get yourself a 61 key keyboard controller big enough that you won't have too much trouble playing at the right octave.
consider learning a lot of things in small doses
requoted from here
There is no one way to progress or create when composing as there are so many paths you can travel.
Most pop music is based within one of several scale/mode choices:
Major: Major scale/Lydian mode/Mixolydian mode
Minor: Natural minor scale/Harmonic (and all of its modes) minor scale/Melodic (and all of its modes) minor scale/Dorian mode/Phrygian mode
Chord progressions can be chosen before or after scale/mode choice: i.e. both provide a pointer to the tonality/modality in use.
Instrument choices are an important of composing as they form the basis for expressing your ideas.
Structural ideas are also important as they allocate/relegate different instruments to different roles. There are two levels of structural ideas:
- Level 1
- Melody: the main melodic ideas singer, solos, etc
- Counter-Melody: the response to the call of the melody
- Harmony: chords
- Rhythm: percussion and bass (bass also draws on harmony)
- Level 2
- Formal structures
- Ternary: ABA | AABA | ABAA | ABBA | etc a lot of RnB is based in this type of structure
- Binary: AB | AAB | ABB | etc sometimes called Verse Chorus form, the B section can be broken down into other formal structures as well
- Rondo: ABACABA and variants (also called ritornello or returning form) Fur Elise is an example of this one
- Song Forms: Intro Verse Chorus Verse Chorus Solo Bridge Chorus Verse Chorus Chorus Outro is one of many examples
- In each of the above no indication has been given about numbers of bars for a section (AB or the various song form sections) - these can be from 4 to 8 to 16 for an individual section. The AABA and variants is usually called 32 bar song form, i.e. 8 bars per section letter. AB is usually called 16 bar song form for the same reasons. However, there is nothing stopping you from taking these structural components and making the smaller or larger
When analysing harmonic progressions (chord progressions) we usually use the letters found in the level formal structures to represent different parts of the chord progression as they relate to the overall structure.
Think of the level 2 structural ideas as the scaffold to hang your level 1 ideas on (your chord progressions and melodic ideas).
The rest is simply choosing a path and experimenting as you follow it......
If uncertain about some terms in this post, use the search here at fp to find deeper explanations
extension to the above quoted material
In terms of percussion and drums, you need to analyse what you are trying to duplicate and apply the results of that analysis to your writing:
- How often does the kick come in?
- How is the snare used? simple back-beat (2 and 4)? rolls and fills?
- What function do the hi-hats have? time keeping? off-beat emphasis? decorative?
- Are other percussive sounds used?
If so,
- how? rhythmic features, dynamics, etc
- where? structural usage (verse, chorus, bridge, etc) is often important in defining a style
- how often? how many beats/bars between appearances?
it's only hard if you try to do things that you don't understand how to do; learn a little, apply it; learn a little more apply it too and so it goes
requoted from here
get
reaper or
renoise
get an audio interface
read the manuals (aka rtfm) and experiment
Learn some basic ideas about music such as
- instruments to use
- notes
- rhythm
- intervals
- scales
- chords
- melodic invention - creating a new melody from scratch
- melodic decoration - adding new notes whilst shortening the notes/rhythms in an existing melody
- melodic development - taking a melody and creating new ideas form it (not necessarily the same as decoration as you may change pitch instead of just adding notes)
- melodic variation - combination of decoration and development
- arranging - sections and structures as well as applying instruments to each
- orchestrating - applying instruments to a particular line.
Pick one at a time and learn just enough so that you are not stressing - usually when you head starts fuzzing, you've learnt enough for that session - that is the point where your brain is working hard to integrate the new information into your existing experiences and knowledge.
Ask questions here, at school in the music department, anywhere where you trust the person giving the answer....
requoted from here
I answered this just yesterday
There are many ways to create a bass line:
- take the root of each chord and play it with some rhythm that usually syncs up with the kick drum
- take the notes of each chord and play through them like the bass in rock around the clock (arpeggio bass 1-3-5-3)
- take the notes of the chord and play them with joining scale runs or leaps to notes outside the chord and then fall back into the chord note (e.g. 1-4-3-2-3-4-5)
- take the notes of each chord and construct a line that moves up or down smoothly, effectively mimicking scale runs but with chromatic (out of key) notes where needed; this is generally called a walking bass line as it walks from chord to chord. You can also jump out of a note to another chord tone to push the flow of the line if needed
- create a melody that pays attention the chords but is not tied to using the root of any one chord, creating a line that flows
many more besides.
So the short answer is that you need to learn:
- chords and chord spellings
- scales
- melodic devices
- chromatic notes (non-scale tones) and when they should be used
Chords and chord spellings
Keyboard fingering charts - a collection of different chords
Scales
Melodic Devices
Bass matching the melody and vice versa
Addressing your issue about matching the bass the melody, if they are both based within a chordal concept (chord progression) then it will happen as a matter of course.
If not then you need to analyse one or the other to see if there is an underlying chord in each bar and as a result a larger scale progression or sequence of chords in use. This type of analysis is beyond the scope of the (simple) theory discussed above.