A Quick and Easy Composition Method!

Here's the method I use every time I want to capture an idea. I draw out 8-bars (or measures) first. Why 8 bars? Because it is an ideal framework to work in.

Eight bars of music are enough to generate a complete musical sentence and can usually be repeated once or twice. Next, I improvise and see what comes up. THEN I will write down the chords I am playing and the first 2-bars of melody.

A good example of this is the piece "On The Trail."

Writing down the first 2-bars of melody helps me remember the entire theme for the 8-bar phrase. I usually stay within one key to make it easy.

This means I'll have 6 chords to work with. In C Major, the chords would be, C Maj. - D min. - E min. - F Maj. - G Maj. and A min. This is more than enough material to work with.

In fact, I rarely use more than 3 or 4 chords for the first 8-bars.

Once you get your first 8-bars down, your more than halfway home. Why? Because you already have the beginning. The rest of the piece, if there is a rest of the piece, can be finished by drawing more bar lines AND LISTENING FOR THE NEXT SECTION OF MUSIC. This is always accomplished through improvisation.

Your best material will ALWAYS come from improvisation because you are not thinking about creating something. Instead, you are allowing the music that is inside of you to come to the surface without forcing it or willing it into being. You use the 8-bar framework to hold your ideas so to speak.

There is no rule that says you must work within 8-bars. You can use 4 or even 16 bar phrases, however, its good to be able to feel the form and structure of an 8-bar phrase first. It is the structure used by most composers and it is wise to understand it.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Visit http://www.quiescencemusic.com/ now and get a FREE piano lesson!

Musical Compostion - How To Listen To Music Like A Composer

Did you know that there is more than one way to listen to music? I first read about this from a small book by composer Aaron Copeland.

You see most people listen to music as if something were washing over them. They listen to the oncoming barrage of notes and chords and never wonder or understand how it achieves the effect it does.

Not composers. They listen differently. While most people enjoy music for music's sake - a composer listens for sections or how the music is constructed.

I'm not saying that composers never listen to music for pure enjoyment. That would be terrible. No. What I'm saying is that a composer or anyone who takes the time to learn, can begin to hear how music is put together.

And most music created today is comprised of sections. More specifically, we have A and B sections, introductions, transitions and endings and so on.

All these "pieces" go into creating a piece of music. Even spontaneously improvised pieces of music have been given a name by composers. They call it "through composed" which means that there are no distinctly repeating sections.

For example, in the lesson "Winged Realm," students learn how to listen to a piece of music and then deterrmine the form and arrangement of the piece. Learning this skill is highly recommended since it helps you hear what the composer is doing.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Visit http://www.quiescencemusic.com now and get a FREE piano lesson!