I've been toying around with the concept for a musical but I'm really bad at writing vocal parts over instrumentals and the lyrics that would come with them. Any tips?
#Tips for writing vocal melodies/lyrics?
loud rock
fervent dove
no advice for the lyrics, but dont forget that the voice is just an instrument
focus on the fundamentals of a good melody
regardless of instrument
ashen hemlock
Songwriting is a massively different skill compared to writing instrumental works, in my opinion
If you are struggling, I would strongly suggest focusing on just writing melodies and lyrics, and sticking basic chords underneath them for now, then fill out the instrumental parts with more interesting stuff after
rigid kite
my method for lyrics has always been to sing complete gibberish over a track until i find a vocal line i like that way
it gives you a bit less freedom for the lyrics, as it gives you less room to change syllables within the line if you've written the melody first, but its always worked for me and my role of vocalist within my band
cam's suggestion of writing lyrics and the melody for them first does work for some people though, its a skill in itself and comes down to experimenting until you find a method that works for you
night lark
This video is good on describing how the songs relate to the plot on a narrative level each scene, but that’s looking at the purpose of each song as a whole—not the line to line analysis. https://youtu.be/N6j-562xQSs
For verses, typically the first line introduces an idea, followed by several lines that build on that idea, and then completed with one final line to resolve the idea. Listeners are going to remember the first/last lines of a phrase the most, so you want the more explicit narrative lines there.
Your goal is narrative, so you want to think of each section as individual plot points. Each phrase should complete its idea before moving on to the next.
Example: the intro to “A Lovely Night” from La La Land does a great job setting the scene, describing the scenario, and then leading that into the pre-chorus:
The sun is nearly gone,
The lights are turning on,
A silver shine that stretches to the sea.
We’ve stumbled on a view,
That’s tailor-made for two,
What a shame those two are you and me.
The premise of the song is to toy with the expectations of your typical romance movie. The first part is a complete idea; it’s diegetic too. The characters are openly stating that the scenario is romantic. The mid-section builds on this idea of romance, but we end the intro with the theme of the song: they don’t feel this romantic connection. This leads into the rest of the song where they’re explicitly saying how they won’t fall for this cliche trope of falling for each other on a whim.
