Category Archive: May 2011

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May 31, 2011

Twyla Tharp's book, "The Creative Habit"

I’ve been re-reading Twyla Tharp’s excellent book, “The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life” (Simon & Schuster, 2003).

The book has become a valuable touchstone for me in times of creative doldrums (like now). It clears my mind, helps me remember what’s important, and gives me insights and practical suggestions I can use to get me moving again.

Tharp’s writing is a lot like her choreography - brisk, vivid, entertaining, intelligent, sophisticated but not stuffy, down to earth and spiritually attuned at the same time. I only just discovered this book last year, and it’s quickly made its way onto my “A list” of books on the creative process.

So, yeah, I’m digging it all over again, and trying to put Tharp’s positive, no-nonsense approach to work in my songwriting and recording work.. which, frankly, could use a boost.

I’ll let you know how it’s going...

Posted by richard at 10:19 PM

May 20, 2011

Wiping the slate clean with alternate guitar tunings

If you're a guitar player, one great way to get new ideas going is to put your guitar into a different tuning. Suddenly, the slate is "wiped clean" — all your habitual chords and progressions are gone, and you have to approach the fretboard with "beginner's mind" once again.

You find new shapes and new sounds that open up exciting new songwriting possibilities. And with a capo, you can move those new sounds into other keys, as well.

Some popular tunings (listed from bass to treble) are:

- DADGAD
- DADF#AD (open D)*
- DGDGBD (open G)*
- DGDGAD (open G variation)
- CGCGCE (open C)
- EAEAC#E (open A)*
(* Also good for slide)

One great way to ease into alternate tunings is with "Drop D": DADGBE (drop the low E string to D). It's easy on your strings, and it's easy to use. For one thing, a "power" chord is now just a barre across strings 4, 5, and 6.

(If you have two guitars, use one for playing alternate tunings and one for standard tuning — you'll break fewer strings from retuning all the time.)

Posted by richard at 09:56 PM

May 15, 2011

The trouble with copy-and-paste in music sequencing...

If you sequence your backing tracks on computer, and you're trying to create an authentic "band" sound, think twice before using the copy and paste functions too much.

Of course it's convenient, and we all do it. But if you reuse your tracks from one verse or chorus to another, you could be robbing your demo of some serious dynamic energy.

Think about it: When a band plays a song, the arrangement evolves from beginning to end. No two sections are exactly alike, even if they look the same on paper. Maybe the drummer hits a little harder in Verse 2, or the bass player pushes a little more, or whatever. But if all the verses (or choruses) are the same, you lose all that. Sure, you can add more parts, but if the rhythm section is stuck in a rut, then the song is, too.

Instead, try to make the core parts evolve, so that each section plays its own, unique role in the song. Imagine how someone would really play each part in a real band setting, and shape your tracks accordingly. Yes, it's more work, but the result is much more convincing, and well worth the trouble.

Posted by richard at 09:54 PM

May 10, 2011

Be the singer...

Do you fall into this trap? You've made up a cool chord change. But when you try to write a melody, all you can sing is the roots of the chords, or some other line that moves in lock-step with the chords. It's a common problem, and it leads to melodies that are predictable and one-dimensional.

Luckily, the solution is simple: Instead of singing and playing at the same time, record yourself playing the chords, and then sing over the recording.

When you don't have to sing and play at the same time, you can "be the singer," which frees you up to focus on the vocal line without being distracted by the demands of playing your instrument at the same time. You can sing lines that have a different rhythm from the chords, that move in the opposite direction... In short, you're free to explore all the possibilities, not just those that are easy to sing while you play.

For many songwriters, this approach is very liberating, and leads to much more interesting melodies.

Posted by richard at 09:53 PM

May 05, 2011

Finding new chord-melody interactions...

One very cool way to open up more chord possibilities for a melody tone is to find every chord you can that contains that tone, regardless of the key or scale.

For example, if the melody tone is C, that one tone could be the:

- root of any kind of C chord
- major 7th in D-flat Maj7 or C-sharp min/Maj7
- minor 7th in D min7, D min7b5, or D7
- major 6th in E-flat 6 or E-flat min6; 13th in E-flat7
- aug 5th in E+, E+7
- 5th in F, Fmin, F7, etc.
- dim 5th in F#min7b5, F#majb5, F#7b5
- aug 4th in G-flat7(#11)
- 4th in Gsus4, Gmin(sus4), G7(sus4); 11th in Gmin
- major 3rd in A-flat, A-flat7
- minor 3rd in A min
- major 2nd in Bflat(sus2); 9th in B-flat(add9), B-flat min(add9), B-flat Maj9, B-flat min9, B-flat 9
- min 9th in B7(flat9)

The effect can be subtle or dramatic, depending on how far the chord you choose deviates from the key - or whatever harmonic context - you're in, and/or how dissonant or consonant the chord is relative to the harmonic flow in which it occurs.

Such chords can also act as pivots for modulations, especially between two sections (e.g. chorus to bridge, etc.)

Posted by richard at 09:50 PM