Unit 1-2: Form & Vocabulary

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

Explain the difference between AABA, Strophic, and Verse-Chorus forms and cite at least one example of a song in each category.
Identify and define formal sections in song forms (e.g. intro, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, post-chorus, bridge, outro, refrain, strophe), and analyze their functions using auditory cues.
Diagram and compare large-scale forms (Verse-Chorus, AABA, and Strophic) and create annotated diagrams using tools such as BriFormer or Audio Timeliner.
Describe and apply the use of 7th chords in popular music by spelling, identifying, and analyzing them in repertoire examples using lead sheet or Roman numeral notation.
Apply skills in integrated analysis by examining a repertoire example for both its harmonic content and its formal design (sections, phrase structure, and overall form).

Introduction to Form in Popular Music (Lavengood & Hughes, OMT)
Verse-Chorus Form (Lavengood & Hughes, OMT)
- - Verse and Chorus (Temperley, The Musical Language of Rock) - Read Section 8.3
AABA Form and Strophic Form (Hughes & Lavengood, OMT)
- - Other Song Forms: Strophic & AABA (Trevor de Clercq, The Practice of Popular Music, pp. 314–321) - Available online through the library
Attributes of Song Sections (De Clercq)
Dominant 7th Chords and Other 7th Chords (Wilmoth, PopGrammar)

BriFormer Intro
Brian Jarvis (15 mins)

Learn how to use the analytical tool BriFormer to do song form analysis with audio files and Youtube videos.

Every Type of Song Structure Explained
David Bennett (20 mins)

Song Sections & Descriptions
(Source: "Song Structure" on Renegade Producer.com)

Energy Levels of Different Song Sections in a Typical Pop Song
(Source: "Song Structure" on Renegade Producer.com)

Summary of Song Section Characteristics
(Source: Ed Bell, "Verse-Chorus Structure 101") [Image]

Brush up on your fundamentals using the links in the "Additional Practice" section below. Aim for speed and accuracy!
- - Continued work with Key Signatures and Triads
  - 7th chords: Dom7, Maj7, m7, º7, ø7

Defining Verse-Chorus, AABA, and Strophic: Compare and contrast each of these formal types, defining the basic structure of each.
- - What period of music, artists, or musical styles do you associate with each song form type?
  - Can you think of a few examples of songs that fit each form type that weren't discussed in the reading? Listen to them together and see if your intuitions are correct.

Song Sections: Define each of the following song sections: Verse, chorus, bridge, pre-chorus, post-chorus, outro, intro, strophe, refrain, and instrumental interlude.
- - Where does each typically occur in a song or the associated form? How can you aurally differentiate between each? What makes them sound different? What is the relationship of each section to the lyrics?
  - Diagram a few possible song models that use these sections. (See the "Reference Aids" section above for ideas and guidance.)
Refrain vs. Chorus: Consider the example provided in the reading, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by the The Beatles. (See the lyrics here.) The text "I want to hold your hand...." repeats several times throughout. Open Music Theory refers to this material as a refrain rather than a chorus. Why? Compare and contrast refrains and choruses. What are the similarities? How do they differ? What are some of the specific characteristics you associate with a chorus (what makes a chorus really sound like a chorus)?
- - "Blowin' in the Wind" by Bob Dylan (in the anthology) provides another example with refrains for discussion.

Form ID Practice: Work through the worksheet here to practice identifying and diagraming forms and phrase structures.
Form Analysis: Work through examples in the anthology. Identify the type of form used and diagram the form and phrase structure in Briformer. (See the how-to video for using Briformer in Lesson 1-2). Identify the types of phrase structure used and chord schema, where appropriate.
Practice Worksheet (Open Music Theory): Create form diagrams of songs in AABA or Strophic form using Briformer.
- - AABA and Strophic only: PDF | Docx
  - AABA, Strophic, and Verse-Chorus: Worksheet 1 (Finding Your Own Examples) and Worksheet 2 (Verse-Chorus examples only)

Song Forms: Navigate to the sections on Verse-Chorus, Strophic, and AABA for examples to use for listening, ID, and analysis.

Anthology: Song Form

Practice with Lead Sheet Notation
Get set up with BriFormer (see the "Watch" section above) and do a practice analysis

Assignment 1-2

Next Lesson: Extended Chord Notation

Listen to a Theory Podcast about bridges and two-chorus forms in pop music:

Elizabeth Newton & Franklin Bruno, “The Inside of the Tune: Analyzing the Bridge in Pop,” SMT-Pod, Episode 1.6 (February 17, 2022).
Jeremy Orosz, “Three’s a Crowd: Understanding the Rise of Two-Chorus Form in Recent Popular Music,” SMT-Pod, Episode 3.9 (March 21, 2024).

Or, check out some of the readings below or one of the videos to the right:

Adams, Kyle. "Musical Texture and Formal Instability in Post-Millennial Popular Music: Two Case Studies." Intégral 33 (2019): 33–46.
Covach, John. 2005. “Form in Rock Music: A Primer.” In Engaging Music: Essays in Music Analysis, edited by Deborah Stein, 65–76. New York: Oxford University Press.
De Clercq, Trevor Owen. "Roles [of sections in verse-chorus form]," Chapter 3 in Sections and Successions in Successful Songs: A Prototype Approach to Form in Rock Music, pp. 34–116. Ph.D Dissertation (University of Rochester, 2012).
Everett, Walter. "Forms: Phrases and Sections." In The Foundations of Rock: From 'Blue Suede Shoes' to 'Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.' Oxford University Press, 2008.
Hudson, Stephen S. "Compound AABA form and style distinction in heavy metal." Music Theory Online 27, no. 1 (2021).
Nobile, Drew. 2022. “Teleology in Verse–Prechorus–Chorus Form, 1965–2020.” Music Theory Online 28 (3).
Summach, Jay. 2011. “The Structure, Function, and Genesis of the Prechorus.” Music Theory Online 17 (3). [OMT’s Reading Guide]
Temperley, David. "Form." In The Musical Language of Rock. Oxford (2018). (See especially, "Verse and Chorus" (pp. 158–166).
von Appen, Ralf. "Analyzing and Interpreting Song Forms," pp. 91– 106. In The Bloomsbury Handbook of Rock Music Research. Edited by Paul Carr and Allan Moore, 2020.

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