The art of songwriting involves crafting a compelling blend of lyrics, rhythm, and, perhaps most importantly, melody. The melody often serves as the backbone of a song, conveying emotion and dictating the overall feel. I thought I’d delve into the process of melody development and explore how compelling melodies are built. Are you ready to discover your melody?
Melody Development
In its simplest form, a melody is a sequence of musical notes that are pleasing to the ear.
Melody development, however, involves much more than just putting notes together. It requires some understanding of scales, chord progressions, and rhythm. That is, you’ll need at least a rudimentary grasp of music theory. I don’t mean to say you can’t write a melody without formally studying music. On the contrary, music theory is as much feel as it is formal study. You can feel that certain sounds, phrases, and passages sound good without necessarily knowing what those things are called.
However, if you want to study theory, you should remember that music theory is just a tool, not a rule. It can guide you in creating harmonically pleasing melodies but don’t let it limit your creativity.
Techniques and Methods for Creating Melodies
A variety of techniques can be used to create melodies. One approach is to start with a chord progression and then build a melody on top of it. You can experiment by playing different notes with different rhythms within the chords and seeing what sounds best to you.
Another method is to start with a rhythmic pattern and add notes to create a melodic contour. Using your phone’s recording app or music software can be invaluable in this process, as it allows you to play back your ideas and refine them.
My preferred technique? Hum something that sounds pleasing and catchy, then hop over to the guitar or piano and “figure it out.” This is how the melodies for Run With Me (lyrics) and Farmer Joe (lyrics) appeared. Using the basic melody, I then experimented with chords to find the harmony and rhythm that worked best.
Here are some ideas:
- Chord-Based Melodies: This is the process of creating a melody by using the notes within the chords of your song. This ensures that the melody harmonizes with the chords you’ve selected.
- Scale-Based Melodies: You can use different scale modes to create a melody. This gives your melody a certain ‘mood,’ with major scales often sounding happy and minor scales sounding sad or serious.
- Motivic Development: This involves creating a short, memorable musical idea or “motive” and then repeating, altering, or developing it throughout your song. Listen to some great classical music, and you’ll get a sense of this approach.
- Call and Response: This is a traditional method in music where one musical phrase (the call) is answered by a different musical phrase (the response). This can add a conversational element to your melody.
- Interval Jumps: Interval jumping involves creating a melody that jumps between far-apart notes. This can make your melody more interesting and dynamic.
- Rhythmic Displacement: This method involves repeating a melodic phrase but starting it on a different beat. This can create a sense of movement and development in your melody. Displacement and motivic development are related.
- Melodic Inversion: This technique involves flipping a melodic phrase upside down, so the melodic contour is mirrored.
- Stepwise Motion: This involves creating a melody that moves primarily by “steps” within the scale, rather than making large jumps. This often makes the melody easier to sing. I’m not a great singer, so stepwise motion is my default technique!
- Using a Drone: A drone is a sustained note over which other notes change – often used in traditional Indian music. It can give a very particular flavor to your melody. Simon and Garfunkel made this very popular. The technique, also called a pedal tone, is often heard in harmonies made popular by Simon and Garfunkel and Crosby, Stills & Nash.
- Sequencing: This involves taking a short melodic phrase and repeating it at a higher or lower pitch. This creates a sense of progression and development.
Relationship Between Melody and Inspiration
Inspiration plays a vital role in melody creation. Often, a melody can be inspired by a feeling, a piece of art, a sound, or even another song. A powerful moment in a movie, a line from a poem, or a particular chord progression in a song can spark a melody idea. The key is to be open to inspiration and to let your intuition guide your melody creation process.
That inspiration is what causes your body to hum, align the notes, and build the song structure.
Importance of Melody in a Song
I believe that melody is the most critical component of a song. That’s the safest statement in this entire post. After all, the melody is what sets a song apart. Ed Sheeran just won his court battle based on the idea that melody is most important in determining originality, while harmony is supportive.
Melody is what listeners often remember and sing along to. Melody can evoke strong emotions, create an atmosphere, and convey the message of the lyrics more powerfully.
Crafting a compelling melody can be the difference between a song that resonates with listeners and one that doesn’t. Between a hit and a flop.
My Process
My own process for creating melodies often starts with an emotion or concept I want to express. Sometimes I start by humming or fiddling on the piano. Other times, I explore different chord progressions, experiment with rhythms and start to craft a melody that embodies the emotion or concept I’m going for.
Along the way, I try out different notes, revise, and refine until I have a melody that resonates with me. If I can easily remember the melody the next day, then it’s a keeper. If not, it wasn’t memorable enough.
Remember, creating a melody is a personal and unique process, much like crafting lyrics. Don’t be afraid to experiment, make mistakes, and discover your own musical voice.
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So, crafting the melody is a fundamental part of songwriting. Do you agree? It requires some understanding of, even if rudimentary, music theory. You have to have a knack for experimentation and an openness to channel inspiration. While the process can be challenging, the rewards of creating a good melody that resonates with listeners are well worth the effort!
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