I’ve been creating songs since I was around 4, got semi-serious about it at 16, then recommited myself in early 2009 after losing my job. Or, based on the rollercoaster last year was, maybe just plain committed would have been better.
A few things I picked up along the last several months’ rocky journey were tools that have so proved their worth they’re almost worn out already. The first is The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Music Composition. I had been flying mostly blind, using a trusty Ovation acoustic guitar to pull tunes out of my busy head. problem is, for a guy with little training and a bad case of tinnitus, this was rarely easy or even accurate. It took me way too long to realize I’d been imagining Em where G fit better, and vice versa.
The composition book has been a tremendous help. I now have a handy reference to fall back on when intuition (or memory) fails. Sure, following the rules strictly can lead to creative ruts… but as a college English teacher admonished decades ago, it’s easier to get away with bending or breaking the rules if you actually know them first.
The second aid I’m rapidly wearing out is The Chord Wheel, one of the most ingenius musician’s tools I’ve ever seen and something I could have really used years ago. It’s a simple thin booklet with a rotating wheel on the cover that dials you through keys and chords, graphically illustrating the relationships and allowing a novice to instantly grasp composition principles. Used in conjunction with the aforementioned book, and even a beginner could hack his or her way through some basic compositions.
Becoming slowly and steadily better at chord progression (and vocabulary) has had an unintended consequence on other areas. For the longest time I either came up with lyrical ideas before tunes, or both simultaneously. I have stacks and stacks of old notes (i.e., unfinished works) demonstrating the process. But now I find myself firing up Band in a Box and starting instrumental arrangements first, often before I have any idea of words or even a theme! I’m not sure if this is good, bad or whatever. the one downside though is that I don’t pick up that old Ovation as much. Which is okay in a sense, because I was never going to be a great guitarist, whereas my oldest son just might. Now he has more opportunity to find out.
Speaking of opportunities, I’m now looking forward to whatever 2010 brings. I can assure you that no matter what, one thing for sure will be an album of songs from the Freelance Rider Company. Yeehaw!
