Music Theory Related: Song chords/mellody and lyrical chords

ami7mina

New member
It's been a while since I have been here..

:victory::hello:


I have questions that i would like to be clear about:

-Is it important too technical when it comes to music? I mean,
if the songs melodic chords and lyrical chords/ key should they be really the same?
isn't music more of what sounds good to the ear, rather than just following notes according to what the given melody is?
it's too hard working with someone who is into all the technical details, we are quite the opposite, my friend and me.
I base it on what sounds good to the ear - by instinct (i guess)

he bases it on technicallity. which confuses me to be honest.
it's just really hard to be artistic when u think up all these rules. ugh :(:sigh:
I doubt not all singers really have a precise and technical knowledge regarding these things..

Would really appreciate anyone's insight.

A shoutout to eddy and andy futureproducers online friends of mine.:victory:
 
No it is not necessary to understand music theory to make good music; however, it makes things alot easier to convey musical ideas to other artists if you do. In addition, when you understand music theory/ear training, the melodies you hear in your head can be laid down alot quicker than if you had to hunt around your keyboard or guitar trying to find what your heard in your head. Again though, you don't have to be a master at theory and composition to make an ear pleasing instrumental.

On another note, there really aren't any rules to music. There are just words to describe what you are playing, principles to make life easier on you and guidelines to put you in the right direction, but no rules.
For example if you make a melody and you say to yourself "Man, this melody is way to busy, I'm going to takes some of these notes out". Then you are thinning. Thinning is a type of melodic variation. Or you might say, "Man, the melody in the second part of the verse is boring because it is just like the first part of the verse, I am going to add something to the end of it to spice it up". Then you are expanding. Expanding is another melodic variation. Obviously, you don't have to know these terms to know what to do.

Just listen to your friend and nod your head, try to understand what he is saying, but don't stress about it. There is nothing wrong with playing by "feel". Hope this helps. Good luck.

-DG
 
Is it important too technical when it comes to music?

It is neither important or unimportant - it depends entirely on what you are trying to achieve....

I mean, if the songs melodic chords and lyrical chords/ key should they be really the same?

if they are not they won't sound good - so your instinct should guide you but your friends knowledge is doing the same thing from a different base.

isn't music more of what sounds good to the ear, rather than just following notes according to what the given melody is?

For any given melody several different ways of harmonising it are obvious and then several more that are not so obvious. Chances are your instinct will have you use one of the obvious ones. Technical knowledge might help your friend pick one of the non-obvious ones - which of the two or more harmonisations is better is simply a matter of taste

it's too hard working with someone who is into all the technical details, we are quite the opposite, my friend and me.
I base it on what sounds good to the ear - by instinct (i guess)

You need to be less judgmental as do they

he bases it on technicallity. which confuses me to be honest.
it's just really hard to be artistic when u think up all these rules. ugh :(:sigh:

the rules are not "thought" up, they already exist in several forms in different books and certainly you known of some of the instinctively. And in almost every case of you stating a rule I can state an exception.

I doubt not all singers really have a precise and technical knowledge regarding these things..

Any singer who studies at college or university level will be exposed to these rules. Some will be exposed to these rules through their private lessons whilst at school.

My three daughters and my son all know of the rules as singers and constantly break them because they know why they are breaking them - I wouldn't have it any other way - if you don't know why you are doing it; then doing it simply because it is wrong is a bad place to start...

My basic credo is

Learn (understand) what there is to know before you break new ground.
As learners of our craft we need to acquire a thorough grasp of our materials, thus becoming better musicians and composers.
This should not be confused with slavish adherence to outmoded practice.
Rather, it means engaging in the genuine study and understanding of principles of composition and the supporting theory.
In this way, we ensure our own efforts in composition become effortless rather than forced.
 
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If you can hear it and write it down or at minimum transfer it to your instrument you are ahead of 90% of the "playas" in the game.

ear training is about small scale musical events:

rhythms
chords
melodic phrases

it is also about large scale musical events:

structure
instruments
phrases
dynamics (louds/softs and transitions from one to the other).

go to teoria.com and use their practice and drill center to get started......
 
A BIG thank you to all that replied.
first of all, i would like to say that, i am not judging my friend, he is, after all my friend. what I am just saying is my confusion regarding the matter.

I'll be more detailed this time:

here's what my friend wants me to do:
1) find my tessitura ( which i have trouble since i grew up singing like an impersonator and i am not vocally trained)
2)record aahhs in 3 seconds for all notes in E major, sustained, no breaks and according to my tessitura
3)record do re mi in e major, start in 4th octave then going higher and gradually. and do it accurately

4) he want me to go into pitcher (fl studio)
and use aaahs in E major which is confusing.
and it should be accurately pitched on the pitcher.
 
so he is sampling your voice.

if he wants it done right, get him to play the notes for you ar at least create several tracks that contain the note sequences he wants you to sing.

Your tessitura is not something he should be asking for - tessitura refers to a specific pitch space with a specific timbral colouring (timbre is a fancy word for overtone content and phase relationships of each of these over time).

A more accurate request would be to ask for:
  • your lowest octave, usually found in your chest voice but strongly supported by your diaphragm, and generally emanating from low down your abdomen,
  • your chest voice octave, or full voice, the sound is strongly resonating in your upper chest cavity, and
  • your head voice octave, this voice is where you are singing your notes as though they are emanating from the centre of your forehead

these are each separate tessituras, given that they have different timbral colouring and therefore an overall different sound quality to each.

I have been doing this a long time and your friends needs to lighten up and learn more about the words he is using, specifically their meanings - this is why you are confused because he is already confused............
 
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