When musicians write a song, they have to ask themselves a few questions. For example, does our song have a main melody? And if so, where do we repeat it? How many times? Do we need to add a second, contrasting melody, like a chorus? What about some buffer or break between the two melodies? And how do we work our way into the main melody … or wrap things up at the end?

To help answer these questions, musicians use something called “song form”—which helps us outline the basic structure of a song. Using simple letters (like A, B, C, etc.), form gives us a bird’s-eye view of the melody. At a glance, we can see how every section is laid out … from start to finish.

In the example above, we would play each section in order as “A–B–A–B–C–B.” That is, “verse–chorus–verse–chorus–bridge–chorus.” The letters have nothing to do with individual notes or chords, of course. They simply outline the various sections in a song. By labeling each part of the melody, we can quickly see when and where to repeat each part.

There aren’t any strict rules on this. But in most popular music, each section is about eight measures long. Typically, the verse is the first melody in a song. It spans roughly eight measures and is repeated at least a couple of times. The chorus is then the second (and main) melody. It’s also about eight measures long, and alternates with each of the different verses. Musicians can combine these parts in any way they’d like. But here are a few of the most common forms you’ll hear:

Depending on the song form, some music may include a lot of verses … or several choruses … or an intro, bridge, coda, or whatever. But no matter what form you choose, these standard designs give our music some real structure and shape.

You might even say that song forms are a lot like templates. Ready-made placeholders for our melodies and progressions. We simply fill in the content, and let the song form give our music shape. All we have to do is repeat a section here … or cut-and-paste a section there … and we’re in business. Of course, each and every song is unique—with its own special notes, lyrics, and chord patterns. But the basic form we use may be totally common.

By dividing a melody into sections, we can rearrange and repeat certain parts to create something new and exciting. Of course, not all songs include every type of section. But the following outlines the most popular ones you’ll often hear:

Like the rooms in a building or the acts in a play, each section is a small, contained unit. Just little snippets of melody that flow into each other. And when the melody lines in each section are strung together, they join to form a complete and seamless song.

The easiest way to tell each section apart is to focus on the lyrics. Most songs (like the example above) include most “verse” and “chorus” sections. Typically, each verse tells a short story, while eachchorus repeats its own separate melody and simple lyrics.

To see what I mean, try playing the next song—“Waltzing Matilda,” which is a traditional tune from Australia. We sing the top line of lyrics in the first verse … followed by the first chorus. The end repeat sign in the last measure then directs us back to the beginning, where we continue into the second verse … followed by the second (and finale) chorus.

Using repeat signs and song sections, we can give our music some real structure. Which sounds great. The only thing that would make our melodies and progressions even better would be to add a little more form. And, as you might have guessed, musicians use several “song forms” or designs that are especially popular.

!!!WARNING!!! Okay, okay, I know. As an artist, you’re probably anxious to cut to the chase. You might be thinking, “let’s put our skills to use, and start making some music already.” And to be honest, I’m right there with you. But have patience, my child. These next couple of lessons focus a bit more on the left brain … talking about structure, form, style, and so on.

But hey, it’s all good stuff to know. So just remember this: we’re looking at the science of sound, so you can then focus on the art of music. Get through these next few posts, and you’ll be well on your way to musical bliss.

Once we have the basic idea for a song—like a simple melody and chord progression—it has to be stretched and expanded into a song. And the easiest way to do this is using “repetition.” In fact, when we played through the blues progression before, we kind of saw how this works. By jumping back to the very beginning, we turned a short, 12-measure pattern into a rockin’ good song.

As it turns out, musicians use repetition like this all the time. It just sounds good. The music builds as you cycle through the notes. Only, instead of using big, clunky arrows to guide us through—like in the example above—musicians rely on more subtle symbols called “repeat signs.” Just like the common road signs you see in the street everyday, these little symbols help us navigate a piece of music like a roadmap.

It’s simple, really. Repeat signs give us direction on how to move through a song. They tell us when to repeat certain sections … and where to jump to other parts within the music. They also help us save space and reduce clutter. By recycling the notes in various measures, repeat symbols spare us the hassle of writing a bunch of notes over and over again. For example, check out the following pattern:

Using just two small repeat signs, we can play through this melody as many times as we want. We don’t have to rewite the exact same notes … because the repeat symbols already tell us everything we need to know. Simply play all four measures—then go back to the beginning and start again.

If we feel like it, we could continue bouncing back through this melody forever. But after a while, that would get a little boring … and maybe start sounding like a broken record. So instead of throwing us into an endless feedback loop, these repeat signs just mean to play through this pattern only once again—like this:

When you first see the start repeat marker in a song, ignore it. It doesn’t come into play until you see the end repeat marker. At that point, return to the start repeat sign, and play though the music between the markers again. After you’ve repeated those notes, keep moving through the song. There really isn’t much to it … just repeat a few notes, and then get back on the road. By using a couple of repeat sings, we’ve expanded our song a bit—while saving a bunch of space.

