July 2000
Guild Tidings
The official Publication of
The International Songwriters Guild
Volume 5, No. 7
NEXT MEETING: 5:00 P.M. Sunday, July 2nd, 2000
Officers:
President/Treasurer
Russ Robinson (407) 851-5328
Co-Vice President
Susan Foster-Trewick (407) 679-4017
Co-Vice President/ Member Reception
Matthew Griffin (407) 903-1212
Secretary
Annabelle Wosgien (407) 654-9294
Meetings are held the first Sunday of each month at 5:00 P.M. The location is 3020 E Robinson St., Orlando, Florida. (The American Federation of Musicians Union Building)
President’s Letter
Dear Members
We will almost be celebrating the 4th of July at our next meeting (only 2 days early). We’ll have to have Debbie Ison bring her song of celebration to review. I seem to remember she had something regarding 4th of July.
One year, about 8 years ago, we held a 4th of July meeting in the back yard of the regular meeting place because we couldn’t get inside. It turned out to be a good meeting however. We sent out for cold drinks, and watched Lake Eola’s fireworks.
Wow, we had some great songs last meeting. I’m glad I didn’t have to judge the critiques. They all seemed like 1st place winners to me. I’m so very pleased with all of you. I can see how the guild is really helping.. Sometimes I feel badly when someone gets carried away and tears a fellow member’s work apart. Let’s try not to be hurtful. We’ve actually had writers not return after apparently being hurt by harsh criticism.
My idea of critiquing is to tell what might be done to improve a song. Sometimes, for example, I’ll say a line of lyrics is being used too often in a 32 measure song. We’ll talk about this at meeting Sunday.
Member Joanne Pepitone will attend meeting Sunday, and is looking for songs to be used by up and coming singers. This is part of the production company that helped make Back Street Boys and N’Sync famous. Bring some of your materials that would be good for young soloists (like Britney Spears). Joanne has been very busy lately, writing for some of these new artists, and says she would like some outside help.
Let’s all be at meeting Sunday Till then, Best ever, Russ
A Rhymer Primer--Part 1
by Matt Griffin
A lot of songwriters seem understandably confused about rhyme. Should I rhyme more? Should I rhyme less? If I use rhyme, how do I avoid telegraphing the next line? Certainly a great rhyme can make a song, and a lousy rhyme can ruin one; but how do I know the difference?
Unfortunately, the correct answer to all of these questions is, "it depends". Context and emphasis are everything when it comes to rhyme. A well-placed rhyme provides emphasis to a hook, phrase, or line. Think of the best lyric lines in your favorite songs; usually there’s at least one solid rhyme to help make the line cling to your memory.
As an aside, it’s worth mentioning an alternate way to provide emphasis, although perhaps a controversial one: use a non-rhyming word in a place where the listener is expecting a rhyme. A famous example occurs in John Lennon’s "Strawberry Fields Forever". Lennon ends the second line of his second verse with "low", and ends the fourth line (where the first verse produced a rhyme) with "that is I think it’s not too bad." The line is memorable precisely because it doesn’t rhyme in the same location that the first verse did.
Should a given line have a rhyme? A lot depends on the meter and phrasing of your melody line. Try this simple bit of generic pitter patter:
Ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DA
Ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DUM
Ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DA
Ta-DUM ta-DUM ta-DUM
The ends of the second and fourth line scream out for a strong rhyme. You could also rhyme the first and third lines with each other, but it’s not essential. Let your subject matter, genre, and context dictate the answer. Subject matter and genre? Yes, these come into play, too. Serious-minded ballads tend to have fewer rhymes or even no rhyming at all. Light-hearted ditties and upbeat pop typically have lots of rhyme. Comedy songs virtually require it.
Where should the rhymes go? Certainly, the end of adjacent or alternate lines ("end rhyme") is the most common location. But rhyme within a line, called internal rhyme, can be a wonderful way to spice up a song. Your entire song’s "map" of rhyming locations is called a rhyme scheme. Here’s the rhyme scheme for the common limerick:
Ta-DUM ditty DUM ditty DEE
Ta-DUM ditty DUM ditty DEE
Ta-DUM ditty DOE, ta-DUM ditty DOE
Ta-DUM ditty DUM ditty DEE
The first, second, and fourth lines have matching end rhymes (DEE), and the third line has an internal rhyme matching up the two DOEs. Generally, you’ll want to keep the rhyme scheme the same for all of the verses unless you intentionally want to divert the listener, ala "Strawberry Fields Forever".
Generally speaking, the trend in music is toward fewer rhymes. The rapid-fire rhyming of Gilbert and Sullivan, Rodgers and Hart, and others sounds like overkill to the modern ear. New songwriters often mistake rhyme for craft and overuse it; a common result is that the listener knows what the next line of the song is going to be. Try to pick your spots. When used judiciously, the rhymes you do use will stand out even more.
