Songs: Structure and Basic Elements

Songs: Structure and basic elements By definition a song is “a short poem or other set of words set to music or meant to be sung, Songs are musical phrases uttered by some birds, whales, and insects, typically forming a recognizable and repeated sequence and used chiefly for territorial defense or for attracting mates. A song is a poem, especially one in a rhymed arrangement of a certain number oflines, usually four or more, sometimes having a fixed length, meter, or rhymescheme, forming a division of a poem. A song is a poetical composition; its poetry, a musical piece adapted for singing or simulating a piece to be sung : Songs are also defined as short metrical compositions intended or adapted for being uttered in words or sounds in succession with musical modulations of the voice known to produce melodious sounds, and can also be heard in nature, usually high in pitch, as certain birds, insects etc.; vocalize melodically.especially one in rhymed stanzas.  

Song player

If we look carefully at the definition of a song we can see closely the relationship with Nature, and how many species use their musical moderations to attract mates or to defend territory, and some of that natural essence is still part of us, we can see huge amounts of people gathering to listen to songs, we are naturally drawn to them, and in modern times, songs with repeated patterns gain more attention, a trait very recognizable in nature and that is awakened in us through our different behavioral preferences for music. A song can be built in many different ways, but in modern times we can hear songs on the radio that have a very similar “pattern” that, even if we are not music experts, we can tell a song is in its main part or just starting, this is something known as song structure Song Stucture The structure of a song is like the songs blueprint, its the architecture that makes the song “stand” in a certain way. knowing song structure is very important because it gives compositions an “order” thats familiar and makes us want to hear it over and over again, an important characteristic of hit songs is that when we start to analyze them thoroughly, we can find a common factor in their structure or form. In most modern songs we hear on the radio we can identify eight main parts: Intro Verse Refrain Chorus Hook Bridge Break Outro Each part can be swapped modified and arranged differently in a song based on the songwriter or composers preference The majority of songs we hear on the radio have come from the structure “ABABCB” To understand this better this is how you can visualize it Verse Chorus or Refrain Verse Chorus or Refrain Bridge Chorus Another common example is Intro Verse Refrain Chorus Outro A Verse Refrain Chorus Bridge Chorus Outro B However these parts are placed varies from artist to artist but to get a better idea of the parts of a song we will go thru them briefly The intro This is how the song is presented to you, very much like when a person introduces themselves to you, it gives you an idea of who the are you can tell by their dress code if they are elegant or casual, or if they are energetic or calm, it works the same with a song, the intro gives an Idea of whats coming, so its very important because it represents a seed element of the whats coming, imagine someone introduces themselves to you in an awkward way or bad way, you wouldn’t continue to talk to the person, the same is with a bad intro, it will make the listener not to listen to your song, if on the other hand someone is nice and very well presented in their introduction, its more likely you will want to continue your conversation with them, the intro of a song plays this important role, it opens the door and catches the listeners attention The Verse The verse is the part that tells your story its the description of the road the songwriter wants the listener to travel through in the song, it paints an audio picture of a scenario that will ultimately lead to the first repetitive idea or Refrain. A good Verse will place the listener in a space that can be seen through imagination, it plays a crucial role because it captures the listeners attention and begins to tell the story the verse should be as engaging as possible in order to create a connection with the target audience If the chorus represents the summary of a song the verse is giving examples of the Idea that will be given Refrain Its a line or group of lines that repeat in a song lyric and to differentiate with choruses its important to remember All choruses are Refrains but not all refrains are choruses, refrains are used to reinforce points of the storyline of a song, they are parts that are repeated over and over in song lyrics in order to get listeners hooked by repetition Chorus A chorus is a Refrain where all the musical elements come together to deliver the main idea of a song, its the point of the song where producers make all the music come together to deliver a powerful message or idea, based on choruses songs are many times considered hits or not. The chorus is the heart and summary of the song, its the bloodline that pumps energy to the audience and basically what people will sing in the shower at full capacity Bridge The Bridge is the Climax of the song, its where listeners have a chance to reflect on the story, its the conclusion of what was shared in the verses and choruses If anything was left unclear in any previous part of the song, the bridge is where all the ideas are defined and concluded and where sometimes twists can be given to songs. Bridges allow a song transition into the end Outro Its very simple, its how a song says goodbye, its what songwriters want listeners to take away and in many cases they are just continuos repetitions of the chorus Hook Its mnemonic tool thats used to catch listeners attention to help them remember a certain refrain, Its a Musical element or lyrical phrase that repeats many times in a song People learn thru repetition so the best way to create a love for a song is by placing catchy elements repeatedly “The hook is what you are selling” and these can be in lyrics or in the music Many AR label representatives will be paying special attention to this element so don’t forget to make it part of your song     I hope this article gave you a better understanding about songs, I hope to hear from you and if you would like to check out my songs and see how I arranged these elements, just go to  type in your email address, ill send you three of my songs absolutely free, I would love to hear feedback from you Thanks for stopping by and all the best !!!    

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