What is the refrain of a song?
Emily Dawson
Published Mar 12, 2026
What is the refrain of a song?
A refrain (from Vulgar Latin refringere, “to repeat”, and later from Old French refraindre) is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in poetry — the “chorus” of a song. Poetic fixed forms that feature refrains include the villanelle, the virelay, and the sestina.
What songs use refrain?
It’s usually one or two lines in length. Examples of refrains include the line ‘my fair lady’ in the song ”London Bridge Is Falling Down” and the phrase ‘will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m sixty-four?’ from the Beatles song ”When I’m Sixty-Four”.
What is the difference between a chorus and a refrain?
Hi Ian. A refrain is a line or groups of lines that you’d like to repeat more than once in your song, usually summarizing the point of your story. I hope this helps. “A Chorus is the part of your song where all of your instruments, singers or musical elements come together to play and/or sing in unison.”
Can a song start with a refrain?
It’s quite possible to start your song by developing a refrain first. Create a short 2- or 4-bar melody that starts on a non-tonic note, and then moves to finish on the tonic.
What is a breakdown in a song?
In music, a breakdown is part of a song in which various instruments have solo parts (breaks). This may take the form of all instruments playing the verse together, and then several or all instruments individually repeating the verse as solo parts.
What is the difference between a bridge and a refrain?
The chorus is where you repeat the catch melody or hook after each verse, with the words typically repeating as well. -The refrain is where you mix it up with something a bit different to break the monotony. The refrain is also sometimes called a bridge. if it occurs just once (a refrain usually repeats at least once).
What are two lines in a song called?
These two lines are the refrain of the piece, even though it doesn’t have a chorus. A piece with Strophic Form will often have a refrain at the end of each verse. This is very common in old traditional songs, like “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”.
What is a hook in a song?
What is a hook in a song? A hook is the capstone of a well-crafted song. It’s part melody, part lyric, and most likely it’s both. It’s usually the title of the song, repeating throughout the chorus and sitting in the most prominent positions of the first or last line.
How long is a verse?
Verse or “A” Section: A song’s verse is generally a recurring section— usually 16 or 32 bars in length—that serves as the main body of the song. In music with lyrics, the verse often tells the “story.”
What is a song without a chorus called?
We don’t have a specific term for songs without a chorus. But we do have several terms for specific song-forms. For example, songs that use the same repeating verse are in what’s known as strophic form while songs that have no repetitions are known as through-composed.
What are the 7 elements of music?
For the purpose of this class, we will refer to SEVEN elements of music: Rhythm, Melody, Harmony, Timbre, Dynamics, Texture, and Form.
What does refrain mean in music?
The term Refrain comes from the old French word “Refraindre”, which means “to repeat”. In music, a refrain is a repeated line or verse. It has two parts – the melody of the music and the written lyrics. In a pop song, this could be the chorus of the song, because the chorus is often repeated many times.
How to recognize the chorus, hook, refrain?
The Chorus. The chorus is the overall message in the song. Think about a thesis for a paper.
What is a chorus in a song?
The chorus is the part of the song that often sticks in the mind of a listener because it contrasts with the verse and is repeated several times. The main theme is expressed in the chorus; the title of the song is usually included in the chorus too.