When you close your eyes and imagine yourself as the writer you always want to be, it’s easy to imagine only success and masterpieces; but that’s not the reality. For every...
The Hell Song by Sum 41 is a fantastic song with a fantastic guitar riff right at the beginning. Today, we're picking that riff apart and reengineering it into our very own...
No matter what genre you're writing in, you'll eventually have to dabble in arranging. This is the process of taking musical material and fitting it into instruments, textu...
If you've ever wanted to write a riff like Enter Sandman by Metallica, this video is for you. Today, we're looking at this classic metal riff by this classic metal band and...
Making the chords we use match the feeling we’re trying to express is imperative. Advanced harmony in chord progressions helps us do just that, but where do we start? Today...
Have you ever burned out on writing music? Gotten writer’s block? Felt like an imposter, like maybe you’ll never write music again, let alone good music? What if I told you...
The major scale feels basic, because it is. But, basic isn’t bad. The major scale is the most important scale we ever learn; because it sets us up to learn all the others. ...
How do we know what to do next in our music? Well, the answer lies with how we write music in the first place. Today, I give you 3 tips (plus one bonus tip) on how to figur...
MIDI drum samples are truly amazing these days, however, they still need a little work to make them sound like a real drum set. Today, I show you how to achieve a more natu...
There’s one thing I always do with my advanced clients: We go back to the fundamentals. Mastering and reviewing our musical fundamentals is key to sustained growth and prog...
Ever wonder what makes a melody not just good, but great? Well, I think I’ve come up with the answer…err, make that five answers. Today, I’m sharing with you five musical t...
I was just interviewed on the Hook and Bridge podcast. It was cool! During the interview I was asked the question: Which do you write first in a song, lyrics or chords? I h...
