One of the hardest parts of teaching jazz is teaching
composing. How can a teacher tell a student how to write music that
the student hears? It can not be done. What can be done is helping
the student to recognize and develop what is strong in their writing.
The ultimate choices will be the students. The teacher's job is
to help them find and make choices. If the student has only a first
draft, there is nothing to choose from. The teacher can assist in
the rewriting process, instruct the student on questions to ask,
and help with procedures and organizational ideas from a long history
of great composers arrangers and writers.
MUSIC THEORY RULES
Two great rules of all music theory:
- No. 1 Does it sound good?
- No. 2 Does it sound good?
All else is a discussion of music theory principles,
not music theory rules. When a composer creates a musical idea,
at some point he must refer to rule no.1. If the answer is "yes,"
he might want to ask "why?" At that point he may discover a principle
working that will be helpful in developing this piece or other compositions.
If the answer is "no, it doesn't sound good," the composer will
have to ask "why?" and may discover other helpful principles. The
composer should always refer to the two rules and try to determine
the principles behind the answers. If something sounds good, you
would want the tools and understand the principles in order to create
music later that sounds good. It follows that the composer would
also want to understand the things that made the music not
sound good so as to avoid the same mistakes.
GETTING STARTED
Let the inspiration carry you as far as it will.
Try not to be critical of what comes naturally. It is hard enough
to get the flow going. If you constantly criticize your output,
you will inhibit the flow. Let the juices flow. After the inspired
moment has past, then the work can begin.
A piece may begin with any number of musical
elements. You may only have a rhythmic idea, only a melodic germ,
or possibly a harmonic progression. I have started some compositions
from a formal idea (ABACABA), or from an orchestration concept,
thinking of a combination of sounds, then having to imagine music
that would make it work. There is no set way to begin. Move with
what moves you at the moment.
REWRITING
Hemingway once said that writers were not paid to
write, writers were paid to rewrite. This is good advice to all
composers and arrangers. In the process of writing and rewriting,
the composer must constantly refer to rule no.2 (or rule no.1).
A first draft gives the composer no choices. Examination of all
the elements of a piece and a deliberate reworking of these elements
gives the composer choices. If the composer has written several
versions of one section of a composition, the choice can be made
for the most effective and musical. Sometimes after writing and
rewriting a section of music, I will have five to choose from. Sometimes
I end up with the sixth version, a combination of the best elements
of the first five. Other times, it is the first draft that best
conveyed the musical idea. Having done the other five versions helped
in determine the first idea was the best; how else could I know
without the other choices?
QUESTIONS TO ASK
Once you have basic ideas for your piece the composer
should ask questions of every element. This is the way to begin
a process of re-writing.
- Range: too much? Not enough? Too extreme?
- Contour (emotional curve, climax timing,
story telling)
- Busy/not busy enough
- Vague?
- Phrase content: Is the phrase form = abcdefghaij
or more clear: abac, abba, abcc, etc.
- Phrase beginnings: (before the downbeat/on
the downbeat/after the downbeat: B/O/A)
- Phrase lengths: short and long phrasing
as contrasts
- Too busy/ not busy enough
- Does it support or conflict with the melody
- Are there possible substitutions, deceptive
resolutions, reharmonizations, which could help propel the
piece. Material may recur in the piece in different harmonic
settings or different modes.
- Which area should get the most attention
at any point?
- Harmony
- Melody
- Counterpoint (does the secondary material
support or conflict with the primary material?)
- Orchestration
- Do the secondary elements distract from
or support the primary element
- No accompaniment?
- Independent?
- Dialog?
- Emphatic matching of the accompaniment and
melody. 1 to 1 relationship?
- Form and the larger structure of the piece:
- Introduction/exposition of main themes/Development
of main themes/transitions/restatement of themes (maybe in
a different way than in the beginning)/ending
- What is the relationships of the themes,
transitions, introduction and ending?
- contour (emotional curve of the entire piece,
does it tell a story, how to control the curve.)
CONTRASTS
An A section is usually followed by a B section
at some point. For a B section to sound like a B section it has
to be different from the A section. That sounds like an obvious
statement. Many beginning composers get locked into their first
ideas, and write what they consider B sections when it is actually
more of a development of the A ideas. Some possible contrasts are:
- Harmonic character
- Bright/dark character, Modulations
- Type of vocabulary: Traditional & substitutions,
Mystery chords, Pedals
- Simplification of original
- Complication of original
- Harmonic rhythm (if A is active then B could
be less harmonically active)
- Melodic range (if A remains low, then B could
go a little higher, A returns low, B1 return a little higher
than B.)
- Orchestration (change of colors and accompaniment)
- Texture (small and thin/big and thickly textured)
- Rhythmic activity (applies to the melody and
accompaniment) smooth/jagged, Active/passive, what is the basic
unit? 8ths? then quarters, dotted quarters, dotted eighths,
and sixteenths would contrast.
- Phrases beginnings (before the downbeat/on
the downbeat/after the downbeat: B/O/A)
- Phrase lengths: short and long phrasing as
contrasts
CONSISTENCIES
Contrasts are very important, but consistency is
a factor. This is often very difficult for some beginning composers.
Harmonic vocabulary: might not mix dodecaphonic writing with I-IV-V
within phrases. Extended tertian chords and polychords may not have
bebop sounding ii-V-I passages in between.
MOTIVIC/COMPOSITIONAL DEVICES
A list of compositional devices not limited to any
musical style or musical element. A composer could manipulate melodic,
harmonic and rhythmic material using any of these devices.
- Repetition: the idea has to recur for
us to hear it as a motive. A one time occurrence of an idea
may not be significant in the overall structure of the piece.
- Adding material: adding material to
the motive. Added material could be a prefix (before) or a suffix
(after). Distinguished from ornamentation in that the original
occurs intact before or after the added material.
- Ornament or Embellishment: Addition
of notes to the original motive. The general motive is still
discernible. Could include an infix (within).
- Displacement: Pitch or pitches placed
in different octaves than the original idea. Displacement can
also refer to the rhythm of the motive.
- Mode Change: A change from one mode
to another.
- Sequence: Repetition of motive at different
pitch levels
- Transposition: Transposing the idea
to other pitches or to another rhythmic place.
- Augmentation: The idea with larger
rhythmic values or larger intervals
- Diminution: The idea with smaller rhythmic
values or larger intervals
- Fragmentation: separating the motive
or idea into even smaller pieces.
- Inversion: The idea turned upside down,
a mirror image of itself. What rose before now falls and vice-versa.
The intervals can be exact inversions or diatonic inversions.
- Retrograde: The idea played backward
- Retrograde Inversion: The mirror of
the idea played backwards
LISTENING
Someone once said, "stealing a little is plagiarism,
stealing a great deal is prolific writing." Stravinsky once said,
that he stole a great deal from Mozart, but was sure Mozart would
be pleased with what he did with it. Listen to many styles, not
just your area of expertise. Ask yourself about the rules of music.
If it sounded good, why? Remember what made it sound good and use
the principles. If it sounded bad, certainly try to remember why
and avoid whatever was the cause.
COMPOSING LINKS
Two pages developed by Dr. Ken Rumery at Northern
Arizona University:
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