Writing down song ideas

[schmalex]

Hi, I'm a relatively knew guitar player here trying to get into songwriting. I've played piano much more seriously since I was younger, though I actually find it much more difficult to write at the piano than just strumming along on a guitar.

There's just something about the simplicity of the strumming action on the guitar that allows me to focus more in the other parts of the song inside of my head, while also suggesting more rhythmic complexity than I can easily achieve on the piano without a lot more practice. With the piano, there is also the factor of it sometimes feeling like an overwhelming blank slate compared to the guitar. With the guitar, I feel like I can find an interesting chord progression / groove and play that over and over again, just listening to the melody / harmony patterns that start to emerge through the groove.

My question is what you songwriters out there use to jot down your song ideas / licks? I've tried using some score writing apps, but sometimes I kind of find that I get too bogged down too quickly in perfecting each individual measure when I should just be focusing on the overall song structure first.

Is good ol' pen & paper the way to go? If so, how do you write down your musical lines, or do those just live inside of your head until you have the lyrics / melody locked down?
Edit: And I do mean besides just actually writing the notes on a blank score. Does anybody have any ideas for a musical shorthand that could help with that?

[Chipotle]

Originally Posted by schmalex

.
My question is what you songwriters out there use to jot down your song ideas / licks? I've tried using some score writing apps, but sometimes I kind of find that I get too bogged down too quickly in perfecting each individual measure when I should just be focusing on the overall song structure first.

Is good ol' pen & paper the way to go? If so, how do you write down your musical lines, or do those just live inside of your head until you have the lyrics / melody locked down?

Phone voice recorder app. Just pick your fave, there are dozens. Tap the app, hit record, play the idea on the guitar and/or sing/speak the lyrics you have in mind. For a lyrics-only idea, I have a "notes" app with a file where I can just type the line(s) that popped into my head. Simple and you probably have your phone at hand.

For me, the score only comes after the song is finished (I use Musescore).

[rick-slo]

Talking about instrumental music or songs (music and lyrics)? Quite a difference guitar wise.

[schmalex]

Originally Posted by rick-slo

Talking about instrumental music or songs (music and lyrics)? Quite a difference guitar wise.

Mostly songs in my case… with emphasis on rhythm guitar with vocals, but including background arrangement (lead guitar, piano, bass, etc.)

[zuzu]

Many an idea for a tune in the past few years has been captured initially on my phone audio recorder. Getting it into an audio format is very helpful to me. Be careful to make sure when you return to it that you approach it as a writer, not a listener. The listener's ear will judge what it is hearing and (too often for me) discard what may be a perfectly viable germ of a tune, which the writer's ear can enhance and complete, if given the chance.

[Deliberate1]

I have a dedicated Google doc of song lines and ideas. It is helpful to have them in the Cloud because I can access the doc from any computer or my phone. But, for those jumping out of bed at midnight to write words down before they evaporate moments, a pencil and the back of a power bill envelope will do nicely.
Good luck in your songwriting.
In time, consider finding a local open mic, and release your songs into the wild.
David

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by schmalex

Mostly songs in my case… with emphasis on rhythm guitar with vocals, but including background arrangement (lead guitar, piano, bass, etc.)

For just guitar and vocals, if I was a more confident singer, I'd just record audio. (The maybe put it into notation software later, once I had it more worked out.)
But I generally compose sitting at a desk with a computer anyway - because my guitars are on stands within reach - so I'll load up my notation software, play and sing (as well as I can manage), and write the notation into the software.
I don't write in tab, unless I'm writing a complex fingerstyle piece, especially in an unusual tuning, but I'll still use a notation staff as well as the tab.
It would be quicker to write in manuscript, but harder to change and edit.

Obviously then, if i do want to add other instruments, it's easy.

My software is Sibelius, but I wouldn't recommend that. I have it for professional purposes, and have used it for some years, so I'm used to its irritating quirks. It's also expensive! (even for entry level). If you want software for notation and tab, I'd recommend musescore - completely free, looks good.

[rmp]

Easy!

