Song Making

[GuitarMaster72]

Hey guys, i was just sittin here and wonderin.... how do you guys go about makin ur songs? do you start off with the main melody? do you begin with a solid drum line? or do you just compose each instrument at the same time?

What i do, is i first get the main melody, then i'll either go to bass or percussion, whichever one sounds easier to match up with. but no matter what, i always insert background/ambience last (ex: shy guys). what is your method?

[bally]

Drums -> Bass -> Melody -> Harmony / Countermelody -> Special Sounds / SFX -> Long Tones -> Improv / Illumination (if I have enough room to make something that sounds cool)

[Pokésonic]

^ so structured and uninteresting

for me, it just depends. i tend to do everything at once, though xP

Maybe that explains why I have hundreds of unfinished MPCs...

[brianLED]

Most of my older songs were composed part by part, but all of my newer stuff, especially the medleys and original compositions, was composed altogether, essentially measure by measure.

[JohnFreeman]

i go measure by measure, usually, unless there's a part that's going to be essentially copy-pasted for a while (like drums or bass); in those cases i might carry it out a few measures past everything else

[Jilly Shears]

I usually place the drums down first, specially if for most of the song it repeats a lot. Then, I go measure-by-measure filling in the rest.

However, after that, I quit about halfway through the song due to loss of motivation. :<

[Rusty]

I usually do everything measure by measure. When I start somewhere though, I normally start with Bass.

[RehdBlob]

Usually I have the main melody to get the beats down, but lately, I've just been going measure by measure.

[MrTanookiMario]

Usually I transcribe the song to some MIDI-compatible program (usually Guitar Pro). I usually do the main melodies first, then harmonies, then bass and drums last. Then I take that and put it in Mario Paint, usually drums and main rhythms first (especially when there's lots of repetition), then overlay the melody and harmony pretty much simultaneously.

EDIT: Usually, I usually say usually a lot less. XP

[tommy73]

I usually go through bass first, then the melody then just add the other bits at a random order xP

[KM]

Mar 23, 2011 20:34:33 GMT -6 JohnFreeman said:

i go measure by measure, usually, unless there's a part that's going to be essentially copy-pasted for a while (like drums or bass); in those cases i might carry it out a few measures past everything else

this, but balloon's idea might not be bad (even though what works for me is fine, I'm willing to try it)

[bally]

It's handy for going by ear. When I have the percussion laid out, it's easy to find out where the notes go in order to get the rhythms how I want them to sound.

It's also great for low tempo, since it's ordered by what I consider most important in a song. (aside from percussion, that is; I feel more comfortable removing a hi-hat part to make room for a countermelody than anything)

[Smario32]

I generally go it measure-by-measure, though sometimes I'll do it part-by-part for a section if a song is particularly repetitive (I'm looking at you, Live and Learn), or if I really want to hear the percussion of a section.

[Crash6351]

There's three main instruments for me. The guitar, percussion, and bass.

First comes percussion. Then bass. Then guitar.
I go by each part of the song until the song is complete.

[Gallahaut]

Ready set go. That's how I do it. lol

[AdolfoBaez]

There´s no secret formula for me but copy-pastable rythms save you a lot of time when working on MPC

[AbsoluteZero255]

I go measure by measure. I find it a lot easier and satisfying that way.

[Herty]

Whatever is easiest first.
Whatever is hardest never.

[drtoadproductions]

I mess around on a piano or finale printmusic until i get chords or a melody i like. come up with a percussion rhythm or base line next. a lot of the time i hum something i make up off the top of my head then find out the notes. i always try to avoid over-played rhythms (like the beginning of "clocks" by coldplay. seriously, its been used too many times) counter melodies and harmonies always make the song that much better

[vengeance]

i usually wont make an original song unless i get an idea. but i usually get the ideas in the worst time possible. once i got an idea while sleeping, then in the bathroom, in an art class. everywhere when i dont have mpc handy.

but this is what i do with the melody i do get: i build around it. ...or try to.
melody > bass & drums > another melody deducted from the original > brain fart > song turns into crap