PIANO FOR SONGWRITING Vol. 1
Everything you need to start writing songs on piano today!
Enroll in Course
A work-at-your-own-pace only course to teach you everything you need to write songs on piano. Even a total beginner will be playing and writing within the first hour. This course is also great for producers or arrangers who want more fluency at writing bass lines, string parts, vocal harmonies, etc. There is no sheet music -- this is an entirely ear-based course and there will be extensive ear training to teach you to hear progressions and melody lines. We'll deconstruct classic pop songs to figure out how they work and you'll learn foolproof composition tools. And hey, you might even have fun! Let's BOOGIE.
Your Instructor
Greta Morgan is a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who began touring professionally at 16 with her first band The Hush Sound. Greta is currently a keyboardist and backing vocalist in Vampire Weekend. In the years between, she released 8 records (as Springtime Carnivore, Gold Motel, Katy Goodman + Greta Morgan) and toured the world extensively. Her songs and instrumental compositions have been featured in dozens of TV shows and films including Nashville, Grey's Anatomy, House, Shameless (Showtime), Catfish (MTV), 13 Reasons Why, and many more.
Greta's teaching approach is part technique/craft-focused, part art-therapy. She is a "creativity midwife" with a unique gift for seeing the truth in others and using that as the key to unlock their creative potential and discover new aspects of their artistic voice. Her holistic philosophy is based on playfulness, curiosity, and experimentation, and she believes that everything we do should be done with the whole being - head, heart, spirit, and body. There are no mistakes here! Thank you for being part of this experience.
Course Curriculum
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PreviewPiano Layout / Finger Numbers / What's a KEY? / C MAJOR SCALE (8:53)
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PreviewNATURAL MAJOR SCALE QUIZ (1:24)
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PreviewEAR TRAINING - interval cheat sheet + interval ear quiz (6:24)
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PreviewMAJOR TRIADS in C + 1 4 5 "DO YOU WANNA DANCE?" (2:48)
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PreviewHearing 1 4 5s with "I Wanna Be Sedated" + "Cecilia" (1:36)
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PreviewMINOR TRIADS + BLUE MOON teaches us 1 6 4 5 (4:26)
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PreviewMore 1 6 4 5 "Stand By Me" (0:51)
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StartThe Challenge of Simplicity - 2 Chord Songs - "Dreams" + "Baby Don't Go" (3:16)
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StartDiminished Triads + moving triads a la "Lean On Me" verse (3:25)
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StartSONG STUDY - "LET IT BE" - PART 1 (RHYTHM) (3:17)
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StartSONG STUDY - "LET IT BE" PART 2 (CHORDS AND RHYTHM) (5:10)
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StartSONG STUDY - "LET IT BE" PLAY THROUGH AT TEMPO + SLOWED DOWN (1:05)
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StartSONG STUDY - "DANCING IN THE DARK" to hear relative Maj / Min (5:48)
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StartWRITING TIME! - FIRST FOOLPROOF SCALE FOR COMPOSITION + BASIC REHARMONIZATION (5:06)
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StartM-M-Melody! FOR SINGERS - finding your chest/middle/head voice on piano (2:28)
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StartM-M-Melody! BABY GOT BACH - THEME AND VARIATION (1:36)
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StartM-M-Melody! - Visualizing MELODIC CONTOUR + withholding certain notes / chords til the CHORUS (4:40)
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StartM-M-Melody! 2 EXAMPLES of THEME and VARIATION - HEART OF GOLD + MY ORIGINAL COMPOSITION (3:59)
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StartGetting into INVERSIONS! (5:36)
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StartMOVING INTO OTHER KEYS AND "HEART OF GOLD" SKELETON IN G (9:18)
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Startintro to VOICE LEADING with "Heart of Gold" by Neil Young (4:23)
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StartMore VOICE LEADING - "Dream" by The Everly Brothers (4:37)
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StartWRITING TIME! write your own melody, play with chords, add voice leading (1:43)
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StartBASS NOTES - ADDING DEPTH TO TRIADS (2:39)
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StartEAR TRAINING - short melodies starting on different notes (3:12)
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StartEAR TRAINING - short melodies starting on C (4:00)
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StartEAR TRAINING - hearing chord progressions in C (10:40)
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StartEAR TRAINING - extra practice for sounding out melody (11:38)
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StartHARMONIC VARIATION in progressions w. TRIADS in C (hearing Major 2, Major 3, Minor 4, Minor 5) (2:19)
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StartIntroducing Major7, Dominant 7, Minor 7 (3:41)
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StartJohn Lennon's "Imagine" VERSE to hear Maj 7. Min 7, Dom 7 (5:52)
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StartEasy Arpeggio in 4 + Variations (3:17)
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StartBasic Bouncy Beat (1:16)
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StartWALTZ - elemental (1:48)
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StartWALTZ - adding more (2:54)
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Start16th NOTE ROCK n ROLL - elemental (1:30)
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Start16th NOTE ROCK n ROLL - moving on (1:28)
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StartARPEGGIO in 6 - elemental + example "Unchained Melody" by The Righteous Brothers (2:03)
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StartARPEGGIO in 6 - adding more (1:38)
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StartDisco - Blondie's "Heart of Glass" / putting a band in your hands! (3:10)
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StartMotown Moving Bass Line (4:20)