A song is a musical composition with vocals. It can be performed and recorded on acoustic instruments, such as the human voice, or it can be played by a band with instrumentalists (as in pop and rock music). It can also be used in plays and musical theatre, in operas and other forms of classical music, and even in films and television shows.
A great song will cause listeners to do something — dance, laugh, cry or sing along. It’s almost impossible to ignore a catchy melody and lyrics that make a song memorable.
The first verse in a song is often the most important part of the composition. It’s the starting point that sets up the story told in the rest of the song’s lyrics and musical structure. The first verse may be simple, or it might introduce a key change in the music.
While it’s possible to create a great song without a bridge, most songs include one. It’s the section that fills in the musical space between a song’s chorus and its last verse, building up suspense or anticipation. A song’s bridge can be simple or elaborate, but it’s always the “payoff” in a song’s formal structure.
Song can be a vehicle for political, social or religious commentary. Historical examples include 18th-century satirical material from Quebec (“Chanson sur les elections”), or the 19th-century protests against working conditions in mining and lumbering (“Hard, Hard Times”). Today, songs can express national sentiment, as in the Canadian works “Canada, terre d’esperance,” “O Canada!” and “Vive la Canada!”.