|
Your favourite way to compose a melody.
|
View this Thread in Original format
| xXProducerXx |
Hi everybody,
i just want to know a basic thing. Do you prefer composing a song from scratch starting from the bass line and drums, then creating melodies? Or do you compose the melody first, then add everything else?
I work with Ableton Live suite and i usually start from a bassline and drums - basically a kick and some high hats. After that i make my melodies. How do you compose?
Thanks. |
|
|
| palm |
i have only finished one song of those who i started with melody.
im sick and tired of the whole LOOOONG before ive have anything structure ready. I must start with the groove (drumloops, baselines, kick, some efex or easy synths). |
|
|
| derail |
It depends.
If you want a typical trance composition, then yes, start with the kick and drums, create a functional bass/pad chord progression, then add a few supporting notes or an arpeggio on top.
If you want to create a classic melody which will drive itself into people's heads, where you'll hear people singing it outside the club, then schedule your composing sessions separately to your production sessions. A classic melody will be strong enough on it's own, without any other instruments, effects or production tricks. |
|
|
| Nemesis44 |
It depends +1
If I am writing something dirty that is more percusive then I start with the percussive elements and work in bass and then subtle melodies on top of that.
When I write melodic trance I often find that it is beneficial to work on the melody first, if you compose that then you will find that it is stronger than if you write it afterwards, naturally there will always be exceptions, but if the melody is the focus then you will build the track around the melody.
A lot of melodies written after the core of the track was written end up being a bit pointless and only seem to server as a token gesture to fill the gaps rather than taking the track somewhere.
Naturally musical ability and skill level do come into it. You will find that people like Ferry will often start out with melody first. Although that said it is relative and ultimately what works for you is the most important thing, not what someone else is doing.
Cheers
Nem |
|
|
| xXProducerXx |
Thank you all for the answers. I really appreciate.
Well, yes, I think everyone has its own way to make melodies and it fully depends on skills and talent. I've played piano for like 4 years, so I learnt the basis of the music. I know that 4 years aren't enough to learn advanced concepts, but that said i feel comfortable when playing keyboards. That said, the fact of having some "structures" to work on helps me a lot, because i can work on a "solid" rythm. I mean, this way I can create lead melodies which can "stay in mind".
However, as far as i can see the trance producer of this forums prefer to compose melodies from scratch without any scheme. I think that requires talent, so congratz to you. :) |
|
|
| floyd741 |
| Melody first, imo. I can't just start with percs and bass. I make a melody then add percs and bass that ft well with it. In trance it's all about having a great melody, if you're looking to make percussion the star then you're making techno. |
|
|
| cryophonik |
| Melody and harmony (chord progressions) first, followed by countermelodies and/or alternate melodies. That's pretty much always my approach because in my opinion, without melody, what's the point? I'm the kind of person that won't give a track much of a listen if it takes too long to get to the point and offer something memorable. I actually start most of my tracks at the piano, or sometimes my bass (my primary instrument) - no computer, no drum machine, no distractions. But, I should also add that I have a BA in Music Theory/Composition, which obviously had a large influence on my compositional process. And, just to be clear, that doesn't mean that my way is the "right" way, it just means that that's what works for me. There are a ton of producers out there with less knowledge and experience than me that are producing much better tracks than I do, and many of them approach composition much differently than I do (e.g., starting with drums). |
|
|
| Waza |
| if i start with drums and bassline my tracks always end up very dark. So it all depends what i want to write a uplifting track or dark. |
|
|
| Subtle |
| Always drums and bassline first.. really need to have the groove going before deciding which direction to take the track in. |
|
|
| Numb |
I smoke a ton of dope 1st. When I'm chillaxing, I pick up a guitar and beat on it as if it was a snare. Sometimes I mic that. I then light a scented candle. I try and find something that will irritate my eyes and maybe cause nausea. Causing confusion and pain, I wildly swing my open beer about. The urge to vomit drives me into trance land. The resulting hours indeed produce music of the highest caliber.
Give it a try. :eyespop: |
|
|
| Joss Weatherby |
| quote: | Originally posted by Numb
I smoke a ton of dope 1st. When I'm chillaxing, I pick up a guitar and beat on it as if it was a snare. Sometimes I mic that. I then light a scented candle. I try and find something that will irritate my eyes and maybe cause nausea. Causing confusion and pain, I wildly swing my open beer about. The urge to vomit drives me into trance land. The resulting hours indeed produce music of the highest caliber.
Give it a try. :eyespop: |
I LOVE YOU! :D |
|
|
| Zombie0915 |
I have like, a skeleton template which is a really simple set of sounds, like a kick,hat,snare, bass synth, lead synth. I take those and I work out the barebones of an arrangement (this is usually about 3 mins long at the start of the process and gets longer as I iterate). I do this because usually because the first thing I get in my head for a song idea is usually a few bars of a melody that I want to try and I want to get all my ideas captured before I forget them. Once I have the basic structure of the track in place, I mess with improving the sounds, programing all my synths and tweaking the mixing etc., this usually gives me more ideas for how to change my arrangement. I do iterations like that, I have this L shaped desk and one lenght of it has my keyboard, the other has my computer, so I find that working in these iterative shifts between the keys and knobs, and the computer, helps me get things done.
Things that help:
I sing into my cheap mike and use an audio-midi converter to help me put my ideas into the computer faster(I knew it's cheap but learning piano is taking too long, it is a temporary solution). It is a lot easier than plinking on the kb looking for the right note, or the trial and error trying to figure out what exact timing properties that beat in your head is supposed to have. |
|
|
|
|
