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Hack Music Theory

Join over 200K YouTube subscribers learning the fast, easy & fun way to make music. Taught by multi award-winning college lecturer Ray Harmony, who's made music with multiplatinum Grammy-winning artists. Co-taught by Kate, Ray's protégé and wife. Download FREE Book at HackMusicTheory.com *UPDATE* New tutorials are exclusively available on our website!

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How to Write a Crazy Drum Beat ? Music Theory from Blue Lab Beats "Never Doubt"

 

How to Write a Crazy Drum Beat

 

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

 

Drums nowadays are arguably the most boring element in music! That?s probably due to the widespread use of drum loops. If you listen to the new releases on Spotify every Friday, you?ll hear the same handful of drum patterns over and over again. The best you can hope for is a few variations of those popular patterns.

 

It would be an interesting experiment to actually count how many different drum patterns are used in the New Music Friday playlist, which usually contains 100 songs. We?re pretty sure it?ll only be a handful of patterns, but that?s some super boring research, so we won?t be volunteering to conduct that experiment. AI can do it!

 

Having said all that, for us producers, this is actually a blessing in disguise. Why? Because it makes it easier than ever to stand out and grab people?s attention. All you need to do is use an unusual drum beat. Or even better, a crazy drum beat!

 

This is exactly what happened when the song ?Never Doubt? started playing. It?s by the UK duo Blue Lab Beats. Their drums are unlike anything else we heard on that playlist! And after listening to their crazy beats, and then continuing through the remainder of that playlist, the other songs? drums sounded even more boring.

 

Drum beats usually consist of three elements: kick, snare, and cymbals. Giving one or two of these an unusual pattern would be enough to make a beat stand out, but Blue Lab Beats have made the patterns of all three elements unusual. That?s crazy!

 

So, inspired by ?Never Doubt?, here?s our 4-step method for writing crazy beats. But first? Tea!

 

 

 

Step 1. Snare

 

Set your tempo to 75 BPM and your time signature to 7|8.

 

And yes, that?s a crazy time signature! It?s the foundation of crazy upon which they build their standout beats. Why is 7|8 a crazy time signature? Because it sounds like 4|4 on a broken drum machine, as the last 1/8 note of each bar is cut off. This makes it sound like the record (or CD) is skipping. Ah, remember those days?

 

Next, create a two-bar loop on your drum track, with the grid set to 1/32 notes.

 

So, when it comes to a snare pattern in 7|8, the most common one is to play the snare on beats 3 and 7. That?s because in 4|4 the snare is almost always played on beats 2 and 4, which is called a regular backbeat. And if you count 4|4 in 1/8 note beats, then the snare hits of that regular backbeat fall on beats 3 and 7.

 

 

Standard 7|8 drum pattern with regular backbeat snare (highlighted) on beats 3 and 7

 

 

 

As you can hear (and see in the MIDI above), the bar is cut short by an 1/8 note.

 

And to be clear, while that?s the snare pattern you?ll most usually hear in 7|8, that definitely doesn?t make it sound normal. It still sounds crazy! That fact will give you an idea of exactly how crazy the snare patterns are in this Blue Lab Beats song.

 

And without further ado. Here?s their snare pattern: beat 6. Yep, that?s all they play on the snare. That?s way more space than you?d usually hear in a 7|8 beat. But, spoiler alert: they?re not done with the snare yet. It?ll be revisited in Step 4 below.

 

Lastly, to give your beat 6 snare a reference point, draw in a kick drum on beat 1.

 

Also, there?s so much space in this snare pattern that you?ll need to hear the 1/8 note pulse to put the snare in context. So, turn on the metronome when listening.

 

 

Kick on beat 1, snare (highlighted) on beat 6

 




 

 

Step 2. Kick

 

With hardly any snares in this beat (currently), all that space can be filled with kicks. And that?s precisely what Blue Lab Beats do. They play a kick on beat 1 and a super syncopated kick on the fourth 1/32 note. If you?re new to the concept of syncopation, it?s simply when an off-beat is accented. Their kick on the fourth 1/32 note is the perfect example of syncopation. And obviously when you accent a 1/32 note off-beat, it sounds a lot more syncopated than a 1/16 note off-beat.

 

 

Kick added on fourth 1/32 note (highlighted)

 


 

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2024-02-25
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How to Write a Dreamy Chord Progression ? Music Theory from Four Tet "Loved"

 

How to Write a Dreamy
Chord Progression

 

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

 

New single ?Loved? by British producer Four Tet (Kieran Hebden) is a dreamy soundscape that floats your thoughts away on its neuro-massaging vibrations!

 

If you listen to it with your eyes closed, you can easily imagine sitting by a window on a rainy morning, sipping your tea and day-dreaming as you stare out into quantum clouds of possibility. Even the pitter-patter accent of his hi-hat rhythm mirrors the sound of rain drops on the roof.

 

The outro (from 2:43) further lowers the energy, deepening the introspection. There?s a sprinkling of arpeggios (i.e. chords played one note at a time) throughout the song, but in the outro he uses them exclusively. That?s only one of the many elements that make this section sooooo soothing. Right, inspired by the ?Loved? outro, here?s our 6-step method for writing dreamy chords. But first? Tea!

 

 

Step 1. Arpeggio

 

Set your tempo to 82 BPM and your time signature to 4|4. Then, create an eight-bar section with a 1/16 note grid. Next, load up a gentle keyboard sound like a Rhodes organ, or something similar. You can find the perfect sound afterwards.

 

One of the most interesting elements of this section is that Four Tet wrote it in the major scale. Nowadays, the major scale is hugely unpopular, which is a shame and a loss. You?ll only really hear this scale in children?s music or Christmas songs. But, it?s the most consonant scale, which means the harmonies it creates are the most peaceful for us. In these dissonant times, we believe there needs to be far more music written in major keys to help people let go of their daily stress and anxiety.

