loading { width: 30px; text-align: center; line-height: normal; } #mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_form_loading > span { width: 5px; height: 5px; background-color: #5b5b5b; }#mailpoet_form_3{border: 1px solid #fcb900;border-radius: 40px;text-align: center;}#mailpoet_form_3 form.mailpoet_form {padding: 20px;}#mailpoet_form_3{width: 70%;}#mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_message {margin : 0; padding: 0 20px;}#mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_paragraph.last {margin-bottom: 0} @media (max-width: 500px) {#mailpoet_form_3 {background-image: none;}} @media (min-width: 500px) { #mailpoet_form_3 .last .mailpoet_paragraph:last-child {margin-bottom: 0}} @media (max-width: 500px) {#mailpoet_form_3 .mailpoet_form_column:last-child .mailpoet_paragraph:last-child {margin-bottom: 0}} Please leave this field emptyDo you write songs or would you like to?

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