Later developments in pop music

Hello and welcome to today's lesson entitled "Later Developments in Pop Music". My name's Mr. Norris, and I'm gonna be taking you through today as we have a look at how artists since the 1990s have used modern technology, and have been influenced by that in their songwriting. We're also gonna look at how we create contrast in a pop ballad, so let's get to it. Our outcome for today's lesson is I understand how pop music has evolved since the 1990s and can create a contrasting section of music. Some key words. Overdubbing, and this is the process of recording multiple layers of sound individually and layering them together in a piece of music. Verse-chorus form, this is a common structure in popular music based around alternating verses and choruses. Drum fill, a drum fill is a short variation in a drum groove, usually at the end of a phrase or section. And finally, reverb, and this is an echo effect that can be added to a set. The first part of our lesson today is looking at the development of modern pop music. Pop ballads have continued to evolve since the 1990s as pop artists have used increasingly sophisticated technology. There's been continued growth of sampling, use of electronic instruments, and sound effects across many pop music genres. I'd like you to pause my video and have a listen to this clip, and try and identify what examples of music technology can you identify that have been used here. So you can pause my video and have a go at that. You might have picked up on the fact then that there were synthesisers, electronic drums, sound effects, an echo effect, effect added to the vocals, filters, and EQ changes. So loads of different ways there that music technology has been used and has influenced the sound of the end product. It also includes overdubbing. And overdubbing is the process of adding new recorded sound to a preexisting recording to create a combined effect, and it can allow multiple layers to be performed by the same performer. So they record one track, and then they record another track over the top of it. The complex texture in this clip has been created by overdubbing, where the same singer has recorded all of the layers separately. I'd like you to pause my video and see if you can hear those individual layers that have been overdubbed. Pop music has also become increasingly eclectic, which means it has a variety of styles and influences within it. These modern pop songs are very different, stylistically. What influences of other styles can you hear in these two clips? So pause my video, listen to these two clips, and try and pick out what other stylistic influences you think are there. You might have noticed then that the first song sounds like it's influenced by reggaeton. It's got that really typical Dembo beat, and the rhythms are very typical of reggaeton. And the second one sounds like it's influenced by country music and hip hop, that's partly because of the instrumentation and partly because of the use of rap and the drumbeat as well, which is quite typical of some of those styles. So well done if you picked up on any of those stylistic influences. And these are really good examples of how eclectic pop music has become, in that it draws influence from many different styles around the world. Which of these is a key difference between modern pop ballads and those from the '70s and '80s? Is it that they have a faster tempo, they have different lyrical themes, they use modern sound technology, or they use very different instrumentation? I'll give you a few seconds to choose your answer. And the correct answer here then is they use modern sound technology. Fundamentally, the lyrical themes and the instrumentation have stayed more or less the same, and there's no substantial change in tempo. However, that technology is what has really transformed modern pop music from that which came before it. If we say something is eclectic, what does that mean? Is it that it has common features, it has evolved, it has stayed consistent over time, or it is varied? I'll give you a few seconds. And the correct answer then is it means it is varied. So if something is eclectic, it has varied influences. If modern pop music is eclectic, it means it draws on varied influences from lots of different styles. For task eight you're gonna listen to each clip and answer the questions. For the first example, list four features that suggest it is a pop ballad, describe what the strings are playing, and then suggest one vocal technique that brings out the emotion in the lyrics. And for example two, I'd like you to list three ways that modern technology has been used, and then which of the following styles of music has most closely influenced this song and why. So we've got reggae, EDM, hip hop, or country. You can pause my video now and give this task your best shot. Good luck. Let's