Week 4 Stressed and Unstressed Syllables

In the 4^th week, we were asked to take our 3^rd week’s assignment (stable verse to unstable chorus) and analyze it based on the stressed and unstressed syllables of everyday speech. Then we had to set it to music or speak it over a rhythm loop provided, ensuring the important stressed words are placed most often on the stressed beats of the bar. The video lectures only analyzed 4/4 time with respect to stress beats.

I did my own music.  Although technically my song is in 6/8 time, I analyzed every 2 bars of 6/8 as 1 bar of 4/4 because I did not want to confuse my evaluators with a compound rhythm.  Evaluations in this course have been inconsistent and occasionally frustrating.  With 65,000 course participants world-wide, there are many with no music experience, no songwriting experience and some with little or no English!  I decided to give my evaluators as much help as possible.

Below is the verse/chorus analyzed using   / for stressed syllables and   –  for unstressed.   I included the beat number of the bar under the lyrics so that the evaluator can see most of the important words come on stress beats 1 and 3, in 4/4 time, just like we learned in the lectures.

 

Here's the coundcloud link.

http://snd.sc/ZmgBdj

 

Verse 2 (stable)

 ​  -      /        -     /     -    /    -      /
She likes the singing  silver  sound

        1     2       3      4   1     2  3      4

-      -      /             -      -     /     -     /    -      /
Of  the spoon when he stirs his coffee round
             1        2                3   4      1    2    3       4

-        /          /        /         -      /     -      -       /
He drinks dark roast with honey and cream
       1           2     3      4        1       2          3        4

 -        -        /    -           /                 -    -  -      /
And she’s almost      sure          this is a dream
                  1      2 34   1 234123      4           1  2  3 4 1 2 3 4

 

 Chorus  (unstable)

-      -       /    -    -      /      -  -    /   -  -
He has candle-lit  eyes of experience
             1            2   3   4         1            234

-       -     /         -        /         /     -  /  -
But his eyes, they don’t say forever
              1     2         3         4       1      2

 -        /          -         -    /    -
But when they're together
         3                        4

 /        -       -     /     -    -    /
Somehow he senses she lives
1              2      3         4    1 2 3 4 1 2

-       /       -       /     -      /   -
She lives in   present tenses
        3         4               1       2   3 4 1234 1234