More of a general advise but hey, nobody told me this and I had to figer it out myself that its a) always cool to use chords when playing longer notes and b) to span your melodies over two octaves or more.

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Cybernetika albums (free DL): Atropos (2009) | Nanospheric (2008) | Neural Network Expansion (2007) | Promo #1 (2006) | Paralysis (2005)

homepage: http://www.cybernetika.de

+1

quote:

b) to span your melodies over two octaves or more.

This is what i do..might help you too..

When i have one of those bad days when i can't think of any decent melodies, i empty my mind and try no to think of anything (specially songs) and just play the piano (midi) for about 5 to 10 min none stop and record everythng..90% of the times 50% of the song is useless but when i go back and listen to it a few times i find few notes/leads/chords that i like and i take them out and combine them and i take it from there..

www.nonstop2k.com

load some of them midi's into cubase and learn from them!

learn to play inversions

quote:

Originally posted by System101 This is what i do..might help you too.. When i have one of those bad days when i can't think of any decent melodies, i empty my mind and try no to think of anything (specially songs) and just play the piano (midi) for about 5 to 10 min none stop and record everythng..90% of the times 50% of the song is useless but when i go back and listen to it a few times i find few notes/leads/chords that i like and i take them out and combine them and i take it from there..

30% of the time, it works all the time, while 80% of the time % based data is 70% false.

quote:

Originally posted by System101 This is what i do..might help you too.. When i have one of those bad days when i can't think of any decent melodies, i empty my mind and try no to think of anything (specially songs) and just play the piano (midi) for about 5 to 10 min none stop and record everythng..90% of the times 50% of the song is useless but when i go back and listen to it a few times i find few notes/leads/chords that i like and i take them out and combine them and i take it from there..

This is kinda similiar to what I do...

I have an old Yamaha DJX that I don't have plugged into anything, I fiddle around alot on that and when I play something I like I go to the computer and start laying it down there.

It's pretty much what I do with any music I write now, either the Yamaha or my guitar.

I spend alot of time playing piano or guitar and not focusing so much on song writing however.

I just enjoy playing music.

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Without music life is a journey through the desert.

I like to make fine adjustments to my head, ok, advanced melodies? stick with your original melodies, if all your melodies are coming out like shit than ur ideas are shit, just get that line going in your head and record it with the best sound you think represents it, people seek too much phatness from one note, stay light and thin, a few strings wrapped together will form a thick rope, focus on the hooks whatever they may be. I create samples, regardless of time structure because you can quantize those later, just record, record, record, end up with a 1000 intricate samples, that's you, that's your project, find the priorities and sub the minorities in sync with the majority

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Last edited by PsyCode on Feb-11-2007 at 12:44

take your original "simple" melodies and then run then through FX that will "add" notes to your original melody. the arpache quantizer in cubase works well.....you can do the same things when using VSTs as well IE impOSCcar.

First thing's first. I don't want to make an enemy out of you in no way. But I have to comment on your hints:

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Originally posted by kitphillips Hmm, well heres a piece of advice, dont use the piano roll! You probably need a midi keyboard, and then you need to practise, a lot. Like 4 hours a night might do the trick.

I agree, I've been practicing piano from the age of 5 until I was 30, and this pays off in form of better melodies!

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Originally posted by kitphillips Music theory WILL NOT help you in 99% of occasions when it comes to melody creation, maybe in other genres, not trance.

This is totally and utterly bogus! Without music theory your track is destined to sound generic, plastic and in 99% of the cases sound like it is made with eJay. Music theory is the sh*t you need to learn if you are intrested in getting advanced melodies done either you want it or not. I've been using music theory in my melody creation process, and I feel naked without it.

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Originally posted by jobro First thing's first. I don't want to make an enemy out of you in no way. But I have to comment on your hints: I agree, I've been practicing piano from the age of 5 until I was 30, and this pays off in form of better melodies! This is totally and utterly bogus! Without music theory your track is destined to sound generic, plastic and in 99% of the cases sound like it is made with eJay. Music theory is the sh*t you need to learn if you are intrested in getting advanced melodies done either you want it or not. I've been using music theory in my melody creation process, and I feel naked without it.

Nah thats OK, no offence taken, whatever works for you. I know a bit of music theory, I don't use it. I actually think that melodies made with music theory - rather than just sitting and playing it out - sound generic, but if it's working for you then who am I to say?
Also there is a difference between knowing technique and basic theory (like whats major and whats minor, what scales are which etc) and trying to build a track solely on your knowledge of how certain chords are going to sound, eg knowing that a 145 is going to sound like .... and a 135 is going to sound more ... Anyway, I'm a guitarist originally, so I approach most things from that angle, which is a very practical angle, I don't do theory for theories sake.
Like I say, whatever works for you.