Many people ask me, " how does a composition come together?" How can you see an image or think an idea and morph it into a musical piece? I can't tell somebody how an idea comes together, the creative process varies from person to person. I can only give people tips and hope they find their own way of creating art, giving the reader a starting process. Maybe this writing can help the reader. I hope it does.
I am a really big into philosophy, so we will begin with a question and try to think through it, hopefully this can set you off on the road to creativity. It is much more exciting than the yellow brick road. And the composition process is more enjoying than trying to map out a plot for a short story in you writing class. Ready? Here we go.
I will begin by describing a scene to the reader....... There is a beautiful girl that is waltzing down the hall way at school, hair flowing elegantly back and forth, wearing green stockings that cover her legs. She is dressed in a fashionable skirt and the colors are very appealing to the eye. Her voice is very mild, calm and collective. When she speaks her tone seems to have a melody that is carried with it. Alright we are done. What do you think of when you see this creature of our imagination? We will think like a composer.
I have only taken composition classes on the high school level, but almost all of my compositions begin with an image, idea, or an emotion that I try to describe. We can pull some juicy adjectives from the first sentence, and associate them with musical components. Beautiful and waltzing are mentioned in the first sentence. With this being said, since this girl is beautiful, lets pick out a key signature. We could, to demonstrate her beauty, write this composition in a major key. In converse, we could also write out a nice little melody in a minor key. Now, we are starting to get closer.
Next, we have the word waltzing. I wonder- waltz - what shall we use. Ah! We should pick out a nice time signature, and since this beautiful girl is waltzing down the hall way I will choose to use a 3/4 or 6/8 time signature. Man, we are literally picking every little detail out and describing it musically. Composers, as we all know, are writers of musical sentences. Is music like literature? Maybe I have found what I will write my next blog about.
Alright, maybe her green skirt makes you feel something that you can't explain in words. Well now explain it with sound. I will choose to use a nice catchy melody, maybe switch keys, and raise the dynamics putting emphasis on this green skirt. Ah! We are getting closer to having a complete idea.
Thirdly, we will begin this section with a decrescendo, hoping to convey her mild calming voice. Also, we may go to the parallel minor. This could ultimately shift the overall mood of the piece. Could her voice do this? Absolutely it could. This could be the part where you really notice the diversity in this girl. With this being said, lets do this to convey just how unique and eloquent her voice really is.
Finally, we will finish the piece with a nice turn back to the beginning. The structure may be a little insane, but I hope this short blog gets your mind pumping. To add to authenticity of the blog, I literally just free wrote this blog using the first ideas that popped in my head. Essentially I just took you through my actual thought process. This analyzing always helps me, so remember to think like a composer. Try to describe images, ideas, or emotions with music.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
The Major Chord
Lesson#3
Now, I have gone over intervals, the major scale, and the note system of music, but a lot of people ask me about chords all the time. What makes a chord? Well it is simple. Now that I have taught the readers of the concept of intervals, or scale degrees, the major chord is made from the first, third, and fifth interval of the major scale from the keynote. I will insert some video content to show the tones and connotation of these chords.
Now, I have gone over intervals, the major scale, and the note system of music, but a lot of people ask me about chords all the time. What makes a chord? Well it is simple. Now that I have taught the readers of the concept of intervals, or scale degrees, the major chord is made from the first, third, and fifth interval of the major scale from the keynote. I will insert some video content to show the tones and connotation of these chords.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
The Major Scale
Lesson #2
The first musical concept which I will review is the major scale, but first there are other subjects that need to be discussed first. First, I will will go over the notes in the chromatic scale. The chromatic scale is just every note including sharps and flats, and the chromatic scale is actually the basis of the modern note system. In the modern system, music is based on a system of symbols that represent an actual pitch; pitches are then given an alphabetical denotation. The alphabetical system ranges from the letter A to G, yet these notes, given the alphabetical denotation, always start over one note after the perfect octave.
With this said, now the chromatic scale and notes are justified. Now, we will get to the major scale, and all you have to remember is a pattern to achieve mastery of it. WHOLE, WHOLE, HALF, WHOLE, WHOLE,WHOLE,HALF. For instance, the C major scale, the major scale with no sharps and flats, is as followed: c,d,e,f,g,a,b,c. The scale intervals are as followed: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8. ( These represent each note of the scale with the first c being one, and the 8 being the the last c).
