Category Archives: Composition
Applying the idea of Forward Writing to Composing Music
February 25, 2013
I was recently inspired by a post I stumbled upon about the concept of forward writing. I’ve read several books on writing that preach the wonders of free-writing, but the post brought it back to my attention. Free writing is the idea that you let your writing pour out like a stream, keeping the pen or cursor constantly moving forward and not worrying about editing.
The article reminded me of an app called iA Writer that features a “focus mode”. Basically only the sentence you are currently writing appears in the center of the screen in full black text, everything else around it fades into soft gray. If you really had to, you could look back and read what you just wrote, but the fading is amazingly effective in getting you to only think about the current sentence. You are forced to pay attention to the present moment in your writing, not what you wrote before. Mindful writing.
I’ve been using the app for about a week now for journal entries and blog posts and I must say I absolutely love it. I’m able to write so much faster when I just let it pour out. Of course another thing to keep in mind is that whatever you are writing is simply a first draft. You can go back and make it good later, for now you just have to get the words out. This takes off any pressure that what you’re writing has to be any good and instead you can just let it flow. [Even this post is at least twice as long as anything I might normally write up here, but it didn't necessarily take twice as much work. The app just made it easier to write.]
Write first, edit later has been a mantra of mine for a long time, but when it comes to writing music it’s much easier said than done. I often advise students to work on their sketches first, to plan everything out, to avoid orchestrating before the actual composing part is done. But I can have a hard time following my own advice at times.
When working in a program like Logic it’s just so easy to go back and play what you’ve done so far. And when you know that you want to use the french horn on that sweet melody you just wrote, avoiding the temptation to drag your region onto the horn is nearly impossible. Of course you want it to sound good right away! I won’t get into the reasons here for why this becomes a dangerous trap.
The important point is that writing first and editing later produces better results, but what can we do to make that happen? iA writer is a fantastic tool for using this technique when writing words, but what about music? Composing at the piano helps considerably, because you can’t get tempted by all the gizmos and toys enticing you in Logic. Want to hear that melody on the horns? Well you’re just going to have to wait.
I suppose a musical cousin to free writing is improvisation. Just set record and improvise your heart out, let the piece flow out of your fingers. This is useful to me when I’m just trying to come up with ideas, but I’m not sure if it’s really the best way to compose a piece of music. Maybe I just need to try it more, but it seems like there would be a lot of fluff to cut out just to get to the good stuff. It seems like there has to be a middle ground between bar by bar (and previous bars) composing, and free improvisation, but what is it? Where is the equivalent “focus mode” that allows you to see what you’ve just written if you need a guide, but also prompts you to keep the line moving forward? Is there such a thing, or can there be?
Unfortunately I’m not providing the answer in this post, at this point I’m merely posing the question and putting it out there. Perhaps someone reading this has encountered this problem and solved it themselves? Or at least it will get someone else thinking about it with me.
How do you turn the “stream of consciousness” benefits of free improvisation into practical use in structured composing?
SCOREcast: How to Create Tension with Climbing Scales
August 6, 2012
My latest article for SCOREcast Online has been released: How to Create Tension with Climbing Scales
“Among the many primary functions of film music, tension is near the top of the list. Wether it’s to generate feelings of suspense, anticipation, or even a false sense of danger, creating tension is a major part of our work as film composers.
In this article I’ll discuss one of the tools you can add to your bag of tricks for creating tension, the technique of stretching out a scale.”
Click the link to read the full article.
Also be sure to check out my other articles for SCOREcast:
- Value Studies: A Painter’s Technique for Composers
- Is Musical Form Relevant to Film Scoring?
- Long Distance Scoring
What James Horner’s Score to Braveheart Teaches Us
July 23, 2012
My newest and currently favorite article for ComposerFocus.com has been published online: What James Horner’s Score to Braveheart Teaches Us About Modulation
It features an analysis of this awesome scene:
Composer Focus is a new site dedicated to providing informative and interesting articles for composers, particularly those working in film and media. If you have a chance to check out the article please leave a comment with your feedback!