 

To be fair, there?s a valid reason why most producers don?t use the major scale: all that consonance makes it predictable! Therefore, music written in a major key is at a high risk of being boring. That?s no problem for Four Tet, though, as he has some great hacks up his sleeve to avoid this problem.

 

Right, so Four Tet uses G major for this section. We chose C major, as it?s simply all the white notes from C to C, but you can use whatever major scale you like.

 

C major scale:

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

C

D

E

F

G

A

B

 

 

He starts this outro section by playing the root chord (Cmaj in our example), and the first hack he uses to create a dreamy vibe is to play the chord as an arpeggio. Also, he plays the root note in two octaves: C (1) ? G (5) ? C (8, i.e. the root an octave higher than 1). Technically this is a harmony (or interval) and not a chord, as it only contains 1 and 5 (it?s missing 3), but he does play 3 in the melody above.

 

FYI: If you wanna play this on the keyboard instead of drawing in the MIDI, you?ll play the arpeggio in your left hand, and the melody above in your right hand.

 

While the technique of playing a left-hand 1?5?8 arpeggio is nothing new (it was common in Mozart?s day), the way Four Tet weaves in his melody is original. He doesn?t just add a melody over the top, like most producers would do, he tricks the listener into hearing his melody as part of the arpeggio. Well, at first?

 

But then it sounds like his melody begins to break away from the arpeggio. We then hear it as a separate layer. And then it seems to join the arpeggio again?! This uncertainty as to whether it?s a separate melody or part of the arpeggios is one of the brilliant hacks Four Tet uses to create his dream-like atmosphere. It gives us that feeling of waking up from a dream and thinking: Did that really happen?

 

So, start by drawing in a 1?5?8 arpeggio from your root (C in our example). Let your arpeggio sound for half the bar, then copy and paste it into the second half.

 

 

 

1?5?8 Arpeggio

screenshot is zoomed in to the first two beats

 

 

 

 

1?5?8 Arpeggio copied and pasted (highlighted)

screenshot is zoomed out to the full eight-bar loop

 

 

 

Step 2. Repeat

 

Here?s a question for you: Have you ever had that dream where you?re running but you?re going nowhere?! Well, that?s the next hack Four Tet uses to create a dream-like quality to his chords. For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2024-02-02
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How to Write a Non-Cheesy Festive Melody ? Music Theory from the traditional Christmas carol "Noël Nouvelet"

 

 

How to Write a Non-Cheesy
Festive Melody

 

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

 

?Noël Nouvelet? is a traditional French Christmas Carol dating from the 15th or 16th century. So what on earth can we learn from a 500-year old holiday tune? A game-changing melody hack that will totally transform your festive season music!

 

You see, almost all Christmas songs are written in major keys. And as you can hear from walking into any shop in December, the results are usually very very very cheesy songs! And yes of course there are exceptions, but most of the new holiday music being released is blatantly trying (and failing) to cash in on the ?happy holiday? song formula. That brings us back to our traditional tune?

 

The composer of ?Noël Nouvelet? used the most innovative cheese-removal magic trick, as this Christmas carol is 100% cheese-free. And it could so easily have been cheesy because the melody is upbeat and uplifting (like most Christmas music), but it somehow stays far away from the cheese. It?s a Christmas miracle! So there you go, that?s what we can learn from a 500-year old Christmas carol.

 

And on that note, inspired by ?Noël Nouvelet?, here?s our 4-step method for writing an upbeat and uplifting festive melody, without the cheese. But first? Tea!

 

 

 

Step 1. Festive Rhythm

 

First, regarding the tempo. As with most 500-year old music, you can more-or-less interpret the performance of it however you want. There are lots of breathtakingly beautiful versions of ?Noël Nouvelet?, but our favourite is by Libera, a boy?s choir in London, UK. Libera?s performance is around 77 BPM, so we?ll use that too.

 

Now, create an eight-bar loop with a 1/16 note grid, then load up a piano sound on that track. And yes, piano, that?s not a typo. Piano is the perfect instrument for writing on, because it?s about as ?neutral? sounding as you can get, and the attack of the instrument is instant (due to the piano?s hammer action).

 

Some choir plugins have a very slow attack, and we?ll be using some quicker notes in our melody because it?s a lively one, so we don?t want the choir plugin holding us back. At the end of the writing process, though, you can go through all your choir plugins and see which one works best for your final melody.

 

Right, spend some time writing a two-bar rhythm now, and be sure to use a vibrant combination of 1/4 notes, 1/8 notes, and two 1/16 notes. Regarding those 1/16 notes. Don?t make them syncopated. Approach them like an 1/8 note split in two.

 

Also, don?t use any rests within your rhythm. After your rhythm, though, you?ll use a rest. So, don?t play anything on beat 4 of your second bar. This 1/4 note rest is for phrasing (i.e. where the singers would breathe if your melody was sung). And lastly, remember that your rhythm needs to be an upbeat, festive one, so have fun!

 

Two-bar rhythm, ending with 1/4 note rest

 

 

 

Step 2. Cheesy Melody

 

Wait, what?! We promised you a cheese-free melody, and now we?re telling you to write a cheesy melody? Yep! That?s the genius of the ?Noël Nouvelet? composer?s cheese-removal magic trick, but that will only be revealed in Step 4.

 

For the record, we obviously have no idea if this is how the anonymous composer wrote the carol, but when reverse-engineering this melody and trying to figure out their method (that?s the process we use to make all our PDF tutorials, by the way), it seems this method is certainly plausible. In fact, we can totally imagine the story?

