Commercial Songwriting Techniques

Learn to write for commercial success by reproducing the time-tested characteristics of hit songs while maintaining your own unique voice.

For over a decade, course author Andrea Stolpe has written for the commercial music industry, including songs performed by Faith Hill and Josh Gracin. Her online course, Commercial Songwriting Techniques is a perfect combination of theory and concrete skill building that focuses songwriters on the key element of writing a hit song: creating patterns of content that will help to create memorable melodies and lyrics that forge an emotional connection with the listener. In this course you'll learn a ten-step process to reproducing the time-tested traits of successful songs while still maintaining your unique voice – a practice critical to the success of any songwriter. You'll learn to control the connection to your audience through toggling – moving between detail and pulling back for a broader picture. You'll also learn to use all of your senses—touch, taste, smell, sight, sound, and movement—as springboards for creativity in a process called destination writing. These enhanced descriptive skills will give you the power to determine the intensity of the experience you create with your song lyrics. By focusing on a different song section every week you'll also learn how to streamline your writing and create more descriptive songs in less time. This course plants the seeds necessary for writing great commercial songs in an easy to understand step-by-step method, while always leaving the door open for individual artistic expression. By the end of the course you'll have three completely written songs that are organized in a way that is accessible to the mainstream, as well as firm ideas for many future songs. You will learn to:

• streamline and accelerate your writing process
• apply a 10-step songwriting strategy to any new idea
• connect with and create a memorable experience for your audience
• write even when you're not initially inspired
• discover your own unique writing style
• employ new patterns for content based on memorable songs
• combine lyrics with music more effectively
• continue building on your catalog of three completed songs and several developed ideas

For more course information visit Berklee Music