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I’m working on my song and need help with chord progression. The verse chord progression is : G, Cadd9, A7sus4 and Dsus4 I made a bridge with Em7 and Bm7 but I don’t know what need to come next (I sing the next chord but can find him LOL)

So I have 3 questions: 1. How can I find the key of song? (In most popular song I find the key by melody or simple chord progression) 2. How can I improve my knowledge about chord progression and make interesting chord progressions and not simple like this example at F major scale (F,A,Dm,Bb) 3. What need to be the next chord ? :)

Here’s the bridge: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o2Ie38Qfvi-YU5A7hiRov401oAMqih5n/view?usp=drivesdk

Sorry about audio quality I’m not at my home

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    "what chord would be good next" is highly opinion-based, and for the other things there are existing questions and answers if you search this site. If you try major and minor chords for all 12 notes, it will only be 24 things to try, and so it will take at most 30 minutes to cover all possibilities via brute force. :)
    – piiperi Reinstate Monica
    Nov 22, 2019 at 13:48
  • Sadly this site isn't really here to answer questions like this - particularly when we don't have much idea of the rest of the song. As piiperi says, there's 24 simple ones to try, and that's without using 7ths, sus, etc. You could always re-use a previous chord - that's what most songs actually do!
    – Tim
    Nov 22, 2019 at 14:10
  • To be fair, I think that the BEST way to learn is by example ... but this site is a bit challenged in that regard. :/ Even uploading actual music examples is not supported. StackExchange is not really for learning, it's for building some kind of a "database of truths", but the problem is that people who have music-related issues are beginners and they cannot even explicate their questions as text. And even if they could, the terminology and everything would have to be somehow normalized, so the database could be searched. So the whole site is kind of designed to fail for many practical uses.
    – piiperi Reinstate Monica
    Nov 22, 2019 at 14:30

3 Answers 3

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The real answer is: "any chord you want comes next." That may sound glib, but it isn't. Sure, there are convention chord changes, and you can use those conventions to say "what should come next," but you can intentionally play against conventions for effect, to surprise, or venture off into distance areas in a large composition.

From a conventional point of view...

The verse chord progression is : G, Cadd9, A7sus4 and Dsus4

You can analyze that as (simplified) I IV V7/V V. That is pretty conventional. You have a tonic chord, pre-dominant harmony, and then the dominant. You could paraphrase that as just I... V.

I made a bridge with Em7 and Bm7

Going from G to Em is I to vi or going to the relative minor. That's very conventional for a bridge or middle eight.

In terms of harmonic contrast going to the relative major or minor works, because you change the mode/quality and get a different mood.

But a bridge should also go somewhere. It's a bridge to something. The bridge first provides harmonic contrast, then it goes to some other tonal space. A conventional thing to do is play the dominant chord of wherever you are going, or some progression to the dominant in the key you are going to. If you are going back to G try playing D to conclude the bridge.

Assuming a return to G and an eight bar bridge you could try some things like:

|Em7|Bm7|Em7|Bm7|Em7|Em7| + |D|D7| ...to G

|Em7|Bm7|Em7|Bm7|Em7|Em7| + |Am|D7| ...to G

|Em7|Em7|Bm7|Bm7| + |Em7|Em7|Am|C D7| ...to G

Notice the variation in endings, but they all end on the dominant of G. Using a dominant chord is a very conventional approach to change or return to a tonal area. It's not the only way to do it, but it's common.

On the other hand you could do something more unconventional, like...

|Em7|Bm7|Em7|Em7|Em7|Em7| + |Bm7|B7| ...to |Emaj7|

...a digression into a totally new place: E major.

You can play around with the specific chord extensions and voicings, as well as how many bars to hold a chord. You have latitude to try various options in that regard. But what you really want to ask about the bridge is where do you want it to take you harmonically?

...How can I improve my knowledge about chord progression and make interesting chord progressions...

There isn't really a short cut to understanding. The thing to do is analyse the chord in lots and lots of songs. Ideally you should find a library with a good music score collection and look for songbooks. Combine song analysis with studying a good harmony textbook (like Kostka, Tonal Harmony. or some other college level book.) The important point being it takes time to develop deep understanding rather that just cobbling together common progressions through trial and error.

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Before the question is closed for being off-topic, I want to answer question number 2.

  1. How can I improve my knowledge about chord progression and make interesting chord progressions and not simple like this example at F major scale (F,A,Dm,Bb)

I don't know how you can do it, but for me, nothing has been as beneficial as playing songs by ear in different keys. Trying to find the chords without cheating and looking at pre-made transcriptions is of course good, but if you can't find the chords even after trying, it's OK to read them. But then, memorize the chords, and play the song in different keys. And then make changes - substitute something with something, and see how it changes the mood, and the melodic possibilities.

Why this works for me - I think it's learning by example. If I play something without reading, I automatically learn the harmonic patterns that happen, and after playing it long enough, I start to apply the same patterns and suddenly I notice that I've learned it. Compared to this, theoretical thinking has not been very useful for me at all, except for getting names and terms for things. But it's always been like, (1) first learn the actual thing by example, and then (2) find names for the structural patterns, if needed. But it's never like "theory first". If theory is presented first, it's mostly meaningless mumbo jumbo. Ok, I it is possible to proceed even that way, but it's so much more work, it's inefficient waste of time.

So: play songs! You get to experience lots of chord, melody and rhythm patterns first-hand. To learn more interesting chord progressions, play songs that have interesting chord progressions. :) It's unrealistic to expect that you could actually invent or deduce things from abstract formulas.

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Chords are created from scales. Scales are merely combinations of notes.

  • Go to https://www.scalechords.com
  • Select notes you are playing in your melody or scale if you are sure
  • You will get chords within the selected scale, experiment with different combinations
  • Make sure to select "Show Chord Tones" in settings
  • I found your mentioned chords in C Major/Ionian scale
  • For progressions, stick to the chords of scales (not a strict rule,just a guideline)
  • always trust your ears
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    With the mentioned chords, G major would be a closer bet. Just because something's on the 'net...
    – Tim
    Nov 22, 2019 at 16:54
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    Chords are probably better described as created from intervals above a root, and you guessed the wrong key.
    – Michael Curtis
    Nov 22, 2019 at 20:30
  • I didn't go to your web page, sorry, but you shouldn't need an "app" for something as basic as this. :D Why contend with assisted helplessness instead of actually learning even a bit of something. I think you should learn basics and practice actual playing a bit more if you suggest C major for the OP's stuff. :)
    – piiperi Reinstate Monica
    Nov 22, 2019 at 21:17
  • I am a programmer not a musician. I am learning things from people around me like you all. I am here to see what people asks about theory. I dont know much theory/music..music is produced not calculated.. but for new things, we use learning aids. It helps to improve our understanding..I am using too. Saying it is not required is upto you. But if you you check 1 b2 b7 on guitar neck visually, you can find many chord shapes by your own, without finding chord charts.. You just please check what that link is about and can guide me on what things will be helpful. Not all people learn in one way.
    – abhijeet888
    Nov 23, 2019 at 9:22
  • piiperi - I am learning music..I have not mentioned I am a composer. Mentioned chords I saw are in c major so I said it. I dont recognise key by ear and all. @Michael, my key may be wrong, but those chords do exist in C Major .. Obviously intervals are the basic building blocks. Scales include Intervals as well..what you said doesnt mean what I said is wrong..I just used other words its like a=b b=c so a=c.
    – abhijeet888
    Nov 23, 2019 at 9:23

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