Music writing problem

[amoamaremetallum]

Okay, so here's the deal. I have been playing guitar for coming up to three years now, and I have been writing pieces for about a year. Throughout this year, I have always come across two (and only two) problems.

1. Whenever I try to write a piece (I try to go for Melodic Death Metal) it always sounds like its a flamenco or classical piece. I'm not complaining so much with this, I mean, I do really enjoy and appreciate them both and am honored to be able to write stuff similar to it, it just aggravates me because rarely can I write something melodic, yet, metal.

2. If and when I do create a decent melodeath sounding piece that I REALLY like, I can NEVER write pieces that tie it into a song. I mean, I can write a short and simple little riff that could be AWESOME, but I can't write stuff to go with it.

If anyone can help me with either of these, I would gladly listen and reply.

 

[Zaik]

No idea, but seeing as that sprawl of titles you have assigned for whatever that form of music is supposed to represent is effectively an offshoot of an offshoot of an offshoot of an offshoot, could you not just start out with your classical piece, then alter it to follow down the trail of offshoots that ends in whatever melodic death metal is supposed to be?


Seems like a lot more rational of an approach than expecting to write something so specific.

Maybe write and rewrite the same song in a series of steps, like
Classical->rock->hard rock->metal->heavy metal->death metal->melodic death metal.

Each individual transition is a lot easier than skipping from a to g. Once you practice it a lot you might be able to skip steps or something.

 

[KindOfnElf]

You need to relax when you are composing (melodic death metal or not). That also means to lower your expectations.
I am not saying to do that in order to kill your self confidence, but to be free of results. Once you are relaxed, you'll hit spontaneity and believe me, wonderful things happen there.

Also, write down everything that EVER comes to your mind in terms of melody. Carry a piece of paper and pencil around with you, and write down melodies that will "accidentally" pop in your mind. When you'll have enough pieces, modification will come easily, and you can compose "bridges" in between to make them a whole. I know you explained this, but composing really requires patience and LOTS of spontaneity. It's one of those things where you can't force beauty to happen it must come on it's own.

And I hope you won't be offended by this, by you are quite fresh as a composer, only a year. You'll get better in time if you be persistent. Failing a lot is the only way to learn how to be good at something, so don't get disappointed, just don't give up.
Good luck.

 

[Sneaklemming]

If you want to improve your musical writing, beyond "knowing its just right", you could go down the road of learning some basic harmony -Id recommend baroque - not so you can write stuff like it, but so that you know how to make a tune sound the way you want it to.

In 4-part harmony there are loads of "rules" when writing so that you always end up with something pleasing to the "classically inclined" ear. Knowing how to break these rules and how to make things that are unique to your genre.

For example: when writing 4-part harmony, there is a certain chord progression that was considered sinful to write (bear in mind the time period of baroque). It's called the devils 4th.

So by learning how to (or how not to) write classical music you end up with a toolbox you can use to design the melody you want to create. You can also re-purpose bits of tunes you create to integrate them into the songs you are playing.

If you think this would be helpful, quote me (to get my attention) and I'll see what I can find to help you.

 

[bassdrum]

If you want to improve your musical writing, beyond "knowing its just right", you could go down the road of learning some basic harmony -Id recommend baroque - not so you can write stuff like it, but so that you know how to make a tune sound the way you want it to.

In 4-part harmony there are loads of "rules" when writing so that you always end up with something pleasing to the "classically inclined" ear. Knowing how to break these rules and how to make things that are unique to your genre.

For example: when writing 4-part harmony, there is a certain chord progression that was considered sinful to write (bear in mind the time period of baroque). It's called the devils 4th.

So by learning how to (or how not to) write classical music you end up with a toolbox you can use to design the melody you want to create. You can also re-purpose bits of tunes you create to integrate them into the songs you are playing.

If you think this would be helpful, quote me (to get my attention) and I'll see what I can find to help you.

This. If you can, take a music theory course--even though they're usually grounded in classical theory, it'll give you a solid grounding in the way harmonies usually work, and then you can use those to write music around those rules (even if that means blatantly disregarding them). Since taking a music theory class, I've been much more able to write stuff which sounds halfway decent, and it'll also help you to figure stuff out by ear better (which is just plain helpful, particularly since tabs are so often wildly off-base).

Other than that, I'd say that you should just write whatever music you end up writing and then work with it until it's what you want. If you end up writing a flamenco guitar riff, awesome. In fact, I'd be inclined to say that that's better than writing straight up melodic death metal, because something that fuses flamenco and metal is bound to sound really interesting. Basically, don't tie yourself to a specific idea, and just take whatever you make and have it be your own thing.

