3 Quatrains And A Couplet

past Mary Dawson

I believe information technology was Marking Twain who once commented:

Anybody tin can write the outset line of a poem. The flim-flam is to make the second line rhyme with the kickoff.

...which brings us to the next installment on the often-frustrating, sometimes-gratifying. e'er-intriguing subject area of Rhyme.

In our last two segments we've been studying words that can be combined to produce rhymes and the difference betwixt Perfect Rhymes and Near Rhymes. While there are a still many "perfectionists" who don't have Most Rhymes equally beingness quite legitimate, I -- for one -- dear the new freedom they permit the lyricist. I have previously divers Near Rhymes as words that surprise the ear with their unexpected compatibility. In other words, they sound "enough alike" to satisfy the ear'south desire for sound similarity while simultaneously allowing an unending supply of vocabulary words to express the core idea of a dandy vocal.

Merely information technology'south not just a matter of finding words that rhyme. There is also the very important matter of rhyme patterns or rhyme schemes formed by the lines of the lyric. A thorough understanding of the many options bachelor can brand the divergence between "just another good vocal" and a worldwide striking!

Couplet

Perhaps the most basic of rhyme schemes is the couplet. A couplet is but two successive rhymed lines having the aforementioned lyrical cadence and forming a unit of measurement. The couplet has been in existence as long every bit human beings have been writing songs and it is still a very constructive rhyme scheme because it is so like shooting fish in a barrel to remember. Some of our primeval favorite songs are formed by couplets. Consider this wonderful lyric (stressed syllables are emphasized)...

Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are Up above the earth and then high
Like a diamond in the heaven Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are

Find that this very famous, international, generational hit is basically made upwards of two unproblematic couplets. Each couplet has two rhyming lines of seven syllables with iv stressed syllables occurring in parallel places. The cadency or lyrical meter of each line is the same and matches exactly with the cadency of the melody. The first couplet is repeated at the end as a refrain.

Couplets, of form, tin can accept any number of syllables per line in a variety of meters. Lookout for couplets as you read poetry and mind to songs on the radio, simply be careful that you don't become a "couplet-simply" lyricist. Many novice songwriters overuse the couplet and so that it becomes equally clichéd and predictable as overused Perfect Rhymes (love, dove, in a higher place). It is wise to combine the couplet with another rhyme pattern to create interest and prevent colorlessness. What about trying a quatrain?

Quatrain

A quatrain is a rhyming unit of iv lines rather than ii. The nigh common is the simple 2/4 Quatrain -- in which lines ii and four rhyme with each other but lines one and three do not. Below is a verse and chorus demonstrating masterful use of the two/4 Quatrain. The song, Nosotros Will Always Remember, is office of my publishing catalog. It was written by some Colorado songwriters as a response to the Columbine Tragedy, but the lyrics seem but every bit appropriate for September 11, 2001 -- or for any painful loss. The verse section is made upwardly of ii 2/4 Quatrains and the chorus is written in the same rhyme scheme. (Over again, I've added stresses to bear witness the cadence of the lyric.)

Nosotros Will Always Remember¹
On a day like any other
We never knew how much our earth would modify
Something happens in a moment
That makes usa never look at life the same
Though to
day are hearts are suspensioning
And fourth dimension is standing still
We'll confront this solar day together
Knowing that our hope is real
Chorus:
Nosotros will almeans remember
The love that you lot shared - yous touched our lives
We volition never forget you
Your memory volition always survive

Find the skilful apply of Near Rhymes in the crucial lines ii and four. Besides notation that in the verse department the quatrains are slightly different from each other in cadence and number of stressed syllables, however in each section lines one and three are similar in rhythm -- as are lines two and four.
OK...and so nosotros've learned a couple of skilful, bones rhyme schemes. Well-nigh aspiring songwriters become comfortable with both the couplet and 2/4 Quatrain and utilise them often in their songs. In fact, many of the submissions I receive every bit a publisher or for consideration on my radio show, I Write the Songs, are written in one of these ii basic rhyme patterns -- and I employ both of them ofttimes in my own writing. The couplet and the 2/iv Quatrain tin can most exist considered 'meat and potatoes' of constructive songwriting considering they are very effective and familiar, supplying rhymes in 'expected' places providing the payoff the listener's ear is waiting for. Only once nosotros have mastered these basics, we need to keep stretching ourselves to create lyrics that are even so more enticing to the ear.