New on SCOREcast: Value Studies
June 4, 2012
My newest article for SCOREcast is now online:
Value Studies: A Painter’s Technique for Composers
Initially inspired by my good friend Chris Oatley and then further fueled by a fantastic post from artist David Kessler, (who provided the lovely images above) the article discusses a technique painters use and my ideas for applying it to music composition.
Composing With Space in Mind
May 21, 2012
An aspect of composing that I still have an admittedly difficult time with is leaving appropriate amounts of space. By this I mean both moments of complete silence but also rests in the line and overall flow, a chance for the music (and the listener) to catch its breath.
There are several reasons leaving space can be difficult:
- Trying to fill every gap.
When our role is to fill the air with music, we want to fill the air with music! That’s what composing is, right? Open space feels like an opportunity to speak. Much like in a conversation, if the chatter goes silent it can feel awkward and we may struggle to find something to say just to fill the void.
- Not trusting the listener.
The cardinal sin of composing music is to be boring, and I think that young composers see open space as boring. What could be more dull than nothing? But really what we need to appreciate is that “nothing” is actually just the equal balance of “something”. Silence and rests are also valid things to say.
So what do we make of this?
- Rests are part of the conversation.
I wonder if it would be more beneficial to think of the music as one side of a conversation, and the listener’s imagination as the other. Listening to music that just rambles on and on is like listening to a friend on the phone who just doesn’t shut up. You can put the phone down, go make a sandwich, and when you come back they never even noticed you were gone!
Instead, leaving space allows the listener to fill the void with their own reflection. Hear the rests and silence in your compositions as an opportunity for the imagination of your listener.
- Rests are contrast.
I mentioned the idea of balance earlier, and it is worth deeper consideration. Contrast is a central aspect of quality music, and what could make for a more powerful contrast to music than silence?
Moving forward
A painting that had every possible space filled with a busy texture would be overwhelming and difficult to look at. In the same way, a piece of music with no space for breath, repose and reflection is like a constant onslaught of noise!
If I think of space as an essential part of my composing toolkit, my music will be better as a result.
The Creative Process
May 14, 2012
There is a fantastic article from Sam McNerney over at creativitypost.com called “Produce First, Sharpen Second: What Dylan’s Vomit Teaches Us About The Creative Process” and it deserves more than just a passing glance. In essence they have figured out how to consistently create great work.
The lesson is one you’ve probably hard before, but have you taken it to heart? Looking back at your creative process, is this how it goes?
The essential central message is that you should create without any restraint, editing, or self-criticism. Just get it all out of your system. Don’t rewrite, don’t judge, etc. Write, write some more, and then keep on writing until you have truly run out of things to say. At which point, step away and take a break. Only when you return with a fresh perspective do you dig in and find the gold while trashing the junk.
The two main points are:
1. Stream of consciousness creation.
2. Writing and editing as very separate phases.
Read the whole article, it’s worth it.
Starting by Planning or by Improvising?
April 30, 2012
This is almost less of a post and more of a question to the community: Do you tend to start a new cue/piece of music by planning it out or improvising and seeing what happens?
I’ve heard it said before that there are two primary methods of composing. Either you envision the entire piece in your mind before picking up the pencil (or mouse, more likely), or you noodle around with material until you settle on something you like.
In his book “A Composer’s World”, Paul Hindemith asserts the following: Keep reading…
Tip from The Hunger Games Score: Forward Momentum
April 4, 2012
While listening to James Newton Howard’s score to Hunger Games, my ear caught a short section in the track Katniss Afoot that reminded me of a simple but useful technique.
At about 1:19 the violins play a repeating ostinato pattern that rests on beats 1 and 3. By starting the pattern on the “and” of beats 1 and 3, the rhythm gives a sense of constantly pushing forward.
A simple technique, but worth remember if your rhythm doesn’t seem to have enough forward drive.
