Composer Focus - Music & Audio Tutorials

Programming Your Own Percussion Beds

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 17:12:36 +0000

If you’re sick of sounding like everyone else and have run out of ways to layer your loops over each other to sound “fresh”, then keep reading as I give you a quick look at what it takes to program your own percussion, why it’s not as hard as you think, and why it’s crucial for defining your own personal sound.

I Hit It With A Stick

Percussion instruments come in many shapes and sizes, and can be made of just about any material you can name. In fact, when you think about it, anything at all can become a percussion instrument: just whack it! There are, of course, a number of “standard” instruments (like snare drums, congas, taiko drums, etc.) that are encountered in most cases, but never be afraid to think outside the box a bit when you’re working — especially with percussion — because you can get some amazing sounds out of the most unexpected sources.

But for the purposes of this tutorial, we’re going to stick to some pretty basic percussion instruments. The idea is to teach you one approach to working with your percussion samples so that you can then take the techniques and apply them to any project and any percussion instrument you care to get or make.

1. Laying the Foundations

We’re going to create a short percussion phrase. It could easily be made to loop, but for now let’s not worry about looping and just think of it as a stinger for something. Once we’ve got a tempo in mind, we can start building from the ground up.

The ground, in this case, is the steadiest element. It is not necessarily the lowest in pitch, it’s just the element that remains fairly static and can be easily followed when we start adding layers. Since it’s most often the case, we’ll use a large drum (doesn’t matter what) to lay down our “bottom” layer:

Now we have something to work with. It’s a steady rhythm, with no major changes or complicated intricacies. Just a steady pulse. But note that even this most simplistic element still has dynamic range: some hits are louder than others, and there is a sense of phrasing throughout the clip. In other words, it doesn’t just sound like the same sample over and over and over like a poor techno beat.

2. Livening it Up

Now unless the scene calls for very basic accompaniment, we’re going to need to jazz up this stinger a bit. Since we have a foundation, the rest is fairly easy — it’s just a matter of adding layers. The trick is to be tasteful about it, to keep it balanced, and to do your best to think like a percussionist and write in lines that are intuitive.

Since we’ve got the low drum going, I’m going to take a mid-ranged drum to fill out a bit more of the spectrum. The line I’m adding in is more active and fairly constant throughout the clip, though it does build to the end — again, remember to have dynamic range in there because that’s a large part of what will keep your percussion sounding real and alive instead of flat and loop-y:

Notice that we’ve already got something that sounds very useable. Keep in mind what I said about being tasteful: if you’ve got enough going on to address the scene, then stop. Overcomplicated percussion is distracting and will divert your audience’s attention if not handled properly, so be wary of that. Of course, if that’s not the case, then there’s a lot of room up top for some spice…

3. Up High

With a solid low and middle end going, we’re ready to set our sights higher up. For this next layer, I’m taking some smaller percussion instruments. This upper range is the realm of hi-hat hits, cymbals, shakers, stick clacks, bells, and other high-pitched sounds.

With this layer, I’m going to break things up a bit in two ways: first of all, I’m going to add two different elements this time and one of them isn’t even going to show up until the second half of the phrase. Secondly, I’m going to have that second element play a part in triplets rather than in straight time. This adds just a bit of instability to the rhythm and gives a sense of extra momentum, propelling us forward.

By the way, I’m adding these layers via MIDI keyboard, but you can use any entry method that suits you so long as you do your best to keep things sounding natural. The advantage of playing things in rather than notating them in or drawing them on the piano roll is that you can actually “perform” them and save yourself hours of tedious MIDI fiddling. Just do a couple of takes until it sounds natural and you’re good to go!

Here’s the segment with those two elements added in:

Now we’ve got an oriental feel happening with those bell-like instruments in the second half, and the blood is definitely starting to pump.

4. Taiko

The workhorse of the film percussion palette is the Japanese taiko drum family. These mighty instruments have become quintessentially Hollywood and their beefy sound and crisp character make them an invaluable part of your percussion mix. For us, they’re going to lend a helping hand to our lonely foundation line because it could use some extra bass support. In addition, I’m going to toss in some stick clacks — another familiar sound.

The results are immediately evident:

With this, we can call it quits: we’ve got a very useable and very rich percussive segment. Best of all, it’s completely unique and has not appeared in 500 other shows scored by all the other composers using that same library of loops. This is all you.

