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Brian Doerksen on Songwriting |
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Written by Brian Doerksen
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Sunday, 23 November 2008 |
Brian Doerksen (Come Now Is The Time To Worship) opens the door on the craft of writing songs
Songs have always moved me deeply. When I was a teenager I heard Phil Keaggy's song "Let Everything Else Go." Virtually every time I heard that song I would become undone. Even now tears well up in my eyes when I hear:
I can't wait to see Jesus face to face.
Nothing in this world can take your place.
All the pride laid low,
And all his works of gold.
Nothing can compare with what you are.
Let everything else go - I let it go.
The words are simple, yet true, and somehow when they are sung they penetrate my heart deeply, and give expression to my heart in a more focused, moving way. I guess that is what happens in a musical. The two characters talk until their dialogue can no longer contain their emotions. Then they burst into a song, and if it is done well, we respond with tears and applause. Worship songs need to do even more than that. They need to not only reveal our hearts to God, but also move His heart.
I would like to begin our brief discussion of this vast subject by listing a few key assumptions I make (I say "brief" because of the Pacific Worship School in Langley where I taught, we had a twenty-four session course on songwriting. Even this is just scratching the surface...but it sure is fun scratching).
All creativity comes from God. Genesis 1:26 "Let us make man in our image..." We are creative because we were created by a loving creator. Period. If the universe began with an explosion, there would be no creativity. God invites us to be creative with Him. The only difference is that we cannot make something out of nothing. However, I believe we can, like God, transform chaos into order and art. Recognizing God's creativity will not lead to laziness, but to work that is filled with worship and art that is filled with both passion and God's presence. We are not all called and gifted to be songwriters. This is something very basic, but it does need saying. Pastors, do not put pressure on your worship leaders to produce songs if that is not their gifting. There are many gifted worship leaders who are not songwriters, or at least not primarily songwriters. My hunch is that around one in every twenty is really called.
We need the courage and the love to tell one another the truth. There are several reasons for this, but the first is that there is so much to be done: the gospel to be preached to those who have never heard; the poor to be clothed and fed; the imprisoned to be visited; the fatherless children cared for; etc. If you are not called to write, take courage, find out what you are called to do and do it! No one else can take your place and you will always feel like you are striving until you are in the center of God's will, doing exactly what you are called to do. Besides, until you do accept your place, one of the other key ministries will be neglected and we will all be weaker as a result.
If someone brings a "bad" song (in other words it is evident that this is not their gifting), it is unkind to bear around the bush with, "That is nice..." Tell them the truth in love and encourage them to find out what they are made for.
So many of the songs that Vineyard Music Group receives have never gone through the initial screening at the local church level. The result is a waste of valuable time and energy for all concerned.
Many times when songwriters are insecure they will hide behind spiritual words and imply that God is on their side by saying, "God gave me this song." I think it is far better to share the song and have someone else say, "Wow, that really touched me. God must have inspired you to write that!" than for us to speak out of our insecurity. John Barnett, one of my favorite songwriters said this:
"Sometimes we want to canonize the songs we write: 'This is the way God gave it to me and therefore it stands. Do not mess with it; do not change it; do not play with it in any other way.'"
Let us write and then release the songs and let others decide what God has given to us.
One other reminder here. We do not begin as mature, accomplished songwriters. I am so thankful to all of you for giving me the chance to mature and develop: Andy Park, Gary Best and others saw the potential in me before seeing the finished product. That is what I look for as an equipper - someone with potential, the call and a teachable, humble heart.
Better songs are coming. I do not believe we are done yet. At least I know that I am not. I want to be a student all my days. I know songs with more passion, quality, anointing and truth are coming. You could very well be one of the chosen to write these new songs. So let us not settle and become stagnant. Let us embrace the pioneering spirit once again, without forgetting where we come from.
I would like to divide what is to follow into seven sections. Let me briefly summarize to help you follow where I am going:
- Song vision (what is the one thing you are trying to say)
- Form (what structure best fits your song vision)
- Melodic Development
- Sources of Inspiration and Types of Songs
- Creative Process
- What to Do with a Completed Song
- Four Qualities of a Worship Standard
Song Vision
First let us look at the area of song vision. This is a phrase that I use to describe the essence of a song. This is like a target: if you do not have one, you will never know if you hit the mark. Many beginning songwriters try to say too many things in one song. But a song is primarily designed to say just one thing and to say one thing with both passion and focus.
In my songwriting class or at a workshop, if I have trouble following a student's lyrics, I will usually ask, "What are you trying to say in this song?" There were about five song visions. One is enough. You should be able to summarize your song vision if a few seconds. If you cannot, you will probably need to make some changes.
Now obviously, there are almost an infinite amount of potential song visions for songs that could be written. What type of song vision are we looking for? One that not only expresses your heart in a real way, but also clearly expresses what the church (both gathered and individuals) long to say to God. Songwriter, teacher and consultant Sheila David, addressing secular songwriters, says this:
A song is successful when an audience responds with a recognition that say's "Me too...I've felt that...I've seen what you're seen...I know what you mean." That's what our applause says: the performer is singing not so much to us as for us.
This is what we could call "Striking the Common Chord." Especially in worship, our vision is to unlock the language of people's hearts and for them to say, "That is exactly what I wanted to say to God." It is to give the church both musical and lyrical language to describe their feelings and their faith. A little bit further along I will give you some examples of my own - the journey of how a song goes from song vision to a finished song that works.
