Telling The Story: Matching Chords and Words

What's important in music is how it makes you feel. When someone has done a good job writing, it is easy to capture the feeling and we are drawn into the emotion. The marriage of the words and chords within a song complement each other and help one another carry that message and draw your audience to emotional intoxication, which is what we want.

It's valuable to know what all your chords say to you. Play a G major and it carries a bright tone, which is good for indicating high energy or positivity, among many other things. Play a B minor and we get a rather morose tone, possibly impending danger or emptiness. Yet again, if you play an F major there is a warm tone to it, lending an excellent air of hope and possibility. Of course, these are meanings that are personal to me and you will invariably come up with your own as you move along in your practice, but these are the aspects of chord choice that will help you get your message across in a clear manner.

Put two or more of these chords together and we start to form a story, even before we've begun to write any words. Listen to what those chords are saying to you. Each has its own personality and none should be used only because it feels like the right choice. Be deliberate in your chord choice, and ask yourself why you've chosen that chord or melody. There is an old writing idea that each word must earn it's keep. Well, each chord must do the same.

Sit down and play various chords. Start with one and play it continuously, thinking up adjectives for that chord. Then do the same with two chords together. You'll get the hang of it.