>.<

I am so stuck with my GCSE music special events composition. I'm not asking you to help me compose it. Because that's not allowed. I have my event, but everytime I start with something, it just doesn't fit with my event & sounds depressing (Chinese mid autumn festival)

I think the main trouble I'm having is choosing the key to compose in, as Chinese music is atonal and doesn't really have a certain key.

I've listened to several Chinese festival style music, but all it has are just drums beating in the background, but with my one, I would like a melody so I would prefer it if it was in some sort of key.

Well, I have 5 bars - but the five bars are minor and it's okay but not brilliant. & it sounds more like a funeral rather than mid autumn festival, which I don't want to do because it's depressing and sad.

What is pulling me back is where I start and what key to compose in as those are the main things I need to decide before I start and also the time signature.

I need to decide, 3/8 or 4/4

I've written out the question & answer rhythm but not yet turned them into notes, any advice?

Thanks. =]

Try using pentatonic scales (I might be wrong but I think that's the one that sounds Chinese)

oh yeah!! 5 note scales!! =]

I'll go look through my year 9 stuff, think we did some stuff on that!

Thanks!!

It's like being enlightened! XD

As BBTOTW has said that you should experiment with pentatonic scale. I would just try using black notes of the keyboard until you find the phrase you like to use as a basic melodic pattern or rhythmic pattern... Good Luck, I hope that you will succeed!

hero

Thanks!

I have a question about notation of music.

When I do start writing it down, then for the key signature, do I leave it blank? As it's meant to be atonal?

And so do I only add accidentals before notes when necessary?

Thanks once again. =]

I don't think it is "atonal". Atonal means that there is no sense of home key and if you composed a piece in pentatonic, there surely is a "pull" towards its home-note (like tonic in western tonal music). If you are writing it using black keys only of the piano, you could put the key-signature of 5 flats (BEADG), which makes things easy...

I am glad to hear that you are making progress with your composition.

hero

I get what you mean about the atonal thing.

Hmm...I want sections of it to modulate as well. So say for one section, if I was to compose it with all those flats, then could I write the key sig, then modulate back to a no key sort of feel? Would that make sense? As I feel it would be better if I used some white notes as well, in case the examiners/teachers think my piece isn't varied enough in terms of forms and note ranges.

Thanks for your help.

Try using Db major or Eb major. It gives you a little more freedom to come up with a melody and it would save you having to worry too much about modulations. Also, try experimenting with harmonies, composing in fourths i.e. CF, DG, FB and include some Chinese instruments or imitate them with western instruments. The mid-autumn festival is something children love to celebrate (I think, I don't know if I'm remembering the right one). A depressing minor key throughout wouldn't suit at all.

For some ideas and inspiration listen to this.

Good luck.

There's a problem with the URL you gave me and it said invalid link... >.<

Yep....Ok. So if I don't do minor, then how else could I modulate it in terms of major keys because I want to modulate my piece in some way like have ABA form or something which could vary.

Thanks for the tip, I'll try the fourths thing after I've got my melody line so it would be easier to find the 4th below. =]

You can vary the piece in other ways than using a modulation.

Try to contrast one or a few of the following - mood, dynamics, texture, articulation, register of instruments, timbre, etc. If it is fairly short composition (sorry, I don't know how long it is supposed to be), you might want to avoid the modulation (unless it is a requirement) as you may not have enough time to prepare, modulate & return to your original key.

It's meant to be around 2-3 minutes, but would a modulation gain me more marks?

What about place all the notes a tone higher...like in pop songs when they do that...And then it reaches the climax part? o__0

I don't know if a modulation would gain you extra marks .. I'm in Oz and have no idea about GSCE marking schemes.

I would try to make your B section contrast more than a mere transposition - perhaps change the roles of the instruments as well if you don't want to make many changes... But up to you in the end of course!

You could try making a statement with A and then a reply with B going back to the statement afterwards.

I'll try to send the link again (you'll have to find: You have selected 13_-_asian_dream_song.mp3. To begin downloading this file click here), you can hear hints of Chinese folk songs in there. The piece is also in a statement-response form so you can see how it's done.

http://gh.ffshrine.org/song/4875/6

Thanks for the other link! Works perfectly! Sounds very lovely too! Thank you.

Happy to help.

