Dynamic Changes

Not to be too dramatic, but this might transform your playing!

Simply put, dynamics refer to how loudly or softly you play. And once you get that skill under your belt, you become a better guitar player.

Let me explain.

Often, a song contains different dynamics. They rarely keep one volume straight through the whole tune. When you're playing music on the guitar, you must consider its dynamic changes, so your playing gets more attractive to the audience.

Dynamic changes involve making creative decisions about where to be quiet and loud in the song. Depending on how you choose to do this, it can really impact the mood you’re going for!

When we're beginner guitar players, we can use the same strumming pattern for an entire song. But think about it - that can get really monotonous and boring! Not only for you but your entire audience.

If you understand the principles behind songwriting, you can apply dynamic changes to the songs you’re playing! But, of course, that starts with understanding the basic structure of a song!

Typical Song Structure

Most songs follow this basic structure:

Verse – Verse – Chorus – Verse – Chorus – Bridge – Chorus – Chorus

If you choose a song at random, you’ll find that it likely follows this pattern. Of course, there are exceptions, but this is a good starting point for what we’re talking about today.

Storytelling with Dynamics

Use this structure to guide you. Think of your song as a story you’re telling your audience, with the bridge serving as the story’s big climax. You’ll notice that the bridge will either be very loud or very soft, depending on the song’s storytelling.

When you introduce dynamics into the typical song structure, you’ll usually find choruses are more prominent and louder than the verses. This is because the chorus is the leading hook of the song! It’s the part that people remember, so you want it to be loud and noticeable as a guitar player. That encourages people to sing along with you!

On the other hand, the verses are typically softer. That encourages the audience to listen closely and carefully until… you ramp back up into the chorus!

Changes in dynamics can happen abruptly, or they can happen gradually, slowly building up from soft to loud or vice versa. So again, it depends on the journey you want your audience to go through. :)

How to Practice

When practicing dynamic changes, you want to be able to play the softest you can possibly play and the loudest you can possibly play.

The best way to practice that is by trying it out. First, you should get comfortable with the extremes! Then, try going from loud to soft gradually and then from mild to loud.

If you’re playing with a band, practice these changes with your bandmates. The whole crew should be on the same page as far as the dynamics of a song. It’s definitely something that needs to be addressed, discusses, and agreed upon as a band.

Everything is Relative!

When it comes to playing music, never forget that it’s an art form! There are rules and guidelines, yes, but at the end of the day, the music you play is an expression of you.

Play the song how you like it best and/or how you think your audience will best receive it. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different dynamic changes until you find something that sounds good to you.

Remember – you’re trying to convey an emotion to your listeners. You want them to walk away from your performance feeling something. So even if you screw up a few chord changes here and there, their lasting impression will be more about how your song made them feel.

Now let's learn how to memorize some easy songs. :)