Sometimes, you might also see a song that doesn’t have any start repeat sign (like in the image above). But no worries … things work out just the same. When you arrive at the end repeat marker, simply return to the very beginning of the piece and play again.

In a nutshell, repeat signs are a nice, clean way to expand our music into larger and more interesting songs—as we can see in the exercise below. With only a few measures, these notes may sound like a cute little snippet of music. But with the repeat sign at the end, we add length to this song … and give it more power and muscle. Like watering a small plant, we use repetition to give life to our music. And help it grow into something a whole lot stronger.

In our last song, “Pachelbel’s Canon,” we added even more chords to a progression to create some very cool sounds. By rearranging the major scale pattern, we ended up with something beautiful. And it’s a simple trick, really. All we did was take a few major and minor chords, switch them around a bit, and voilà! Like magic, we made something totally new out of an old, familiar pattern.

Of course, this isn’t magic at all … and nothing about it is random. Like everything else in music, there’s a simple logic to things. And with Color Music, we can see exactly what we’re doing. As it turns out, the colored notes reveal the natural flow between chords. Seriously … it’s sweet.

For example, can yousee how each measure of “Pachelbel’s Canon” passes between two, closely-related chords? Well, this kind of movement is really common in songs. In fact, if we go a little further, we can even rearrange all the chords … so that each one follows the color wheel sequence from the circle of fifths. Like a pleasant stroll through the color spectrum, this progression is pure bliss.

In the key of C, for example, notice how the root notes of each chord are rearranged in a circle-of-fifths pattern. because it has such a smooth flow, this kind of “circle progression” shows up in music all the time.

By cycling through these chords again and again, we can create some very cool progressions. And, of course, musicians have many other options to choose from. But a general “formula” for chord movement tends to look like this:

Jumping around between these different chords, we can move in a variety of ways. But this general “roadmap” shows us how songs typically lead toward the tonic chord (I)—from left to right. Eventually, we always return to the tonic (I) … our home sweet home.

To get a feel for the movement of chords in each key, try playing through the following progressions. Starting at each separate tonic (I), we can easily bounce from one chord to the next … gradually making our way back to the same tonic chord (I). As you play, try hitting each chord with both your left and right hands. After a little practice, you’ll be well on your way to building bigger and better songs.

When we say the primary chords (I, IV, V) are popular, we ain’t kidding. They show up all the time in music. And while a lot of simple folk and pop songs use these triads, the most common example of a primary chord progression is what musicians call the “12-bar blues.” Without a doubt, you’ve heard of this, right? It’s played by repeating the same three chords over 12 measures. In a nutshell, it looks like this:

People call this “the blues” because it goes really well with the “blues scale.” And by adding a seventh chord here and there, we can create a tense, “bluesy” sound that feels like warm gravy poured directly onto the brain. In the key of C, for example, a blues progression and melody sound something like this:

Just like usual, we start at the tonic (I) chord. Then we make a short visit to our friend, the subdominant (IV) chord. After a couple of measures, we return to the tonic (I) … before passing through the dominant (V), again to the subdominant (IV), and finally home to the tonic (I) chord. Like a pleasant walk through the neighborhood, we eventually end up at home where we began.

The blues progression is so popular because it just sounds good. And it can be repeated as many times as you want. Once you make it through the first 12 measures, feel free to keep going … looping back through the same cycle over and over again.

By mixing it up a little—occasionally playing a seventh chord or tweaking the melody a bit—this progression makes for hours of fun. Using only those basic primary chords, we can play some very cool music. But of course, we have many more options, too. All we have to do is add a few chords to a song….

As musicians, we’re always trying to come up with new stuff. Every day, we look for ways to use a cool little melody here … or some great chord progression there. Music is definitely an art—and it takes equal parts practice and inspiration.

But like everyone else, we probably fall into a rut every once in a while. Occasionally, it’s easy to overuse a certain kind of rhythm … or stick with a favorite effects pedal for a little too long. Sooner or later, though, we have to shake the temptation to be unoriginal, and then push ourselves to the next level.

Which has got me thinking about (in my humble opinion) one of the most unoriginal artists of all time. A lot of people love Frida Kahlo, but I’m not a big fan. You’ve seen her painting … the one with that uni-brow woman looking all serious.

I say “her painting” because, to my eyes, she simply did the same thing over and over again. She was a one-trick pony—riding that poor horse to exhaustion. In nearly every piece she created, Frida Kahlo painted herself as the subject. In one shot, she might be sitting … while in another, she may be walking or standing. But it’s always the same, old theme. It seems Ms. Kahlo was totally in love with herself (… um, and monkeys).

But my question is “How can you create true greatness when you’re staring at yourself in the mirror all day?” My opinion might offend some people right now. But hey, it’s just an opinion. Either way, how can we avoid the “Frida Syndrome.” To really get the inspirational juices flowing, does anyone have any special tips?

Now that we’ve played through a few chord progressions, we’re definitely getting better. Our brains are bigger and our hands have gotten a lot of target practice moving back and forth between chords. But after a while, life would get pretty boring with only three primary chords, right? So to keep things interesting, musicians often like to add even more chords to a song.