I really like the sound of it because it's not too asian sounding, it's also got bits of piano and stuff - which I like a lot. Yesterday, was listening to too many drum beating and it didn't have a rich enough melody.

Do you know who composed this piece? It's awesome! Especially, the middle part

It's composed by a Japanese composer called Joe Hisaishi, he's like the John Williams of Asia (probably even bigger). You can hear MIDIs of his work on Nolstagia Wind. Click on 'midi' on the right and the 'midi 1' or 'midi 2' on the left. You'll have to ignore the Japanese if you can't read it and click on the piano sign to listen. Try Summer, Innocent, Kids Return and Piano Stories I (the first set of MIDIs) and Hana-bi on the second page. The first page is full of MIDIs of his compositions for Studio Ghibli films. They're awesome.

I am really struggling with my Integrated assignment, I cant seem to get any inspiration at all..

Hope your composing is going better now?

For me, listening to existing pieces make me worry that I'm going to plagarise them - so what I am doing right now, is plugged the song Noodlez kindly gave me onto my i-pod, then I listen to it several times, make a mental note of how it sounds Chinese style - and use Hisaishi's existing piece as my inspiration.

I'm not copying exactly what's he's done, but I am picking out the good points and providing what I've written so far, my own ideas which I have already naturally started on. =]

I wouldn't worry about that! Its very unlikely. Sure you'll be influenced, but unless you've taken the whole lot as dictation your unlikely to lift whole sections.

I have only read the original post but could you not compose a piece and then fit a special event to the piece. I did my composition for my special event and still don't know what event it is for. It can be for anything though really

I know what you mean. XD Some people in my class are doing that.

I thought the mid autumn thing would just be more original. I've got ''something'', but it's just average sort of piece, I'm gonna scrap that and try again tonight. And also, one of my friends said that it sounds like a slow version of POTC... o__0 But that's not possible, because I've never even seen it. (As stupid as it may sound)

I don't know what your piece is like but don't throw your pieces away because you will regret it. Usually what happens is that you compose something which sounds great on the day but sounds horrible the next. It's becasue you've probably heard it too many times and are getting bored. Leave it for a few days and work on another section.

Hoard every little scrap on manuscript paper if you compose, keep every digital recording session and make back-ups too. Don't discard anything as you never know when you are going to use it.

I have sheets of stuff I had as degree notes and I'm glad I've kept it. If I get a gem of an idea I jot it down. It may be nothing at first but you can only build.

It's really frustrating though, because today in music, this boy in my class pulled out my computer plug because he thought nobody was using that.. So I had to restart my computer, plug in the keyboard AGAIN. >.<

SUCH a waste of time, but...I've changed it to D flat major now & I have a little phrase which sounds Chinese. =] I'm going to work on it this week.

Also, I want to modulate keys as well as change the time signature, so have a quicker section & also a slower section. For A. Would 3/8 be too short to fit rhythms in, because it's mostly just quaver rests, or 3 quavers...1 dotted crotchet.

Would 6/8 rhythms be more varied? I know both will be in compound time. And what other time sigs relate to 6/8?

I know for 3/8, 3/4 would be the simple time version. So fo 6/8, would 2/4 be the simple time? If it is, I wouldn't really be able to play any good rhythms, as there are just 2 crotchets in a bar.. o__0 even if I do quavers/semiquavers. I still think it's not varied enough. Could someone advise me with my time signature? Thanks!

Try experimenting instead. You'll never know until you try stuff out for yourself.

Ok!! Thanks for the help everybody! XD

I appreciate all your little tips!

I was just improvising something on the keyboard in D Flat major and it sounds Chinese!! woo!! =]

So, I'm going to carry on from that!

Probably because you are using all black notes and therefore pentatonic!

Now I have another problem...

Because D flat major has 5 flats.

B, E, G, D, A...

None of the chords really fit... because of the flats. I have to fit the chords by ear. Any other method to fit the chords with the melody notes easily?

1=D F A
2=E G B
4=G B D
5=A C E

Thanks. ^^ Are all flats, just showing the chords I've stuck to using.

Have you done any music theory? If not, do it by ear. There's nothing wrong with it, it's just a little more time consuming. Remeber you can use 7th chords as well. At the moment, it may sound boring with only simple triads. The key here is to experiment.

Ah! Yes I have done grade 5 theory..

Don't worry. I figured out what's wrong! XD Silly me!

OK! I have composed stuff! yay!