5. Polish

On the other hand, since scores tend to call for some added aggression these days, we may have to do one more pass. We’ve kept very much to organic instruments thus far, so for this last round I’m going to throw in some heavily distorted hits to get things sounding angrier. Again, remember to be tasteful about it. I’m not going overboard with them, just enough to pack an extra punch.

In addition, I’m feeling like that shaker is now too loud with all these other things going on, so I’m going to bring its volume down. I’m also going to add some gentle tail reverb to everything to tie all these disparate elements together.

The results are appropriately menacing:

Cool.

Parting Thoughts

If nothing else, take away from this tutorial the idea that your percussion is an instrumental section just like any other that you write for. The moment you disregard it and just toss a loop on is the moment you’re compromising the craft. It’s harsh and sometimes deadlines require the use of loops, but even then do yourselves a favour and toss a couple of quick lines overtop of the loop to give them a personal touch. Remember though that the biggest advantage of writing your own percussion material is that you can tailor it to fit your needs precisely. No more worrying about splicing loops.

Also worth mentioning is that you can cover a lot of different ground with just one set of instruments. For instance, here are two more quick phrases I’ve thrown together using the same percussion instruments (just 5) we used for the above tutorial. The first is more laid back and unaggressive:

And the second is brisk and sharp:

The reality is that spending the time writing out your own percussion lines is a time-consuming prospect, but for anyone who’s serious about carving out their own niche and establishing themselves as a composer with a unique voice and creative drive, it’s just another essential piece of the puzzle.

How To Write A Tango

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 13:00:01 +0000

As a serious dance form, it is epitomized by the dancers jerky movements to the characteristic rhythms. When composing your tango, remember that tangos are composed to be danced to, not just listened to! The main musical features to work on when starting to compose your first tango are the bass, melody and general rhythmic feel. The easiest way to begin composing this type of music, is to familiarize yourself with the style through listening, or better still playing some tangos, and other Latin American music.

The Basics

The two main rhythms that characterize tango music are:

The first rhythm is taken from Cuba, and is called the Habanera. These rhythms are used as the basis for both the bass line and the percussion parts. Make sure that when you compose your own music, these rhythms feature heavily (don’t worry about not being original, this is important in getting the tango sound). Although there are many variations, these two are the main rhythmic cells. Remember, tangos tend to be in either 4/4 or 2/4, and while there are some exceptions in other meters, this is considerably less common and makes it much harder to produce convincing results.

You can begin to add your own personality and originality when creating your percussion parts; begin with one of these rhythmic cells as a basis. Once you have this simple starting point, begin to intuitively add other notes until you have a fuller sounding percussion part. However, be careful not to overcrowd the percussion part, as this may hide the tango pulse. Also, be careful not to add too many short notes; try to make quaver notes (eighth-notes) the shortest notes that you use. Look at this example to get an idea how to make a successful tango percussion part:

Melody

Most tangos begin in a minor key, reflecting the serious nature of the dance (indeed, most dancers keep stern faces when dancing tangos). When starting out, the easiest key to use is the harmonic minor, but all minor key variations are fine to use. Melodies also tend to use lots of chromatic notes, so use these to fill in any gaps between tones in your melody. Rhythmically, melodies can move either with your bass line, or they can play flowing straight notes to contrast the dotted rhythms in the other instruments. Moving by step, or by leap is equally okay (as long as the melody works with the harmony!) so as long as your melody sounds musical, it’s okay!

Bellow are a few examples of the type melodic ideas that work in tangos:

Harmony

Tangos use relatively simple harmony, which contrasts the more complicated rhythms and melodies. The main chords used when the music is in the minor key are the chords i, iv, V7 and VI. In A minor these chords would be A minor, D minor, E7 and F major. In most tangos, the harmony comes out through the bass line, or a through a piano accompaniment.

Composing A Tango From Scratch

The first step to writing your first tango is sketching out a chord sequence and a bass part. To begin, make an 8 bar chord sequence using only the four allowed chords. The most important two chords are i and V7, so use these most of all!

Here are some examples of typical 8 bar chord sequences:

Example 1: Am |Am |E7 |E7 |E7 |E7 |Am |Am |
Example 2: Am |Dm |E7 |Am |Am |Dm |F |E7 |

To make your bass part, start by copying one of the tango rhythms into your bass line.

