conventions

All about hip hop with iLLvibe

Toronto-based hip hop recording artist iLLvibe dropped by to share his music and his thoughts. Runner up to Drake for Toronto Rapper of the Year in 2016 and winner on “Canada’s Smartest Person” it was indeed an entertaining and informative hour!… Read the rest

All About Key Modulations with Frank Horvat

by Neel Modi

Good friend, manic composer, and musically big brained Frank Horvat joined us to talk all about key modulations, with three example songs. We talked about:

the difference between borrowing chords and modulation
chromatic alteration, where a single semi-tone difference can change the contour of your chord progression
referring to the circle of fifths to see modulation that are close or far from your base key signature
using pivot chords to bridge the gap between key signatures
key modulation between different sections of a song vs.

… Read the rest

Rhyme-a-rama with Blair Packham!

by Phil Emery

We figured it was time to talk about rhyme; a cornerstone of songwriting. So we invited one of our favourite singer/songwriters – Blair Packham – to take a closer listen to songs with a plethora of rhymes and one with virtually none!… Read the rest

Randy Newman’s “Cowboy” & “Somewhere” from West Side Story dissected with Patrick Ballantyne

by Phil Emery

Patrick Ballantyne stopped by to pull apart two of his fave songs. The open and emotive “Cowboy” by Randy Newman, and “Somewhere” from West Side Story by Stephen Sondheim and Leonard Bernstein.

Stuff we talked about:

Listen to the show

… Read the rest

Robert Priest – how to write songs for children

by Phil Emery

We had the pleasure of having the prolific Toronto poet, novelist, and singer/songwriter Robert Priest (with David Hynes on guitar) back in the studio to share a couple of his children’s songs. We talked about…

testing a song on a 6-year old
moving from writing for adults to writing for children on the same day
chord choices for children
writing for younger and older children (the differences)
kids deserve quality songwriting
“Inchworm” (an old favourite)
repetition in kids’ songs
using words that kids will have to look up (why not?)

… Read the rest

How to write a break-up song

by Phil Emery

True to form for Song Talk Radio, the day before Valentine’s Day seemed a good day to talk about break-up songs. So Phil brought “Operator (That’s Not the Way It Feels)” by Jim Croce, Neel chose “One More Minute” by “Weird Al” Yankovic, Bruce performed a new original tune “I Don’t Love You Anymore”, and Vanessa selected “White Blank Page” by the band Mumford & Sons.… Read the rest

Notes From A Non-Songwriter or “The Stuff You Need To Know”

by Vanessa Vreeland

When I joined Song Talk Radio as social media maven over a year ago, I knew nothing about songwriting. In the past, I learned to read music and play a few instruments including flute, bass clarinet, French horn and the drums.… Read the rest

How to manage your own career with Avery Florence

by Phil Emery

Avery Florence stopped by the studio on the cusp of her first tour. She was excited! “Road trip!” Her songs were a treasure trove of musical delight, and her tips about managing her own career were helpful to anyone trying to make a living as a singer/songwriter.… Read the rest