Art vs. Entertainment
March 21, 2012
I had a conversation with a friend recently who was complaining about Hollywood’s lack of imagination and the constant rehashing of old ideas, sequels, remakes, and the like. Not too long ago I might have been in a similar state of mind, but maybe I’m becoming old and grizzled because I realize that I don’t feel quite so strongly about that anymore.
Perhaps because the medium is the same, I think we have confused art and entertainment. I don’t mean to say that a piece of entertainment can’t be a work of art, but does every piece of entertainment necessarily have to be “art” to be worthwhile? Isn’t there value in entertainment for its own sake? Keep reading…
Write Music that Directs Not Reflects
March 19, 2012
I’m currently scoring a short film that has been an enlightening experience. I imagine this is part of every film composer’s development, and something I’ve usually subconsciously been doing for quite a while now, but this is the first time I’ve really formulated the idea into words.
To loosely summarize the scene in question: the main character has just received some surprising bad news and a woman is trying to make him feel like it’s not so bad. My approach to the score was “this is sad, but it’s going to be OK.” For the most part, I was focusing on the woman’s reassuring tone and outlook.
What I failed to pay attention to was the main character’s feelings. He was just hit hard with some bad news and as far as he’s concerned, everything is very much not OK! The director pointed out to me that the music really needs to be about what he’s going through, that he doesn’t really believe her reassurance, that he thinks what she is saying is empty. Keep reading…
Composing with Paper and Pencil
February 22, 2012
Believe it or not, I think that one of the best ways to compose is with paper and pencil. Away from a computer, away from a piano, away from any distractions. Just me, a sheet of staff paper, a good pencil, and my imagination.
I used to hear about John Williams writing cues on airplanes and it blew my mind. How could he possibly compose without an instrument in front of him? But when you actually just try it, you find out that it’s not only easier than it sounds, it has amazing benefits. Keep reading…
Using The Procrastination Dash for Composing
January 25, 2012
There is a great post by Merlin Mann of 43 Folders about the “Procrastination Dash”. The technique is that you do 10 minutes of work, take 2 minutes to rest. Do this 5 times and you’ve worked for an hour.
The purpose is to force you to get something done you’ve been putting off by making the amount of time you have to spend on it too little to matter. Hate cleaning out the garage? Well you only have to do it for 10 minutes. Has “write a blog post” been sitting on your to-do list for over a week? Just spend 10 minutes on it, and you might even make more progress than you’d expect.
A way I’ve found this useful is for pumping out sketches and ideas for themes. I set up a timer for 5 sessions of 10+2, and then I set up a clean Logic session. After hitting go I start hunting for an idea, perhaps by playing around on the piano or by loading up a patch I’ve never used before. Keep reading…
Composing is Decision Making
December 7, 2011
When you boil it down to the bare elements, the act of composing is basically about making decisions. Do you repeat that last section or do something different? Do you put this line on clarinet or trumpet? Should this chord resolve as expected or not? And so on.
Every aspect of writing music is a decision. Thus it follows that the better you are at making decisions, the better you will be at writing music. Keep reading…
Towards a New Theory of Music
November 2, 2011
In my opinion, “music theory” is a misnomer. Music theory courses and books are really referring to a theory of Western harmony of the last 300 years, not a theory of music itself. Music theory is more of a history and analysis tool than a means for understanding how to create music. Keep reading…
Artisanship vs. Artistry
October 19, 2011
If you want to maintain any sense of sanity as a working composer, it’s important that you have the right perspective on your craft. Becoming too emotionally involved with your work can be disastrous for your career and your mental health.
In my opinion, film composers are much more like artisans than artists. I expect that comment may get some people riled up, but bear with me. Keep reading…
Teleportation Doesn’t Exist (On Growing Organically)
October 5, 2011
An aspect of my writing that I’ve always considered a weakness is a heavy reliance on ostinatos and repeating patterns. I think this probably comes from being raised on pop/rock music with a constant and steady beat, and a general tendency towards minimalism. I just happen to be obsessed with hpnotizing repeating figures.
