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How do you write your songs?
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knocz
Moderator
Started Topics :
40
Posts :
1151
Posted : Aug 18, 2006 18:02
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But never forget to be creative. when you advance in the production scene you create a lot of rules in your head, as in do's and not do's. and than later on you realise that there is nothing that you cant do!!
Your song can have any structure, and the more you run from "conventional", the better. Usually when i determine that i cant do this or that, i try everything to do it,to make it right. You dont need great saws,50million vst, all the hardware and software you can find, buy or steal. This is where talent comes in. I've seen a movie of a party where the artists use a couple of blowtorches and cowbells to intro a track. And as in the music Coolio (infected rmx) from astrix they shut up everyhing leaving just the beat, bass and a piano.after they shut up the beat and only play the piano. And its Trance music.
The best thing to do is inovate. do somethig different. Prove to the world why you should be making music, and why you should be living off of it.
Pin this tread hehe
  Super Banana Sauce http://www.soundcloud.com/knocz |
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Djones
IsraTrance Senior Member
Started Topics :
267
Posts :
1766
Posted : Aug 21, 2006 21:05
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One thing I usually get really stuck on is, how to create/find inspiration for melodies!
I really don't understand why just nothing pops in my head.
Sometimes when I'm just thinking, I start to build a melody in my head, but when I get back behind my computer, it's all gone again.
Then I wonder, 'did I really hear a melody in my head, or was I just imagining that I was hearing a melody in my head', because I can't really define those sounds to any notes or whatsoever.
This all seems to be really strange, because I never had any problems coming up with melodies when playing classical piano.
Do you have any basic rules for how to come up with a melody?
Do you start with something basic, which you workout to a real melody? |
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Safa
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
33
Posts :
24
Posted : Aug 21, 2006 22:32
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i dont know guys, there is all different ways of making eletronic music, psychedelic trance have got into this formula where almost all tracks are sounding the same, no inovation, artists are all with this formula some people talked about in here.
where u have an intro, and then section A then a break and etc..
what is this anyway? we are supost to make the difference, make something new, innovate, not make music in a based formula.look at Chemical Brothers for an examples, there is no rules in their music, there are no tracks sounding the same..its all new. thats why lots of people that i know are starting to produce progressive trance and etc..because basically there is no rule, or formula... it does not have to have an intro, or a break after 2 minutes, or whatever....just make music the way you want to take people through a journey.or whenver u wanna take them. with the styles of synths u like and bass and etc.. there is all kinds of ways to make music, and thats what we should be discussing, not what formula is usually used...
just make your own. listen to all different artists, and you will notice that the structure preety much is the same.. we are the new generation i hope, i think we should try to inovate and dont stick with rules. eletronic music is nothing about rules.. just free your mind......thats what i think.. the only rule in any type of eletronic music is the kick...thats it..the rest is up to u.
take care.
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Brain Hacked
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
111
Posts :
442
Posted : Aug 22, 2006 04:41
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I know how you feel Djones, sometimes i wonder if the melody inside my head exists., in my case i blame my lack musical knowledge, altough i' have learned the basic about chords and scales i dont think it's enough. In your case u said u play piano so.. its strange
I usally come up with 4-5 minutes of the track, a couple of really good leads and then gets stucked, as if my mind was cleared, i start another song, this time sound better, get to minute 4 or so and again get stucked, i guess i need more skills musicwise and soudn designing also. |
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bukboy
Hyperboreans
Started Topics :
40
Posts :
803
Posted : Aug 22, 2006 13:28
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Ok, firstly I decide on a cool harmonic motion for a theme,
Then I add a kick metronome and then I use different notes from the chords making up that harmonic motion for leads melodies, supporting pad harmonies etc.
Then when I need a new theme after 32 bars or whatever, I modulate 2 another scale with a different harmonic motion and start over with making melodies etc from the harmonic motion.
