They say you can find information on anything you want on the internet. In recent years, this idea has been carried to new levels with the advent of self-paced online classes, with people teaching you how to do and be whatever you desire.

Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Matt Turk does it all, and better, too, with his Songwriting Construction Kit course through TrueFire.

The format of the course itself is similar to other ‘Teach Yourself How to Fill-In-The-Blank’ programs you may find anywhere online, with the elements of the course broken down into separate modules with videos and participatory assignments.

But the element that sets Turk’s songwriting course apart from any other out there is the depth to which it goes. He offers a staggering forty-eight separate videos ranging from ‘Finding Inspiration’ to ‘Crafting Lyrics,’ ‘Self-Accompaniment and Arranging,’ and more.

And if you find that volume of lessons a little daunting at first glance, never fear. They are nicely broken down into 5-to-10-minute chunks, each section leading into the next. These are truly the building blocks of songwriting.

If a certain amount of flexibility and freedom are necessary for excelling in the art of songwriting, the ability to take a break and come back to any in-progress courses, as well as to replay what you’ve already seen is incredibly helpful.

In a sort of sentimental way, it almost feels as though your buddy Matt is there for you and your fledgling little tune whenever you need him.

Perhaps the nicest thing about Turk’s course is that it is a songwriting course for the whole musician. If you tend to think of songwriting from the lyrical angle, there are videos about inspiration and how to approach lyrics and melody.

If you are first an instrumentalist looking to dive into composition, you’ll find videos about arrangement, accompaniment, and time.

As a guitarist myself, I found it very cool that there are often music and tablature at the bottom of the video screen to follow along with, or even close-ups on the host’s hands on both sides of the guitar to show chord shapes and strumming patterns.

It is the inclusion and emphasis placed on both music and lyrics that makes the Songwriting Construction Kit live up to its name.

But Matt Turk isn’t the sort of teacher that gives you the lesson and then the assignment and throws you to the proverbial songwriting wolves, oh no.

He gives examples from his own repertoire. Being able to be introduced to several new songs that found their way onto my iPod was a delightful and unexpected bonus.

TrueFire as a program does a nice job, as well, with the optics of their courses, letting the student know if modules or videos are in-progress or complete thereby allowing them to easily track their progress.

The tab layout to navigate from one section of the course to another is very clean, and you can even make playlists of videos that you find the most beneficial. But Matt Turk and his well-designed, better-taught songwriting course really helped to flip the script. Songwriting is an art for anyone as long as you’re willing to put in the effort.

And for all that it offers, the Songwriting Construction Kit proves itself to be a fun and engaging way to put in that effort.

And while I came away from this experience not quite able to call myself a songwriter of any real caliber, it makes me feel good that Matt Turk’s Songwriting Construction Kit will be waiting for whenever I want to hone those skills.

Review: Ashley J. Cicotte

A seasoned recording artist and multi-instrumentalist, Matt Turk is a veteran singer-songwriter who has engaged audiences around the world, both as a bandleader and as an acoustic folk troubadour.

He has shared the stage with Pete Seeger, opened for Judy Collins, The Doobie Brothers, Fiona Apple, The Grateful Dead’s Mickey Hart, John Entwistle, David Bromberg, and many more top artists.

And so, of course, TrueFire were thrilled to welcome Matt to the family with his first TrueFire course, The Songwriting Construction Kit.

You’ll get standard notation and tabs for all of the performance studies. Plus, you’ll be able to use TrueFire’s learning tools to sync the tab and notation to the video lesson. You can also loop or slow down the videos so that you can work with the lessons at your own pace.

Grab your instrument, pen and paper and lets write a song with Matt Turk!

To purchase and access the Songwriting Construction Kit CLICK HERE!

www.TurkTunes.com

www.TrueFire.com

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Matt Turk @ Twitter!