“Good artists copy, great artists steal.” This is a common saying, but what does it actually mean? Don’t worry, we're not actually committing a crime or anything like that.
Let's demystify that quote – and I’ll teach you how to “steal” someone else’s music and make it your own. Making you, according to this quote, a great artist! And who doesn’t want that?
Be sure to subscribe to the youtube channel, like the video, and leave a comment if you’ve ever “stolen” music before. I’ve 100% done it and there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s an integral part of advancing as a songwriter.
Today, we're diving head first into the audio world so we can get our home studios up and running. A home studio is an essential tool for a songwriter or composer at any level. These days, it's a necessity.
But there are so many options and so much gear to explore – how are we supposed to know what we need and what to get? That's why I'm here. I lay out the four main components of any home studio, and I promise it won't break your bank.
Whether you're downsizing your current rig for a new space, or building your very first home studio, I'll give you actual products you can check out that will get you where you need to go.
Where are you on your home studio journey? Let me know down in the comments!
Also, it would mean a whole lot if you clicked on the title in the video and subscribed to the youtube channel. There's a lot of good we can do there and I need your help to do it.
If you're just beginning your journey writing music, or are just getting into writing on a computer for the first time, this is the first question you need to answer:
Should I use a DAW or Notation Software?
This week, we're unpacking both kinds of software and highlighting what they do and which one might be best for your situation.
In fact, it's entirely possible you need both! (Yo)
By the end of this video, you'll have a clear understanding of which to choose and why. At the very end, we'll talk about some software options. More than that, we'll specifically discuss free software so you can get start writing music on your computer (or phone – yes, phone) without spending a penny.
Comment below to let me know what program(s) you use to write music and what you think of some of the programs I mentioned in the video.
If you're new or have just been creeping for awhile (I see you), for sure subscribe to the Youtube channel. It's where we can have the biggest impact and where I need the most help. Consider it a personal favor :)
Back when I was first getting serious about songwriting, I wanted to gobble up all the theory I could, because I wanted to be good at my craft.
But when I'd try to apply what I'd learned, or write with it, it just didn't work; something was missing.
By the time I was getting my degree in college, I was no closer to solving this problem. That's because I was going about it all wrong.
It turns out, I was making three crucial mistakes that was inhibiting me from using theory effectively in my process. Today, I want to share those mistakes with you. My goal is to help you avoid years of trial and error, of frustration, that I had to go through.
Comment below with your experience trying to implement theory in your process. I'm very curious to hear if you guys made the same mistakes I did!
Inspiration is often a tough concept to talk about. We all know what it feels like, but we feel totally powerless about when it comes and goes. Today, we're going to redefine inspiration.
By doing this, we're changing our perspective on it. This in turn allows us to get to the bottom of what inspiration actually does for our music. Or, more specifically, the underlying process it catalyzes.
When we get to the heart of inspiration and the physical process that helps us create our music more efficiently, we're able to bring awareness to it. Then, we can understand and learn to tap back into it, more often than not.
One thing is for sure, it feels good to have more control over your creative process, and it's a big step up from just waiting around for inspiration to strike.
Comment below with your thoughts on inspiration, and what you think about redefining it to empower ourselves and take control of our process.
Apologies for the radio silence. The current pandemic has left me busier than usual (which is common for many in the online space).
For now, you may only be see a video every other week. But, I'm going to try my hardest to make that content as valuable to you as possible. To that end...
I want to tackle something really controversial today, something that really eats at me whenever I hear it. And maybe you've heard this phrase from someone you know, or even said it to yourself:
"I don't have any musical talent."
I hate this so much, because it's simply not true. First of all, talent is the wrong word to use. You'll find out why in the video :)
We give ourselves a lot of reasons to keep us from doing the things we want to do; whether that's writing a song, symphony, or anything that could be a positive force in our lives.
Is there something you've always wanted to learn how to do, whether that's musically or otherwise, that you've put off or told yourself you simply couldn't do? Let me know in the comments.
Let's discuss why talent doesn't actually exist, at least, not in the way that we think it does, and why you have everything you need to make your dreams come true, TODAY.
Deciding to get our first guitar is an extremely exciting decision. However, that excitement can quickly turn into overwhelm when we see just how many choices and options there are out there.
There's one myth in particular about getting your first guitar that I want to dissipate, one that I used to propagate as a teacher for years.
**YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY AN ACOUSTIC GUITAR FIRST**
Now, this myth is there for a reason. There are proven benefits to playing an acoustic guitar as a beginner, but that shouldn't come at the expense of your joy for the instrument.
If you've already been playing guitar for awhile, what was your first guitar? Was it acoustic or electric?
What type of guitar are you considering getting next?
Today, I'd like to talk about a simple tool that all beginners learn, but is immensely valuable that we'll use all the time as guitar players: Chord Charts.
Learning to read a chord chart is a must if you're looking to be a proficient guitar player. Throughout our journeys we'll come across chords that we either don't know, or have heard of, but don't know how to play. That's where a chord chart comes in.
It's a simple and effective way to learn how to play any chord you could possibly want.