go through these answers then. For example one, four features that suggest it's a pop ballad were that it has romantic or sentimental lyrics, it has expressive singing, a slow tempo, prominent piano, a simple drumbeat, use of orchestral string instruments, and simple harmony. So all those features are quite typical of pop ballads, and those were all present in that example. The strings are playing sustained chords, and you might have mentioned there they were playing arco as well, that means using the bow. And then a vocal technique that brings out the emotion in the lyrics, well, you could have mentioned vibrato on the long notes, use of rubato, which is that slight change in tempo that the singer does to add expression; and then the use of melisma on the word touch, so where you've got more than one note sung to a single syllable. Well done if you got any of those points there. For example two, three ways that modern technology has been used include use of synthesisers, electronic drum sounds, sound effects, overdubbing, use of echo, and use of EQ filters. So well done if you got any of those. And then the style that has influenced it would probably say EDM, electronic dance music. And that's because of the heavy use of electronic instruments and the repetitive EDM-style drumbeat, where you've got that real repetitive pulse, four on the floor on the kick drum. So well done if you got any of those points there. Hopefully, you've got a sense here of how eclectic and varied the influences on modern pop music are. Now we're gonna move on to look at creating contrast in a pop ballad. Pop ballads typically use verse-chorus form, which is a structure based around alternating verses and choruses. They often build emotion musically by creating contrast between simple and calmer verses, and more intense and powerful choruses. Compare the verse and the pre-chorus of this song. I'd like you to consider the texture, the instrumentation, and the pitch of the melody. So you can pause my video and compare these two. Here are some of the things you might have noticed then. The verse has only a singer and an electric piano, so it's got a thin texture. The melody is lower in pitch, and the piano is playing mainly block chords with some passing notes. Whereas in the pre-chorus, the singing is higher pitched. There's a bass, a drum kit, and sustained strings that join in as well. It creates a much thicker texture, so we've got real contrast between these two sections. A common way to create contrast between the verse and the chorus, or in this case the verse and the pre-chorus, is to use different instrumentation and different textures. Using different rhythms in the chords can also create contrast. I'd like you to listen to these clips. How does the rhythm of the piano chords create a more energetic mood in the chorus of this song? You can pause my video and see if you can answer that. So you might have picked up on the fact here then that the rhythm of the chords is faster, there are repeated quavers in the chorus. So this makes it feel more energetic, more upbeat, more lively, and that's a really simple way of creating a little bit of contrast. In this example, the chord sequence at the end of the verse is based around minor chords, and the chorus emphasises the major key. So this creates a clear contrast in mood. See if you can pick that out. So look for those minor chords, that sort of more minor feeling towards the end of the verse, and then try and identify how the chorus is mostly based around the major chords and emphasises that major key. You can pause my video and have a listen. So chord six, which in the QFC will be A minor, is a popular chord in chord sequences. Starting a new section on this chord can create a different mood and apply a different key, and that's 'cause chord six in a major key is always a minor chord. So basing your harmony around that for a section can create a really nice bit of harmonic contrast. Let's check your understanding. Typically, a pop ballad's verse has a what mood than the chorus? Is it more energetic, louder, calmer, or faster? I'll give you a few seconds. And the correct answer here then is it typically has a calmer mood than the chorus. It often starts quite calm and simple, and then builds up in the chorus. Which of the following are often varied to create contrast in a verse? And I'd like you to select all that apply. So which ones can be varied to create contrast? Is it chord sequence, tempo, texture, or rhythms? You can just pause my video and have a think about that one. The answers here then would be chord sequence, texture, or rhythms. Varying those are really effective ways to create contrast. We wouldn't tend to vary the tempo, and that's because varying the tempo completely changes the feel and the rhythmic sense of a piece of music, so we would try and avoid varying