need help with melodys

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sickdrummer

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whats up...i was just wondering how you guys figure out what melodies you put over your chords for the words in you songs? is there an easy way to come up with good melodies for your vocals
? just curious thanx
 
I hum or sing sylables over my music a lot. I try different things to see what works best for a given part of the tune.

I also slap down a scratch recording and sing over it without having to play it. When a song is new that often frees me up enough to think of something more creative. I'll also slap down scratch vocal tracks and makeup harmonies for them. Sometimes the harmonies are better than the melody and I use them instead. :)

I'll also try singing the melody for one part of the song over different parts of the music to see how they fit. It can be surprising sometimes and sound really cool.

Anyway, I just play with it until I hear something that I think sounds good. Then I play with it some more just to be sure.

Take care,
Chris
 
OK....The way it works for me....is that I'll be strumming a chord, maybe two...but that's all....and I'll hear the first couple parts of a melody over those chords....At this point I STOP strumming chords....And I begin to figure out what the notes of the melody are before continuing onward.....Once I have done that, the next step is trying to figure out what the remainder of the chord progression is (remember only started with one/two chords) Sometimes the first two chords and maybe a third one is enough to satisfy the entire melody..

Other times I have to search the guitar/piano to find more of the right chords to fill the space behind the remainder of the melody... It's as if I know exactly what the chords are I'm searching for and as I continue to strum through all the different chords inorder to find the right ones, I'm hearing the right ones in my head...and I know that as soon as I strum them I'll be like BINGO...that's the one.... However, I also know my music theory so I am able to minimize the amount of chords that I actually have to search through...given a particular note in a song, it can usually only be a couple of different chords that could operate with that note....at least in terms of the key that the song is in..

Once that's all done...then I have the structure of the song...However, I am like a mad scientist when I'm writing songs, so I continue to experiment...Doing thing like Chris does with Harmonies and yes, occasionally doing the exact same thing as he does; changing the harmony part to the lead part...I do this not necessarily because one sounds better than the other, but because one normally sounds better when I'm the one singing...I always try to do what is best in terms of the limitations of my voice. And making the harmony part the lead part normally doesn't typically affect the feel of the song that much anyhow...


Like Chris, sometimes I also try the melodies over different chords, i.e. "relative majors and minors" are a good place to start for this method.....


Despite all this, I usually wind up sticking to my original formula.........Because otherwise I just start to confuse my self with my stupid mad scientist way of songwriting :D


Good question though, I'm going to use my psychic ability right now: Sick drummer, there will be alot of different answers and opinions to this question....



- nave
 
I usually work out the chord progressions first then proceed basically the same as Chris. Just hum it or tra la la it. If I have words in minid I might rewrite them to make sylables fall in the proper place once the melody is decided upon; or change the melody to fit the sylables.
Saw Paul Simon once on late night and he was a big fan of Mickey Mantles. He related a story where Mickey asked him if he was such a fan why he used Joe
DiMaggio in Mrs. Robinson instead of him and Paul Simon replied, "sylables".
 
OH, the other BIG BIG Thing about melodies for me is how I always try to make the phrasing of the notes exhibit some sort of "question and answer" quality......Don't know how to explain it other than that......But generally, if you pick up a music theory book it is likely that you will see the phrase "question and answer" in regards to phrasing......Or you could Just think about it.....Many Many of the melodies of the songs you listen to use this phrasing technique


good luck sickdrummer....get well soon :D


- nave
 
and be sure to let your melody "breath". Use pauses, phrasing, and meter to your advantage/.
 
Girls say Girls say...

Try singing the "melody in progress" alone without music. If the song has a solid tune, you should be able to do this no problem. If it sounds boring without music, it probably is.
Also, for practice, I sometimes will take a simple chord progression like Am F C G and see how many totally different melodies I can come up with.
Every 2nd song on the radio is using this progression. From celine dions latest (very disapointing) to michelle branch (who you ask? noone worth remembering I answer) The melodies are just new. You cant really mess up-unless youre co- writing with courtney love- I'd say start off simple and build peice by peice. I never just come up with a complete tune. I construct it note by note. It also depends on how important your vocals are. If you wanna belt it out then make sure you have a soaring chorus, if you have a wide range, try using the same tune for the stanzas and chorus, just sing the chorus an octave higher. Id recommend keeping things simple (think "hey baby hey baby hey, " Im always setting myself up for disaster when my melodies get a little to long because suddenly I need 800 lines worth of lyrics.
OK HAPPY WRITING:)
Shana
 
has anyone else ever wondered if all existant melody combinations will one day dry up? I mean, there are only so many notes you can play. Thats part of why i personally think tone in both vocals and instruments is just as important as the melody.

it just seems like alot...i take that back...all of the pop/rock crap out there now is the same tired song just done a slightly different way.

I do NOT like the whole rap/rock "thing" but I have to admit I really like linkin park, simply because EVERY song on that cd is good enough to be a single and has incredible melody. none of it sounds "borrowed". oh yeah....APC rocks like nothing else on earth too. hehe...
 
I read somewhere that there has not been an "original" melody since the 1920's....just variations on existing ones....
I guess there is a limit to everything....ya know?
 
yeah. i guess the variation comes from tone, meter, phrasing, rhythm, harmony, and counter melody.
 
true. but that can get out of hand when not used well.
Ironically my CD Im working on right now will be titled "Accesable Disonance". im not sure if i spelled either right.... :rolleyes:

cause its experimental and progressive but with pop sensabilities and without sounding self indulging and...boring.
 
When I write a song, I usually come up with several guitar (or dulcimer) progressions and find an order to put them into. As I am doing this, I usually get a few ideas about melody and possibly a lyric or two. Then I will record the guitar or dulcimer on a track and then start singing randomly to it. I do this a few times while recording, then lsitening, and back and forth till a meldoy evolves. Usually, parts of the song will coem quick and parts very slow. Once I have a melody, I start to think about finishing the lyrics ( I have usually got a few by this point)....

Then, there is the random occasion where it all happens at the same time and I get music, melody, and lyric altogther. *sigh*

:D
 
I usually use the piano to write songs since it was the first instrument I learned to play. I tend to focus on the bass line first and then proceed to a melody. I also write the words first in most cases and then work out a melody later.
 
Just inspiration

Inspiration takes care of everything you needs in writing something worth hearing. I think the bad tunes are ones that had been written under forced constraint. Just use piano or guitar, but no flute or trumpet.
 
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