Alfred's Teach Yourself Songwriting: Vocal Textbook & CD

Accessible and encouraging without being condescending. The lessons build logically from song fundamentals through lyric craft and composition, creating a genuine sense of progression.

Self-directed singers and songwriters who want structured guidance rather than trial-and-error. This works equally well for high school students taking songwriting classes and adult hobbyists looking to formalize what they've been doing intuitively.

• Work through the CD examples multiple times. Listen first without the book, then listen again while reading the notated music to connect sound and symbol.
• Complete each writing assignment before moving to the next chapter. Skipping ahead leaves gaps in your understanding of how melody, harmony, and lyrics interact.
• Keep a notebook of songs you admire while working through this book. When you encounter a technique (like a rhyme scheme or harmonic progression), go back to your examples and identify how professional writers use it.

Use this as the foundation for an elective songwriting course, or assign chapters individually to choir students interested in exploring composition beyond ensemble singing. It pairs well with a final project where students write and perform an original song for the class.

• Lyric writing techniques including rhyme schemes, meter, and emotional authenticity
• Melody composition and phrasing
• Harmonic function and chord progression choices
• Song structure and form
• Revision and self-editing in songwriting
• Analysis of professional songwriting techniques