Form & Style
Now that you what you want to say, the next critical step is determining the form or structure for a song. Stephen Sondhiem said "content dictates form." This is very true. A song without form is like flesh without a skeleton. It is not just knowing what to say (your song vision), but how to say it (form & style).
Of course we recognize this is true in life, yet we sometimes totally ignore this area in songwriting, much to our detriment. I was a locked-in verse-chorus writer until I started studying both songwriting and the history of songwriting. Whole new worlds began to open up to me.
Let me briefly describe three major song forms:
1. The AAA
The triple is the simplest song form. Many people call it the "one-part song form." There are only verses (though in some church circles they would say there are only "choruses", however, to be consistent wit songwriting terms we will us "verse"). The verses can range in number from one to many (though the most common is three, hence the title).
What is so beautiful and powerful about this song is its simplicity. Musically, once you have heard the first A (usually between 8-16 bars) you have heard it all. These songs are usually easy to remember and sing like, "Isn't He" by John Wimber. That song has two 8 bar "A"s with another two "A"s where you just change the title phrase to "Yes, You are." Singing "Yes, You are" is more intimate, but "Isn't He" is a much better title and titles are important. This song really leads you towards intimacy step by step.
The strength of this form is to focus in a few key melodic phrases and keep repeating it. Do not make the mistake that simplicity is either childish (actually, being childlike is a very good thing) or beneath you. The best writers in the world have a goal of being simple, fresh and direct. The most enduring songs are, virtually without exception, the simple ones. Being simple and bad is very easy...being simple and good is very hard.
One of the lost distinctive about the lyrics in a AAA is the key statement, which is many times the title and is found at the end of A (though I should state this about worship songs in general: the title is often the first phrase of the song, primarily because of our church culture surrounded by the use of overheads and the preference of overhead operators).
At this point let me clarify one other term that songwriters use: the "refrain". In the past, the terms chorus and refrain were used interchangeably. In modern language, there is a distinction and I think we should be consistent with terms that songwriters use today. A chorus begins a distinctively new musical section in the verse/chorus form. A refrain is sometimes used to end the AAA verse and resolve. The distinction is that the refrain wraps up something (many times repeating a key phrase) and is not new musically or lyrically. An interesting example of this is Twila Paris' "The Joy of the Lord" from the album Sanctuary. The liner notes label the section where it repeats "The joy of the Lord" as a chorus, but that is a classic refrain; nothing new is being said lyrically or musically and its ending is wrapping up the A section. In fact, that song is a classic AABA (but the song exists fine without the B, especially in a congregational setting).
One other option for a refrain I should mention is the outside refrain. The outside refrain may be appropriate when you are in the AAA and you want something more, but the option of chorus or bridge will not work. An outside refrain is a short repeated hook phrase that the song can exist without, but it breathes some fresh life into the song. If you do use it, watch out that you do not add another song vision or remove the simplicity.
Do not forget or overlook the simplicity of this AAA form. Many of our favorite songs, like "I Love You, Lord" are popular and endure because of their simplicity.
2. The AABA
Now let us turn our attention to the AABA, probably at present my favorite song form. I think one of the main reasons I like it so much is because this form is a wonderful blend of repetition and contrast.
In the AAA, it is all repetition; in the verse/chorus you have a back and forth feel. But in the AABA, it seems to have just the right amount of both (however, that is my personal taste and that definitely is a factor when we are discussing songwriting).
So what does AABA sound like? An AABA will usually begin right off the top with the strongest melodic hook (and often lyrical phrase). This will usually be repeated with a 2nd A (same music, different lyrics) before moving into the contrasting B (commonly referred to as the bridge...though it is different than the bridge in the verse/chorus form so I just call it "B").
Several examples that I can remember clearly are "Memory" from the musical Cats, "When I Need You" by Leo Sayer and in a worship song I wrote, "Eternity" (although "Eternity" is very simple lyrically as well as with just one "A"). If you are not sure what I mean, listen to these songs... that is the fun part with learning about songwriting.
One of the key things I do now, when I receive inspiration and focus my song vision, is to decide what form it would best work in. Let me tell you how one of my most recent AABA songs came about.
Last summer, Joyce, the kids and I went to visit Joyce's best friend and family. Their house is near a large embankment that is quite steep, framed by a river running below and a mountain range in the distance. I was standing on the edge by myself, drinking in the beauty of summer, all the green trees, the river, the mountains with jagged gray peaks and the blue sky dotted with white clouds. I exclaimed, "I love the view from here!" As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I knew a song was born.
Plus, I knew something else about true praise: it is not something we muster up; instead it is an absolutely genuine response to revelation. Real praise comes from seeing something or someone wonderful.
The inspiration was very strong and instinctively I knew the song should be either an AAA or AABA because of the distinctive characteristics of these forms. The key lyrical phrase comes at the of an A, not at the beginning of a chorus. However, getting a strong song vision does not mean the song is written. It just means that you have a target to shoot for.
About three months later, I tried to write the song, but each time it came off real flat. Finally, over one year late, after the both of our twin girls, Joy and Mercy, it began to come together. Even then, I worked at it for hours over a three-week period.
One of the key things I am learning in all of this is patience and knowing that each of the song forms will serve different songs. The key is matching them so they complement each other.
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