Making better brass melodies for trap & hip hop?
- Thread starter bendorr
- Start date
FLProducer2014
New member
What VST's/Samples are you using also do you know any music theory?
FLProducer2014
New member
Yeah That's the problem learn some music theory google warbeats they have some tutorials. Also try getting a midi keyboard if you don't have one. It makes your life easier! If you could tell me what your DAW is I could help more.
KelevraOne
Not too Kelevra son
Layering your brass sounds is your best friend when it comes to making trapish type beats with horns. Nexus should work just fine. Make sure you turn down or off the reverb, because nexus tends to have your horns swimming in it. If you know a little bit of music theory you want to noodle around with the minor keys. For example mess around with the chords eminor to to f major and then b minor to c major. You'll do well with just that. Remember to double up on the root notes an octave lower to give it umph. Main thing. Keep it simple stupid. Most trap things aren't that hard
bandcoach
Zukatoku - Mod Scientist
ignore the samples/vst's: they won't help you write melodies for anything
Writing melodies for brass is a case of determining whether their function is truly melodic or more stab in nature:
if melodic, then you need to apply all the principles of writing melodies that you would use for any other lead line
if stab, then you need to think in terms of short sharp lines that may use notes either side of the stab note as decorations
e.g. C is the stab note
you may have a line that plays Bb-C-D-Bb-C with whatever rhythm works for you at that point
you may have line that runs up G-Ab-A-Bb-B-C
some things to know about brass instruments
in the lowest octaves the individual notes are obtained by shifting slide position or adding tubing by depressing piston keys to make the instrument longer and therefore produce lower notes
Every brass instrument is capable of playing 7 different root tones (except the bugle which is fixed to one key Bb) some like the Horn and the bass trombone and the Euphonium can play an additional 7 root tones by adding a piece of tubing to lower it a perfect 4th. On any one note you shift up a 5th then a 4th then a major 3rd then a minor 3rd then a minor 3rd then a major 2nd after that the notes are very close together and much harder to control.
it is common for brass parts to use the lowest thre notes on a length of tubing as a kind of call C-G-C' or G-C'-G-C' or C'-G-C-G-C-C'
E.G. a trumpet at written pitch
note 1
C#=Db; D#=Eb; F#=Gb; G#=Ab; A#=Bb
Note 2
octave numbers are based on
Middle C = MIDI note number 60 = C3 in most daws = C5 in Fl and BiaB
as you can see from the table, some notes can be played in different finger and lip positions. this makes it easier to write lines that will actually work for a player by planning out the transitions: the lower lip positions are usually more solid than the upper positions and the fewer pistons that are down the easier it is to play as well. that said a line that is a rip (moving quickly through several notes in succession will work better at lip position 6 or 7 as the notes are closer together and therefore easier to move between
Last important point
Saxophones are not brass instruments; they are woodwind: they use a single reed mouthpiece to produce the sound, whereas brass instruments work by blowing a raspberry into the mouthpiece (the name comes from the German for doing exactly that)
Writing melodies for brass is a case of determining whether their function is truly melodic or more stab in nature:
if melodic, then you need to apply all the principles of writing melodies that you would use for any other lead line
if stab, then you need to think in terms of short sharp lines that may use notes either side of the stab note as decorations
e.g. C is the stab note
you may have a line that plays Bb-C-D-Bb-C with whatever rhythm works for you at that point
you may have line that runs up G-Ab-A-Bb-B-C
some things to know about brass instruments
in the lowest octaves the individual notes are obtained by shifting slide position or adding tubing by depressing piston keys to make the instrument longer and therefore produce lower notes
Every brass instrument is capable of playing 7 different root tones (except the bugle which is fixed to one key Bb) some like the Horn and the bass trombone and the Euphonium can play an additional 7 root tones by adding a piece of tubing to lower it a perfect 4th. On any one note you shift up a 5th then a 4th then a major 3rd then a minor 3rd then a minor 3rd then a major 2nd after that the notes are very close together and much harder to control.
it is common for brass parts to use the lowest thre notes on a length of tubing as a kind of call C-G-C' or G-C'-G-C' or C'-G-C-G-C-C'
E.G. a trumpet at written pitch
| Lip Position | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fingering | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| --- | C3 | G3 | C4 | E4 | G4 | Bb4 | C5 |
| -2- | B2 | F#3 | B3 | D#4 | F#4 | A4 | B4 |
| 1-- | Bb2 | F3 | Bb3 | D4 | F4 | Ab4 | Bb4 |
| 12- or 3 | A2 | E3 | A3 | c#4 | E4 | G4 | A4 |
| -23 | Ab2 | Eb3 | Ab3 | C4 | Eb4 | Gb4 | Ab4 |
| 1-3 | G2 | D3 | G3 | B3 | D4 | F4 | G4 |
| 123 | F#2 | C#3 | F#3 | A#3 | C#4 | E4 | F#4 |
note 1
C#=Db; D#=Eb; F#=Gb; G#=Ab; A#=Bb
Note 2
octave numbers are based on
Middle C = MIDI note number 60 = C3 in most daws = C5 in Fl and BiaB
as you can see from the table, some notes can be played in different finger and lip positions. this makes it easier to write lines that will actually work for a player by planning out the transitions: the lower lip positions are usually more solid than the upper positions and the fewer pistons that are down the easier it is to play as well. that said a line that is a rip (moving quickly through several notes in succession will work better at lip position 6 or 7 as the notes are closer together and therefore easier to move between
Last important point
Saxophones are not brass instruments; they are woodwind: they use a single reed mouthpiece to produce the sound, whereas brass instruments work by blowing a raspberry into the mouthpiece (the name comes from the German for doing exactly that)
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bandcoach
Zukatoku - Mod Scientist
you also need to consider articulations: how the sound is actually made such as staccato or tenuto, accented, dynamic levels, crescendos etc -they all go a long way towards making a line work well
e.g.
[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/brassWriting-01.mp3[/mp3]
in addition you can use the fatback approach as shown above or use a chord/harmonised approach as shown below (same lines harmonised)
[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/brassWriting-02.mp3[/mp3]
e.g.
[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/brassWriting-01.mp3[/mp3]
in addition you can use the fatback approach as shown above or use a chord/harmonised approach as shown below (same lines harmonised)
[mp3]http://www.bandcoach.org/fp/audio/brassWriting-02.mp3[/mp3]
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