And when you do rhyme, try hard to avoid telegraphing the second rhyming line. When the listener knows what’s coming, he/she will quickly lose interest. Look for fresh rhymes where possible; "moon" and "June" have been rhymed more times than you can count. Feel free to use a rhyming dictionary if you need help. If you’ve got a key word that must be rhymed several times (say, the last word of your hook/title), a rhyming dictionary can provide a good opening list of possibilities.
To rhyme or not to rhyme? Let your ear be the final judge. Try reading your lyric out loud, without the melody. A well-written lyric will sing even without music. If the rhymes you’ve provided don’t add something to your words, change the rhymes or remove them altogether.
Next month we’ll get down to the nuts and bolts of rhyming, with a little help from Sheila Davis ("The Craft of Lyric Writing"). With her help, we’ll be able to greatly expand the list of possible rhymes to a given word or words.
Web Chatter
cybertoad2000@yahoo.com
Paul Vernon - Singer & Acoustic Guitar Entertainer
If you go to the website http://www.555-need.com and do a search, you will discover information on one of our newer members. Here is what you will find there:
When your event needs a professional entertainer, look no further.
Paul Vernon has a very distinctive and rich singing voice, and is a polished musician. He plays six and twelve string acoustic guitars, along with his neck-mounted harmonicas WITHOUT the use of sequences, computers, or recorded music.
Paul can perform over fifteen hours of acoustic light rock music from the 1960's through the 1990's. He has recorded two albums of his own original music.
Paul is a seasoned, reliable performer, who lives for his music. Paul's choice of music has catchy hooks and meaningful lyrics.
He has performed at thousands of colleges, festivals, nightclubs, and events, including Church Street Station, Sea World and Universal Studios, Florida.
Paul can also perform as a DUO with accomplished guitar player Rick Fernandes. Call today. His telephone # is (407) 296-2019, and his E-mail is: paulvernon@y2kanswers.net
It is an honor to have such an accomplished musician among us, we wish Paul the best of luck, and hope to see him regularly (performance schedule permitting)
Business of Music and Songwriter’s Workshop update
We are hoping for a return visit from Rusty Gordon - Executive Director/Artist consultant/Producer Rustron Music-Whimsong Productions & Publishing BMI & ASCAP. Creator of the course “The business of Music”, in it’s 32nd year. This would be the third in an Orlando series. The second one was attended by Russ Robinson, Jeff Mason and Susan Foster-Trewick from the Guild. Rusty has mentioned that she will be covering copyright issues for half of the workshop, since some people missed the first installment, and this is an important topic for serious songwriters. She provides handouts with examples of the relevant forms, and carefully explains how they need to be filled out correctly. This alone is worth the price of admission. ($15). The date has been fixed for July 22nd, but we are still looking for a venue. If nowhere is available, I may have to hold it at my house, and seating is limited, so I am going to have to ask those interested to pre-register and pay me (Susan) at the next meeting. If you have any questions about her presentation, please ask any one of us that attended. (And if anyone has suggestions for a free venue, please see me.) We might even be able to tie it in with a short showcase if we get a large enough space!!!
New Singer discovered!!!
Emile Ernyey and Connie Champion have found a singer for their demos. Her name is Nina Nicole Adams, and she is just 9 years old. She has a beautiful clear voice, and quite a spectacular vocal range. Emile reports that he discovered her through Nina’s father, who’s TV set he worked on back in 1993. Nina will be performing in a play at her church (Parkway Baptist) on August 19th.
ED McMAHON’S Next big star*com.
I.S.G. members Bill Einsiedel and Joe Schifano have advanced to the quarter Finals competition on Ed McMahon’s Next big Star.Com. They won the Orlando Comedy division segment on March 11, 2000. Starting Saturday June 10, 200, their friends and family can log on to the web site at NextBigStar.com and vote for them.
We are asking folk to please pay their dues on time, so we can keep the newsletter in circulation. Also like to mention that e-letters are the wave of the future, so keep those e-mail addresses coming.
Classified advertising may be placed free of charge to members in good standing in the ISG. For more information on display advertising and/or classified advertising for non-members, please call Russ Robinson
(407) 851-5328, or e-mail: i_s_g_2000@yahoo.com
Welcome New member Jordan Blake Michiels
June
TOP FIVE WINNERS
Of last month’s Evaluation Session
(Members only)
1st Place: THE NEWS CAFÉ Sharon Conway, Penny Roberts
2nd Place: LOVE & CHOCOLATE Matt Griffin, Susan Foster-Trewick
3rd Place: I WANNA BE WITH YOU Paul Vernon
4th Place: GOD’S LOVE Ray Hock
5th Place: YOU’RE THE REASON WHY Paul Vernon
© 2000 ISG