If you've been playing for awhile, you certainly know how to read these. But, as a teacher, I'm always curious to hear what people's beginning days were like! So I'd love to know:
What was the first few chords you learned on the guitar?
Mine were a G5, Cadd9, Dm, and Em...basically all you need to play "Time of Your Life" by Green Day!
I have a confession to make: I hate capos. Truly, there's only a couple of reasons that will make me pull one out.
Capos can be used as a crutch, and the last thing we want is to become overly dependent on a tool, because that means we've stopped growing as guitarists, musicians, and songwriters.
This week, I want to discuss when we shouldn't use a capo, but also when we absolutely should out of necessity. It can a little bit nuanced, so check out the video to get all the answers you need.
Last week, we covered a method called "Follow The Chords," where we wrote out a chord progression first and then wrote a melody to it. This takes away a lot of options in terms of the notes we can hit that will sound good, which helps us make better use of the ones that do.
This week we're diving right into the deep end and talking about using established forms to write a melody. Forms have been around for a long time and take a bit of front-end music theory in order to use them to their fullest degree, but that doesn't mean you can't understand and utilize them if you don't.
Forms are extremely useful, especially if you're in a tight spot. They explicitly outline exactly what to do to make a melody that sounds fantastic. Think about it like a formula; all you have to do is start punching things in.
In this video, we're going to discuss how a Sentence is constructed and how we can use it to create a melody that sounds fantastic. A musical sentence consists of two basic phases, each with it's own parts:
Presentation Phase – This consists of a basic idea, a one or two measure phrase, that will then be restated.
Continuation Phase – This phase cuts up the basic idea using fragmentation, and then we throw everything away to get to our cadence, a type of musical pause.
What did you think of form? Do you think these forms can be useful outside of composing classical music? Leave a comment below and let me know!
Last week, we covered an extremely popular and versatile technique for writing melodies. I called it, Follow The Notes.
Today, we're going to cover another popular technique, one that you may not even know that you're using:
Follow The Chords.
This is a very common technique among songwriters, particularly those who play multi-string instruments capable of playing chords, like keyboard and guitar. While it may seem similar to Follow The Notes, it has some pretty key limitations that will result in drastically different results.
(No, I'm not sorry for the pun XD)
With this technique, you write the chord progression first, and then write the melody to go along to it.
This is far more limiting than Follow the Notes. But that's not a bad thing. Limitations are actually a really powerful tool; they allow us to limit our options, which in turn lets us use those options more creatively. In other words, it focuses the melody to what will sound good with the chords.
What did you think of this technique? Have you used it before?
Leave a comment below with any thoughts, feelings, or observations you may have. Any and all feedback you have is welcome, as it helps me provide you with better content.
For the next part of our "How To Write A Melody" series, we're talking about an extremely common method for writing melodies. In fact, if you've written any amount of music at all, I can almost guarantee you've already used this method.
So, what gives, why talk about it?
Because, when you do something with intention, the result can be extraordinary.
I like to call this method "Follow The Notes," because that's exactly what this method consists of:
You just start hitting notes and see where they take you.
This may seem basic, but remains one of the most popular methods of music and melody making among beginners and professionals alike.
The difference between those two groups, however, is that professionals don't rely solely on it; but when they do, they have a well-developed inner ear––how you "hear" music inside your head––to guide them in the process. This means the notes they're following aren't the ones they're playing on an instrument, but the ones in their head. This key difference, and the ability to use your inner ear, is often what separates a beginner from a professional.
Following the notes is partly an exercise in developing your inner ear, which is integral to taking the music in your head and putting it out into the real world.
Check out the video:
What did you think? Have you ever used this method for writing a melody? If not, will you now?
Let me know in the comments! Thoughts, feelings, observations; all feedback is welcome.
Welcome to the new Musical Engineering! After taking a couple years off, I decided to get back in the game and pivot to focus more on the in's and out's of songwriting and composing, rather than focusing mostly on audio engineering. Here's why: It's what I'm truly passionate about.
Now, that doesn't mean we won't cover any audio engineering at all; but, we'll focus mostly on composing in a DAW using MIDI, basic recording and editing, but also getting your music––whatever genre it's in––to sound professional in the audio world.
This is a necessity if we're going to get our music out there on a budget!
Without further ado...
One of the hardest parts of getting started writing music that I actually thought was good and enjoyed listening to was writing a melody. It tends to be the first thing people latch onto when listening to music, so it's important to make sure our melodies are up to snuff.
In this first part of a multi-part series, I go over the very basics of melodic structure. Understanding the parts of a melody, even at the most basic level, is helpful in figuring out what a melody we wrote might actually need to be more effective.
In the video, I go over three basic aspects of a melody:
The Set Up
The Climax
The Resolution
Melodies are like stories, and you can think of these structures as a kind of beginning, middle, and end.You can find these three parts in a ton of melodies, but it's important to note that not every melody will have this type of structure. But, for the most part, you'll find these structures in much of popular music and classical music that's considered "tonal."
Check out the video:
If you want to know more about what is or isn't "tonal," or if there's anything else you want to know about in terms of songwriting, composing, or audio engineering, shoot me a comment or email:
Musical Engineering is a collaboration and I want to hear from you!
Thanks so much for being here. We're all in this together.
