Underscoring!! 69rondo form is ABACABA. (The A refers to the repeated section. The rondo
A section is analogous to the repeated ‘‘hook’’ in most popular music.)
This form is often used as the final movement of a sonata.
Modern Popular Compositional Forms
Popular composition is based on traditional forms. As in any historical
musical time period, those forms are used as a basis and expanded. Not
only is popular recorded music based on composition, but the actual pro-
duction of the music in the studio (application of reverb, delays, and so
on) has become as much a part of the composition as the notation and the
arrangement. Aquiring basic knowledge of music production is relevant
to a composer’s education and success in this field.
These skills apply to writing music for commercials. Since the majority
of assignments are to imitate a popular musical style, the composition
must contain the same production values as the recorded musical exam-
ples referred to by an agency.
It can be advantageous to keep the following production elements in
mind when composing.
Listen to the use of reverberation and echo.Is the snare drum dry
(without reverb), or does it have a long decay time? Is there a slap echo on
the tom-toms (a quick repeat)? Reverberation and echo greatly affect the
ambience of a recording.
Listen to the level (volume) of the most prominent instruments.Is
the bass prominent in the mix? Is the kick drum as loud as the bass, or is
it merely ‘‘felt’’? Is the overall level of the strings loud or soft in the mix?
Certain musical genres have production characteristics; for example, rock
and roll has loud guitars, dance music has loud kick drums, and hip-hop
has loud bass and drums.
Listen to the equalization of each instrument.Does the piano sound
warm, or does it sound thin and percussive? Is the kick drum tubby, or
does it have a hard, pointed sound? Is the sound of the bass round and
deep, or does the performer use his or her thumb, which creates a percus-
sive effect?
Equalization is a delicate procedure and must be used carefully.Stri-
dent, piercing sounds can result from overequalization. Too much low end
can cause distortion.
Listen to the sonic quality and level of the vocals.Does the lead
singer sound warm and smooth, or does the equalization cause the voice
to sound shrill? Is the lead singer doubled in any sections of the song? Are
the background singers loud in the mix or much softer than the lead vocal?
Are the background vocals doubled or tripled (helping to create a full
sound)? Is there more than one person singing the lead? Are the back-
ground vocals used as part of the orchestration by singing syllables in
place of words?