question about music and composing?

Question

im having a bit of trouble working up the willpower and having the creativity to write something somewhat technical and original. i've tried observing chord changes and patterns that composers like j.s. bach use and attempted to come up with something similar, but i just simply can't. can someone give me some tips and ideas that i could work with?

Answer 1

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You need to study Bach more. Look at his two part inventions. Try composing something similar using only two voices. What could be more simple than to write a piece for the piano that only has one note in each hand playing at any given time?



Do not try to write your immortal masterpiece on the first try. Originality will come on it's own in time. You do not need to force it. If composition was easy everyone would be great composers. Like playing an instrument, it takes hours and hours of practice.

Answer 2

The thing about Bach is that his music was inspired for its time, but it is hardly 'pushing the boundaries' to modern ears (this would be subject to a lot of debate, but I am entitled to my opinion). Try listening to some quirky modern music, e.g. Satie, Mompou, Debussy, Ravel.



If you have a piano, I find about half my ideas originate from improvising at the piano. Play a chord, and then just think about where you would go from there, and before you konw it you might have a piece. Also, embrace wrong notes- some great ideas come from them.



In fact, if you are a fairly good sight reader, I have found some great ideas from mistakes while sightreading Chopin Nocturnes and Grieg Lyric Pieces.



Also, it is better to start with melody rather than chords or harmony most of the time. That said, Stravinsky's 'Symphony in Three Movements' barely has melody.



If you are completely lacking inspiration, try writing a fugue. The guidelines of what you have to do to write a fugal exposition are so strict that half of the work is already done for you. I suggest looking up fugues before you write one if you do not know exactly what to do beforehand.



As the previous answer says, it is best not to try and force things.

Answer 3

First of all, Bach was one of the most revered composers of all time for very good reason. You'll never write like him without training. I hold a degree in music composition and I've been told the same line that you're being told here: don't try to write like Bach, write like yourself. Or, listen and aspire to something more modern. That's bullsh!t. If you like the baroque sensibilities and want to emulate them, by all means, go ahead. Arguably Schoenberg is one of the most modern-sounding composers ever, and his composition students had to begin by studying and emulating Bach and working their way forward.



The first step though is to analyze Bach's music and find out WHY it sounds the way it does and why it works the way it does. Pick up a good book on counterpoint, learn about the various melodic variations that Bach utilized (sequence, inversion, etc.), discover what a motoric feel is. Learn the voice leading rules that were established from the analysis of Bach's music. Combine that with the analysis you've already started harmonically and you've laid the foundation for the technical knowledge that you need to start writing Baroque music.



For exercises, I would start by writing some simple chorales. You can do this off of simple melodies, even popular melodies work very well. Then, as your skills advance, write some inventions and work your way up to fugues.

Answer 4

How bout this:







try to do what ever YOU come up with. Develop a plan of what you are going to write a few days before you start writing out the whole piece. Don't try to compose like Bach, or anyone else. Do something that comes up in YOUR mind.



You don't have to write like Bach to be considered good. Develop your own style of playing without using any reference to anybody else's work. Make up your own rules of harmony, and follow them.

Answer 5

You can download a musicial composing program like Finale Notepad. Drop down random notes and work your way around it. I did that once at my musical school using a different but similar [it costs money]. I drop down random notes and when I played it after it sounded like a video game and I startled composing my musical piece around that idea.

Answer 6

I find it easier if I don't force it.

If I think of something while I'm out, I'll record it on my Blackberry just by humming it! Then when I get home, I transpose it.

Just a little something that may help you.