Zoom Mp3 recorder! not too expensive, easy to use, runs on AA batteries

put it in front of you, press record, play. The built in mics actually pickup things very good.

it all goes on an SD card that you can just copy down to your PC via a USB cable, or just slide the card in the PC's CD slot or USB card reader

I've written several songs over a few days' time, songs that otherwise, would be gone the moment I put the guitar down the first day.

I might remember the notes or chords I played, but I won't recall exactly how I played them on that particular day, or the exact phrasing of melody lines, and to me, that's everything.

[Mr. Jelly]

I always liked pen and paper. It's so versatile that it is hard to beat. And easy to use on the fly. It only takes one hand.

[Rudy4]

Since we almost always have our phones close by in this day and age the voice memo app is king for capturing ideas for new material to archive the melody and structure you have in your head. You can refine it later.

I also often use an Android app "Notepad Free" to do quick memos of lyrics or ideas. I use the voice to text feature on my phone for that as well as almost any text I send. It's taken all the aggravation out of using that tiny keypad!

[jaymarsch]

I keep it simple. Pen and paper and the voice memo feature on my phone. Eventually, I put the song in a Word doc with the lyrics, chords, key, any other notations like capo position and/or tuning. I have yet to graduate to a music writing software for notes, etc., but there are some good ones out there.
Best,
Jayne

[egordon99]

Voice Memos app on my iPhone and then Google Docs on my iPad.

[jseth]

In the past, I've tried a bunch of different methods; writing down lyrical ideas or phrases is something I still do. I have a 3-ring binder that has an entire section devoted to original songs of mine, so I write the ideas in there, longhand...

As for musical ideas/grooves/progressions, etc., I have come to the feeling that, if an idea is REALLY a good one, then I'll remember it, it will stick in my mind. If i just forget about it, I figure it wasn't all that special to begin with!

Once I actually begin writing a song, I'll frequently write notation at the top of a page, describing the changes, the feel. Usually, I use the Roman numeral system that I learned from a Berklee grad many years ago, with a note as to what key I "hear it" in...

There really isn't any wrong way to do it; like fingerprints, there are myriad methods that can work. I did try using a little recorder for years, but I found that it wasn't all that much help for me.

Once a song is complete and I'm going to be playing it with other people, I'll write out a good rhythm chart; but, because I normally play solo, guitar and voice, when I perform, much of my music has not been notated at all... it just lives in my head and memory.

[jseth]

Along with my previous reply, I have to add that, since I first started writing in my teens, I had this notion that "I was standing on a corner, and when the Muse Bus came by, I wanted to be ready to get on it..."!!! Heck, I used to sleep with a notebook and pen near my bed, so if I woke up with an idea, I could write it down...

I was much more driven to write songs when I was in my 20's, 30's and 40's... not nearly as much since then, although I still write songs and love to capture that manner of presenting thoughts, ideas, rhythms in a presentable fashion.

Even though I've written songs for over 50 years, I've always felt that I had to be true to who I am, to the idea or thought I want to present... so I've never written much, if anything, that I would call trivial. Always has to have some sort of point to the whole endeavor, or I won't write it. Everyone's different in that regard, I know; some folks just want to write a "hit", and try to copy trends of what's popular.

I have always treated my songwriting as an Art Form, long before I would even verbalize it as such.

[Gordon Currie]

The combination of a little Zoom recorder and paper/pen are what I use.

If I create a little phrase or pattern that will be a seed, I often want to record it as an audio file.
Capturing a picking pattern or rhythmic muting can be maddening to write down as a score, and I don't want to expend that effort on a 'seed' that may change as I develop it.

Often though my idea is centered around chordal movement with specific voicings (voice leading). I will write those down as stacked notes.
If I have a melody developing, I will add that on top. Everything is enclosed in pseudo bar lines so I can remember the chord durations.

I might use Roman numerals if a progression is sufficiently diatonic, but more often I just use chord names (as I like to include 'foreign' chords and modulations).

IMO it needs to be simple and give you enough detail to remember the idea, but not so involved that you lose inspiration. That is a LOT harder than it might seem!