I’ve always thought of this as a weakness because I tend to have a hard time writing without an ostinato; my writing brain just doesn’t seem to work like that. And this makes me concerned that my writing is always turning out the same, that I’m not ever writing anything new because I’m always writing in the same way. But lately I’m beginning to rephrase how I approach this aspect of my writing. Instead of a weakness, perhaps it’s simply an unavoidable characteristic of my style. And even more importantly, knowing how I tend to write my best means that if I want the writing to flow, that’s the way I should be writing. Keep reading…
“What do I do next?”
September 28, 2011
An aspect of composition that I’m currently fascinated with is development. How do you turn a simple idea into an entire piece? Coming up with new ideas is relatively easy. But once you have an idea, what do you do with it?
It sounds like a pretty basic question, and too elementary for a professional composer to be pondering. But in many ways “what do I do next?” summarizes the entire craft of composing music. Keep reading…
On Keeping the Aspects of Composing Isolated
September 21, 2011
According to Walter Piston, from his iconic orchestration book, “The true art of orchestration is inseparable from the creative act of composing music.” Although I understand his meaning, from a practical working aspect I have to disagree.
Perhaps one of the hardest lessons for me to remember and adhere to is this: the more I separate the different aspects of scoring, the better the final result will be. Keep reading…
On the Benefits of Writing First Thing in the Morning
August 17, 2011
In a recent post I wrote about the importance of writing every day. I think that’s it’s important to make a habit out of your writing and to do your best to write at a consistent time each day. For me the best time to write is first thing in the morning, for several reasons. Keep reading…
Write Every Day
August 10, 2011
(image by Joseph Eastwood)
The most consistent piece of advice I’ve heard from successful composers, screenwriters, authors and anyone else in a similar craft is to write every day. Keep reading…
The Complicated Big Stuff
July 27, 2011
I recently wrote to the head of a music library that I work with and asked him if there were any styles in particular he was looking for at the moment. He wrote a helpful response, and also said something that stood out as quite profound:
“Everybody does the simple stuff.. if we have a shot it’s almost always in doing the complicated big stuff.. it will set us apart, get the doors to swing open a little wider..”
Ramps vs. Steps
July 20, 2011
One of the main roles of film music is to affect the intensity of the action or drama on screen. Usually this is an increase in intensity, although there are plenty of times where you want things to wind down as well. There are many ways to build intensity, the most common being a rise in pitch, rise in dynamics, addition of instruments and voices, etc.
Something that caught my attention recently that I had never given much thought was the idea of climbing by ramps or by steps. What I mean by this is having the intensity build gradually, like a ramp, or in chunks, like steps. Keep reading…
Takeaways from the Tim Burton LACMA Exhibit
July 13, 2011
I went to the Tim Burton exhibit at LACMA a few weekends ago and it was fantastic. I strongly encourage anyone who lives in the LA area to check it out. As usual, I was thinking about what I could learn from the experience and I came away with several key lessons.
Many of the key ideas that I’ve been interested in lately were reaffirmed: constantly producing work, strong foundational training, sketches, collaboration, and a variety of mediums. Keep reading…
Using Constraints to Foster Creativity
June 22, 2011
It seems counterintuitive, but one of the best ways to loosen up your creativity is by forcing constraints upon yourself. By limiting certain elements of a project, you actually free up mental resources to be more creative and imaginative.
The blank page or canvas (or screen) is a classic symbol of writer’s block. It haunts writers, composers and artists of all kinds. One of the primary reasons for the panic and terror creating by a blank page is the absolutely infinite number of possibilities ahead of you. When you can literally create anything, you can become paralyzed into creating nothing! Keep reading…
The Benefits of Time-Boxing for Creativity
June 1, 2011
One of the most difficult struggles for a film composer, writer, or artist of any kind is developing the discipline to work. Especially if being an artist is your full time job, there is a dangerous trap in having an entire day wide open in front of you. With no meetings, no appointments, no deadlines, and no one looking over your shoulder, it becomes very easy to procrastinate.
“I have all day to write this piece, so it won’t matter if I go to the grocery store now. Some coffee would be good, and oh yea I have some calls to make.” Before you know it, you’ve spent your entire day on “important” non-creative tasks and didn’t manage to get any creative work done.
