25 December 2007
How I Practice Composition
)Published on December 25th, 2007 @ 05:12:17 pm, using 433 words, 151 views
If you're curious about composing, how to learn it, how I am learning it, or my method of learning, this article is for you. It will be a short guide of my approach to composing music (and remember, I am NOT a pro composer, and my methods will NOT be scientifically proved or anything, it just works for me).
First of all, you need to know what music is, and what elements it contains. I could write that down for you, but my friend Jeremy Sawruk has made this wonderful description of it, which you should read prior to this article. It's located here:
http://www.noteheadz.com/blog/?p=10
Ok, by now you should have a basic understanding of the changeable parameters in music: Sound, Form, Rhythm, Melody, and Harmony. Mastering these parameters will be hard work, but once achieved, you can compose any music you want.
I used to turn on the computer, open up my music software, and start playing notes on my keyboard. When I had inspiration, something worth saving would be the result, otherwise a waste of time. This method is outdated (for a week now ;) ).
My new learning method is way better I think. There are a few things that I'm doing now.
First of all, when inspiration strikes (which is rare), I start to compose whatever it feels like.
But than again, inspiration doesn't come easily, and for the 95% of the time I have no inspiration, I do exercises. My wonderful friend Jeremy thought me the musical parameters, and now I use them to analyze songs and scores of artists I like. For instance, last night I made a big study of a song called "The Great Eye", composed by Howard Shore. I will scan some of that in the future, so you can see what it looks like. This will give you information of every aspect, from the melody, to what sounds combined create what moods etc.
I also do exercises Jeremy is giving me, which range from "compose a melody for a violin", to "write down the ii - V - I chord progressions of A, G, Bb and C.
This will give you a solid understanding of music, and that is important. Great musician's exists, who have just a basic knowledge, or none at all, of the theory, but knowing what you're doing will help you remember what combinations give what sounds/moods. And that knowledge can be put into practice later on.
More detailed information will follow when the time is there.
Have fun!, and yet again, a Merry Christmas
Erik
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