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  • Music Composition For The Dunce (Or The Prodigy)

    By Chris Marion |

                          music-dunce-440-b06eb96e.jpg.8a11ff9dae9c6d38fa919ba2acbf0ebd.jpg

     

    We’ve covered songwriting over a series of Harmony Central articles that outlined a variety of writing aspects including technique and even interviewed a couple of songwriters. In the introductory article, I quoted a statistic that showed your likelihood to being struck by lightening as slightly higher than writing a hit song. Although not everyone is going to write a hit song, what about just composing music just for the fun and creativity of it? The operative thing to remember about every successful composer is this: they all started somewhere.  If you don’t try, you’ll never succeed. With this first installment, we’ll give you some tools and framework to help you get started on your creative journey.

     

    INTRODUCTION

     

    Music is very much like a separate language. In the utilization of language, you have a vocabulary pool that you draw from with each word having a specific definition. Depending on the form or instance of the word, it might be a noun, verb, adverb or even an adjective.  To communicate or speak the language, you combine different words together to communicate the idea you want to express.  There are rules for how you connect words together to form sentences and communicate. Creating music requires the same form, the same implementation of musical vocabulary and there are similar rules for how you combine terms from your musical vocabulary pool to create a song or composition.

     

    THEORY 101

     

    First, let’s establish a basic vocabulary of musical tools with which to work.

     

    1.     Theory – this is the set of rules and framework from which music is created and practiced.

    2.     Pitch – the degree of highness or lowness of a tone created by instrument or voice.

    3.     Note – a written sign indicating the pitch and duration of a sound or the actual pitch/tone itself. 

    4.     Chord – a cluster of notes sounding together; usually at least three.

    5.     Melody – a sequence of musical notes.

    6.     Rhythm – a regular and often repeated pattern of movement or sound.

    7.     Measure – the rhythmic subdivision of a prescribed number of beats.

    8.     Time signature – a fractional figure indicating the number of beats per measure on top and the duration of each beat on the bottom.

    9.     Scale – an arrangement of notes in a system of music that ranges over 8 different pitches.  Scales vary in intervals depending on the mode (major or minor).

    10.  Key – a group or system of notes based on a particular first note (or tonic) and functioning within the mode of the scale.

    11.  Lyric – the formulaic expression of thoughts and phrases

    12.  Accompaniment – a collection or pattern of chords that support a melody.

    13.  Step – the interval between each note of the scale.  A tone is a full step while a semi tone is a half step.

     

    OK, are you overwhelmed yet?  As in any language, there are people who are better communicators of it than others.  Even if you have the vocabulary of an elementary student, you can still basically communicate.  It may not sound as eloquent, but it still communicates the speaker’s thoughts and wishes.

     

    *** In the creation of music, expressing your thoughts is paramount.  It may not be as smooth or eloquent as a professional composer, but it is still a unique expression for you.  There is technically no right or wrong in this sense.  If you follow and apply some of the basic rules of theory, you might find that your ability to express gets easier or smoother. And, perhaps your creation will be more palatable to someone other than your border collie and mother.

     

    For the purpose of this brief article, we’ll focus on the rudiments of basic composition.  There are hundreds of thousands of books and series that have been devoted to the writing of a song.  I’m not so presumptuous to believe that I can teach you how to compose a song within a couple brief articles.  I can however introduce to you to the form and function of composition.  This article will put you on the starting blocks that will hopefully propel you into a lifelong race that satisfies your creative muse.

     

    Let’s divide a song into three components:

     

    1.     lyric

    2.     melody

    3.     accompaniment

     

    All three of these components utilize the musical vocabulary that I listed earlier in the article fairly interchangeably.  Obviously, each component can exist and occur independently or function together in support of each other.  Let’s take a look at some common applications of theory and musical form within a song.

     

    KEY SIGNATURE

     

    As aforementioned, this term refers to primary tone or tonic on which the song is based.  The key signature or relative key is important to establish early in the song development because it will effect where the range of the melody will lie and how a singer might sing it.  There are 12 possible key signatures as follows:

     

    A - A#(Bb) – B – C – C#(Db) – D –

    D#(Eb) - E – F – F#(Gb) – G – G#(Ab)

     

    TIME SIGNATURE

     

    In the glossary above, the time signature is defined as a fraction with the numerator (or top) number representing the number of beats per measure (as a division of a whole note) and with the denominator (or bottom) representing the duration or rhythmic value of the beat.  For example:

     

    4/4 = 4 beats per measure with the beat duration being a quarter note.  This is a standard time signature used in most songs.

     

    3/4 = 3 beats per measure with the beat duration being a quarter note.  This is commonly referred to as a waltz.

     

    CHORD

     

    This term describing a cluster of tones striking at the same time is the fundamental building block of any accompaniment.  The relationship between the tones or pitches of each note is significant and usually includes the 1st, 3rd and 5th tone of the reference key of the chord.  For example:

     

    A “C” chord would include a C (the root of the chord), an E natural (if the chord is a major chord) and a G.  As long as all three of those pitches are represented in the chord, it is still a C chord no matter which pitch is the lowest note in the chord.

     

    Chords are used to support the melody as the melody usually weaves around the intervals of the chord being played in the accompaniment.  Some notes in the scale being sung against the chord are dissonant and less desirable.

     

    RHYTHM

     

    Rhythm refers to a pattern of note durations and movement that is regular or repetitive.  Rhythm can be represented in the melody line or in the chord progression within measures.  Like chords, rhythmic variations make compositions interesting and unique.  If you think about each measure as a grid of subdivision, you need 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 etc. increments to fill a measure depending on the rhythmic value.  Sometimes the rhythm might connect note values by tying the note duration to the next note’s value.  As you can see, there can be no written rule to say exactly what rhythm is to be observed.  However, the ultimate rule of thumb is that your rhythm should support the melody or lyric for intelligibility and clarity.  The more intricate or syncopated the rhythm, the more information that the listening brain has to process.

     

    MELODY

     

    As this term refers a sequence of notes that are linked together, the melody too is a completely unique signature component of a song.  It usually directly lines up with the accompaniment. In other words, the melody should match pretty closely to the tones and intervals of the chords that are being played underneath. 

    The intervals between the notes can vary greatly and often are used to portray emotion or lift the attention of the listener.

     

    LYRIC

     

    This is perhaps the most daunting part of composing and writing a song in that typically song lyrics have some semblance of rhyme and consistent cadence.  Again, there is no rule that requires all song lyrics rhyme even loosely.  Some of the classic songs in music history ignore perceived rules of convention.  Perhaps this makes them even more memorable.  Nevertheless, the important focus should be that lyrics should express your thoughts and your sentiment.

     

    In the next installment of composition for (part 2) … we’ll look at some ways to apply these tools and even seek some advice from a couple of hit songwriters for their craft.  Until then, compose wisely my friends.

     

    chris-head-dde56fa3.jpg.da4996cca8a4c4e57bcd165163223f2c.jpgChris Marion is an American musician best known as a member of Little River Band and for his contribution to the gospel and country music industries. Although graduating college with a B.A. in Psychology, he is a classically trained pianist and has worked in the music industry professionally for over 35 years. As a resident of Nashville, he is involved in the recording industry working in the genres of Gospel, Country and Rock.  Since 2004, he has toured globally with the classic rock act Little River Band as a keyboardist and vocalist.  For more useless trivia and minutiae concerning Chris or to contact him directly, feel free to visit his personal website www.chrismarionmusic.com.

     




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