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Communicating with different time signatures

4 + 3

It’s safe to say that most songs in the singer-songwriter category are either in 4/4 or 3/4. Tasteful use of these two time signatures gives you an expressive way of extending a line, creating tension, and communicating feeling.

For instance, what happens when you’ve been playing in 4/4 for the entire verse, and then switch to 3/4 for the chorus? What does that communicate? Is there a sense of tension, surprise? Or try the verse in 3/4 and the chorus in 4/4.

How about using a single bar of 3/4 in the chorus, just before going back to the verse? How about extending the chorus by adding one more bar of 3/4?

Sometimes this type of thing works really well. Other times, not so much. Sometimes it’s just a matter of getting used to something new.

 

Expectations

These kinds of moves are always unexpected, and add interest even if that’s the only reason you use them. But they’re always more interesting if you use them in support of the lyrics.

For instance, if the line at the end of a verse expresses a feeling of uncertainty or tension, then a time signature different than the one you’re already using might support that feeling. If the end of the verse expressed confidence, then continuing with the existing time signature makes sense.

 

Living, breathing music

Using time signatures in this way means that you wouldn’t be repeating the same thing every verse. There would be a sense of organic change in the music as the feelings in the lyrics change.

These are really broad ideas. In the next post, I’ll get more specific, and use different time signatures on the same lyric to show how they affect the meaning of the words.

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