Course 2: Arrangement and Rhythm

In this course, we’ll listen to your scratch recording and pull out the different parts of the recording that makes a song a song. The intro, verse, and chorus of a song and the melodies that are found throughout the music. We’ll discuss breaks, bridges, and hooks and how they hold a song together.

Armed with that information, you’ll break down the different sections of the scratch recording you made earlier. By labeling these parts, you can concentrate on fully realizing the music you want to make or filling the gaps that your song still needs. Using your DAW, you’ll learn how to place markers to denote sections of the song.

Other lessons in this course include finding the root note of your song and building drums or a bassline around your scratch melodies. This will zero in on the tempo of your song and the DAW will help you visualize the track, add embellishments, and loop your beats.

You’ll once again work on meditation, listen to a favorite artist (in this case Kraftwerk’s Electric Cafe), and explore more gear that will round out your studio. As always, you’ll finish the course with a quiz, a blog entry about what you’ve learned, and scheduling the next session with your mentor.