 

[Something Amyss]

This. If you can, take a music theory course--even though they're usually grounded in classical theory, it'll give you a solid grounding in the way harmonies usually work, and then you can use those to write music around those rules (even if that means blatantly disregarding them). Since taking a music theory class, I've been much more able to write stuff which sounds halfway decent, and it'll also help you to figure stuff out by ear better (which is just plain helpful, particularly since tabs are so often wildly off-base).

My theory classes were full of all kinds. It was awesome.

It's especially good for figuring out the underpinnings that will work along with those individual parts the topic creator was talking about.

 

[Lukeje]

Have you tried transcribing stuff by your favourite artists? It'll give you a sense of what that sort of music should look like when written down, and hopefully inspire some of your own music.

 

[L33tsauce_Marty]

Melodic Death Metal? That entire genre is filled with classical inspiration. Ever heard of Children of Bodom? All of their songs have some sort of classical flair to them.

Listen to the guitar/keyboard solo in this song:


Sounding classical isn't bad, you just have to put some of your own taste into it.

 

[Heart of Darkness]

A lot of good suggestions here already, and I'm going to stress these again: take a music theory class, and don't be afraid of not writing exactly what you want. As a hobbyist composer, I found that taking a music theory course actually started my "career," so to speak, and the knowledge you gain in a course like that will benefit you no matter what you decide to write.

As far as not writing something that sounds like melodic death metal, that's actually fairly normal, especially for people fairly new at writing music. I still suffer from this, actually, and the best course of action I can say to you is to try again. And then try again. Keep trying until you get it right, and then try it again. You'll learn more a lot from simply repeating the process than by getting frustrated after one failed attempt. If it sounds too classical, then you have experience writing a classical-esque piece, and you can then put that knowledge to writing exactly what you want to write.

Rome wasn't exactly built in a day. If you're not satisfied with your work, do it again. No one said that it wasn't going to be an easy process. It's like learning a new language or doing math: the more you do it, the better you'll get at it.

 

[amoamaremetallum]

Thanks for the replies everyone, they're all being put to good use.

Just to clarify to some people though, the school I am enrolled in doesn't allow freshmen to be enrolled in music theory. I would have taken it in a heartbeat if I could, sadly until the end of the school year, that's kind of out of the question.

And another thing, I have absolutely NO problem with writing classical music. I extremely enjoy and admire classical music. My teacher and I both play it together more often than anything else. The only thing is is that I can't do anything else, which is sad when it's not what I'd LOVE to be writing. I do accept that a lot of melodeath is based off classical, but when I try and translate it, it sounds too 'forced', I guess.

Oh, and don't worry, I will continue to try and try and try until i get it right. Thanks again everyone!

 

[Sneaklemming]

Thanks for the replies everyone, they're all being put to good use.

Just to clarify to some people though, the school I am enrolled in doesn't allow freshmen to be enrolled in music theory. I would have taken it in a heartbeat if I could, sadly until the end of the school year, that's kind of out of the question.

And another thing, I have absolutely NO problem with writing classical music. I extremely enjoy and admire classical music. My teacher and I both play it together more often than anything else. The only thing is is that I can't do anything else, which is sad when it's not what I'd LOVE to be writing. I do accept that a lot of melodeath is based off classical, but when I try and translate it, it sounds too 'forced', I guess.

Oh, and don't worry, I will continue to try and try and try until i get it right. Thanks again everyone!

You could learn musical theory on your own outside of class. It's really not hard. Do you play a classical instrument/can you read musical notation?

If you want I'll see if I can't dig up some good beginner stuff from the interwebs - but I need to know if you can read music or how much you already know.

 

[amoamaremetallum]

Thanks for the replies everyone, they're all being put to good use.

Just to clarify to some people though, the school I am enrolled in doesn't allow freshmen to be enrolled in music theory. I would have taken it in a heartbeat if I could, sadly until the end of the school year, that's kind of out of the question.

And another thing, I have absolutely NO problem with writing classical music. I extremely enjoy and admire classical music. My teacher and I both play it together more often than anything else. The only thing is is that I can't do anything else, which is sad when it's not what I'd LOVE to be writing. I do accept that a lot of melodeath is based off classical, but when I try and translate it, it sounds too 'forced', I guess.

Oh, and don't worry, I will continue to try and try and try until i get it right. Thanks again everyone!

