Writing a complete piece

Writing a good progression and melody is the start. Turning it into a complete piece of three minutes or more is a different skill: deciding on a form, writing a second section that contrasts with the first, developing your ideas instead of just repeating them, and building to a high point. This lesson gives you a method for that, using the analysis, arranging and recording skills you already have.

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Choose a form (verse-chorus, AABA or ABA) and plan the length of each section.
• Write a B section that contrasts with the A section in key area, rhythm or register.
• Develop a motif by repetition, sequence and variation, and plan where the piece peaks.

A 16-bar idea is a seed. A complete piece needs four more things.

1. A form. Common choices:

• AABA (32-bar form): a theme, its repeat, a contrasting bridge, and the theme again. Classic for jazz standards and older pop songs.
• ABA (ternary): a theme, a contrasting middle, the theme returning. Common in instrumental pieces.
• Verse-chorus with a bridge: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus. The shape of most modern songs.

2. Contrast. The B section (bridge, chorus or middle) must feel like somewhere else. The most reliable way is harmonic: start B on a chord other than the home chord, often IV, vi or the relative key. Add one more change: longer or shorter notes, a higher or lower register, a thinner or fuller texture. End B on a chord that leads home, usually V.

3. Development. Exact repetition gets dull. Take a short motif (three or four notes) and transform it:

• Repetition on a different beat
• Sequence: the same shape starting on a higher or lower note
• Variation: change one interval, or the rhythm

4. A shape. A piece needs a high point: the highest note, the fullest texture, the loudest moment. Keep it in reserve until about two-thirds of the way through, then let the piece wind down to its ending.

A map for an AABA piece at 80 BPM (about three minutes with repeats):

• Intro (4 bars): the A chords, sparse. Low energy.
• A (8 bars): the theme. Medium.
• A (8 bars): the theme, with a varied ending. Medium.
• B (8 bars): starts on IV, longer notes, higher register, ends on V. Building.
• A (8 bars): the theme, fuller texture, motif developed. Peak.
• Solo or instrumental A (16 bars), then B and a final A.
• Ending (4 bars): slow the last two bars and finish on I.

e|---------0---|-----0--1---|--------0--3|-|
B|---1--3------|--3---------|--1--3------|-|
G|-------------|------------|------------|-|
D|-------------|------------|------------|-|
A|-------------|------------|------------|-|
E|-------------|------------|------------|-|
     1  2  3  4   1  2  3  4   1  2  3  4 

From seed to map.

1. Play your 16-bar idea. Decide whether it is a verse, a chorus or a theme. That decides the form.
2. Write the map as a list of sections with bar counts. At your tempo, 4/4 at 80 BPM is 20 bars per minute, so three minutes is about 60 bars.
3. Write a word for the energy of each section and circle the peak.

Writing B. Play the last chord of A, then try starting B on F, then on Am. Pick the one that sounds most like a new place. Write four bars, then four more that end on G. Play A, B, A and listen for the arrival.

Developing A. In the final A, replace one repeated phrase with a sequence or a variation of your motif. The listener recognises it and hears it has grown.

Do these in order. Each one is small. Tick the ones you have practised.

• 1.Plan the form

  4 min

  1. Take a 16-bar idea you have written (or write an 8-bar one now). Call it A.
  2. Choose a form: AABA, ABA, or verse-chorus with a bridge.
  3. Write a map with bar counts for each section and a word for its energy level (low, medium, high).
  4. Mark the single moment where the piece should peak.

  You have it when

  • You have a written map of at least three minutes at your chosen tempo, with one marked peak.
  I practised this one

• 2.Write a contrasting B

  6 min

  1. Start B on a chord that is not your home chord: the IV, the vi, or the relative minor or major.
  2. Change one more thing from A: the rhythm (longer or shorter notes), the register (higher or lower) or the texture.
  3. End B on the V chord (or another chord that leads home) so that A can return.
  4. Play A, B, A and listen to whether the return of A feels like coming home.

  You have it when

  • B sounds clearly different from A, and the return to A feels like an arrival.
  I practised this one

• 3.Develop the motif

  5 min

  1. Pick a three- or four-note motif from your A melody.
  2. Write three versions of it: repeated on a different beat, moved up a step (sequence), and with one interval changed (variation).
  3. Use those versions in the second A or the final chorus instead of repeating A exactly.
  4. Record the full piece once from the map.

  You have it when

  • Your final section reuses the motif in a changed form.
  • You have a full recording of the piece.
  I practised this one

Choose the tempo the music needs and keep it for the whole piece, unless you deliberately plan a change. Record at that tempo with a metronome so the sections line up.

• Writing a B section that is just A in a different order. Change the starting chord and at least one of rhythm, register or texture. Contrast is what makes the return of A satisfying.
• Repeating sections exactly. Keep the structure, but vary the details: a new ending, a developed motif, a fuller texture the second time.
• Peaking too early. Plan the high point for roughly two-thirds of the way through, and keep something (the highest note, the fullest texture) back until then.

Every song you have analysed is built from these choices: a form, a contrast, development and a high point. When you learn a new song, ask where its B section goes harmonically and where it peaks. Then use what you find in your next piece.

Short version (10 minutes)

Write the map for a three-minute piece based on an idea you already have.

Standard version (about 30 minutes)

Do all three exercises over several sessions, then record the complete piece and review it with the checklist from the recording lesson.

• Choose a form and map it with bar counts and energy levels.
• B contrasts with A: a new starting chord plus one more change.
• Develop motifs by repetition, sequence and variation.
• Plan one peak, about two-thirds of the way through.

You are ready to move on when you can honestly say:

• I wrote a map for a piece of at least three minutes with a clear form.
• My piece has a B section that contrasts with A and leads back to it.
• I developed a motif rather than only repeating sections, and recorded the whole piece.