One manner to increase the bear upon of the quatrain is not only to rhyme lines two and four ... only to rhyme lines one and 3 every bit well. While the listener's ear does non need rhymes on the odd lines, information technology is pleasantly surprised when they occur and this actress tightness in the lyric serves to concord the crucial 'listener interest' all the manner to the end of the song. I have termed this technique the Odd/Even Quatrain to distinguish information technology from the 2/iv Quatrain (to a higher place). Remember that i of the main reasons we use rhyme at all is to assist listeners call back the song. So if nosotros tin apply a few more than rhymes than are absolutely necessary, the vocal volition exist more memorable. Let me add, even so, that nosotros should never cede the meaning of the natural language merely to produce a rhyme. Well-written rhymes should non "stick out like a sore thumb" simply should seem spontaneous, equally if they are simply happening equally the words flow.

Another little trick is to combine quatrains with couplets to provide dissimilarity. Perhaps the poesy section could exist a quatrain then change to a couplet in the chorus...or vice versa. Think, the chorus (which contains the hook/title) should contrast and stand out from the verses. A change in lyrical cadence and rhyme pattern can help to provide the lift that will let the listener know we accept arrived at the chorus.

Here's an example of a verse and chorus of one of my own songs, written with composer Cheryl Bocanegra, which combines the Odd/Even Quatrain with the couplet:

One and Only^two
Odd/Even Quatrain:
How did it happen? I don't understand it
Was it a miracle that brought you hither to me
All my life I looked for dearest - I schemed and dreamed and planned it
Merely I could never find someone to make my life complete
Pre-Chorus Couplet::
Now you're standing here right before my
optics
Don't accept to be a genius to recognize
Chorus Of Couplets:
You're a one and just - there's no one quite like you
No one looks at life or looks at me the way you
practise
No one else tin concord me when the world comes crashing
in
I can't be alone when I run across your 1 and only grin
You're a one and only and considering your dear is
mine
You'll exist my one and merely til the cease of time

The song begins with an Odd/Even Quatrain (rhyming lines one and iii likewise as lines 2 and four) followed by a couplet which serves as a 'pre-chorus' build into the chorus. The chorus continues the rhyme design with three sets of couplets in matching lyrical meter or cadency.

You might likewise notice that there are some internal rhymes in this lyric -- in other words, rhymes that occur within a line rather than at the end of it -- such equally:

All my life I looked for honey - I schemed and dreamed and planned it
-or-
I can't exist lonely when I see your one and only grin

Anywhere y'all tin insert a rhyme naturally and still maintain the established meter or cadence of the line...do it!

One notation of circumspection. One time y'all establish a lyrical cadence and rhyme pattern in the first verse, you must be careful to maintain it exactly in verse two. Remember, the same music volition exist used for both verses. If the verses don't 'match' lyrically, it will forcefulness the music to 'mutate' and will make the song seem to wander.

As usual, the best way to become fluent in the use of couplets and quatrains is to study the lyrics of the hits. Take note as to whether or not one of these rhyme schemes are being used and pay attention to where the stresses fall. And then write...write...write yourself! If at all possible, try to concord yourself to the Odd/Even Quatrain and combine quatrains and couplets to provide contrast and interest.

Next time we'll examine more rhyme variations that tin add together all the same more involvement to your lyrics. Keep stretching yourself and yous'll find yourself growing "rhyme after rhyme."

**From her earliest childhood years writing simple songs and poems with her begetter, through her twelve years as an overseas missionary, to her present, multi-faceted career as an author, lyricist/songwriter and conference speaker, Mary has e'er been adept at using words to communicate her centre to others. She is the President of CQK Records & Music of Dallas, Texas, a company which creates and produces songs in a panorama of musical styles for a diversity of audiences, She is as well the host of "I Write the Songs," a nationally syndicated radio talk prove, especially created to inspire and instruct the more than than 25 meg aspiring songwriters in the U.S. "I Write the Songs" is broadcast over the Internet. Mary is a frequent public speaker and seminar lecturer on songwriting. She is a regular columnist for Independent Songwriter Web Magazine. Mary's delivery to discovering and mentoring talented new songwriters has given her extensive experience in vocal analysis through adjudicating songwriting competitions and conducting songwriting workshops beyond the country and around the world. Because of her office as president of an independent music company, she is also well qualified to instruct aspiring songwriters on the various business aspects of the music manufacture. She is married and a mother of four. She resides in the Dallas area.