Crying in the Club: Songs Within Songs and Intertextuality in Pop Music
A lengthy, in-depth look at the self-referential nature of pop music and what that means for legality and creativity in music.
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Why Joker’s Score Makes It a Prequel
An analysis of how Hildur Guðnadóttir’s score for Joker helps anchor the narrative and characters in both their story and their timeline.
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How Emotion Affects Learning — and Why That’s Great for Musicians
A brief look at the ways in which leaning into the emotionality of music whether joyful or sad, can help us learn and retain new information.
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Isn’t It Iconic? (Nirvana, That Is.)
What happens when a computer decides what makes popular songs formulaic versus iconic? Total controversy. But let’s take a deeper look…
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The “Sadness Paradox” — Why Sad Music Is So Comforting
Why does it seem like all the songs on the radio are about breakups? Why do sad chords sound so pleasurable? Welcome to the Sadness Paradox.
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5 Different Ways You Can Outline Your Song
Whether you’re suffering from writer’s block or plagued by TOO MANY song ideas, outlining can help you fill a song’s form and stay on track.
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Hidden In Plain Sight: The Greatest Musical Easter Egg Ever
Discover the hidden music theory gem holding together one of the greatest TV theme songs of all time, and who gets the last laugh about it.
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A Pop Songwriter’s Introduction to Jazz Chords
Songwriters and producers, ready to get jazzy? Here’s an introductory guide to building and using jazz chords in pop music!
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A Chord Sequence to Score an Imaginary Film Scene
What if part of your practice as a musician, composer, or producer, was to score an imaginary film scene? How would you tackle that challenge?
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A Chord Sequence to Score an Imaginary Film Scene
What if part of your practice as a musician, composer, or producer, was to score an imaginary film scene? How would you tackle that challenge?
