Music Composition DUMmIES

Table of Contents xvii

• Introduction .................................................................


• Part I: Basics and Rhythm ............................................


• Chapter 1: Thinking Like a Composer .............................................................................


• Chapter 2: Tools of the Trade .........................................................................................


• Chapter 3: Musical Scrapbooks: Writing on Paper and Screen ..................................


• Chapter 4: Rhythm and Mood.........................................................................................


• Part II: Melody and Development.................................


• Chapter 5: Finding Melodies Where You Least Expect Them .....................................


• Chapter 6: Scales and Modes, Moods and Melodies....................................................


• Chapter 7: Building Melodies Using Motifs and Phrases ............................................


• Chapter 8: Developing Your Melodies ...........................................................................


• Part III: Harmony and Structure ..................................


• Chapter 9: Harmonizing with Melodies .........................................................................


• Chapter 10: Composing with Chords ...........................................................................


• Chapter 11: Composing from the Void.........................................................................


• Chapter 12: Beginnings, Middles, and Endings ..........................................................


• Chapter 13: Musical Forms............................................................................................


• Part IV: Orchestration and Arrangement.....................


• Chapter 14: Composing for the Standard Orchestra .................................................


• Chapter 15: Composing for the Nonstandard Orchestra ..........................................


• Chapter 16: Composing for Multiple Voices................................................................


• Chapter 17: Composing Commercial Music and Songs .............................................


• Chapter 18: Composing Electronic Music ...................................................................


• Chapter 19: Composing for Other Musicians..............................................................


• Part V: The Part of Tens ............................................


• Chapter 20: Ten Composers You Should Know About ..............................................


• Chapter 21: Nine Career Opportunities for Composers ............................................


• Chapter 22: Ten Recommended Books for Composers ............................................


• Chapter 23: Ten Periods of Music History to Explore ..............................................


• Appendix A: Modes and Chords Reference...................


• Appendix B: Glossary ................................................


• Index .......................................................................


• Introduction .................................................................. Table of Contents


• About This Book...............................................................................................


• Foolish Assumptions .......................................................................................


• How This Book Is Organized...........................................................................


• Part I: Basics and Rhythm .....................................................................


• Part II: Melody and Development .........................................................


• Part III: Harmony and Structure............................................................


• Part IV: Orchestration and Arrangement ............................................


• Part V: The Part of Tens.........................................................................


• Icons Used in This Book ..................................................................................


• Where to Go from Here....................................................................................


• Part I: Basics and Rhythm .............................................


• Chapter 1: Thinking Like a Composer.


• Limitations as Freedom ...................................................................................


• Composing as an Extension of Listening.....................................................


• Rules as Inspiration .......................................................................................


• You as Your Own Teacher .............................................................................


• Know what your options are...............................................................


• Know the rules......................................................................................


• Pick up more instruments ...................................................................


• Understand when to put something aside ........................................


• Get something from nothing ...............................................................


• Trust your own taste............................................................................


• Chapter 2: Tools of the Trade.


• The Ability to Compose with Pencil and Paper .........................................


• Performance Skills .........................................................................................


• Composition Software ...................................................................................


• Finale .....................................................................................................


• Sibelius...................................................................................................


• Pro Tools................................................................................................


• Logic Pro................................................................................................


• Cubase ...................................................................................................


• A Pair of Moderately Well-Trained Ears ......................................................


• Knowledge of Music Theory ........................................................................


• Space, Time, and Ideas ..................................................................................


• A Pack Rat Mentality......................................................................................


• Chapter 3: Musical Scrapbooks: Writing on Paper and Screen.


• Writing It Down ..............................................................................................


• Using Software ................................................................................................


• Computer versus Paper and Pencil .............................................................


• File Management ............................................................................................


• Chapter 4: Rhythm and Mood.


• Sculpting Time into Music ............................................................................


• The Feel of Different Rhythms ......................................................................


• Speed Bumps and Rhythmic Phrases..........................................................


• Mixing It Up: Back Phrasing, Front Phrasing, and Syncopation ...............


• Back phrasing .......................................................................................


• Front phrasing ......................................................................................


• Syncopation ..........................................................................................


