Learn to Write Real Songs

Have you ever wondered what makes your favorite song sound so good to you?

In this class you'll learn the handful of ideas behind every song you've ever liked. Things like beats, rhythms, melodies, lyrics, chords, song structures and more. Then you'll use them to make tracks you can share the same day.

You don't need an instrument, you don't need to read sheet music, and you don't need to have done any of this before.

How it works

Each session you'll explore a new musical idea and then immediately use it to create something of your own. Every session ends with everyone sharing what they made, so you hear multiple different takes on the same idea.

You'll start in Chrome Music Lab, a free and playful tool for exploring how music works. After you've learned the foundations, you'll graduate to Online Sequencer. It's a real multi-track editor with a piano roll, separate instruments, tempo control, and more ways to develop your music.

What we'll cover

1. Scavenger Hunt Your first challenge is a musical scavenger hunt through Chrome Music Lab. You'll explore its different experiments, discover what you can make, and share your favorite creation or discovery with the group. There are no wrong answers. This week is about trying things, following your curiosity, and getting comfortable with the tools we'll use to make music.

2. From Beat to Ostinato What's the difference between beat and rhythm? You'll learn how music is organized in time, create your first repeating patterns, and discover how simple rhythms can grow into complex musical ideas.

3. Pitch and Melody How can we understand music in a visual way? You'll explore high and low notes, see how pitches create shapes and patterns, and learn the basic ideas behind writing a melody that feels complete.

4. Words, Ideas, and Themes How do you turn an idea into a song? You'll experiment with words, images, feelings, and musical themes, then use them to begin creating lyrics and melodies of your own.

5. Chords and Chord Progressions What makes music feel like it's moving forward, or coming to a stop? You'll explore chords, cadences, and progressions and learn how they help a song build tension, find its direction, and land in the right place.

6. Mix, Match, and Layer Now it's time to bring everything together. You'll combine rhythms, melodies, words, chords, and repeating patterns to create music with multiple parts. You'll decide which instruments should play the drums, bass, chords, and melody, when each part should enter or stop, and how the parts can work together without getting in one another's way. You'll also discover why four-chord progressions appear in so many popular songs, and how the same chords can produce completely different results.

7. Real Tools Now you'll move into Online Sequencer. You'll learn how to use the piano roll, instrument tracks, velocity, looping, and exporting. Then you'll rebuild something you made earlier and hear how much more you can do with it now.

8. Structure Intro, verse, chorus, bridge. Why do songs repeat? When should you add something, when should you take something away, and how do you create an ending that feels right? You'll use song structure to turn your musical ideas into a complete journey.

9. Your Song Now it's your turn to bring everything together. You'll begin writing a full song, developing your own musical style, and sharing your work with the community.

10. Weeks 10 and Beyond These weeks are yours. Keep writing, experimenting, revising, and sharing new songs.