The first note of every bar should be the root of the harmony. So for an A minor chord, move first note in the bar should be an A, and for and E7 chord the first note should be an E. The remaining notes can be any pitched from any note in the chord. This includes the 7th if your using the V7 chord. Examples of bass lines can be seen below.

Now, using your chord sequence and a bass pattern like the ones above, construct a skeleton score like the one bellow:

Now that you have your skeleton score, begin to add a melody. You can try to add one of the melodies you made earlier, or make a new one specifically to fit the harmony. Most melodies should work; though make sure you have some consonant notes in every bar! If your melody doesn’t seem to fit the harmony, try checking whether you can fit more consonant notes into your melody. If you can’t add any more notes and the melody still doesn’t fit, then you can add more chromatic scales to the melody to help mask this. As mentioned earlier, melodies in tangos tend to be chromatic. The melody doesn’t have to be too fancy however, just look at the example below made when using the skeleton score above:

Once you have got a melody and harmony that works well together, repeat these steps to create another 8 bars of music. Try to make these a bit different from the first bars, either by making the rhythms more complex, or by making the melody more chromatic. If you arrange your music later on, then arrange these bars differently to the first. An example of the sort of contrast you might want can be seen below:

We now have two sections of music written, both of them in a minor key. Two thirds of your tango is now composed.
For the final composed section of a tango, we need to modulate to the relative major. If you are using A minor so far, then we now will move to C major. We can extend the chords we can use to make harmony to I, ii, iii, IV, V7 and vi to help once again build our 8 bar skeleton score. As before, add a bass part, and then a melody, aiming to make this section sound a bit different from the other two.

Finishing Your Piece

Use your 8 bar sections, to form a structure akin to the one below:

Section A (8 Bars) -> Section B (8 Bars) -> Section C (8 Bars) -> Section A (8 Bars)

If you want to make the piece longer, you can repeat each section. You can also add an introduction or a separate ending based upon the material you’ve created to make the piece even more musical.

Add your percussion part you created at the very beginning, and if you want, you can also add your own drum fills every four, eight or sixteen bars.

In essence, you now have successfully completed writing a tango. To develop your material further, you may consider arranging the material for a different ensemble.

Another way of developing your piece is by adding a second (or even third) melody. You can use a second melody antiphonally, as a call and response feature with your existing melody. If you have less space for call and response type melodies, you can use harmonize the melody in thirds or sixths (but be careful in the places you have use chromaticism!)

Congratulations on composing your first tango!

Double Bass Basics

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 12:57:23 +0000

Range

The double bass sounds an octave lower than written.
The range can be extended upwards by the use of harmonics.

The Strings

Unlike the other members of the string orchestra the strings are tuned in fourths. This is due to the length of the strings making the intervals between the stopped notes very wide. If the strings were tuned in 5th fingerings would become physically impossible.

The Open Strings

The E String

The E string is extremely dark and thick.

The A String

The A string is almost as dark and sluggish as the E string but has a grainy quality to it.

The D String

The D string is richer and possesses more character than the lower two strings.

The G String

The G string is the most expressive and versatile string of the Double Bass. It possesses a rich tone quality and can be very effective when used melodically.

Characteristics & Technical Considerations

The Double Bass is normally notated using the bass clear, although the tenor and the treble clef can be used if required.
Pizzicato is the most effective on this instrument. It has excellent resonance, sustain and body.
The instrument isn't as agile as the cello. Very quick passages are ineffective.
As the bow requires an increased number of alternating bow directions, bowings that match those of the other strings are more difficult.

How To Harmonize A Melody

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 12:57:02 +0000

Our Melody

To begin harmonizing this melody we must see which chords are available to us:

Step 1 - Add Cadences

The obvious cadences are in bars 1 to 2, 4 and 7 to 8.

Bars 1-2 - The melody being leading note to tonic must be either an interrupted or inverted perfect cadence. Taking into account what follow an interrupted cadence would be best (V-VI).
Bar 4 - This is the central cadence and the most obvious harmonisation is the use of a cadential sixth four (Ic-V).
Bars 7-8 - This is the final cadence so it must be V-I in the tonic.

We now have the following incomplete sketch:

Step 2 - Add the Bass

Let's take the opening. The D is a passing note so the chords would be Vb to I.