• Finding Your Own Rhythmic Phrases ..........................................................


• Exercises .........................................................................................................


• Part II: Melody and Development .................................


• Chapter 5: Finding Melodies Where You Least Expect Them.


• What Is a Musical Framework? .....................................................................


• Finding Melody in Language .........................................................................


• Let’s Eat(,) Grandma! .....................................................................................


• Finding Melody in the World Around You ...................................................


• Helping Your Muse Help You ........................................................................


• Finding Melody in Your Instrument .............................................................


• Using scales in composition ...............................................................


• Using music theory in composition ...................................................


• Exercises .........................................................................................................


• Chapter 6: Scales and Modes, Moods and Melodies.


• Major and Minor Modes and the Circle of Fifths .......................................


• Getting Moody ................................................................................................


• Moods à la Modes ..........................................................................................


• Ionian (major scale) .............................................................................


• Dorian ....................................................................................................


• Phrygian ................................................................................................


• Lydian ....................................................................................................


• Mixolydian .............................................................................................


• Aeolian (natural minor) .......................................................................


• Locrian ...................................................................................................


• The Pentatonic Scale .....................................................................................


• Harmonic and Melodic Minor.......................................................................


• Exercises .........................................................................................................


• Chapter 7: Building Melodies Using Motifs and Phrases.


• The Long and Short of Musical Themes: Motifs and Phrases ..................


• Building a Melodic Phrase ............................................................................


• Spicing It Up by Varying the Phrase ............................................................


• Rhythmic displacement.......................................................................


• Truncation .............................................................................................


• Expansion ..............................................................................................


• Exercises .........................................................................................................


• Chapter 8: Developing Your Melodies.


• Structural Tones .............................................................................................


• Step-wise and Skip-wise Motion ...................................................................


• Passing Tones .................................................................................................


• Neighboring Tones and Appoggiatura.........................................................


• Other Melodic Techniques............................................................................


• Escape tones .........................................................................................


• Suspension ...........................................................................................


• Retardation............................................................................................


• Anticipation...........................................................................................


• Pedal point ............................................................................................


• Exercises .........................................................................................................


• Part III: Harmony and Structure ...................................


• Chapter 9: Harmonizing with Melodies.


• Harmonizing Using Consonance and Dissonance......................................


• Tritone: The devil’s interval................................................................


• Conflict and resolution ........................................................................


• Harmonizing Using the Circle of Fifths ........................................................


• Harmonizing Using Pivot Notes....................................................................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Chapter 10: Composing with Chords.


• Chords and Their Moods ............................................................................


• Major ....................................................................................................


• Minor....................................................................................................


• Major seventh .....................................................................................


• Minor seventh .....................................................................................


• Dominant seventh ..............................................................................


• Major sixth ..........................................................................................


• Minor sixth ..........................................................................................


• Suspended fourth ...............................................................................


• Ninth.....................................................................................................


• Minor ninth .........................................................................................


• Diminished ..........................................................................................


• Augmented ..........................................................................................


• Minor 7, flat 5 / half-diminished........................................................


• Putting Chords Together .............................................................................


• Rhythmic Movement ..................................................................................


• Chord Progressions .....................................................................................


• “Rules” for major chord progressions .............................................


• “Rules” for minor chord progressions .............................................


• Coming Home with Cadences .....................................................................


• Authentic cadences ...........................................................................


• Plagal cadences .................................................................................


• Deceptive or interrupted cadences ................................................


• Half-cadences ......................................................................................


• Fitting Chords and Melodies Together ......................................................


• Extracting harmony from melody ....................................................


• Using chord changes..........................................................................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Chapter 11: Composing from the Void.


• Composing Using the Movement Around You..........................................


• Introducing Effort Shapes ...........................................................................


• Weight: heavy versus light ................................................................


• Time: Sustained and staccato ...........................................................


• Flow: Bound and free-flowing............................................................


• Space: Direct and indirect .................................................................


• Composing Using Effort Shapes ................................................................


• Dab .......................................................................................................


• Flick ......................................................................................................


• Glide .....................................................................................................


• Press.....................................................................................................


• Float......................................................................................................


• Punch ...................................................................................................