You could learn musical theory on your own outside of class. It's really not hard. Do you play a classical instrument/can you read musical notation?

If you want I'll see if I can't dig up some good beginner stuff from the interwebs - but I need to know if you can read music or how much you already know.

I play and read bassoon in bass clef, if that helps.

 

[Verlander]

The best thing is to work with people. Those who learn an instrument alongside like minded people, and write music with friends, make the best music, as long as they're compatible people

 

[Berethond]

snip

<url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.198377-Music-Theory-The-basics-updated-V7>Here's a really good music theory overview for beginners. It should really help you out with the theory.

 

[Dastardly]

Okay, so here's the deal. I have been playing guitar for coming up to three years now, and I have been writing pieces for about a year. Throughout this year, I have always come across two (and only two) problems.

1. Whenever I try to write a piece (I try to go for Melodic Death Metal) it always sounds like its a flamenco or classical piece. I'm not complaining so much with this, I mean, I do really enjoy and appreciate them both and am honored to be able to write stuff similar to it, it just aggravates me because rarely can I write something melodic, yet, metal.

2. If and when I do create a decent melodeath sounding piece that I REALLY like, I can NEVER write pieces that tie it into a song. I mean, I can write a short and simple little riff that could be AWESOME, but I can't write stuff to go with it.

If anyone can help me with either of these, I would gladly listen and reply.

Listen to some Bach. I recommend the cello suites and the Well-Tempered Clavier. Listen to it a bunch--the guy was the god of melody, and harmony that grows from melody.

The #1 mistake people make when writing a melody is focusing too much attention on the notes. Don't neglect the importance of rhythm. Your stuff might be sounding to classical because you're using nice, neat, symmetrical phrases with very beat-centric rhythms. Music of the true classical period (around the 17-1800's) is known for being very simple in that regard. Going back in time 60 years and listening to some Baroque stuff (ex. Bach) gives you far more variety.

Learn your major and minor scales, and the primary triads of each scale. These relationships can help you understand harmony. Beyond that, you need to understand good counterpoint--independent melodic lines that weave in and out of each other but sound good together, rather than just straight "harmony." Again, this is often more about rhythm than notes.

My suggestion to start: pick a simple scale. Pentatonic is a good one, because it's impossible to sound bad on the pentatonic scale. This gives you 5 notes to worry about. Then see what you can do rhythmically without going outside those 5 notes. Mess around--not every riff you write has to be groundbreaking stuff. Teach yourself to think rhythmically, and you'll find a lot more variety in your melodies.

 

[Aunel]

what you need, is bass player.

seriously, just jam along with friends

works for me

 

[dylanatthemovies]

I think Bukowski's got some advice. Just a hunch. He's been throwing beer bottles against the inside of my head since I read your post.

The buke says:

if it doesn't come bursting out of you
in spite of everything,
don't do it.
unless it comes unasked out of your
heart and your mind and your mouth
and your gut,
don't do it.
if you have to sit for hours
staring at your computer screen
or hunched over your
typewriter
searching for words,
don't do it.
if you're doing it for money or
fame,
don't do it.
if you're doing it because you want
women in your bed,
don't do it.
if you have to sit there and
rewrite it again and again,
don't do it.
if it's hard work just thinking about doing it,
don't do it.
if you're trying to write like somebody
else,
forget about it.
if you have to wait for it to roar out of
you,
then wait patiently.
if it never does roar out of you,
do something else.

if you first have to read it to your wife
or your girlfriend or your boyfriend
or your parents or to anybody at all,
you're not ready.

don't be like so many writers,
don't be like so many thousands of
people who call themselves writers,
don't be dull and boring and
pretentious, don't be consumed with self-
love.
the libraries of the world have
yawned themselves to
sleep
over your kind.
don't add to that.
don't do it.
unless it comes out of
your soul like a rocket,
unless being still would
drive you to madness or
suicide or murder,
don't do it.
unless the sun inside you is
burning your gut,
don't do it.

when it is truly time,
and if you have been chosen,
it will do it by
itself and it will keep on doing it
until you die or it dies in you.

there is no other way.

and there never was.

 

[dylanatthemovies]

And another thing, I have absolutely NO problem with writing classical music. I extremely enjoy and admire classical music. My teacher and I both play it together more often than anything else. The only thing is is that I can't do anything else, which is sad when it's not what I'd LOVE to be writing. I do accept that a lot of melodeath is based off classical, but when I try and translate it, it sounds too 'forced', I guess.

sounds like the classical is roaring out of you.

maybe we don't need another death metal band.