 

It?s December 1st, 1499. Our composer turns up to choir rehearsal with their brand new carol, all pleased and proud of it. The choir gives it a run through. There?s an awkward silence as someone tries to think of a nice way to say it. Someone pipes up with ?Erm? it?s very Christmassy!? More erms from the choir. Then a brave soul says: ?Any chance of making it? erm? [silence] less cheesy??

 

The composer storms out. Fast forward a couple hours. They?ve had a walk in the fresh December air and calmed down. Now, back in their study, they pull out the manuscript, dip their quill in the ink. And? Boom! A stroke of genius. They scream Hallelujah!, run out the room and back to the church, screaming Hallelujah! all the way. Choir sings it. Everyone cries. They love it. Composer sighs with relief.

 

The End.

[roll the credits]

 

 

Surely that?s a better story than the one where our composer walks into their study, sits down, then proceeds to write a non-cheesy Christmas carol in one go. Boring!

 

Alright, let?s write a melody. So we?re in the key of D major, and here?s our scale:

 

D major scale

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

D

E

F?

G

A

B

C?

 

In order for this method to work, there are 5 rules you need to follow in this step?

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-12-08
Länk till avsnitt

How to Write a Captivating Bass Line ? Music Theory from The Smile (Thom Yorke) "The Smoke"

 

How to Write Captivating Bass
Using Displacements for Variations

 

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

Do you ever write a bass line (or synth/guitar riff) that you love, but after a few loops it gets boring? No problem, you think to yourself, being here in the Hack Music Theory community you know that you need to write a variation for it. So you get to work on that. Fast forward an hour, and everything you?ve tried resulted in the magic of your original version being lost. This is a common problem, and Thom Yorke (Radiohead) and his band The Smile have a brilliant solution for you!

 

In their song ?The Smoke?, they use a super creative method for turning a one-bar bass line (and guitar riff) into an epic ten-bar adventure. And most importantly, they do that without creating a conventional variation anywhere in their line/riff*. How? They take their one-bar riff and repeat it a few times, then just as it?s about to get boring, they displace it. What on earth does that mean? Well, this is how the dictionary defines the word ?displace?: To move something from its usual place or position. So in musical terms, what displacement means is to play the exact same thing but in a different place/position in the bar (i.e. the riff starts on an earlier/later beat).

 

However, they don?t just displace their riff, they also cut it up and displace those segments. The result is mesmerising, and we?re captivated by this displacement as our brains try to figure out what?s going on. They then repeat their ten-bar riff, and the second loop feels even more captivating, as it catches us off-guard because we weren?t expecting it to repeat after ten bars (but more on that in Step 1).

 

So, inspired by ?The Smoke?, here?s our 5-step method for writing a ten-bar riff that will totally captivate your listeners with its displacements. But first? Tea!

 

*Thom Yorke (bass) and Jonny Greenwood (guitar) play the exact same thing in the main section of this song, so to keep things simple, we?ll just be referring to what they both play as a riff.

 

 

Step 1. One-Bar Riff

 

Change your tempo to 93 BPM, then create a ten-bar loop on your bass track (or guitar track, if you prefer). When you?re done writing your riff, you?ll duplicate the track and load up the other instrument (guitar/bass), so it doesn?t actually matter which one you use to write the riff. Now, open your MIDI editor, set the grid to 1/16 notes, and let?s get to it!

 

You?re gonna start by writing a one-bar riff. You really want to take your time here, as this one bar is the source material for the whole ten bars, so make it good! The Smile uses E minor pentatonic scale for their riff, so we?ll use it too. If you?re new to this scale, it?s just the natural minor scale without its 2nd and 6th notes.*

 

 

E natural minor scale

1

2

?3

4

5

?6

?7

E

F?

G

A

B

C

D

 

 

E minor pentatonic scale

1

?3

4

5

?7

E

G

A

B

D

 

 

You can use any notes from the scale, but there are four rhythm rules to follow:

 

use 1/16 notes exclusively use a few rests accent beat 1 by playing a note on it accent beat 3 by playing a note on it

 

 

*For help with writing in the minor pentatonic scale, as well as in the blues scale (a spicy variation of the minor pentatonic), use Hack 8 in our Songwriting & Producing PDF.

 

 

 

Here?s our one-bar riff:

 

One-bar riff, with the accented notes on beats 1 and 3 highlighted

 

 

 

 

Step 2. Repeat & Displace

 

The Smile repeats their one-bar riff four times, exactly as it is. Four bars is the absolute maximum you?d want to repeat such a short riff. Any more repetition than that, and it?ll not only be boring to your listeners, it?ll actually be annoying!

 

But, they?re very intentionally pushing their repetition to the max. The reason for that is because they need their listeners to be 100% familiar with the riff before they start messing with it. If the listeners don?t have the original version 100% stuck in their heads, then all the upcoming displacements would be completely disorientating, and therefore completely unpleasant to the ears.

 

But let?s not get ahead of ourselves. First things first, let?s get our riff stuck in the listeners? heads! So, copy and paste your one-bar riff into bars two through four.

 

 

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-11-24
Länk till avsnitt

How to Write Sweeping Arpeggios ? Music Theory from Daft Punk "Motherboard"

 

How to Write Sweeping Arpeggios
using a unique layering technique

 

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

Do your arpeggios all sound rather similar? It?s a common problem for producers.

 

Arpeggios are when you play a chord one note at a time, and it?s one of the best techniques for making your progressions more interesting. And while it?s definitely more rare to hear arpeggios than ?block? chords in popular music genres, most of the arpeggios you do hear are rather boring. Merely playing chords one note at a time is not a foolproof way of making progressions more creative. If you want better arpeggios, you need to write an internal melody within them. Want even better arpeggios? Write two internal melodies, or maybe even three!

