PorchtoneChord progression player
Pick a key, a progression and a groove, press play, and hum over it until something sticks.
G major · a simple synth band in your browser. The app plays a sampled kit, guitar, piano and organ, and records you singing over it.
The progressions
- Pop anthemI V vi IV
Big, hopeful, singable. One of the most used progressions in pop.
- Sensitivevi IV I V
The same four chords starting on the minor: wistful, then lifting.
- FiftiesI vi IV V
Doo-wop and slow-dance warmth.
- LiftIV I V vi
Starts away from home, so it feels like it is always reaching.
- Slow burnI iii IV V
Tender, with a gentle ache on the iii chord.
- HymnI IV I V
Plain and honest; leaves room for the words.
- Three chordsI IV V
The backbone of folk, country and rock and roll.
- HighwayI bVII IV I
Open-road rock: the borrowed ♭VII gives it swagger.
- HeartlandI bVII IV IV
Jangly, wide-open guitar rock.
- 12-bar bluesI7 I7 I7 I7 IV7 IV7 I7 I7 V7 IV7 I7 V7
Twelve bars that most of rock and roll grew out of.
- Andalusiani VII VI V
A falling bass line with Spanish drama.
- Night drivei VI III VII
Dark but moving forward; huge in film and alt-pop.
- Two-five-oneii7 V7 Imaj7
The basic cadence of jazz standards.
How to use it to write
Set the tempo a little slower than feels natural, loop one progression, and sing nonsense syllables over it. When a phrase repeats itself twice, that's your hook. Change the groove before you change the chords: the same four chords feel completely different as a ballad and as a shuffle.