Whether you're new to writing melodies or looking for new approaches, musical centering is a relatively simple exercise worth trying.

Understanding the relationships between chords can pay off many times over for a songwriter. Here's a quick guide to the common chords in a major key.

Let's look at some relatively simple techniques for writing a chord progression. These techniques alone can generate countless songs.

Let's take a look at the structure, chord progressions, and melodies of "Like I Used To". We'll use what we learn to come up with some useful songwriting exercises.

Which guitar chords should you learn if you want to write songs? A handful of basic chords and a capo open up endless possibilities.

Let's look at some practical techniques you can use to find chords that fit your major key melody. No knowledge of reading music is required.

Once you know the key of your song, you'll be able to narrow down your choices of chords (and notes) that will probably sound 'right'. Let's look at two ways to find the key for a melody.

Are your chord progressions sounding stale or repetitive? Are you looking for new sounds? Borrowing chords is a great way to expand your options.

There's a world beyond major and minor keys, and it can really open up possibilities for your songwriting. Let's explore how to combine them together into a super key!

Harmonic functions provide one framework for understanding why some chord progressions work and others don't. Let's take a closer look at harmonic functions in major keys.