 

What are we talking about when we talk about ?internal melodies?? Well, the melodies need to be formed from notes within the arpeggios, as opposed to writing a melody over the top of them. There?s obviously nothing wrong with doing that, but it will be heard as a separate melody, not as part of the arpeggios.

 

While there?s an abundance of genius examples of this in classical music, there are sadly not many to be found in popular music genres. If you?re into the rock side of things, Muse has plenty of creative arpeggios. Examples are even rarer on the electronic side of things, though, but Daft Punk comes to the rescue with their song ?Motherboard? (check out their new ?Drumless Edition? of this song, as it?s easier to hear the arpeggios). At 28 seconds into this track, the most beautiful arpeggios begin to sweep up and down. Despite their fast pace (i.e. 1/16 notes), they?re thoroughly calming due to their smooth, sweeping motion. And it?s not just the fast pace that makes their arpeggios so creative, it?s also their choice of notes.

 

So, inspired by ?Motherboard?, here?s our 5-step method for writing sweeping arpeggios, which are guaranteed to stand out from all those boring, clichéd arpeggios. But first? Tea!

 

 

Step 1. Chords

 

As arpeggios are simply broken up chords, the first step is to write a chord progression. So, set your tempo to 103 BPM, then create a four-bar loop and set your grid to 1/16 notes.

 

Daft Punk play their arpeggios on woodwind instruments, but we?ll get to that in the last step. For now, we actually recommend using a piano, for two reasons. Firstly, piano arpeggios are beautiful, so if you want, you can keep them on a piano sound (we did). Secondly, the piano has a much bigger range than any woodwind instrument, so you won?t be held back by not being able to play a note because it?s too high/low for that instrument.

 

Daft Punk?s arpeggios are in the key of E minor, so we?ll use it too:

 

 

E natural minor

1

2

?3

4

5

?6

?7

Em

F?dim

Gmaj

Am

Bm

Cmaj

Dmaj

 

 

Regarding what chords to choose. This PDF is all about arpeggios, so we?re not going to cover the ?chord choice? topic. If you need help with writing better chord progressions, we recommend our Songwriting & Producing Course.

 

The only three guidelines we suggest are to choose four chords, avoid the diminished chord, and play the root chord somewhere (you don?t have to start with it, though). Here are the chords we chose for our progression:

 

Cmaj ? Gmaj ? Dmaj ? Em

 

After you?ve chosen your four chords, draw in each chord?s root note for one bar.

 

Root note of each chord in progression

 

 

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-11-17
Länk till avsnitt

How to Write a Timeless Piano Part ? Music Theory from The Beatles "Now And Then"

 

 

How to Write Timeless Piano
like The Beatles

 

Download Tutorial as PDF
includes MIDI + WAV file examples

 

 

The last Beatles song. That?s what the official press release calls ?Now And Then?. The Beatles made history this week (again!), but the internet is flooded with writing about this song, so we won?t repeat the story of how ?Now And Then? came to be. Instead, we?ll focus exclusively on why this song sounds timeless.

 

Until recently, I used to think that J.S. Bach?s music was timeless. But now I?m not so sure. I?ve been to many Bach concerts, and while my head is bald by choice, almost all the other men in there didn?t have a choice with their bald heads, if you know what I mean?! So, who?s gonna be listening to Bach in 30 years from now? Don?t get me wrong, there will always be Bach superfans (like me!), but is his music timeless if it?s not popular with the general public now? Bach?s music is far too complex to appeal to most modern musical taste buds, so it?s not really timeless. It?s the same with art and poetry. Yes, there will always be William Blake superfans (like me!), but the general public nowadays is clearly not interested in this genius? work. Great art will always be great art, but perhaps it?s not timeless.

 

So why is this PDF titled ?Timeless Piano? then? Well, by definition timeless music has to appeal to generation after generation, and there?s been a clear trend for many decades in the music that the general public listens to. Yep, it?s been getting simpler and simpler. So, perhaps the way to write music that?s going to have the best chance of being timeless, is to make it extremely simple. But, the simpler the music, the more chance there is of it getting boring. And if it gets boring, it?s obviously not going to have a very long shelf life. That?s where the genius of The Beatles shines: they?re masters of making simple music that has just enough interest to prevent it from getting boring. The result? Timeless(ish) music.

 

You see, I still don?t believe that any music can be said to be truly timeless, as how can we possibly know if the general public will be listening to it in a thousand years from now!? Nevertheless, inspired by ?Now And Then?, here?s our 4-step method for writing a piano part that?s as timeless as The Beatles. But first? Tea!

 

 

Step 1. A Couple Chords

 

The chord progression in ?Now And Then? mainly consists of two chords. Before we get to those two chords, though, a brilliant and creative hack that The Beatles use is to make their progression ten bars long. We?re obviously used to hearing loops of two bars, four bars, or sometimes eight bars. But ten bars? Nope, we?re not used to that at all. So, despite their progression being super simple, those extra two bars at the end keep us interested and engaged, because they?re unexpected.

 

So, change your tempo to 87 BPM, then create a ten-bar loop on your piano track. We?re gonna start off with the grid on 1/4 notes. The Beatles begin their song (intro and verse, which is what we?re teaching here) in the key of A minor , so we?ll use it too.

 

A natural minor

1

2

?3

4

5

?6

?7

Am

Bdim

Cmaj

Dm

Em

Fmaj

Gmaj

 

Now it?s time to choose your two chords. Your progression is going to change back and forth between these two chords for five bars, so make sure you really like them. You can use any chords from the key, other than the diminished (Bdim). Well, unless you want to make your listeners feel very very uncomfortable.

