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Jackson’s Pass The Page

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Jackson’s Pass The Page

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How to start What to do

Lyric writing exercise - Jackson's pass the page

In this video...

Naarm/Melbourne based musician, songwriter and SongMakers mentor Jackson Phelan (Rat!hammock) gives an example of how his lyric writing activity ‘Pass the Page’ works.

What you need / How to start

Materials

  • A piece of paper
  • Something to write with
  • Something to lean on/write against (like a book)

Seating

Everyone will sit in one large circle for this activity. The group can be as small or as big as you like.

What to do

e.g. Sand

Round 1

Think of a place where you feel loved / comfortable / happy.

Write down a single word that comes to your mind when you think of that place.

Pass your piece of paper to the person to the left of you.

e.g. Sand

e.g. The bluest skies and warmest sands

Round 2

Now write a full sentence using the word on the piece of paper you are holding.

Pass your piece of paper to the person to the left of you.

e.g. The bluest skies and warmest sands

e.g. The bluest skies and warmest sands hands

Round 3

Think of a word that rhymes with the very last word of the sentence you have in front of you.

Write your rhyming word directly underneath that word.

Pass your piece of paper to the person to the left of you.

e.g. The bluest skies and warmest sands hands

e.g. The softest voice, the softest hands

Round 4

Write a sentence that ends in the word above.

e.g. The softest voice, the softest hands

Expand & Refine

Now everyone in the circle will have a “couplet” (two lines) of lyrics for a new song. You could use this as inspiration to write a whole song on this topic, or you could combine couplets from others in your group to create a whole verse!

Remember that you can always change and workshop these lines.

What words could you swap out to change the meaning of your couplet?

Do you need to add/drop a word to make it easier to sing?

The SongMakers VET Music Resources have been made possible with the support of the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria and the Community Support Fund.
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The SongMakers VET Music Resources have been made possible with the support of the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria and the Community Support Fund.
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The SongMakers program acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander custodians of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respects to them, their culture, and their Elders past, present and future.
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