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How to create a standard trance tune
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| pho mo |
This is a ridiculously simple overview of the most generic trance song and arrangement. All good songs deviate from the 'formula' but it's surprising how many new professional tunes don't. If you are new to trance it can't help but examine the fundamentals. What you can do as a producer is vary this, break every rule, do something different. When I started out I wish I had this kind of help, and now I wish I'd never even thought about it...
Creatively Constrained Trance Making
Ok so there's standard trance and creative trance
Lets focus on making a standard trance tune
Arrangement
Well known, not much to say here - intro, breakdown, main bit, outro
what about times?
intro 1:30
breakdown 1:00
main bit : 2:00
outro 1:30
total song length : 6:00 minutes
total DJ played song length : 4:40 minutes
Intro 1:30
dj introduction, so no crazy melody just a gradual build up of the beat and some fx
no bassline changes, just tension building
drums start off sparse, end up driving
tease the main melody with a filtered down, possibly plucked version and just the first bit of melody
loads of ambient fx to set the mood
Breakdown
An arp or plucked melody tease introduces the breakdown and keeps the rhythm alive
Strings start playing out the full chord progession
intro melody -> main melody with big a filtering up automation
Melodies
Supersaw is the main melody
this has a relatively fast rhythm, some variation on 16ths
Usually has a pretty simple, slow melody - but the fast rhythm and rest of arrangement makes it sound not slow
Bassline changes to create the emotion and provide harmony for the full melody
This often repeats a fairly long phrase a couple of times
Outro
You revist the intro, so this means paired back melody, back to the teasers
start stripping back the layers
remove the bass and leave a fairly full high-end for mixing into the next song
How much time then for each?
intro : 16 bars of dj crap, then 32 bars of lead-in 1:22
breakdown : 64 bars of transition 1:51
main : 64 bars of the main melody, i.e. 4 or 2 times 1:51
outro : reverse of intro 1:22
total song time : 6:30
How many parts do you need?
intro : 48 bars with variation happening constantly to build it up
1 - 16
4 - percs 1
4 - percs 12
4 - percs 123 4 - strings1 4 - fx1
4 - percs 1234 4 - strings1 4 - fx12
16 - 48
16 - melody tease 1 (4 beats, every 16) percs 1234 strings1 fx12 melody1 repeated slowly
16 - melody tease 2 (4 beats, every 4) percs 1234 strings1 fx12 melody1 repeated more frequently
breakdown : 64 bars of transition
16 - melody tease, filtering down for transition
16 - strings full melody, filtering up
16 - strings full, melody full progression but plucked or otherwise made laid back
16 - strings fulle, percs build up. melody builds up to full sound
main : 64 bars of main
32 - full melody
32 - full melody with variation of something - maybe another fill line, maybe more percs
outro : 48 bars stripping back
opposite of intro
So in summary, what do you need as minimum?
drums / percs
4 layers
bassline
1 tease
1 full
melody
1 tease line, that can be every 16 bars or every 4 bars (perhaps 2 tease lines)
1 full
strings
1 tease line
1 full
4 perc lines
melody
1 melody tease, that can be every 16 or every 4 bars
1 full melody, filtering up
1 full melody, fully on
basline
1 bassline tease for sub and mid and high
1 string tease
strings
1 tease strings
1 full strings |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
Well, you've certainly got "standard" trance down pretty well.
I think that "standards" for song construction are one of the worst things to happen to trance. It seems like some people think a tune can't sound "pro" unless it has a supersaw lead drenched in reverb and delay.
:rolleyes: |
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| pho mo |
| Exactly. Eveyrone has to start somewhere though. |
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| Tt1 |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles
Well, you've certainly got "standard" trance down pretty well.
I think that "standards" for song construction are one of the worst things to happen to trance. It seems like some people think a tune can't sound "pro" unless it has a supersaw lead drenched in reverb and delay.
:rolleyes: |
lol, I swear....everytime you answer a question....the head/brain gets bigger in that avatar of yours. :D
and to Pho Mo, one man's standard is just a variation of another's, Although, you've got a pretty nice skeleton laid out for a trance beat. Big ups to you for sharing the info. |
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| pho mo |
| cheers :) Everything of course rests upon what an individual does to make their song unique. |
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| Purpose Unknown |
| helpful and answers lots of basic questions. thanks for sharing:) |
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| Pjotr G |
| even within a set of constraints like the one you laid out, I think there is plenty of room for originality and..well...goodness. I wouldn't dismiss a tune that follows this rule set before I heard it. |
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| Lucidity |
| quote: | Originally posted by Pjotr G
even within a set of constraints like the one you laid out, I think there is plenty of room for originality and..well...goodness. I wouldn't dismiss a tune that follows this rule set before I heard it. |
Agreed:whip: |
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| Project-K |
| quote: | Originally posted by pho mo
Exactly. Eveyrone has to start somewhere though. |
And this is a terrible place to start.
"How to make music" |
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| Stef De Roux |
| quote: | Originally posted by Project-K
And this is a terrible place to start.
"How to make music" |
I'm guessing you opened up your torrented sequencer immediately after reading this. |
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| pho mo |
| quote: | Originally posted by Project-K
And this is a terrible place to start.
"How to make music" |
I disagree actually. If you start making music, but don't examine, acknowledge or use the structure of the basics, then you'll end up making music because you'll be trying to reinvent the entire wheel and as an amateur you don't yet have the skills or experience to do that.
Have you started making music? I haven't seen any posts in the producer's forum, or any links to tunes you've made in your sig.
Perhaps you're way above my level and you're a professional producer. Or perhaps you're way below my level and haven't got a single clue. Either way you should know better than to criticise something without actually making a suggestion of what's better. That just makes you sound stupid. |
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| Project-K |
| quote: | Originally posted by pho mo
Perhaps you're way above my level and you're a professional producer. Or perhaps you're way below my level and haven't got a single clue. |
Neither really, I just do my own thing and don't care much for feedback from the producer's forum - especially considering what kind of crap gets posted there on a regular basis. |
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