 

The Beatles begin on the root chord (Am), as it anchors their progression into the key. For this reason, we suggest you also start on Am. We did, too. Their second chord is Em. We chose Dm. Their choice of two minors (Am?Em) obviously makes ?Now And Then? deeply solemn. If you want a more uplifting sounding progression, though, then definitely choose a major as your second chord.

 

Once you?re happy with your two chords, draw them in, with each chord lasting one bar. This is another great example of how The Beatles keep their progression simple. They could?ve changed chords on beat 3, or even an off-beat, which would sound more interesting, but maybe that?s too interesting for timeless(ish) music.

 

Beginning of our progression: Am to Dm

 

 

Next, invert your second chord to get the common note in the same place. If you don?t have a common note, you?ll need to make one. If you don?t know how to do that, we teach it in our Songwriting & Producing (Course). Otherwise just choose a different second chord that does contain a common note with the Am.

 

Dm inverted by moving A down an octave

 

 

Next, delete the ?3 (C) in your Am chord. Why? Well, it?s yet another way that The Beatles create interest without making it too interesting. And by deleting the 3rd note of Am, it?s theoretically no longer Am, it?s now A5 (i.e. the root and 5th).

 

As you know, the 3rd note determines a chord?s quality (i.e. whether it?s major or minor), so by deleting the ?3 in our Am chord, we?ve de-minored it. And no, that?s definitely not a musical term! Also, for the record, it?s no longer a ?chord? either, because a chord requires at least three notes. It?s now an interval/harmony.

 

Am with ?3 (C) deleted, moving to Dm/A* (root note of each chord highlighted)

 

 

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-11-10
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How to Write a Memorable Bass Line ? Music Theory from Röyksopp "So Easy"

 

How to Write a
Memorable Bass Line
using modal ambiguity

 

 

Yes, your lead melody is important. But a great bass line has the power to make or break a section. Despite that fact, though, most producers approach their bass as an afterthought. Think about it. How many songs? bass lines can you remember?

 

Almost all the bass lines we hear in the new releases each week are not really bass lines, they?re bass frequencies. If a producer merely plays each chord?s root note as their bass line, that?s not a melody (?line? is just an informal word for melody).

 

In order for it to be a bass line, it needs to be an actual melody. We?re obviously not saying that your bass should play a catchy melody like you?d want on the lead synth or vocals. But, it does need to contain the characteristics of a well-written melody, which will also make it memorable. And that?s a good test for yourself. The day after you?ve been writing, can you remember the bass line in your head?

 

A great example of a super memorable bass line, which doesn?t steal any attention away from the lead melody, can be found in the song ?So Easy? by Norwegian electronic duo, Röyksopp. If you haven?t heard this song, have a quick listen, it?s the opening track on their brilliant album ?Melody A.M.? from 2001. The song actually begins with both their bass line and lead melody playing, and while the lead is crazy catchy, the bass below is 100% memorable as well, without ever taking any attention away from the lead melody. It?s truly brilliant!

 

In this PDF you?ll learn the characteristics that make their bass line so memorable, as well as our 4-step method for writing memorable bass lines. But first? Tea!

 

 

 

Step 1. Half & Half

 

Set your tempo to 104 BPM and leave your time signature on 4|4. Then create an eight-bar loop on your bass track, and set your grid to 1/16 notes. When you analyse Röyksopp?s bass line, one of the most obvious characteristics you?ll notice is that half of it isn?t there, or so it seems. In other words, they use a ton of rests! So many, in fact, that their bass line consists of about half notes and half rests.

 

That?s a rather counterintuitive approach to bass, as it?s the foundation upon which the music is built. If half your foundation isn?t there, then surely you?re heading for trouble, right? Nope. Their clever use of rests ensures their bass line stands out because it?s different. But, as it?s not even there half the time, it?s not taking attention away from the lead melody. On that note, their lead is the opposite. It consists of longer connected notes, with no rests other than where they phrase it.

 

Okay let?s get to it! So you?re gonna start by writing a two-bar rhythm on C, the root note. But remember, you want about half of it to be rests. Also, all the notes should be short, so use a combination of 1/8 notes and 1/16 notes. And don?t be shy with the syncopation! If you play too many notes on the beat, it?s going to sound stiff and rigid. Those off-beat accents are gonna bring your bass line to life.

 

Two-bar rhythm on root note, C

 

 

When you?re happy with your lively two-bar rhythm, copy and paste it into bars three and four. Now, delete beat 4 in the fourth bar. You?ll find out why in Step 4.

Two-bar rhythm copied and pasted (highlighted) with beat 4 in fourth bar deleted

 

 

Then for variation, make one tiny change to a note towards the end of bar four.

Tiny rhythmic variation created at end of fourth bar (highlighted)

 

 

 

Step 2. Anchors & Arcs

 

The next thing you?ll notice about Röyksopp?s brilliant bass line is that it begins with three punchy on-beat root notes, before taking off to a bunch of other notes.

 

They repeat this pattern every two bars. That anchors the bass line into their key?s root note, as well as providing a rhythmic anchor. Every couple bars their bass briefly anchors melodically (to the root) and rhythmically (to the beat), before it ventures off to explore. And that exploration creates a melodic ?arc? (i.e. contour), which we?ll get to in Step 3.

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

 

 

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-11-03
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How to Write a Modulating Melody ? Music Theory from John Carpenter "Halloween Theme"

 

How to Write a Modulating Melody
using a series of direct key changes

 

 

John Carpenter?s ?Halloween Theme? is one of the most recognizable pieces of music in the horror film genre. And that?s not just because the movie is so famous, it?s because the music is massively attention-grabbing due to all its original ideas.