• Slash .....................................................................................................


• Wring ....................................................................................................


• Shaping story and mood by combining effort shapes...................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Chapter 12: Beginnings, Middles, and Endings.


• A Word About Form .....................................................................................


• Beginnings.....................................................................................................


• The power of titling............................................................................


• Starting a piece ...................................................................................


• Chord progressions............................................................................


• Middles ..........................................................................................................


• Endings ..........................................................................................................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Chapter 13: Musical Forms.


• Combining Parts into Forms .......................................................................


• One-part form: A .................................................................................


• Binary form: AB ..................................................................................


• Song form: ABA ...................................................................................


• Arch form: ABCBA ..............................................................................


• Classical Forms ............................................................................................


• The sonata ..........................................................................................


• The rondo ...........................................................................................


• Concerto ..............................................................................................


• Symphony............................................................................................


• Fugue....................................................................................................


• Divertimento .......................................................................................


• Minimalism ..........................................................................................


• Through-composed ............................................................................


• Popular Forms .............................................................................................


• The blues ............................................................................................


• 32-bar blues and country .................................................................


• Rock .....................................................................................................


• Jazz.................................................................................................................


• Atonal Music .................................................................................................


• Atonality and form .............................................................................


• Atonality and instrument realities ...................................................


• Atonal Music and You ........................................................................


• Listening for atonality .......................................................................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Part IV: Orchestration and Arrangement .....................


• Chapter 14: Composing for the Standard Orchestra.


• Concert Pitch and Transposition ...............................................................


• Pitch Ranges of Transposing Instruments ................................................


• Alto flute ..............................................................................................


• B flat trumpet ......................................................................................


• B flat clarinet.......................................................................................


• B flat bass clarinet..............................................................................


• E flat clarinet .......................................................................................


• English horn/cor anglais....................................................................


• Flugelhorn ...........................................................................................


• French horn.........................................................................................


• Piccolo trumpet ..................................................................................


• Non-Transposing Instruments ....................................................................


• Concert flute .......................................................................................


• Bass flute .............................................................................................


• Bassoon ...............................................................................................


• Double bass/contrabass ....................................................................


• Oboe .....................................................................................................


• Orchestral harp ..................................................................................


• Tenor slide trombone ........................................................................


• Viola .....................................................................................................


• Violin ....................................................................................................


• Cello .....................................................................................................


• Where they all are on the piano .......................................................


• Getting the Sounds You Want .....................................................................


• Stringed instruments .........................................................................


• Brass and woodwind instruments ...................................................


• Chapter 15: Composing for the Nonstandard Orchestra.


• The Bass ........................................................................................................


• Upright bass ........................................................................................


• Electric bass guitar ............................................................................


• Acoustic bass ......................................................................................


• The Guitar .....................................................................................................


• Acoustic guitar....................................................................................


• Electric guitar .....................................................................................


• Twelve-string guitar ...........................................................................


• Steel guitar ..........................................................................................


• Free Reed Instruments ................................................................................


• The harmonica....................................................................................


• The accordion .....................................................................................


• The concertina....................................................................................


• Chapter 16: Composing for Multiple Voices.


• Story Lines and Instrumentation ..............................................................


• Writing Multiple Harmony Lines ...............................................................


• Independent Voices......................................................................................


• Counterpoint.................................................................................................


• The Five Elements of a Musical Tone ........................................................


• Pitch .....................................................................................................


• Duration ...............................................................................................


• Intensity ...............................................................................................


• Timbre..................................................................................................


• Sonance................................................................................................


• Some Do’s and Don’ts .................................................................................


• Don’t write more than three independent melodies at one time....


• Don’t cross melody lines over each other ......................................


• Do be deliberate in the use of octaves and unisons .....................


• Do consider tessitura.........................................................................


• Exercises .......................................................................................................


• Chapter 17: Composing Commercial Music and Songs.


• Composing for Film......................................................................................


• Working with time code.....................................................................


• Working with proxy movies ..............................................................


• Composing for Video Games ......................................................................


• Composing for TV and Radio......................................................................


• Composing for the Orchestra .....................................................................


• Composing for Yourself ...............................................................................


• Composing Teams .......................................................................................


