Getting Suggestions from the Audience
You need something to sing about, something to launch a song. The audience is going to give it to you. Here are sample questions you can use to get suggestions from them:
What’s a good reason to burst into song?
What’s a word that begins with the letter T (any letter)?
What’s the last thing you bought at a convenience store?
What’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to you?
How about some advice your mother gave you?
Give us a natural phenomenon, like rain, or the Grand Canyon.
What’s something that makes you nervous?
What costs more than $50 and less than
Continue reading That Reminds Me of a Song…
Imagine a train coming into the station-the engine is pulling a lot of cars, a lot of weight. It takes awhile for the train to come to a halt; it has to “start stopping” a certain amount of time before it actually does. This is analogous to the ending of a song. In order to bring a song comfortably and satisfyingly to a close, we need to do it gradually.
The longer the song, the longer the ending should be. A quick song can end quite abruptly and the audience doesn’t mind, as in a short children’s ditty like “London Bridge is
Continue reading The Choo-Choo Train Theory
From concept to finished product, this unique guide shows the way to create lyrics that make audiences laugh. Clear, friendly style of instruction is entertaining and easy to understand.
It was written expressly for comedy writers who need to know how to build solidly-crafted lyrics that any composer can readily set to music. It also explains exactly how to proceed if you’re not already a comedy expert.
This is a cool gift for any aspiring or professional songwriter, and an unusual addition to any lyricist’s library.
Below is the table of contents and an exerpt of the book
Chapter One
What If the President Had
Continue reading How to Write Funny Lyrics: The Comedy Songwriting Manual
This book uses clear, everyday language to clarify each element of an improvised song. Simple building blocks are combined with performance tips to bring your musical improvisation to its highest level.
The included CD provides 47 tracks of examples, exercises and practice accompaniments, featuring the author at the piano and cast members from Improv Olympic West’s Opening Night: The Improvised Musical.
Improvise a solo based on any audience suggestion
Create a song in any musical style
Play musical improv games with expertise
Perform in duets, trios, quartets and ensemble numbers
Listen to samples from the included CD:
Backup vocals Example
Backup Vocals Example
Ballad practice accompaniment
Ballad practice accompaniment
Blues practice
Continue reading Musical Improv Comedy: Creating Songs in the Moment
Clear, friendly explanations and recorded examples introduce each musical principle and encourage individual creativity. Masteryear Publishing is proud to present this guide to musical skills long considered mysterious and practically unteachable.
Step by step, author Michael Pollock explains the thinking process behind comedy accompaniment and musical direction in clear, simple language. Each concept is illustrated by audio examples, featuring actors from The Second City Los Angeles and Michael at the keys.
The best comedy troupes in the world have live keyboardists. The musicians who can provide this kind of expert accompaniment and direction are relatively rare. Want to learn? Get the ony
Continue reading Musical Direction for Improv and Sketch Comedy