 

One of the many creative techniques he uses is modulating (i.e. changing key) in the middle of his melody. That?s completely crazy! To put it in context. Most music nowadays doesn?t even modulate at all. In other words, the whole song (verse, chorus, and everything else) is all in the same key. How mind-numbingly boring!

 

So, when Mr Carpenter changes key halfway through his ?Halloween? melody, it grabs your full, undivided attention, as it?s unlike anything you?ve heard before. It goes without saying that this technique can be used in any genre, and wherever you use it, heads are gonna turn, because nothing grabs attention like a mid-melody modulation. And that?s not even the only modulation he does, there?s a lot more!

 

Without further ado. Inspired by the ?Halloween Theme?, here?s our 7-step method for writing modulating melodies like John Carpenter. But first? Tea!

 

 

Step 1. Repetition

 

In our research for this tutorial, we found a video of John Carpenter talking about his ?Halloween Theme? being in 5|4. However, because of the way he groups his piano part, the time signature is actually 10|8. And yes, they?re obviously the exact same length: five 1/4 notes = ten 1/8 notes. But, when you listen to the original you can clearly hear the 10|8 grouping: two groups of three 1/8 notes, followed by two groups of two 1/8 notes.

 

MIDI for John Carpenter?s ?Halloween Theme? piano part (right-hand):

First group of three 1/8 notes highlighted (beats 1, 2, 3)

 

 

Second group of three 1/8 notes highlighted (beats 4, 5, 6)

 

 

First group of two 1/8 notes highlighted (beats 7, 8)

 

 

Second group of two 1/8 notes highlighted (beats 9, 10)

 

 

If the piano part was in 5|4, there would be five groups of two 1/8 notes, like this:

Example of what piano part would look like if time signature was 5|4 and not 10|8

(first note of each group of two 1/8 notes highlighted)

 

 

To complicate things, though, the drums play a four-on-the-floor style pattern, except it?s actually five-on-the-floor due to the length of each bar:

?Halloween Theme? drum beat plays a kick (highlighted) on each 1/4 note beat

 

 

With the drums accenting every 1/4 note beat, it?s clear that they?re in 5|4. So, when we take the drums into account, we realise there?s actually a polymeter here (i.e. two time signature playing simultaneously): the drums are playing in 5|4 while the piano is playing in 10|8. Very cool! But seeing as Mr Carpenter considers the whole thing to be in 5|4, we?ll go with that too, just to keep it nice and simple.

 

So, load up a piano track, then create a four-bar loop in 5|4, with your grid on 1/8 notes. Set your DAW?s tempo to 136 BPM. There?s actually two different versions of the ?Halloween Theme?, the original one from 1978 and the remake from 2018. They?re both in the same tempo (and keys), and they?re pretty much the same, other than one relatively big difference that we?ll talk about in Step 4.

 

Right, let?s get down to the music making! We?re gonna start by writing the right-hand part of our piano. This part is super simple. As you can see in the MIDI screenshots above of the original version, John Carpenter only uses three notes: the 1 (F?), 5 (C?), and ?6 (D). The original starts in the key of F? minor, but we?ll use A minor to keep things simple, as that?s just all the white notes from A to A.

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-10-27
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How to Write Haunting Arpeggios ? Music Theory from Danny Elfman "Wednesday Main Titles"

 

How to Write Haunting Arpeggios
using parallel keys and borrowed chords

 

 

Danny Elfman?s theme song for the Netflix show Wednesday (officially called ?Wednesday Main Titles? on the soundtrack album) is utterly brilliant! It?s just over one minute, but the amount of creative theory it contains is thoroughly impressive.

 

One of the most unusual sections is at 21 seconds into the track. It?s a crazy creative chord progression, played as triplet arpeggios. The section is so haunting and unsettling, because he slides through three different keys in the space of four bars. This leaves the listener feeling disorientated, as their subconscious is trying to figure out if it did actually hear a key change or if it just imagined that. You know the feeling, right? Maybe that was just a shadow at the window, and that noise was probably (hopefully) just a branch knocking against the house. Hmmm?

 

On that note, go and check that all your doors are locked and your windows are closed. Then, turn off your lights, put on your headphones, and let?s make some spooky music! So, inspired by the Wednesday theme song, here?s our 4-step method for writing haunting arpeggios like Danny Elfman. But first? Tea!

 

 

Step 1. Chords

 

There?s two stages to this method. First you?ll write a haunting chord progression (Steps 1 & 2), then you?ll turn that into arpeggios (Step 3). As a bonus, we?ve included a section on how to write a haunting bass line for your arpeggios (Step 4). By the way, Stage 2 is super quick and easy, but Stage 1 will take some time. Okay let?s get to work, cos these arpeggios aren?t gonna write themselves - they?re haunting arpeggios, not haunted arpeggios!

 

Set your tempo to 98 BPM, then create four bars of 4|4. You can just use a piano sound for now, then after you?ve finished writing, you can play around with some different sounds. Next, change your grid to 1/8 note triplets. If you want your whole song to be in this triplet feel, though, then you can use the 12|8 time signature. We?re using triplets because the opening section of Wednesday is in 4|4. It switches to 1/8 note triplets after 21 seconds, when this arpeggio section begins.

 

Now that you?re all set up, it?s time to grab some paper and a pen. Yep, we?re going old-school in Step 1. An arpeggio is simply a chord played one note at a time. So, before we get to our arpeggios, we obviously need to write a chord progression.

 

Here is Danny Elfman?s progression: Dm ? F?m ? C?m ? Bm ? Dm

 

A surface-level analysis of that progression reveals that he?s only using minor chords. That?s a great hack all on its own, because a progression made up exclusively of minor chords will sound seriously dark, as you?re never giving your listener a break from the somber nature of minor chords. Now, if you do a deep analysis, you?ll discover something far more remarkable. The progression is in the key of D minor, so what do you notice about its chords?

