Write a Song, Online Melody Writing Tips
Help Writing Songs and Composing a melody for a Personalized Tribute
Dec 24, 2008
Once musicians compose lyrics, they can start thinking about the music. It’s crucial to find just the right melody to showcase those heartfelt words. To write a song, online tips and a little creativity may be all musician's need to get started.
Some songs have wonderful words and some songs have a fantastic tune, but no song is truly great unless the melody and words work together. All too often, musicians compose outstanding tunes that actually wind up distracting listeners from the lyrics. An ideal melody will reinforce--not draw attention away from--the songs message.
Write Your Own Songs to fit Your Vocal Range
The last thing a musician wants is to work incredibly hard on a love song and then not be able to sing it well. Most people can sound pretty good if they stick to singing in their vocal range. The good news for musicians writing their own song is the tune’s range is entirely up to them.
While great singers have vocal ranges of two octaves or more, most people feel comfortable singing in an eight to eleven note range. Songwriters can experiment with a piano to find the notes that best showcase their voice and then compose a melody within that range. For women, the range is likely somewhere between A below middle C and the C above middle C. Men can start experimenting with the same range one octave lower.
Of course, everyone’s voice is different, a woman with a velvety alto will feel more comfortable in the lower octave, and a man lucky enough to sing in a romantic tenor will want to shoot for the higher octave. The key is for each musician to find the range that allows him to sing his song most naturally.
Help Writing Songs and Composing the Melody
Musicians will want to start at the lower end of their range when writing the verses’ tune. If the melody lifts during the chorus, it will feel as though it’s building in intensity.
Keep the melody line cohesive by avoiding large jumps across the octave. Smooth transitions from notes a step apart, seconds, and thirds will tie a tune together. Jumps to fourths or sixths can be reserved for one or two points of strong emotional emphasis.
If musicians are experiencing writer’s block, they can experiment with previously composed lines of melody. They can start with three notes of a favorite song and when that song goes up the scale, they can try taking it down instead. They can transform a fast song by slowing the tempo, and reworking several bars. Great starting points might even be found in unexpected folk tunes musicians dredge up from their childhood.
Most importantly, musicians need to keep their lyrics in mind while humming, whistling, or plunking out their tune on the piano. They are looking for that perfect string of notes that will reinforce their song’s message.
Finally, when the tune is settled, it’s time to add chords. This last step is the one that will tie the whole song together.
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