Guitar for Songwriters: An Introduction

 We will start by getting acquainted with the basic chords found in every song from the Beatles to Beyonce. When we understand the difference between major and minor chords we begin to see how they effect the tone, the approach, and the emotional direction of your song. We will also learn how switching between these chords can add depth and excitement to your composition. 

 Now that you've had a week to bang around on those chords it's time to shake it up a bit. There are a million ways to play the same chord. And while we won't cover them all we will learn some basic substitutions that not only add harmonic interest but allow the writer room to sing and find the melodies that make your song come alive. 

 An endless list of Pop songs are written around a small group of chord changes. We will look at these changes and see how successful writers like Taylor Swift, H.E.R, Gracie Abrams or Hozier make these changes their own by using voicings, drones and capos. This will be fun. 

 This time around the students will suggest a sequence of chords and we will explore how your right hand technique can drastically change the outcome of your song. It's natural for a guitarist to gravitate toward a certain style and that's cool. But if chords are the colors we paint with then our right hand techniques are the brushes that layer those colors. (ps. If you are a left handed player the same is true.)