Questions tagged [lyrics]
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses.
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questions
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In the song, don't stop till you get enough, what was Michael singing? [migrated]
I'm asking specifically about this line which are in the official lyrics:
"Keep on, with the force, don't stop"
There's no way Michael was singing that. It sound more like he sang something ...
3
votes
2
answers
52
views
LilyPond Lyrics Alignment - align to syllable vowel (as found in gregorian sheets)
Is there a way to align lyrics in LilyPond in such a way that the syllable vowel (or last vowel of a diphtong) aligns to the note (or the first note of a melisma), like we find in gregorian chant ...
8
votes
1
answer
2k
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How to spell "W" in lyrics
I would like to use the letter W in a set of lyrics in a choral work. I want the performers to pronounce all three syllables of the letter, as if they were spelling.
Wikipedia suggests spelling it &...
0
votes
1
answer
98
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How should I teach myself how to sing?
I really really love to sing! I started a year ago. I want to pick up singing and sing well and sound nice. I play two instruments, so I have good ears. I’m young (15).
How should I go about teaching ...
4
votes
2
answers
263
views
Applying a given markup to two consecutive syllables in lyrics
Given the following LilyPond MWE:
melody = \relative c' {
a( b) c
}
lyra = \lyricmode {
Foo bar baz
}
lyrb = \lyricmode {
Foo -- bar baz
}
lyrc = \lyricmode {
Foo __ bar baz
}
\score {
&...
1
vote
2
answers
111
views
I like to sing lyrics as I come up with them. What is this called?
As I write lyrics, I just start singing & turn them into full verses/choruses.
What is this called? melody?
What is my next step into turning them into pop songs?
Do i turn each syllable into ...
2
votes
1
answer
79
views
Lilypond: Lyrics variants for repeated music
I am currently dealing with a piece of vocal music that has sections which repeat musically but have different lyrics variants for the first and second time of the repeated segments.
Consider the ...
6
votes
1
answer
72
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Lilypond: How to avoid overshooting melisma in last stanzas [incl. MWE and output]
I am trying to create some sheet music with lyrics. Some features of the music are:
There are repeat sections in the music with alternative endings.
The music starts on the chorus.
There are more ...
1
vote
0
answers
47
views
Song question that I been trying to figure out [closed]
I have been wondering what the name of this song is for a while, does anyone have any idea what it is called?
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5ly3yr
1
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0
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Changing words to Cohen's "Hallelujah" [closed]
I have heard at least four different sets of lyrics to Cohen's Hallelujah. But in spite of having very different overall themes, none of them changed the lines "the fourth, the fifth / the minor ...
4
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3
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241
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How do we know where line breaks occur in lyrics?
When looking up written lyrics of songs, multiple sources tend to put line breaks in the same place. My question is how do the people transcribing the songs know where to put the line breaks?
...
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votes
1
answer
67
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The nature of rhyme in _Surrender_? [closed]
Consider the priceless Surrender, written by Rick Neilsen, 1977.
Mother told me, yes she told me
In a sense, the me/me rhymes.
I'd meet girls like you
She also told me stay away
You'll never know what ...
5
votes
1
answer
247
views
LilyPond: words connected with hyphen
I started working on a songbook with English songs and came across lyrics where the words are connected with hyphens.
What would be the best way to show these in LilyPond?
In the example below there ...
4
votes
1
answer
102
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Lilypond verse lyrics with repeat and anacrusis
I'm wondering if someone can point me to a snippet or other example as I'm yet to find a solution ...
I have a piece, a simple tune with 2 verses n Lilypond where the piano parts, melody and words are ...
1
vote
0
answers
81
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Does this bar make sense? [closed]
My boyfriends a rapper, he showed me something he’d written and we’re disagreeing over one of the bars. He’s adamant that it makes sense but I’m telling him it doesn’t.
“They used to laugh and look at ...
2
votes
2
answers
97
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If I put accented syllables(these syllables have higher pitch and higher volume) on each beat of music does it count as syncopation?
If I put accented syllables(these syllables have higher pitch and higher volume) on each beat of music does it count as syncopation since I’m also accentuating beats 2 and 4?All of this is in 4/4 time....
2
votes
4
answers
133
views
How to develop a musical idea/lyrics without forcing it?