The B drops a 3rd to G sharp so the obvious choice of chord is IIb which follows nicely to the interrupted cadence.

The next chords can be harmonised by Ib-IV. In the melody there is a descending scalic passage and the C sharp is taken as an accented passing note so the harmony is:

The middle section is a sequential passage. First we must consider the key. The A sharp being a raised note is naturally the leading note of a new key, which would be B minor. The second part of the sequence is one note lower than the pattern, so therefore must be A major.

To establish B minor we must have some form of cadence and since this is not a central modulation, the cadence will have to be either interrupted or an inverted perfect. An inverted perfect is best as other solutions give problems. We'll use V7d (dominant 7th in third inversion). The following notes in the melody B,C,D are the 1st, 2nd and 3rd degrees of the scale and the natural bass is D,C sharp and B (contrary motion is key here).

Continuing the sequence into A major we get:

The most difficult part of the working is done and we have the following complete sketch of the treble and bass:

Step 3 - Add The Inner Parts

When adding the inner parts, melodic and rhythmic interest can't be ignored. It is best practice to keep the alto and tenor high rather than low as the tenor has a tendency to get tangled up with the bass.
Let's look at completing the first two bars. They could be harmonised like this:

This is fine except for the overlap in the tenor and bass. We can fix this by using the following solution:

This result is more interesting and satisfactory than the previous example. Doubling the bass of IIb helps as it prevents the tenor from being too close to the bass.

To add more melodic interest we can add passing notes and we get:

Continuing the inner parts on the rest of the melody we end up with this:

At {a}, {b} an {c} note the doubling of the 3rd from the bass of the first inversion chord which in every case improves the melodic line of the tenor.

Summary

As you've seen harmonising a melody can be divided into smaller tasks. It's simply a matter of:

Identifying cadences
Adding the bass line
Completing the inner parts

I hope you've enjoyed this article. I'll be following this up with a modulating example in the future.

10 Tips To Be More Productive Composing

Fri, 17 Sep 2010 12:54:41 +0000

1. Workspace

Having a clean and quiet workspace is the first step to being able to work effectively. Have your gear setup and ready to go so you don't have to hassle about when you're ready to work.

2. Templates

Do you use templates? You should be, it can saves valuable minutes you could be using to write that killer theme. Having a basic orchestra template ready to load will save time setting up instruments. I personally have templates for small and large ensembles with my favorite synths ready to go.

3. Save your presets

If you like to tinker and create your own sounds, chances are at some point you've either lost them or could never replicate them again. It's always a good idea to save your presets!

4. Keep Notes

Do you keep a compositional notebook? It can be a great way to keep you from forgetting ideas that otherwise would help you on a later track. Inspiration can hit you anywhere, make sure you're prepared and you have your notebook with you.

5. Disconnect

If you're like me, when you're on the computer you'll have your emails, twitter, facebook and various other social media sites open. It's great to be connected but they're also a distraction. When sitting down for a serious session, turn them off. You won't miss anything, promise.

6. Use Shortcuts

You may only save a couple of seconds, but they add up quickly. Learning the shortcuts for tasks you do regularly will save you time in the long-term. Once you're use to using shortcuts you'll find it helps you keep a fast pace and to keep your train of thought.

7. Record ideas

When you're improvising at the piano or just toying with an idea on your instrument of choice it's far too easy to let them little gems be forgotten. Have a recording device to hand and keep a record of your ideas, you never know when they'll come in handy.

8. Use loops for mock-ups

Using loops to produce mock-ups is a great way to lay the foundation on a track or cue quickly. So let's say you're writing an upbeat, positive track for TV. Grab a simple drum loop from a library, a baseline or even some effects. This gives you a canvas to get your other elements together. Later you can replace the temp tracks with your own.

9. Keep a good filing system

Keeping a good filing system, especially when it comes to your hard drives is essential for composers to work quickly and effectively without losing the spark when you've hit a great idea. This means having your sample libraries nicely organized and VSTs, Audio Units setup and ready to go with a mouse click.

10. Get a second opinion

Fresh ears can always pick up on something you've overlooked. Someone you can turn to for help and criticism is invaluable. If you don't have anyone to hand, upload your work to our community forum and get feedback.

These are just a few things I've used in the last year as I've started to refine my composition sessions and so far it's paid off. Can you share any tips? How do you stay productive?