 

D natural minor scale

1

2

?3

4

5

?6

?7

Dm

Edim

Fmaj

Gm

Am

B?maj

Cmaj

 

 

Our deep analysis doesn?t even get past the second chord before we discover that Danny Elfman has officially left the key! There?s no F? in D minor. So, the second chord in this progression is a non-diatonic chord, i.e. a chord that?s not in the key. On we go to the third chord. Oh, he?s done it again! There?s no C? in D minor either. And on to the fourth chord. Same again! There?s no B in D minor. What?!

 

So, sandwiched between two root chords that start and finish the progression, he has three non-diatonic chords. That?s obviously not normal. In fact, it?s so unusual that it takes us back to the drawing board, because if the root chord is the only chord that?s in the key, then is the key really D minor or did we get it wrong?

 

No we didn?t. The key is D minor, but each of those three non-diatonic chords is from a different key. A parallel key! A parallel key is just the fancy term for a key (i.e. scale/mode) that has the same root note. And when you play a chord from a parallel key, it?s called a borrowed chord. In this example, D natural minor and D major are parallel. D Lydian is also parallel, which is another key Danny Elfman uses in his progression.

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-10-20
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How to Write a Suspenseful Melody ? Music Theory from Mike Oldfield "Tubular Bells" The Exorcist (1973) theme

 

How to Write a Suspenseful Melody
using Bitonality, AKA playing in two keys simultaneously

 

The dictionary definition of suspenseful is ?causing a feeling of excitement or nervousness because you are waiting for something to happen?.

That perfectly describes the intro of ?Tubular Bells - Pt. I? by Mike Oldfield. It?s easy to hear why The Exorcist (1973) director William Friedkin chose this music for his film. Recall that classic scene where Chris starts walking home alone as the ?Tubular Bells? intro begins. Eeek! Talk about ?waiting for something to happen?.

If you wanna make music that keeps people listening because they need to know what happens next, then knowing how to create suspense is essential. Mike Oldfield has given us a masterclass with this music. So, inspired by ?Tubular Bells?, here?s our 4-step method for writing a suspenseful melody. But first? Tea!

 

Step 1. Odd

One of the first things we notice about the intro of ?Tubular Bells - Pt. I? is that it?s in an odd time signature. If you count along with that piano part in the intro, you?ll count 15 beats. So, change your DAW?s time signature to 15|4 and set the tempo to 150 BPM.

On closer analyses of the piano part (i.e. where its melody repeats), it becomes apparent that the time signature is actually one bar of 7|4 followed by two bars of 4|4. But as that adds up to 15|4, we?ll just go with that to keep things simpler.

Next, create a one-bar loop of 15|4 on your piano track, with the grid on 1/8 notes. We?re gonna start by writing a rhythm on E (the root), using only 1/8 notes and 1/8 rests. You can do whatever you want, but don?t play more than two notes in a row. Also, only make your rhythm seven 1/4 notes long, i.e. one bar of 7|4.

7|4 rhythm (on E)

 

 

Step 2. Pitch

Now it?s time to turn this rhythm into a melody! For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

 

2023-10-13
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How to Write a Mysterious Melody ? Music Theory from John Williams "Harry Potter" theme

 

How to Write a Mysterious Melody
Using the Chromatic Scale

 

 

The epitome of a mysterious and magical melody is the Harry Potter theme (titled ?Prologue? on the soundtrack album) by legendary film composer, John Williams.

 

This melody is overflowing with mystery and magic for a few reasons, all of which you?ll learn in this PDF, but the main reason is: chromaticism. That?s just the fancy word for using notes that are not in the scale. While this technique is (sadly) rare in popular music, it?s common in classical and soundtrack music.

 

However, John Williams elevates his chromaticism in the Harry Potter theme with an additional technique, which you?ll also learn in this tutorial. For now though, it?s sufficient to know that the chromaticism found in this melody is not your average run-of-the-mill chromaticism, this is very special.

 

Whatever genre you make music in*, if you want to learn how to convey mystery and magic through a melody, you can learn everything you need to know from John Williams. So, inspired by the Harry Potter theme, in this PDF you?ll learn our 6-step method for writing mysterious melodies. But first? Tea!

 

*Like all the Hack Music Theory teachings, the method in this tutorial will work in any genre.

 

 

Step 1. Diatonic

 

First things first. Before we can play notes that are not in the scale, we need a scale. Remember though, no matter what scale you?re using, you can always add chromatic notes to your melody. And by the way, another word for chromatic is non-diatonic (notes in the key are diatonic, notes outside the key are non-diatonic).

 

So, while the Harry Potter theme is rooted in the natural minor scale, after you?ve worked through this PDF, you can follow the method again but in another scale/mode. For this example, though, we?ll be using the E natural minor scale:

 

E Natural Minor Scale

1

2

?3

4

5

?6

?7

E

F?

G

A

B

C

D

 

 

Set your DAW?s time signature to 3|8 and the tempo to about 90 BPM. As the original recording was played by an orchestra (not a computer), the tempo varies a lot due to the musicians? expressive performance. After you?ve written your melody, revisit your tempo and try some faster or slower BPMs to see if that better suits your specific melody.

 

Next, create a 16-bar loop on your melody track. That sounds like a super long melody, but it?s not really, because each bar is only three 1/8 notes long. So the length of this melody will be the equivalent of six bars of 4|4.

 

Regarding the virtual instrument to load up on this track. John Williams uses a celesta, which is a beautiful instrument, but rather rare. If you don?t have a celesta in your library, as we don?t, then you can use a vibraphone, which is what we used. Or you can use a vintage organ, an electric piano, or even a regular piano. Obviously the more mysterious (i.e. the less common) your instrument, the more mysterious your final music will sound, so try to at least find something unusual.

