Songwriting: Writing the Music

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Songwriting: Writing the Music

This course is part of multiple programs.

Instructor: Scarlet Keys

15,800 already enrolled

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4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

70 reviews

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

1 week at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

98%

Most learners liked this course

4 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

70 reviews

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule

1 week at 10 hours a week

Learn at your own pace

98%

Most learners liked this course

Skills you'll gain

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

12 assignments¹

AI Graded see disclaimer

Taught in English

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There are 4 modules in this course

If your notebook is full of unused lyrics and you’re struggling to find inspiration for the music, this course is for you. Whether you are an experienced songwriter looking for new ideas or a beginning songwriter learning to read music, this course will lead you to a rich source of songwriting possibilities.

Led by award winning songwriter and Berklee College of Music professor Scarlet Keys, you’ll learn to construct strong, expressive melodies that your audience will remember as well as experiment with new chords to break out of any harmonic rut. Whether you are new to writing music or are looking for new ideas to change up your songs, this class will teach you how to make deliberate choices with your harmonies and melodies to best emulate the emotions you want your audience to feel. You will start by discovering common chord progression and tying specific emotions to each chords in a scale. Then you will practice changing the harmonic and melodic rhythm of a song to better highlight important lyrics. Finally, you will learn to create melodic hooks and simple techniques to help you generate new melodic ideas.

Welcome to Songwriting: Writing the Music! Here we will cover all the details about the course and what you'll need to know to get the most out of your experience. Then, we will begin working with diatonic chords in a chosen key and learning how to borrow non-diatonic chords to create evocative harmonies for your songs. We will look at several popular chord progressions and begin experimenting with choosing the perfect chords to help you tell your lyrical story.

What's included

9 videos6 readings3 assignments1 peer review2 discussion prompts

9 videosTotal 33 minutes

Welcome!2 minutes
What You'll Learn in Lesson 11 minute
Diatonic Chords in a Major Key3 minutes
How to Choose the Perfect Storytelling Chords7 minutes
Common Chord Progressions5 minutes
Non-diatonic Chords in Major Keys5 minutes
Chords that Break Your Soul3 minutes
Diatonic Chords in a Minor Key2 minutes
Minor Key Chord Progressions5 minutes

6 readingsTotal 45 minutes

Course Resources 10 minutes
Earn A Course Certificate10 minutes
Connect with Your Classmates5 minutes
Lesson 1 Suggested Reading5 minutes
Lesson 1 Listening List10 minutes
Course Assessments5 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 60 minutes

Module 1 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project #115 minutes
Review: Choosing Emotive Chords15 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 45 minutes

Project #1: Add Chords to a Verse45 minutes

2 discussion promptsTotal 10 minutes

Meet and Greet5 minutes
Your Key Preferences5 minutes

In this module, we will expand our knowledge of harmony to include 7th chords and added tensions. We will use these new chords to create more interesting harmonies for our lyrics and melodies. We will also practice changing the harmonic rhythm in our songs to better support our melodies and lyrics. Finally, we will use harmonic rhythm to show contrast between our song sections.

What's included

6 videos4 readings3 assignments1 peer review

6 videosTotal 19 minutes

What You'll Learn in Lesson 21 minute
Adding Tensions to Major Key Progressions4 minutes
Adding Tensions to Minor Key Progressions3 minutes
Harmonic Rhythm2 minutes
Create Contrast with Harmonic Rhythm2 minutes
Highlighting Lyrics with Harmonic Rhythm7 minutes

4 readingsTotal 35 minutes

Lesson 2 Suggested Reading10 minutes
Lesson 2 Listening List10 minutes
Types of 7th Chords10 minutes
Sign up for the full experience!5 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 55 minutes

Module 2 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project #215 minutes
Review: Creating Contrast with 7th Chords10 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Project #2: Create Contrasting Song Sections60 minutes

In this module, we will begin to create better melodies for our lyrics. We will start by learning about different types and shapes of melodic lines. We will then practice creating melodic hooks and using stable and unstable tones in our melodies. We will also learn the importance of using melodic contrast between song sections.

What's included

6 videos3 readings3 assignments1 peer review1 discussion prompt

6 videosTotal 28 minutes

What You'll Learn in Lesson 31 minute
Four Melody Types6 minutes
Developing Melodic Hooks5 minutes
Using Stable and Unstable Tones5 minutes
Contrasting Song Sections with Melody6 minutes
Developing Melody4 minutes

3 readingsTotal 30 minutes

Lesson 3 Suggested Reading10 minutes
Lesson 3 Listening List10 minutes
Practice Exercise: Developing Melodies10 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 50 minutes

Module 3 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project #315 minutes
Review: Melodic Hooks and Unstable Tones5 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 60 minutes

Project #3: Developing Interesting Melodies60 minutes

1 discussion promptTotal 10 minutes

Developing Melodies10 minutes

In this final module, we will begin to put everything together to help our lyrics tell their story. We will discover how to highlight our melodies by using chord tones and non-chord tones from our harmonies. We will also focus on setting our lyrics to the melody and harmony in a way that highlights the meaning we want to convey to the audience. Finally, we will practice creating melodies in minor keys.

What's included

7 videos3 readings3 assignments1 peer review

7 videosTotal 28 minutes

What You'll Learn in Lesson 41 minute
Melodic Rhythm Contrast3 minutes
Setting Your Lyrics5 minutes
Storytelling with Melodic Contour4 minutes
Creating Melodies in a Minor Key5 minutes
Finding a Harmony to Highlight Your Melody8 minutes
Course Wrap-Up1 minute

3 readingsTotal 25 minutes

Lesson 4 Suggested Reading10 minutes
Lesson 4 Listening List10 minutes
Sign up for the full experience!5 minutes

3 assignmentsTotal 55 minutes

Module 4 Quiz30 minutes
Self-Assessment: Project #415 minutes
Review: Melodic Rhythm and Contour10 minutes

1 peer reviewTotal 90 minutes

Project #4: Write a Complete Song90 minutes

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Instructor

Instructor ratings

(33 ratings)

Scarlet Keys

Berklee

1 Course15,800 learners

Offered by

Berklee

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Reviewed on Feb 10, 2025

Truly exceptional class, I am grateful Berklee makes this content available on Coursera

Reviewed on Mar 30, 2026

This course will be frustrating for anyone who does not read music. I had to check several references to answer some of the questions in the quizzes. But the professor shared many useful tips!

Reviewed on Mar 17, 2022

Super helpful primer on the key things to think about when selecting chords and rhythms for a song!

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