that, other than with a little bit of rubato perhaps. Now let's watch a video that shows us how to create a contrasting chord sequence for a verse. Now I'm gonna create a contrasting verse. I'm gonna start off with my chord sequence. There are a few ways that I can make sure it contrasts. The first one is by using different rhythms, and if I listen to my piano part from my chorus I'll hear that mostly here we've got lots of moving quavers. (gentle piano music) So I want to use rhythms that contrast with that in my new section. I'm also gonna use a different chord sequence and maybe try and emphasise different chords. In my chorus chord sequence it kept coming back to the chord C, but what composers often do in the verse to create a bit of contrast is put the emphasis on a different chord. So I might be starting off my chord sequence using chord six, which is a minor chord, which is a really good way of creating a contrasting mood. So I'm gonna experiment with some different chords, and when I've come up with my eight-bar chord sequence I'm then gonna record it in. And I've already come up with mine so I'm ready to record it. I'll talk you through as I play it in. (mouse clicking) I'm also, as I'm doing it, gonna be trying to come up with a different rhythm or pattern for my chords. Because I've used broken chords in my chorus, I think I might use some block chords in my verse because that creates real contrast. I could also think about the range. I might decide to play it lower down, (piano keys playing) or for the contrast I might play it higher up. (piano keys playing) So by doing those things, I can create real contrast between my verse and my chorus. I'm gonna record in my chords now, and then here we go, I've made sure I've got the metronome on. So I'm gonna start on chord six, this is A minor. (light instrumental music) Then chord five. (light instrumental music) chord four. (light instrumental music) then I'm gonna go to chord one. (light instrumental music) I'm gonna go back to chord six, maybe jump to chord four. (light instrumental music) Let's try chord two, (light instrumental music) then you're gonna finish on five. (light instrumental music) So I've mostly used primary chords there, four, five, and one, but I've also used six quite a bit, and I had a chord two in there, so that really contrasts with the chord sequence from our chorus. I've also based it mostly on long sustained notes, so the pattern was one, two, three on four, as opposed to the moving quavers that we heard in my broken chords of the chorus. So that's the first stage. I've created a contrasting chord sequence, and now we're gonna look at what we can do next. And now let's take a look at how we can add a bassline to that verse. The next step is to create a bassline to go with my contrasting chord sequence. This is quite straightforward. I'm either gonna use the root note of each chord, or if I want to try some inversions I would have to work out the other notes of the chord to use. So if we have a look at my chord sequence here, I've started on A minor, (piano key playing) so I'll put an A, then G, (piano key playing) then F, (piano key playing) then C, (piano key playing) then A, (piano key playing) then F, (piano key playing) then D, (piano key playing) then G. (piano key playing) So that's my basic root note bassline. If I want to try adding some inversions, I just have to work out which note of those chords I want to use. Remember, if you decide to use inversions, don't use too many. Go for one, two, max three, and keep the rest of your chords in root position. I'm also gonna create a slightly contrasting rhythm in my bassline, so in my chorus I've used this pattern. (light instrumental music) So I think I'm just gonna do sustained notes instead of having those repeated notes like I do in the chorus, that creates a bit of contrast. Here we go, the nice recording. ♪ The flame ♪ (gentle piano music) So bar four and now I'm going to C. (light instrumental music) Bar five, A minor. (light instrumental music) Bar six, gonna jump to F. (light instrumental music) Then D, and then G to finish. (light instrumental music) So that section now creates a real contrast with my chorus. I've got different rhythms, simple rhythms in both my chord sequence of the piano and on my bass track. I've used different chords with an emphasis more on A minor and less on C. And in so doing I've created a different, calmer, contrasting mood, and we're gonna look at how we exploit that more later. Let's review those steps. Start by using one or more of the following to create contrast. You could use a different rhythm or pattern, different chords within the key, and remember that using chord six, which is a minor chord, is often effective. Using block or broken chords or changing between them, and considering using a different octave. And then record it in adding