Along the way I generally plonk away on my midi controller the keys of the chords in different combinations and stop when I hear something reasonably cool, and keep that.I only use presets with some mild tweaking but then again Im relatively a newbie 2 synths.
Then I give that 2 my partner illusions and he's the one with the psytrance experience so he can put in all the cool production tricks and breaks etc and also supporting leads of his own. the 2 of us make a sort of combination of styles and it does sound different.
Right now Im working on making interlinked rhythms a larger part of our tunes.
Anyway thats about it.Oh yeah, I also make sure I have a lot of fun. |
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bukboy
Hyperboreans
Started Topics :
40
Posts :
803
Posted : Aug 22, 2006 13:49
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Brain Hacked - Also 4 getting a melody out of ur head - If u dont have experience playing an instrument then 1. u cant really get out the melody u imagine b4 u 4get it, 2. it limits the scope of ur creativity.
My advice, get a book on improvisation, and a book on harmony.
The book on improvisation will help u connect the notes in ur head with the keys under ur fingers, and the harmony will teach u about what u should and shouldnt do 2 make a piece sound involving, and will also help u construct more interesting leads and melodies. |
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Psynaesthesian
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
30
Posts :
557
Posted : Aug 22, 2006 22:35
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[quote]
On 2006-08-22 13:49, bukboy wrote:
Brain Hacked - Also 4 getting a melody out of ur head - If u dont have experience playing an instrument then 1. u cant really get out the melody u imagine b4 u 4get it, 2. it limits the scope of ur creativity.
My advice, get a book on improvisation, and a book on harmony.
====================================
Sup buka ..... any tittles or authors you can recommend?
There are plenty of books available on the shelves ... and thru experience i know that one may not spontaniously find exactly what one is looking for .... sometimes the wrong choices can be costly affairs!!
Listing a few would really help and be much appreciated!!
B'om!
<`/`/`/`/`>~~~~~~!!!
"... b'om ..." |
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bukboy
Hyperboreans
Started Topics :
40
Posts :
803
Posted : Aug 23, 2006 09:08
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Stefano brondi's website has a lot of books in the manual section (http://www.stefanobrondi.com/)
I recommend the berklee harmony 1-4,
this will teach u about harmonic motion, cadences, modulation etc... i.e. more music theory than ul need 4 psytrance.(this could take u a month 2 read properly with a controller 2 play on)
also Im using an improvisation book called "Joy of improvisation", also by berklee lecturers.
Its pretty good but u need 2 years of playing experience 1st. it is a 2 book series each with 26 lessons. U can do it 1 a week for a year or 1 every 2 weeks and after 2 years u really know what ur doing.
U learn to read sheet music like a second nature, it gets ur playing speed up, teaches u how 2 play all scales and switch 2 different scales on the fly,and most importantly gets u feeling what keys 2 press so the music in ur head comes out. |
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Boobytrip
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
39
Posts :
988
Posted : Aug 25, 2006 14:19
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DUDE ! Thanx a million for the Brondi-link.
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xrust
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
63
Posts :
1742
Posted : Aug 25, 2006 15:21
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Quote:
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On 2006-08-21 22:32, Safa wrote:
i dont know guys, there is all different ways of making eletronic music, psychedelic trance have got into this formula where almost all tracks are sounding the same, no inovation, artists are all with this formula some people talked about in here.
where u have an intro, and then section A then a break and etc..
what is this anyway? we are supost to make the difference, make something new, innovate, not make music in a based formula.look at Chemical Brothers for an examples, there is no rules in their music, there are no tracks sounding the same..its all new. thats why lots of people that i know are starting to produce progressive trance and etc..because basically there is no rule, or formula... it does not have to have an intro, or a break after 2 minutes, or whatever....just make music the way you want to take people through a journey.or whenver u wanna take them. with the styles of synths u like and bass and etc.. there is all kinds of ways to make music, and thats what we should be discussing, not what formula is usually used...
just make your own. listen to all different artists, and you will notice that the structure preety much is the same.. we are the new generation i hope, i think we should try to inovate and dont stick with rules. eletronic music is nothing about rules.. just free your mind......thats what i think.. the only rule in any type of eletronic music is the kick...thats it..the rest is up to u.
take care.
