"Wally" wrote in message
k...
"Donal" wrote in message news:crndpe$fb3$1

Do you read dots? Take lessons? Compose? Play by ear? Improvise?

I don't take lessons.... yet.

I've never had a lesson. I kinda avoided them when I first got started, on
the assumption that one can end up sounding like the teacher, which I
didn't
want to happen.


I try to compose, but I'm "creatively
challenged".

I would say don't *try* to compose - just fart about, explore sounds and
combinations of notes.

The word "try" was misleading. What happens is that I "wander off".
However, I can only go in one direction. It tends to be very repetitive.
Most good music either consists of mixtures of styles/tunes, or a very rich
tune.


The monkeys and typewriters principle applies. When
something good comes out, play it a few more times before you forget it -
memorise the hand movements that make it happen. Incorporate it into every
session until you can play it fluidly, and fart about around that theme.
If
it's as good as initial impressions suggest, more bits will come out - one
thing leads to another. After a while, you'll have enough bits to arrange
them into a piece. To my mind, that's when the actual 'composing' starts.
Have a listen to this while I try to explain how I went about creating
it...

http://www.yachtsea.com/music/TheDance.mp3

I wrote it a couple of months ago. It started with a sequence of six notes
on the guitar (the opening notes). I thought it sounded quite nice, but
I'm
crap at playing arpeggiated stuff, so, to get a decent listen to it, I put
it into the MIDI sequencer (keyed in manually, note-by-note). Then I added
the bassline, which helped to set the overall feel (the guitar arpeggio
doesn't really define a melody because it just repeats).

It sounds nice. I've tried to do something similiar in the past.



With the bassline in place, I tried various sounds over the top (clicking
an
on-screen keyboard with the mouse) to see what the melody instrument
should
be - looking for the sound that 'works' with the backing. (By this time,
the
atmosphere or feel of the piece is starting to become apparent - I'm
starting to focus on the mood I'm trying to convey.) The tooty-flutey
sound
was the one and the melody for that was written in the sequencer,
step-by-step. Not in one go, though - it was repeated and adjusted until
it
sounded right, just like I'd do it if I was writing a lead solo on the
guitar - when it loses its way, I stop and start again.

The tinkly stuff in the middle is a two-part harmony based on the guitar
part. The two harmonies are distinct melodies in their own right. Here,
I'm
experimenting with the idea that the three parts (guitar and two celestes)
intermingle, such that further parts - parts that I didn't write - can be
distiguished.

I went from the handful of notes on the guitar to the arranged piece in
one
evening, and then spent about a week refining the mix. I tried some other
instrument sounds along the way (sequencers make this easy), but settled
on
the guitar and flutey thing that I started with. At no point did I know
what
was coming next - not even when I was in the middle of laying down a
particular part did I know what notes would follow.

I guess you could say I composed this piece, but it doesn't feel like that
to me - it's more like I 'found' it, or discovered it. Plucked it from the
ether and made it real. Once the thing gets started, it takes on a life of
its own and it's my job to try and render that in a tangible form.
Composing, to me, suggests that I have some sort of plan, a vision of the
finished piece, which just isn't the case at all. All I do is fart about,
pick out the good bits and turn them into arrangements.


I'm beginning to be able to play by ear.

Very important, in my view. The language of musicians is music, pure and
simple. Anything else is one step removed from that - a translation, a
representation, not the real thing.


I've been using a book called "Learn to Improvise the Blues" by Tim
Richards. It starts with very basic stuff and works up to some
difficult
music.

Interesting - never read a book on how to improvise. What sort of approach
does it advocate?

He starts with basic chords and rythms. He then introduces more
complicated chords (6th's, 7th's, 9th's, 13th's), and he also covers more
complicated rythms.

The real beauty of the book is that you can easily skip parts, and also go
back. I've re-started the book 4 or 5 times, and each time I get more out
of it.




I take breaks to try and learn stuff like Bach's "Tocata and Fugue", and
I'm
currently doing "Air on a G string".

Good plan. I think it helps to have a diverse range of interests.


I like most types of music.


Regards


Donal
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