a simple bassline using root notes, and possibly using some other chords to create inversions carefully as well. Let's check your understanding. How can we vary a chord sequence to create contrast? You can pause my video while you answer that question. And we might say here then that we could use broken chords instead of block chords, we could change the octave, and we could continue using different chords within the key, including minor chords or chord six, which is a minor chord. For task B, I'd like you to create a contrasting verse for your pop ballad. Some success criteria. The eight-bar chord sequence should contrast with the chorus chords. Make sure you've considered using minor chords, typically chord six, to create a contrasting mood. You've used different rhythms to your chorus, you've looped the sequence to last for 16 bars, and the bassline is simple, mainly based on root notes. So with that in mind, you can pause my video and give this your best shot. For the second part of this task, we're gonna listen to a verse and a chorus. How has contrast been created here, and how could more contrast be created? Let's listen firstly to the verse. (gentle upbeat instrumental music) And now let's listen to the chorus. (gentle upbeat instrumental music) While you're finishing your answer, you can pause my video. Let's go through that one then. So contrast is created by starting the verse on chord six, which is a minor chord. And the verse uses more minor chords to create a different mood, so the mood harmonically contrasts. Your sections use the same broken chord quaver pattern, so to create more contrast one section could have used block chords or a different rhythmic pattern as well. Well done if you picked up on any of those points. Now we're gonna move on to the final part of our lesson, which today is focused on using the drum kit to create contrast. The drum kit can also be used in different ways to create contrast. A simple way of doing this is to use no drum kit at the start and then increase the energy in the chorus by adding the kit. We can also change the drumbeat. I'd like you to listen to this verse and chorus from this song and compare the drumbeats, or the similarities and the differences. You can pause my video and have a listen. Before we review that, let's listen to those drumbeats in isolation and see if we can get clear on the similarities and differences. Here's the verse drumbeat, (drumbeat pounding) and now the chorus drumbeat. (drumbeat pounding) So some key differences you might have picked up are that in the chorus there's a lot of use of the crash and the ride cymbals, and there's a much stronger backbeat on the snare, emphasising beat two and four. There's also some short fills in the chorus as well. But they both have some real similarities, they work around similar conventions. For example, the kick drum emphasises beat one and three in both examples, there's a backbeat in both, but in the verse beat two is played on the hi-hat instead of the snare, so it's not strongly emphasised in the verse. They both use repeated quavers. The ride cymbal plays this in the chorus, and the hi-hat plays at the end of each bar in the verse so that it doesn't play repeated quavers for the whole bar, but there is some use of that convention. And then both use reverb to give some depth to the sound as well, so it makes it sound slightly echoey and gives a bit more depth and breadth to the sound. Drum fills can also be used to highlight the transition from one section to another. Just pause my video and have a listen out for the drum fills emphasising the transition between sections in this clip. In that example, a drum fill highlights the transition to the chorus, where there's a slightly more complex drumbeat, so it highlights that change in the drum groove. Now let's have a look at how we create two contrasting drumbeats. Now I'm gonna look at how we can use the drumbeat to emphasise the contrast between verse and chorus. Before I do anything else, I'm just gonna swap my sections over. So I'm gonna highlight my whole chorus, move it beyond my verse, and then move everything back to the start. So now I have my verse first and my chorus after, which is the more typical order of those sections. Next, I'm gonna make a drum kit track, and I want an acoustic drum kit rather than an electronic drum kit, as that's more typical of the genre of the pop ballad. I'm gonna go for this one but you will choose one that suits your song. (mouse clicking) So I want to make two contrasting drumbeats, and I want my verse to have a calmer, gentler feel and my chorus to be slightly more climactic and slightly more energetic. So I'm gonna have a play around and see if I can come up with some different drumbeats that help accentuate that difference. I'm gonna put my verse on and just experiment, see what I can come up