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The strength of the tension will also depend on how long you remain on that note. Melodies consist of a mixture of
notes that belong to a chord and those that don't. The notes that sit outside often occur as brief passing notes lasting
only a beat or less. Their tension is momentary. If you stay on such a note for more than a beat over a chord that
does not change, then the tension is much stronger.
If a melody were written using only the notes of the major and minor triads in the harmony, it would run the risk of
sounding bland and too comfortable. Music needs tension to give it drama and make it capable of fully expressing
the range and complexity of human feelings. Tension, asymmetry and dissonance are essential to this. That's why the
notes of many good melodies move constantly from "inside" to "outside".
3 "Sits Against" is where you choose a note that is not even part of the scale. In C major, this would mean Db, Eb,
F#, Ab and Bb. These are very dissonant (try singing F# against a C chord), but the flattened third and flattened
seventh notes (Eb and Bb) are common in popular music. These are the so-called "blue notes". Singing them against
C major is permitted if the music has a blues influence. The harmonic discrepancy between them and the scale
creates an effect that our ears understand as "blues". This can be over-used in an all-too-predictable attempt at being
''soulful", in which case it is merely the exploitation of a formula. Properly used, these notes can be evocative. 'Army
Of Me' implies the key of C minor (C D Eb F G Ab Bb), but the main melodic phrase has a recurring Db that fits the
threatening mood of the song.
Here's a summary of the three types of note related to a C chord (I = sits inside; O = sits outside; A = sits against):
1 b2 2 b3 3 4 #4 5 #5 6 b7 7
C Db D Eb E F F# G G# A Bb B
IAOAIOAIAOAOYou may well be thinking at this point, Does this mean that composers think about all this stuff when they write a
tune? Did Lennon and McCartney have exchanges when they were writing 'Ticket To Ride' in which Lennon said
(imagine the Liverpool accent), "Yer can't sing that note, Paul. It's a 'sits inside' note – it's too dull. Yer want a note
that 'sits outside.'"? Of course not. Most melodies are written instinctively, following words or chords or both, or by
just humming something the writer "hears" internally. But the ability to focus on a couple of notes or a phrase and
then apply some of these concepts is good craft. It can add a touch of polish to the finished song.
Knowledge of other melodic tricks and approaches can also be helpful for starting a tune. It is possible to write a
two-bar melodic fragment and then develop the rest of the melody from that initial idea. Much of this you will do
intuitively. But, sometimes, awareness can be brought to bear on a melody to get a better result.
OTHER MELODIC FEATURES
Contour
It is important to cultivate an aesthetic sensitivity to melody. Try listening to melodies that really please you. What is
it about them that does this? Listen for the rise and fall of a melody, the use of intervals, step-wise movements,
rhythm, repetition, arpeggio figures (moving up and down the notes of a chord) and so on.