As songwriting educators with years of experience at both high school and collegiate levels, we've seen common patterns in what can make—or break—a song. Whether you're a seasoned songwriter or guiding students through their first compositions, these five elements can elevate a song from good to tru...

For whatever reason, lyrics seem to be both the easiest way into songwriting as well as the most challenging. Easy because they access language that we already have - no need for harmonic or melodic vocabulary - but hard because there just isn't a lot of real estate to say everything you want to ...