with. I've got my kick, (drumbeat kicking) I've got my snare, (snare clanging) and I've got my hi-hat. (drumbeat pounding) I've also got ride symbol I could use, and I've also got the rimshot that I could use as well. Let's have a little play. (light instrumental music) So I've thought of a couple of things. The first thing is that I want to use the rimshot as opposed to the snare in this section, 'cause it's a little bit gentler, a bit softer. I've also decided that I'm going to use a really, really simple hi-hat pattern, just playing crotchets (light upbeat music) rather than quavers. That leaves lots of space in the drumbeat, so it doesn't feel too energetic and too busy. That leaves me space in the chorus to do a slightly more interesting, slightly more complex drumbeat. So I'm gonna record in my simple drumbeat. (light upbeat music) One bar will do, I could quantize it if I wanted to, and that will do it for my verse. That's my first drumbeat. (drumbeat pounding) Now I'm gonna create a contrasting one for this chorus. (light upbeat music) ♪ In the silence of the night ♪ ♪ I hear whispers of your name ♪ ♪ Every shadow in the night ♪ ♪ Just reminds of the flame ♪ So for the contrast here, I'm gonna use ride cymbal instead of hi-hat. I'm gonna use the snare instead of the rim shot, and I'm gonna have some faster rhythms going on so quavers in the ride, and I might have some extra snares in there as well. So there's more going on, I've got more powerful sounds, and I've got faster rhythms. Here we go, it's recorded bar this in. (light upbeat music) ♪ In the silence of the- ♪ I can loop that and quantize it. (mouse clicking) Let's just listen to the end of my verse then and start my chorus to hear that contrast. (light upbeat music) ♪ In the silence of the night ♪ So there's a real contrast between those two drumbeats there. Although they're still doing a similar bass and snare pattern, the choice of sounds and the faster rhythms in the cymbal have made a big difference to the feel. Let's see now how we can reverb to our drum track. We can also add some reverb to make the drum kit sound like it's a live acoustic drum kit in a performance space. This was really typical in pop ballads from the 1970s to the 1990s, and I'm gonna quickly show you how to do it. So open up your track, and the easiest one on GarageBand to do it is we can control this master reverb setting here. Depending on the software you are using, you might have a reverb dial here, or you might have to dig around in your settings to find reverb. I'm just gonna play my drum kit track here. And what we want is we want enough reverb that sounds like the instrument is playing in a live performance space, but not so much that it sounds really echoing over the top. So let's put this drum track on. (light drumbeat pounding) At the moment there's very little reverb, so it sounds very dry. It could be in a studio. (light drumbeat pounding) This one sounds like they're playing in a tunnel, so we don't want that. (light drumbeat pounding) Somewhere in the middle where there's a little bit of echo to the sounds. (light drumbeat pounding) I like that amount of reverb there, we've got a little bit so it sounds like we're playing in a proper performance space, but it's not really over the top and obvious. So I've got adding a little bit of reverb to your drum track once you've created your two contrasting drumbeats. And then finally, let's have a look at highlighting the transition between drumbeats with a drum fill. The final thing I'm gonna add is a drum fill to highlight the transition between the verse and the chorus. Drum fills normally come at the end of a section, so in this case it's gonna be bar eight, which is this bar here. And I could do either a four-beat or a two-beat drum fill, so that's either for that whole bar or the second half of that bar. There's lots of different ways we can create drum fills. We can use just the snare drum, we can use some of the tom-toms, we can also add some kick in there, and there are lots of different patterns that we could use. All I'm gonna do is I'm gonna loop this little section here, and I'm gonna show you a few different drum fills that we could be used. (light upbeat music) So there's a few different ones there, a few common themes. Some of 'em have used tom-toms. (drumbeat pounding) Something like that. Some of 'em just used a snare, (drumbeat pounding) or some of 'em used snare and kick like I did there. (drumbeat pounding) Another important thing to note is that you end on beat one of the next section, so it's the start of bar nine in this case, with a crash cymbal and usually with a kick drum as well. So whatever I'm doing. (light upbeat instrumental music) So it'll all end with that there. I've come up with one that I like, so I'm gonna record it in. (light upbeat instrumental music) ♪ In the silence of the- ♪ So