• Helpful Organizations and Web Sites.........................................................


• Film Connection..................................................................................


• American Composer’s Forum ...........................................................


• American Composer’s Forum, Los Angeles Chapter .....................


• Film Music Network ...........................................................................


• Working with Agents ....................................................................................


• Songwriting ...................................................................................................


• Deciding on lyrics and tempo ...........................................................


• Building rhythm ..................................................................................


• Choosing your form ...........................................................................


• In the beginning ..................................................................................


• Making your song moody ..................................................................


• The hook..............................................................................................


• Making a Great Demo...................................................................................


• Keep it short .......................................................................................


• Only include the best stuff ................................................................


• Organize it ...........................................................................................


• Have more ready to go.......................................................................


• Identify yourself..................................................................................


• Invest in quality ..................................................................................


• Copyright it .........................................................................................


• Chapter 18: Composing Electronic Music.


• Software and Hardware for Composition..................................................


• Sequencers and digital audio workstations ....................................


• Music notation software: scorewriters ............................................


• Repetition and the computer............................................................


• Sound libraries....................................................................................


• Composing on Computers ..........................................................................


• Thinking in sections ...........................................................................


• Linear composition ............................................................................


• Loop composing .................................................................................


• Computer as recorder: musical scrapbooking ...............................


• The bad news ......................................................................................


• Saving and backing up .......................................................................


• Chapter 19: Composing for Other Musicians.


• Composing with Lead Sheets......................................................................


• Composing with Guitar Tablature ..............................................................


• The Score ......................................................................................................


• Writing for Ensembles .................................................................................


• Working with Foreign Scores and Ensembles...........................................


• Part V: The Part of Tens .............................................


• Chapter 20: Ten Composers You Should Know About.


• Claudio Monteverdi, 1567–1643 .................................................................


• Charles Ives, 1874–1954...............................................................................


• Béla Bartók, 1881–1945................................................................................


• Igor Stravinsky, 1882–1971 ..........................................................................


• Aaron Copland, 1900–1990 ..........................................................................


• Raymond Scott, 1909–1994 .........................................................................


• Leonard Bernstein, 1918–1990....................................................................


• Arvo Pärt, 1935–present..............................................................................


• Steve Reich, 1936–present ..........................................................................


• Eric Whitacre, 1970–present .......................................................................


• Chapter 21: Nine Career Opportunities for Composers.


• School Bands and Choirs ............................................................................


• Incidental Television Music ........................................................................


• Musical Theater ...........................................................................................


• Concert Composition and Performances..................................................


• Producer/Arranger.......................................................................................


• Industrial Music and Advertising ...............................................................


• Business conventions ........................................................................


• Music libraries ...................................................................................


• Film Scoring ..................................................................................................


• Video Game Scoring.....................................................................................


• Songwriting ...................................................................................................


• Chapter 22: Ten Recommended Books for Composers.


• Songwriter’s Market .....................................................................................


• The Shaping of Musical Elements, Vol. II...................................................


• The Norton Scores, Vols. 1 and 2, 10th Edition ........................................


• How to Grow as a Musician.........................................................................


• Analysis of Tonal Music: A Schenkerian Approach .................................


• The Virgin Directory of World Music .........................................................


• The Rough Guide to Classical Music, 4th Edition ....................................


• American Mavericks ....................................................................................


• RE/Search #14 & #15: Incredibly Strange Music, Vols. I and II ...............


• Chapter 23: Ten Periods of Music History to Explore.


• Classical Music .............................................................................................


• Medieval period: the monophonic phase (590–1200) ...................


• Pre-classical period (1700–1770) ......................................................


• Early 20th century (1910–1950) ........................................................


• Minimalism (1950-present) ...............................................................


• Jazz.................................................................................................................


• Early jazz (roughly 1890–1930) .........................................................


• Avant garde (1960s) ...........................................................................


• Rock ...............................................................................................................


• Krautrock.............................................................................................


• Math rock (1990s)...............................................................................


• Post-rock (1980s–present).................................................................


• Right Now ......................................................................................................


• Appendix A: Modes and Chords Reference ...................


• Appendix B: Glossary.................................................


• Index ........................................................................