Now, with this pattern recognized the whole, whole, half etc. Let us apply this with another note such as G. The g major scale is as followed: G,A,B,C,D,E,F#,G. G major, as you can see, abides to this rule also. This scale pattern can always be applied to any note but only works for major scales. If you notice, the intervals of 3 to 4 and 7 to 8 are the half notes; the other surrounding notes are whole notes, so here is you proof. Try this method for any note. I promise it will work. Next lesson I will advance to system of intervals so we can build chord progressions. Knowing this pattern, you can play the major scale on any note. I will attach a visual from YouTube for the visual learners. Be creative with this knowledge. Hey you! Start composing!!!
The first musical concept which I will review is the major scale, but first there are other subjects that need to be discussed first. First, I will will go over the notes in the chromatic scale. The chromatic scale is just every note including sharps and flats, and the chromatic scale is actually the basis of the modern note system. In the modern system, music is based on a system of symbols that represent an actual pitch; pitches are then given an alphabetical denotation. The alphabetical system ranges from the letter A to G, yet these notes, given the alphabetical denotation, always start over one note after the perfect octave.
- The music alphabet runs as given: A,B,C,D,E,F,G
- Now with these every note is given sharps assigned to them representing a half pitch raise, yet there is are two exceptions: A#,B,C#,D#,E,F#,G#
- Every note also has an enharmonic note, and this is represented by a flat note. These flat notes are as given: B flat, C flat, D flat, E flat, F flat, G flat, A flat.
With this said, now the chromatic scale and notes are justified. Now, we will get to the major scale, and all you have to remember is a pattern to achieve mastery of it. WHOLE, WHOLE, HALF, WHOLE, WHOLE,WHOLE,HALF. For instance, the C major scale, the major scale with no sharps and flats, is as followed: c,d,e,f,g,a,b,c. The scale intervals are as followed: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8. ( These represent each note of the scale with the first c being one, and the 8 being the the last c).
Now, with this pattern recognized the whole, whole, half etc. Let us apply this with another note such as G. The g major scale is as followed: G,A,B,C,D,E,F#,G. G major, as you can see, abides to this rule also. This scale pattern can always be applied to any note but only works for major scales. If you notice, the intervals of 3 to 4 and 7 to 8 are the half notes; the other surrounding notes are whole notes, so here is you proof. Try this method for any note. I promise it will work. Next lesson I will advance to system of intervals so we can build chord progressions. Knowing this pattern, you can play the major scale on any note. I will attach a visual from YouTube for the visual learners. Be creative with this knowledge. Hey you! Start composing!!!
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Psychology of Music
Lesson #1
The psychology of music is a straightforward and simple concept. Many of my peers at my high school sometimes ask me how do I portray my mood through my music? Basically they are asking the question how is it I can express with a vocabulary that only consists of twelve notes. My only answer to this is sometimes a hard one for most to grasp. “Discipline is what wins the day,” this is probably one of my favorite quotes, for it was mentioned in the civil war drama Gods and Generals. Discipline is the only answer I can think of.
I can honestly remember from the time I was a seventh grader until the present, the many times I have been a recluse; many nights rather than going to the movies with friends or girls I committed my time to the study of music. This is what it takes to achieve the expression you look for. There are many components of music that are linked with the psychology of music: scales, phrases, transitions, chord progressions, and key changes.
For instance, the major scale can portray a chirpy sound with happy emotions, but countering that is the minor scale. The minor scale can convey sad, depressing, or any negative emotion. This is where a musician’s study should start. After reading this blog look up the major and minor scales on YouTube. YouTube is a great tool; the many free videos are great and informative. As you look up these, study not only the scale itself, but think also about the creative aspects you can use for your own melodies you could create. My next post will concentrate more on the major scale itself. All of this may not make perfect sense, these little assignments will start to sink as the lessons go on. Your homework is to study these scales, for the next lessons will begin to isolate the actual study of the major scale.
With the study of the scales one will begin to see where everything comes from, components such as chord progressions, melodies, and relationships of keys will start to be seen. Not only are there the scales, but modes also and modes can actually mix up the spectrum of notes; changing the whole perception of the crowd. You could have fractions of people that cling differently to the melodies that you create. If you can tell my blog rather than teaching someone how to play songs, the blogs that I write will be isolated on the more creative aspect of music. If you are into creating your own art check out my blog periodically, and you will learn how to express your emotion through music.
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