let's just have a listen then to that transition between my first simpler drumbeat and my second more complex one, with a fill in the middle highlighting that transition. So it's the simpler drumbeat. (light upbeat instrumental music) Ready for the fill. (light upbeat instrumental music) And then the more complex drumbeat. (light upbeat instrumental music) In my drum fill there, I ended on the kick and the crash. In mine I happened to use some snare and a bit of tom, but you can combine different drums in different ways, see what works. And my fill there was two beats long, but you could do a four-beat fill if you prefer. Let's review those steps. Start by recording your verse and chorus so that your verse comes first. Then record a simple drumbeat for your verse. Consider using ride cymbal instead of hi-hat and rim shot instead of snare. Record a more complex and contrasting drumbeat for your chorus. Add some reverb to make the drum kit sound alive and give some more depth to the sound. And then record a drum fill at the end of your verse. Let's check your understanding. Which section normally has a simpler drumbeat in a pop ballad? Is it the verse, chorus, or neither? And the correct answer here then is the verse normally has a simpler drumbeat, and it normally builds up and becomes more complex in the chorus When are drum fills most common or used? Is it the start of a section, the middle of a section, or the end of a section? I'll give you a few seconds. And the correct answer here then is at the end of a section. That's when drum fills are most commonly used to highlight that transition. Match the drum kit parts to their typical role in a beat. Kick drum, snare drum, and hi-hat/ride. And then constant quavers or crotchets, beats one and three, and beats two and four. And just pause my video while you do that. And the correct answers then would be the kick drum plays beats one and three, snare drum beat two and four, and high hat ride on constant quavers or crotchets. For task C you're gonna record a drum track for your pop ballad. The steps to follow are reorder your verse and chorus so that your verse comes first, record a simple drumbeat for your verse, record a more complex drumbeat for your chorus, add some reverb to make the drum kit sound live, and then record a drum fill at the end of your verse. Some success criteria for those drumbeats. For a simple drumbeat you want the high hat playing crotchets instead of quavers. The backbeat you could play on the rimshot instead of the snare, and the kick probably only wants to play on beat one and three. For more complex drumbeat you could consider using repeated quavers on the ride instead of the high hat, playing the backbeat on the snare instead of rimshot, and kick playing a more complex pattern that still emphasises one and three, but might have some extra notes in there as well. So you can pause my video now, have a go at creating these contrasting drumbeats. For the final part of this task, I'd like to analyse the drum track of this verse and chorus. How could it be made more suitable for a pop ballad? Here we go. (light upbeat instrumental music) ♪ In the silence of the night ♪ ♪ I hear whispers of your name ♪ ♪ Every shadow in the night ♪ ♪ Just reminds me of the flame ♪ (light upbeat instrumental music) So you can pause my video just while I finish your answer. Let's review that then. As a drumbeat, it's successful 'cause there's a backbeat and a kick pattern that works around beats one and three. There's also contrast between the two drumbeats. However, it could be made more suitable by being less busy. At the moment the high hat plays semiquavers, whereas crotchets or quavers would be more suitable. There are many crash cymbals in the chorus and open high hats, which doesn't suit the mood, and removing or adapting these would make it more suitable. And then finally, the balance should also be adjusted so the drum kit is not too loud. It should be more in the background, whereas at the moment it's quite dominant and overpowering. So well done if you picked up on any of those points. Let's review today's lesson. Pop ballads have continued to evolve through the use of music technology and by incorporating different musical styles. In verse-chorus form, contrast between the sections is important to maximise the impact of the chorus. This happens through using different textures and contrasting chords and drum grooves. Drum grooves in pop ballads often use reverb and are usually simple with a strong backbeat, and they typically use drum fills to build energy at the key moments. So that's the end of today's lesson. I hope that's given you some ideas as to how you can create contrast in your pop ballad, and hopefully how you can apply some of those ideas more broadly in your composition as well. Thanks for taking part, and I'll see you in the next lesson.