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i agree with this post.working with this "formula" turns you in a "production machine".what is "right" is not necesairy good! 
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psylevation
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
52
Posts :
841
Posted : Aug 25, 2006 16:59
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I've heard people talk about laying out the entire idea of their song using just basic plain sounds and presets, then going back and making good sounds for the parts later.
Does anybody use this method and if so could you elaborate on how you do it, or why, etc...
I'm just interested, because I find myself tweaking sounds so much that I don't get the song done. It's like this ever changing unfinished song.
This seems like a good idea, but then again part of what makes a song (especially in psytrance) are the sounds. I tend to get some inspiration from the sounds themselves.
anyway if someone who uses this method or partially uses it could elaborate I would appreciate it very much. |
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Esoteknic
Started Topics :
7
Posts :
47
Posted : Aug 27, 2006 16:35
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I usually start of with at least the basskick and percussion, just so I can record other instruments without using the click. Then whenever I want I mute the Kick/Perc... The problem for me is not so much the creative ability to finish a song after 4:00 min, but my PC's performance after having so many parts and automation. Then I have to render some midi parts into audio, or freeze them, but that makes them less accessible...
And, very true, imagine your track on the dancefloor, or invent a videoclip that would fit with it...
Often some ganja can bring up/down the creative process.
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psylevation
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
52
Posts :
841
Posted : Aug 28, 2006 23:17
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I can agree with you on the part about using the kick drum as the metronome, that clicking sound is pretty annoying.
I used to get worried about dropping my midi parts to audio. I didn't want to lose the ability to change a part in a way the would require the synth to still be active. I started figuring out that by dropping it to audio this gave me more "different" possibilities that I couldn't have with the midi part.
For example I make a melody with a particular sound. I drop it to audio, take a copy of that audio and may just chop it up, and take a piece of it I like. Use that piece by pitch bending it or stretching it, adding some fx, and now I have a neat fx sound that fits with the sound of the track really well, since it's source was something that was already in the track, it's "sound" is going to be somewhat similar to whats in the song already.
(oh I just learned in cubase if you hold ctrl while you chop audio with the scissors it will chop the whole audio file into the size of parts you just chopped, so if you cut 1/16th off the begining the whole file will be chopped into 1/16th's)
Also when I drop one part to audio, I save the patch on the synth for that particular drop. I place the synth patch in the folder with the song I'm working on, and then I save the song and give it a recognizable name, like neatsongname2_7(fmsaw_melody_2).cpr , this way I can come back to this song and open it up, copy the midi parts and place them in the song i'm working on, then just load up the synth patch and I'm back to the midi parts I needed again.
Or you could even just make a folder track where you put your unused midi parts after you save your synth patch and "actually" unload the synth. If you unload your synths it wont take hardly any time to load up your song when you start with mostly just audio tracks. You can just close the folder track and your midi parts wont be in the way anymore.
I bet you can tell I'm figuring this out as I go.
 alot of the above applies to cubase |
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Boobytrip
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
39
Posts :
988
Posted : Aug 29, 2006 10:27
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I guess it's one of the most difficult parts of music creation to come up with melodies that remain interesting until you finish your track. It sometimes helps to use a microphone for recording yourself 'humming' a melody. From there you can rebuild or play the melody to convert it to midi-notes. From one or two themes it's possible to create a track by adding a bassline, adding chords, changing the rhythm of the melody, introducing the melody in small portions, etc. Check some of the books on arrangement and composition in the Brondi-link that was posted by Bukboy for useful tips.
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Pythagoraz
TimeDrained / Pythagoraz
Started Topics :
8
Posts :
337
Posted : Aug 29, 2006 14:06
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