Developing the texture, structure and form
Once you have your initial ideas it is a good idea to have a plan for your composition. When trying to develop the texture, structure and form of your music, it is important to ask yourself:
- how many sections will the piece of music have?
- will any sections repeat and if so in what order?
- what will happen in the introduction and ending?
- what is the overall structure / form?
You could use music technology to record your piece so that you can hear multiple parts simultaneously. Try a multi-track recording where you record one part and then add other parts to this recording. This is known as over-dubbing.
You could play live and record this as an audio recording, or you could notate this using software at a computer. You could also make an audio recording using your phone so that you can listen back to your work in progress.
The video below shows members of the band Fatherson reflecting on their approach to the structure of their track and their approach to performance.
Fatherson
The following clip will give you some ideas for ways to develop the use of different instruments and also how to think about tone colour. Structure is discussed, particularly ternary form.
Bach's 'Prelude in C Major'
Once you have created your initial ideas, try to experiment a little further. One way that you can do this is to try to discover the different sounds that your chosen instruments can make.
There is a range of approaches that will enable you to do this.
Developing the timbre and dynamics
There are a number of aspects of playing an instrument in which you have to develop the timbre or dynamics:
- playing string instruments pizzicato or arco
- playing quietly
- gradually get louder (crescendo)
- gradually get quieter (diminuendo)
Watch this video which shows how Wolfstone explore timbre.
Wolfstone perform 'Time for Walking'
Effects and processes can be added to your piece through the use of music technology. Your audio can be manipulated to create totally different sounds. Try adding the following:
- Distortion
- Reverb
