Songwriting Sourcebook: How to Turn Chords Into Great Songs Book/CD (Softcover) Review
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, however much it may be at variance with reality. Rooksby's entire series of books reminds me of nothing so much as my time studying composition at the Juilliard School. Their undergraduate theory course (Literature and Materials of Music) mirrors Rooksby's game plan and "secret wish" for us as evolving musicians. As opposed to those who somehow miss the point and say his method is just a bunch of chords or progressions, Rooksby's entire thesis is that music is NOT these surface features that he goes to great lengths to describe. To my mind, Rooksby's wish for us as his students is for us to "get to work" and to use these stock features (chords, progressions) as launching pads for our own analysis of music's mysterious and personal qualities. At Juilliard, we were not taught theory per se, but rather, we were given pieces of music to analyze (polyphonic and homophonic) to come into class to discuss. Nobody told us what the piece "meant" and nobody told us "how the story ends". We were trained to become independent thinkers, and make up our own minds. Again, whatever the naysayers may believe in their musical heart of hearts to the contrary, Rikky Rooksby is a master teacher who states very clearly that music is either all surface and recycled parts and pieces, OR, it is an endless mystery, literally having no end (as there are infinite harmonics in nature). He also states clearly that the game of music is not in the obviously repeated surface structures, but in the way that each individual musician can IMPRINT on music structures their own spirit and personality. John Lennon's barre chords were his and nobody elses, just as Beethoven's middle c was unlike any other musician's middle c (even though it was). With his encyclopedic foundation of structures leading to a workable process of personal analysis of the songs we love (Rikky's plan for us as his students), Rooksby's intent is not to dwell smugly on music's obvious lacks (7-12 notes in Western music, the limited range of human hearing, etc), but to ponder and muse upon the mystery of how those lacks can turn into so much genuine gold. "Just think", Rikky seems to be saying..."there are endless new songs waiting for us to write". Just think...endless new songs.
Songwriting Sourcebook: How to Turn Chords Into Great Songs Book/CD (Softcover) Overview
Using visual examples of songwriting techniques, this book teaches guitarists to write better songs. The CD demonstrates how the examples sound, and it includes dozens of chord progressions, evolving melodies and structures, and harmony effects, making the book especially useful to those who don't read music. The book starts with basic chords, describes how to write a song with simple elements, then gradually develops more complex structures. By seeing and hearing step-by-step examples of the song craft, the reader can easily learn the secrets of songwriting.
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