THE 4 STAGES OF SONGWRITING

Most songwriters don’t realize that they go through different stages. It is only when I saw the TV interview with Rey Valera, an icon of Original Pilipino Music (OPM) of the late 70s and the 80s, a few years back, that I was made aware of the various phases a composer undergoes. I consider Rey Valera as one of my most favorite songwriters because his songs are heartfelt yet very simple, melody-wise and lyrics-wise. Have you noticed that his songs are still being revived or used as theme songs for Pinoy Telenovelas?

Rey Valera’s interview was very informative that I decided to share the insights I got from it and inject some of my own.

Before having the guts to write my own song, I learned to play the guitar first, at the age of 16. I learned on my own, from those music magazines that feature free guitar chords. With the help of friends, I was able to hone my skills and develop my own technique. But hey, I wasn’t contented to playing the music of others. There was this itch to “create” my own. Do you have this same feeling?

I told myself that if chord patterns in the music magazines were just man-made, and since I’m also human, what should stop me from making my own song? It was just as simple as understanding the patterns and the flow of melodies, right?

And so I wrote my first song, something about the Philippines (I was feeling patriotic back then) and I wrote it just for the sake of making it. And boy, the feeling was like having your own child (well, somewhere close to it): AMAZING!

So there you go with the first stage: REALIZATION. You feel the urge to make your original song, and actually doing it just for your PERSONAL FULFILLMENT. Oftentimes, the song one makes during this stage is about himself or his experience. It doesn’t matter if no one hears your song. The point is you made one, and you’re happy with it. ALL SONGWRITERS GO THROUGH THIS STAGE.

Unfortunately, some songwriters don’t graduate from the first stage. It could be that they are too busy (or too lazy?) to develop their talent, or maybe too shy to let others hear their works, or wala lang, they are just contented to write about and for themselves.

BUT, the moment a composer musters the courage to perform their song or just let other people hear it, he enters the second stage: COMING-OUT.

In this juncture, the songwriter craves for attention from an audience. He needs approval that his songs are actually good. He is open to criticism and is willing to learn. Songwriters at this phase normally makes songs for others, that is, the experience or subject matter is still drawn from his own experience but presented in a way that may affect other people too.

He becomes sensitive about the reaction of the listeners and purposely writes his songs to draw emotional response from them. Here is an example of a song I wrote during this stage, it’s called SHOULD HAVE BEEN, arranged by Benjie Pating Jr., and performed by yours truly. (To listen, click here).

The third level is when the composer learns and applies the technicalities of songwriting to his craft. He studies the different genre, structure, and format, etc. (stuff that I’ll be talking about sometime in another blog).

This is the AWARENESS phase, wherein the composer improves on his technical knowledge and sometimes tests the quality of his songs by joining songwriting contests. Or having the guts to record his songs and submit them to record company.

He is aware that he is actually a gifted songwriter and begins to experiment on the topics of his works and may even write about other people’s experience. A very good example is when a composer takes on a different persona.

Here’s a song I wrote for a 17-year old female singer (Lyn Reyes) entitled HOW WILL I KNOW (arranged by Benjie Pating, Jr.). The song is obviously not about me or my experience, but about the female persona. (To listen, click here).

The fourth and the highest stage of songwriting, according to Rey Valera, is the COMMERCIAL level. At this point, the composer is somewhat “detached” from his personal experience. He can write about anything.

 In fact, he can be commissioned to compose a song about a certain topic for a certain singer or artist. THIS IS WHERE THE MONEY COMES IN!

Like a product, it’s up to him if he wants the song to be bought or used for a certain period of time (licensing). This will be another subject in my next blogs.

Anyway, this is the stage whereby the composer is introduced or immersed to the business of music. The songwriter at this level is also capable of writing JINGLES, simple melodies with lyrics promoting a brand, product, individual or company.

Many young songwriters aspire to reach this stage. But to get this far, the composer needs more than sheer talent. He needs THE break. He should PERSEVERE to get the break. Remember what I said about BUILDING YOUR NETWORK? If you haven’t read it yet, please see my blog on the subject matter, click here.

I am very fortunate to have met the right people that gave me the opportunity to write commercial songs and get compensation in return. Here are just some of them, my commercial jingles:

AMATS, recorded by Parokya Ni Edgar:

BLIND ITEM, recorded by Wonder Gays:

MR. PAPABOL, recorded by Vhong Navarro:

My latest, KUNG PWEDE LANG, recorded by Eurika:

So which stage are you in now?

May you be successful in your musical venture,

Robster Evangelista

P.S.

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