So what can you do? Keep reading…
On Finding Your Voice as an Artist
May 25, 2011
Very early in my career I was obsessively concerned with finding my voice as a composer. “Find your voice” is one of the most common things my teachers would tell us at Berklee. “Don’t try to be John Williams or Howard Shore or Jerry Goldsmith. Try to find your own unique style.” It was a terrifying idea. Was my work just a ripoff of someone else? Was I ever going to develop a unique style? Would I have to contrive something for the sake of being different?
After many conversations with young composers I’ve realized that this is a very common concern, and it is probably true for artists of any kind. We are all obsessed with the idea of being original. But when we’re just starting out, of course we’re going to sound like our idols. That’s how developing as an artist begins!
Keep reading…
Keep Them On the Edge of Their Seats
May 18, 2011
Composer Michael Giacchino’s method for scoring Lost was largely based on the idea of not giving too much away with the music. He would receive a copy of an episode ready to score, without having read the script or seeing it before. He would then just start scoring right from the beginning.
He would watch “just a scene at a time”. Watch a little ahead, score that part, a little further ahead, score that part.
The reason for doing this is that the kept himself in the audience’s frame of mind. He didn’t know the answers to the big mysteries or anything about the surprise cliffhanger coming after the commercial break. By going just a little at a time he made sure that he never spoiled the tension.
Keep reading…
Using Music to Develop a Film’s Brand
May 11, 2011
Music serves a wide range of purposes in a film. Among many benefits, it help’s with the pacing of the story. It adds emotional depth to the characters. And often overlooked, a great score can be a major factor in developing a film’s brand.
Many times I have been sitting in a movie theater watching the previews when the following occurs: A trailer will begin with dark clouds, and perhaps an ominous rumble. There will be some ambiguous text along the lines of “the adventure continues” or “in 2011 the next chapter arrives.” No one in the theater knows what to expect or what this preview is for. Then all of a sudden you hear an instantly recognizable theme and people in the seats around you gasp or exclaim with excitement: it’s the Harry Potter theme and everyone immediately knows it. An entire franchise has been successfully packaged into just seven notes.
Keep reading…
SCOREcastonline: Is Musical Form Relevant to Film Scoring?
November 5, 2010
A new article I wrote for SCOREcastonline.com is now available: Is Musical Form Relevant to Film Scoring?
ComposerFocus: Orchestration in the Style of Danny Elfman
November 3, 2010
My newest article for ComposerFocus.com has been published online: Orchestration in the Style of Danny Elfman
Composer Focus is a new site dedicated to providing informative and interesting articles for composers, particularly those working in film and media. If you have a chance to check out the article please leave a comment with your feedback!
ComposerFocus: Reharmonization: Diatonic Chord Substitution
October 18, 2010
My newest article for ComposerFocus.com has been published online: Reharmonization: Diatonic Chord Substitution
Composer Focus is a new site dedicated to providing informative and interesting articles for composers, particularly those working in film and media. If you have a chance to check out the article please leave a comment with your feedback!
5 Orchestration Lessons from John Williams’ Flight to Neverland
September 23, 2010
My first article for ComposerFocus.com has been published online: 5 Orchestration Lessons from John Williams’ Flight to Neverland
Composer Focus is a new site dedicated to providing informative and interesting articles for composers, particularly those working in film and media. If you have a chance to check out the article please leave a comment with your feedback!
Premium Tuts now available on the Envato Marketplace
September 17, 2010
The Premium (formerly known as “Plus”) tutorials that I regularly write for Audiotuts.com are now available for single purchase at the Envato Marketplace.
http://marketplace.tutsplus.com/user/rwmleach
If you’re interested in developing your skills as a composer, producer or musician please check out the tuts!
Audiotuts: How to Create a Compelling Ostinato
September 26, 2008
My tutorial “How to Create a Compelling Ostinato” is now available at Audiotuts:
http://audio.tutsplus.com/tutorials/composition/how-to-create-a-compelling-ostinato/
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