Written by Lauren Kunce and edited by Alex Kunce

This was part of a class we taught for our local 4-H group. Here is most of the information we used, just more defined, and the songs that our groups created. Enjoy!

Download our class’s songs at the bottom of the page

Here are the main genres we talked about:

And here is a longer, more detailed version of what we talked about in the first part of the class:

Intro:

The intro of the song introduces it. Usually, it starts with a catchy lead or a single instrument that begins to mix with other instruments until it leads into the chorus. 

Melody:

The melody is the main part of the song. Different tricks can be used to create a catchy melody, such as rhythm, repetition, and production. 

Bass:

Bass refers to a part—usually the harmony—in a song with the lowest tonality relative to the rest of the tracks. 

Key:

The key determines how the notes of the song fit together. A major key usually sounds happier, while a minor key can make things sound more emotional or sometimes creepy. Say I wrote a song, and it’s in the C major key. The name of the key tells you what the first note is. So, C major would start on note C and end on the B note. How do you find the last note, or all the ones in the middle? We start with the most common key, the C major, and count the steps between the keys (on the piano, confusing, right?). So, any standard major key consists of a whole step(W), another whole step, a half step(H), three more whole steps, and another half step. A minor key, however, goes W H W W H W W. In songs, you can sometimes intentionally change the key to give a new effect, like in Total Eclipse of the Heart, sung by Bonnie Tyler.

Time signature:

Time signature is the measure of the beats per bar. Most songs have four beats per bar and are in 4/4 time, while other songs are in 3/4 time, which means they have three beats every bar. 3/4 is known as the waltz rhythm. 

BPM:

BPM stands for ‘beats per minute’. BPM is how fast the beats are in relation to real time (rather than bars). Common BPM speeds are between 120 and 180. Speeds like 90 are also possible because they are essentially the same as 180, you’d just double the beats. Usually, a song will sound strange or unnatural if you double or halve the speed. 

Rhythm:

Rhythm is the pattern of the lengths of an arrangement of notes. Now, you can just play the rhythm once or repeat it over and over throughout the entire song, but it’s usually better to have two or three similar but variated rhythms and/or lengths of rhythms to switch between for the different parts of the song. 

Harmony:

Harmony refers to playing multiple notes at a time to harmonize, or create a new sound. A common harmony is chords, three or more notes played in a different octave that relate to the key. Adding chords can add emotion and emphasis to special notes, which helps create rhythm and signal changes in the song. If the chords are only two harmonizing notes, they are called intervals, although they work in a similar fashion. 

Arpeggio:

Chords are played at the same time, whereas an arpeggio plays notes up, down, or up and down the key in succession. An arpeggio can add energy and tension to a melody while remaining steady and in the background. Listen to the C major arpeggio in the Stranger Things theme, remixed by c418. An ostinato is similar, but instead of following a chord, it can be any repeated pattern played in succession: for example, John Williams’ Duel of the Fates and the iconic ostinato.

Percussion:

Percussion is the track with either the highest or the lowest tonality in a song. It is usually characterized by a drum set that keeps the tempo of the song and sets the feeling. 

Structure:

Most popular songs follow a similar structure. They start with an intro, which moves into a verse, chorus, another verse, chorus, a bridge, a final chorus, and sometimes an outro. The chorus is almost always the strongest and most recognizable part of the song, where the strongest elements of the song come together on display. MIROH by Stray Kids has one of the best chorus drops I’ve heard. The side-chained beats give it a rhythm with a punch. 

Delayed Gratification:

However, an important part of the song is complimenting the chorus with slower, calmer, or quieter parts that make the lead stand out in comparison. Sometimes, you can even ignore a satisfying chorus in favor of suspense or tension, like how the chorus in Eye of the Tiger by Survivor continues to build from the verse and then drops off back into a new build. 

The style of the “anti-drop” has been modernly popularized by Charlie Puth, such as the unexpected drop in Attention. 

The chorus should be the strongest part of the song, but overplaying it can make it feel annoying. The chorus in Mirror Haus by Lindsey Stirling only plays twice in the arrangement, the second time repeating once, but every time it comes, it is really strong. 

By simplifying each chorus, the final drop can stand out in a very satisfying way. Astronomy, a nearly 7-minute song by the Blue Öyster Cult, builds throughout the whole composition. I like the comparison of the opening part and the final chorus. 

Sampling:

Lastly, I’d like to talk about two elements of sound mixing: sampling and interpolation. Sampling occurs when you cut a sample out of an existing song and use it in your own. This is often confused with interpolating a song, which means you’ve played the note pattern of a different song in your song. A sample might include vocal clips, performances of guitar riffs, piano solos, drums, or other clips of other songs. An interpolation might include playing the notes of an old song on a synthesizer or recording your own take on a classic percussion beat from a different song. It’s important, when using another person’s work, to get permission for your sample or interpolation of their hard work and to credit them as a writer of the song. While some popular sampled songs may seem uncreative, others use samples in a very creative and original way. Daft Punk combines 30-some short samples into a brand-new song, Face to Face. 

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Here’s the playlist containing the songs we showed during the explanation.

And here are the downloads!

Pop Song—created by: Lauren K., Gwenlyn H., Lillian S., Neveah P., Ross S.

Rock Song—created by: Alex K., Juliana D., Lynley D., Mariel F., Nolan F.

Thank you for reading and, if you were there, for making these songs with us—it was a lot of fun!
—Lauren and Alex