Coming up with melodies?

I

IllViewEnt

New member
I swear sometimes I feel stuck, before reading about theory I was stuck all the time and learning some basic theory helped me out alot, but now I feel like im doing the same things over and over with the same chords and progressions, I try to use inversions and other variations but its still not working out, so I guess my question is what resources do you use to come up with a fresh melody? do you guys just mess around with scales, different sounds? and another question I had was lets you make melody based off a scale, how do you know what chords would blend with that melody?
 
If you've gotten a grasp on theory, and you're finding yourself repeating the same chords and progressions, it might be time to "forget" the theories. Stop thinking of chords, and just imagine everything as simple groupings of notes. No more Asus2's, or Eb7's; just start grouping notes together with no other concern than that they should sound good to you. And if some cluster of notes sounds weird, maybe you can follow them with a cluster that resolves the 'conflict'. Whatever, I'm getting into some Zen "train until your black belt fades to white"/"mind of a beginner, skills of a master" type ish here.
 
Hosey said:
Whatever, I'm getting into some Zen "train until your black belt fades to white"/"mind of a beginner, skills of a master" type ish here.
Click to expand...

Amen to that one. Illest quote I seen anywhere in a while. Mind of a beginner, skills of a master, I get to feelin like that alot. I had to look at the thread myself too, lookin 4 some tips tricks etc. What sucks 4 me is that I'm goin completely digital and my money situation is ****ty.... I KNOW there's so much more out there 4 me, feelin held back... about to go quest the internet 4 some free plugins n sounds (hint to my man up there), yall both take care n keep up, stack up, keep goin.

Hey, some of us are bound to make it sooner or later.
 
the thing i do the most is just sit back and clear my head and don't even think about a melody. for some reason when my head is clear i just start hearin ****. either that or just hit the keyboard until i find a sound it just branches off from there. random humming and tappin can also help. more often than not though, it may be from somethin you've heard so it's not the most original way to go.
 
Last edited:
cosign johnnythefox and cane_63106.
i find im more creative between 10.30pm and 4.30am. doesnt help that i have a 9-5 job!

random keyboard tapping helps me get an idea of the mood/rhythm.

also check out the huge scale list (search scale list). i work in different about 3-4 scales because it gives my body of work a variety of moods.

i mostly use b maj, d maj, gmaj and a maj. but dont neglect minors etc.

ill dip into another scale if i hit upon a melody that incorporate notes from that scale!
 
I'm currently having the same sort of problems. I've been having to train my brain not to be so concerned about the music theory aspect that I forget what -truly- sounds good to me. Theory helps every once in a while, but it sure as hell isn't much more than a loose guideline for making music.
 
I'm a seasonal composer. That is, some parts of the year I am full of ideas, and others I don't have as many, or it's hard to focus on writing. But if I have to come up with something, I'll start by experimenting with sounds and listening to great music from a wide variety of genres, from industrial to classical. There's always something to be learned, whether it's song structure, rhythm, melody, lyrics, instrumentation, mixing...

If you're really stuck in a chord rut, grab some sheet music from a really different sounding artist and examine the chord progressions.
 
i have a pretty decent ear..so i just mess around til i come up wit something that sounds good
 
i sometimes blame the equipment i have....since im short on money i only have a few vsts and FL7 and my computer keyboard
 
JohnnyTheFox said:
I come up with the best **** when I'm halfway falling asleep while thinking about music.
Click to expand...

I do the same thing, not to get into some crazy sh!t here but it's actually called the "Theta" stage and it's been scientifically proven that this is when the mind is at it's most creative point, right before REM sleep.

I've noticed that my melodies are startin to sound the same as well and I feel like I'm in a little rut. What I like to do is come up with a melody for a song that's playing on the radio, because that way you're forced to work within the key of the song. Another thing to do is mess around with some sounds in a synth or sampler until you find one that inspires you and see what you can write.
 
haaa "on the night shift" - burn midnight oil, burn some evenin dosier n break another night zombie nation - i think imma use that, night o the livin dead beats some ****

a trick i use is when i start gettin producer's block i pull out a sample or some instrument or somethin i haven't used, find a way to cut it up n chef away
 
Very interesting topic here. I have to admit, I've tried to use conventional scales and chords. I even bought a chord poster to go over my beat station but nothing is easier than just mashing the keys while spinning through different sounds to come up with a melody. My best advice is for you to just take a little from everyones comments so far and continue to work hard. Eventually you'll develop a sound and that's when you'll be thinking of melodies in ya sleep.
 
dont think about it.
Sometimes coming up w/ a melody takes time...if u gotta sit at keyboard for hours to find a melody then thats it takes. your gonna have to practice cuz u dont get good over nite.
One way that can get you good at playin music and melodys is to on youtube and watch those short lesson on how to play popular music like dr. dre, and usher songs n what not. search on those vidz those helped me out. And try and learn the keys to other melodies. thatll give you really good practice.
 
Beethoven and other greats used to sit at their piano for 10 hours just messing around. Just messing around! When it came, they were ready.
It also helps if you know some theory.
Get Berklee's Guide to Melody in Songwriting (I cannot recall the exact title at the moment, but it is extremely thorough.)
 
if you get stuck, try what i try

think of a sentence like "i will always love you"

and then do it in variations, with different pause points and holds, for example:

I---pause--will always--(hold)-love---pause---you-(hold)

I will always---Hold---Love(hold)----pause----you

any sentence will work, pick words that will fit the mood of the song you are trying to make. Obviously if you used "i will always love you" then r n b will come out easier. If you say "we some hardcores and we show it" then you would have a vibe of a gangster song.

Ok, hope this helped, i had a thread about it somewhere around here
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top