I have many musical ideas, some instrumental and some are parts of songs with lyrics and melody but in most times I can't get myself to develop the musical ideas or to write more lyrics without ...
4
votes
4
answers
588
views
How to create synthetic speech with a musical synth?
I want to create 100% synthetic voice speech with no human voice to make my instrument say and sing lyrics.
I looked at the formants of different vowels like "A" or "E" or "O&...
1
vote
1
answer
1k
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How appropriate or inappropriate is the word "papoose" in a Native America song? [closed]
I'm researching Native American songs to teach elementary students (approx. 8-9 years old) in a US public elementary school.
I found many songs that have the original lyrics presented phonetically, so ...
3
votes
1
answer
203
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Lilypond avoid \melisma code
To align lyrics to music properly, instead of using \melisma and \melismaEnd, I found this method:
\version "2.20.0"
...
\addlyrics {
Che -- _ _ _ ta -- na __ _ _ _
}
Is this ok? or is better to ...
4
votes
1
answer
107
views
how to force lyrics under manually beamed notes
If I do not specify any manual beams and let the algorithm do it, lyrics are put at each note:
\relative {
g'4 e8 g8 g4 e8 g
}
\addlyrics { a b c d e f }
But if I do it manually and forbid the ...
3
votes
7
answers
453
views
How do I get started again when I've lost heart? [closed]
I used to compose at the piano when I was younger. When I got married and had children, it was diminished. Then, when I lost house, wife, child 1, 2, then 3 (the last), it was really hard. After ...
8
votes
1
answer
268
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Add text at the end of the score in LilyPond
Is it possible to add a text at the end of the score like in this example?
4
votes
4
answers
321
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How do lyrics differ from prose?
Lyrics don't require meter as does poetry so what separates lyrics from prose? Reputation? Rhyme? Does meter even matter?
Example: lines 2 and 4 vary quite a bit in length
2
votes
0
answers
64
views
align end of melisma extender line with last melisma note
This is a follow-up question to this answer.
I have a melisma defined like so
\relative
{
c'4. e8 g4 c a c8 a g2
}
\addlyrics {
Al -- le Vö -- gel sind schon __ _ da,
}
which gives me this output:...
5
votes
2
answers
175
views
melisma extender line minimum length
I have this kind of music containing a melisma:
\relative
{
c'4. e8 g4 c a c8 a g2
}
\addlyrics {
Al -- le Vö -- gel sind schon __ _ da,
}
I get this:
The melisma extender line (after schon) is ...
3
votes
3
answers
177
views
melisma extender line up to punctuation mark
I use Lilypond 2.20.0. I have music and lyrics with a melisma defined like this:
music = {
\relative
{
\numericTimeSignature
\time 4/4
c'4 e g a
}
\addlyrics {
foo __ _ _! ...
1
vote
3
answers
420
views
Can non-voice instruments produce the sounds of vocal lyrics?
How can an instrument like the guitar or the piano be made to sound as though it's speaking real words, without any use of a human voice?
0
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2
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117
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Why is (vocal) melody usually written in quarter notes? [closed]
While writing melody, I was trying to stretch short verses into 16 bars by using too many whole and half notes, and now I think it was equal to having tempo at half speed. Most melody is written with ...
12
votes
1
answer
711
views
Lilypond is not aligning lyrics correctly
I was writing sheet music consisting of melody, chords and lyrics. To my surprise, the lyrics weren't aligned correctly under the notes. The file looked like correct Lilypond source code:
global = {
...
3
votes
1
answer
573
views
Display chord chart (just symbols) like lyrics for music files (mp3 etc)?
Summary:
Is there a way to display chord symbols in music players (software apps) ? Like .srt files for movie subtitles or .lrc for music lyrics, isn't there a format or alternative for chords ?
...
0
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4
answers
180
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How can you make sure you remember the melody for any lyrics you write?
How can you make sure you remember the melody for any lyrics you write? I am not even sure if it's possible, because I don't know any notation system for lyrics that allows you to write down the ...
4
votes
3
answers
413
views
Come to think of it, who did put the bop in the bop shoo bop shoo bop?
There have been "la la la"s and nonsense lyrics in music since ... well, since a long time back. Why, who could forget that sixteenth-century classic "Nos Galan"? And Nigunim have ...
