Chapter 8
Chapter 8: Developing Your Melodies ...........................................................................
In This Chapter
Finding your structural tones
Using step-wise and skip-wise motion
Fleshing out your melody with passing tones
Visiting the neighborhood with neighboring tones
Exercising with musical bridges and solos
K
eys, modes, meters, tempi, and orchestration can all change within a
composition to express changing moods. A good composer must not be
afraid of using repetition orchange to express an idea. Sometimes a change
can be startling, and sometimes it can sneak up on you and happen with a
great deal of subtlety.A mastery of transitions in music is the mark of a good composer.In this chapter we give you some helpful ideas to move you from one melodic
theme, or motif, to another.Structural Tones .............................................................................................
One way to introduce change to a piece of music is by reducing your melody
to its structural (central, essential) tones and then building it out again. This
way, you can keep the skeleton of your theme but not sound like you’re just
playing the same melody line over and over. Also, by re-examining your
melody and reducing it to its structural tones, new possible ways to present
the melody line can be opened up to you.For example, take a look at the melody shown in Figure 8-1.