The best place to get these “other” chords is from—you guessed it—the major-scale chord pattern. Cool? Yes. Surprising? No. Like a painter’s palette full of colors, this simple progression gives us tons of options for adding just the right chords to a song.

In the same way we chopped up the notes of a scale to create melodies, we simply rearrange the chords of this pattern to form chord progressions. (Snap!) And to see this in action, try playing our next song … called “Pachelbel’s Canon.”

Like a calm ride down a smooth river, we can float through each measure of this song. From beginning to end, the chords naturally flow forward in a constant motion toward the final tonic chord (I). In fact, this progression is so nice, I could play it all night long and never get tired. Which is why it’s such a classic.

By simply rearranging the major-scale progression, we can create magic. Like a path of dominoes, each chord naturally falls into the next … generating a chain reaction that’s totally cool. The “gravitational pull” between chords keeps pushing this basic chord progression along.

Of course, there are many other ways to rearrange these same simple chords. But each one is almost guaranteed to sound good. Why? Because there’s a powerful connection between the chords of a major-scale progression that gives our music life and energy. And as it turns out, musicians often rely on some fairly common “rules” for rearranging these chords. It’s all pretty simple, actually. So here, let me show you.

In music, primary chords are so popular it’s almost a cliché. In fact, a lot of musicians live on a simple diet of just those three chords—the tonic (I), subdominant (IV), and dominant (V). Like a nice plate of rice and beans, we can serve these three triads up in a variety of ways … and the dish is always tasty.

For example, imagine a hot meal of burritos, tacos, or enchiladas. Each recipe is awesome. But really, they’re all made from the same ingredients. By rearranging the tonic (I), subdominant (IV), and dominant (V) chords in different ways, we can create all sorts of songs that sound new and interesting. It’s pretty cool. The ingredients are the same, but the final product is totally different.

To see what I mean, check out the next classic song. Using the same, old primary chords, we can easily play a tune that everyone needs to know … “Happy Birthday.” As you move through each measure, try getting a feel for the chord progression. And after a little practice, you’ll be ready to perform it at your next birthday party. (Get out the balloons and confetti.)

Oh, yeah … and do you notice anything special about this song? That’s right—it has a 3/4 time signature. Which means we play it as a kind of waltz. Feel free to count out the beats in each measure to hear how it sounds. With three quarter-note beats per measure, this song goes something like this:

Also, the first two notes at the very beginning are called “pick-up notes.” We don’t actually count them as part of a real measure. Instead, they’re played before the first downbeat of the first measure. To hear it for yourself, play through this song a couple of times. And the result will sound great. With another chord progression—and a new time signature—under our belts, we’re starting to get really good … fast.

It feels nice to know that nothing is set in stone. Because you can simply back out and start again. Unless, of course, you accidentally hit the following sequence of keys on your computer:

Believe me, it could happen. And, personally, this pattern of computer keyboard commands is one of my worst fears. (Oh, the humanity!)

On the other hand, piano keyboard patterns never stress me out. Music is way more forgiving than computers. So go ahead and get crazy. Computers might still be scary … but musical instruments always play nice.

You’ve got to admit, the flow between the tonic chord (I) and the dominant chord (V) is nice. And that’s because the movement from one triad to the next is like a short visit with a good friend. But after a while it’s fun to with hang out with other friends, too. So musicians like to mix it up a bit—adding even more chords to their songs.

In music, the next most popular choice is definitely the subdominant chord (IV)—because it’s closely related to both the tonic (I) and dominant (V) in the circle of fifths. Together, these three chords sound great. And since they’re the only major triads in a major scale progression, we can easily hear a special connection between them.

To see what I mean, try moving back and forth between the tonic (I), dominant (V), and subdominant (IV) triads. When they’re played one after another, it’s like music to our ears….

In fact, the flow from one chord to the next is so smooth that musicians sometimes call these triads the “primary chords” of any key. And they show up all the time in music. For example, turn on the radio and listen. Nearly every song in rock, folk, country, jazz, rap, and classical music is based on these three simple chords. It’s amazing!

To see how they work, let’s again look at that classic tune, “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” by Mozart. We already know this song has a great melody. But when we add those three simple chords of C major (I), F major (IV), and G major (V), it totally shines.

Before playing, try moving your left hand between these three chords a few times. That way, your muscles will remember where to move as you make your way through the song. And remember that the less you move your hand, the less likely you’ll be to hit a wrong note. So some of the chords are played as simple inversions.

Don’t worry about taking it one measure at a time. If you make a mistake, just go back and play those notes again—it’s all good. By adding another chord to the mix, we need a little more focus. But the result is worth it. Because the variety is good for our ears and our music stays fresh.

After you’ve rocked out a bit, try playing these same three chords in each key. Like a group of superstars, the tonic (I), subdominant (IV), and dominant (V) chords sound great together. What can I say? The “primary chords” are just cool.