3
votes
1
answer
175
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Lilypond: how to align lyrics vertically if the melody is split into variables?
In Lilypond, I'd like to split a melody into variables in order to easily see which syllables belong to which notes. Unfortunately, I am doing it in a way that seems to mess up the vertical alignment ...
2
votes
1
answer
259
views
What's the term for the duplication of a note, when a singer has to repeat a verse but it's a syllable longer?
This is something I mostly associate with nursery rhymes and songs that use a specific melody repeated over and over.
An example, from a version of London Bridge Is Falling Down:
Build it up with ...
3
votes
1
answer
216
views
(Dis)aligning lyrics to a melody with LilyPond
I am trying to write a score for piano and voice. The piano actually has staves associated with it, but because the melody is already common and known by the intended audience, there is no staff for ...
3
votes
3
answers
148
views
How would you arrange the lyrics to this sheet music for Amazing Grace?
I'm practicing a simplified version of Amazing Grace from Charles Segal's book Instant Piano Keyboard. I've included a picture of the sheet music below. I would like to sing along as I play this song, ...
0
votes
1
answer
58
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What would this song section be called?
I'm new to genius transcribing and I'm unsure of the song sections. In the image below I don't know what these parts with the red dots are called. Above first red dot is verse 1 and nothing else.
...
0
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2
answers
3k
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How to understand the meter and pulse of lyrics in songwriting?
I've been learning many different concepts as a beginning songwriter and have been working on applying them in my work. However, I can't seem to full understand how to control lyric meter and lyric ...
0
votes
2
answers
139
views
What is it called when there is a lyrical transition to the chorus/hook?
There are many songs that do this, the latest one I've identified is:
A$AP Mob - Yamborghini High (Official Music Video) ft. Juicy J (youtube,genius)
Specifically this line here:
She make no ...
1
vote
3
answers
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Is there a standard way of singing over ii-V-I in jazz?
I am new to music theory especially jazz and blues. I have since learned about writing lyrics or singing over a traditional 12 bar blues progression using AAB form, thus repeating the first line (A) ...
4
votes
4
answers
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What is it called when a group of vocalists or chorus sing Ooh's oh's, ah's, etc?
I heard my chorus director refer to it as something sounding like dest cant or something, but since I'm hard-of-hearing, I couldn't hear all the letters.
If someone can give me the correct name for ...
2
votes
1
answer
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Scansion. Vocabulary
So I'm trying to get into poetry and using scansion to understand I guess the rhythm. MY question is what do you call it when you have a line with different stresses and unstressed syllables?
For ...
6
votes
3
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When did the anonymous "you" become popular in western pop music?
This question might sound a bit facetious but I have been wondering for a long time. Many western pop songs are addressed to an anonymous "you". Presumably the song writer wants to write a song that ...
3
votes
2
answers
372
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Are there fewer rhymes in contemporary popular music? If so, why? [closed]
Vsauce mentions a study by Joan Serra showed contemporary pop music is less complex in its musical motives than it was, which he explains by a wider diversity in form and genres.
While complexity of ...
4
votes
1
answer
680
views
How should I write out the word "Choir" to be sung in two syllables?
The word "choir" is pronounced /ˈkwī(ə)r/, but if I divide the syllables they are cho and ir.
So I imagine that if it's to be sung on two notes my choices are:
..
I think [based on this post}(https:...
1
vote
1
answer
141
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Lilypond: How to use repeat bars in markup lyrics
I am using \markup after the score for several verses of lyrics, so roughly
\score { ... }
\markup {
\column {
\line { ... }
...
}
}
How can I typeset repeat marks for a piece of ...
0
votes
3
answers
2k
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How to write lyrics over multiple notes
When one wants to write a piece in which a 1 syllable word is split between multiple notes, how is this shown? Or a multiple syllable word over the same number of notes? A visual representation/...
2
votes
1
answer
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If I just change the lyrics and flow (very slightly) of a song is it called a cover or a remix?
Is it referred as to something else? Like my version of a song or tribute.
2
votes
2
answers
3k
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Turning lyrics into melody
Ive currently been having great difficulty turning my lyrics and poems into a melody. i've considered aligning the accented syllables as well as the meter with accented beats but am still having ...