Think about what your intention is in your songs. Do you want a stable or unstable song and how and where are you building and releasing tension.



Normally you want to match the stability of the music and the words content message. However you don't have to, It will change the effect on the listener.

Look at how complex chord progressions are in tunes. Anything that isn't a major chord in the key it's written in will increase tension. Minor, diminished and augmented chords do this.

The further the chord is away from the solid feeling of the home key, the more tension it builds. Do the tension test that's on my website Great Song Writing or read my article on it.

Here's the test and your assignment. Does the chord or lyric leave you feeling like you're just hanging from a cliff.

Does it leave you wondering what is going to happen next or feeling like you are leaning forward in anticipation? Does the chord or lyric make you feel settled or relaxed? Is it frantic or relaxing?

The next time you go to the movies or watch TV pay attention to the music in happy and suspense scenes. Notice the tension and how stable the scenes feel.

Ask yourself what the intent of the content of the scene is? Does it match the music? Notice what the effect of the combination is where the content and stability are matched.

The second part of the fun is to purposely write a song that gives mixed messages. Take the instability between the songs lyrics content and music to an extreme.

Notice how it effects your creation and the message that gets delivered. Don't forget to play with instability in the lyrics and the music.

Both lyrics and music can have powerful affects on the listener. The term for music and lyrics fitting perfectly together is prosody.

However mastering having both working together at once and delivering stable or unstable dynamics can really drive the emotional content home.

Lyric and music stability testing will help your understand how to craft your songs to help get the emotional reaction you want from your listener.

When you match your intension with the music and lyrics, it has a far greater emotional impact on your listeners.