 

 

Step 2. Chromatic

 

Walls have ears, so please make sure nobody?s listening in, because we?re about to talk about those mysterious and magical chromatic notes. Shhh?

 

For the rest of the tutorial, please buy the PDF. Supporting our work helps us to keep teaching. Thank you :)

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

2023-10-06
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How to Write a Technical Drum Beat ? Music Theory from TesseracT "Natural Disaster"

 

How to Write a
Technical Drum Beat

 

If you?ve been in the Hack Music Theory family for a while, you?ll know we love technical drum beats! And there probably ain?t nothin? more tech? than polymeters*. While polymeters were relatively popular with those bold ?modern classical? composers of the early 20th century, they haven?t been used much since then.

 

And yes, over the last few decades there have been a few rare examples of polymeters in popular music. But, it wasn?t until a group of hairy Swedes with exceptional talent (otherwise known as Meshuggah) came along and re-popularised the polymeter. What made Meshuggah?s polymeters unique, though, is their genius idea of having their drummer?s hands (snare & cymbals) play in 4|4 as the one time signature, while his feet (kick) play in an odd time signature, like 17|16. The genius of the Meshuggah method is that listeners can nod (or mosh) along to the 4|4 time signature, while the odd time signature slithers around unpredictably. The brilliance of this can?t be overstated. They created a way to play in odd time while the audience dances in 4|4.

 

To get an idea of how weird odd time signatures sound without this method, listen to ?March of the Pigs? by Nine Inch Nails. They alternate three bars of 7|8 with one bar of 4|4. And while we love this song, you have to have a relatively high level of music theory knowledge just to be able to dance along to it. That?s obviously not ideal for the average listener. Also, 7|8 isn?t even that weird. Meshuggah uses far weirder time signatures! But, because they?re playing them against 4|4, you can dance along.

 

Meshuggah?s method has become a favourite for prog/tech bands over the last couple decades, and TesseracT are one of them. Their new album ?War of Being? kicks off with a great polymeter (in the track ?Natural Disaster?) which finds them adding a few creative twists to Meshuggah?s method. So, inspired by ?Natural Disaster?, here?s our 6-step method for making technical polymetric drum beats. But first? Tea!

 

*If you?re new to polymeters, it?s the term for playing in two (or more) time signatures simultaneously.

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

2023-09-29
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How to Write a Prog Melody ? Music Theory from Steven Wilson "Impossible Tightrope"

 

How to Write a Prog Melodyusing the Major-Minor scale, aka Mixolydian ?6

 

There aren?t many melodies that stand out nowadays. In an era where most musicians are trying to sound like the popular musicians in their genre, the result is a narrowing of musical territory. This should shock the world, as artists have historically been the brave explorers boldly trekking into unmapped cultural regions. These days, though, most ?artists? tend to be copycats playing it safe, doing everything in their power (and AI?s power) to stay within the narrow boundaries of what the masses deem acceptable. The result is not art, but product.

 

It only requires a cursory glance in the rearview mirror to see that the artists who stand the test of time are the ones who bring something new to the table. To be clear, the artist?s job is not to reinvent the musical wheel (like Arnold Schoenberg did). But, every human has a slightly different way of seeing the world, and art is supposed to be a way for the artist to capture and share their unique worldview.

 

One of the rare artists who still takes his job description seriously is prog rock legend Steven Wilson. Regardless of what you think of his music (or him as a person), and regardless of whether you love or hate his band Porcupine Tree, huge respect is owed to the man for sticking to the artist?s brief. Steven Wilson?s music is not groundbreaking, but it always sounds like Steven Wilson?s music, not someone else?s. Yet he continues to mature and explore new musical ground (for him). A recent example of this is his new single ?Impossible Tightrope? from upcoming album ?The Harmony Codex?. And what a great name for an album, right?

 

At 5:46 into the epic 10-minute song, there?s a section where the bass and drums play a captivatingly syncopated groove, while Steven sings a beautifully strange melody over the top. This melody instantly stands out, as the scale is not a normal scale. The first time I heard this section, I knew I had to share it with you. So, in this PDF you?ll learn this beautifully strange scale, and our 6-step method for using it to write a prog melody. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-09-22
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How to Write an Octatonic Riff ? Music Theory from Ministry "Goddamn White Trash"

 

How to Write an Octatonic Riff Using the Half-Whole Diminished Scale

 

 

Almost all popular music (in every genre and subgenre) is made using the major scale or the natural minor scale. That?s a vast ocean of music from only two scales! And yes, some of the more creative producers will use the modes. That?s great. But, the modes are also 7-note scales (just like the major and natural minor scales).

 

And, like those two scales, they also contain a major 3rd or a minor 3rd. In other words, each one of the five rarer modes sound either like a variation of the major scale, or a variation of the natural minor scale. So yes, the Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian and Locian modes open a lot more doors, however, they all lead into the same 7-note house.

 

For the record, Mozart had no problems writing genius-level music using only the major and minor scales, so there?s obviously nothing wrong with using those scales. But, as a counter argument, there was significantly less music when Mozart was alive. Nowadays, it can easily feel like all the possibilities that those two scales offer have been thoroughly explored already. I don?t believe that?s true, though it?s undeniable that it is significantly harder to create something new with those scales.

 

So, if you?re looking to explore some new musical territory, one of the best ways to get there is with 8-note scales. These are called octatonic scales. They were relatively common in the ?modern? classical music of the early 20th century, but you hardly ever hear them in popular music. One of our favourite examples of an octatonic scale in popular music is in the song ?I Am That Thirst? by Meshuggah. And another song we recently heard that features an octatonic scale is ?Goddamn White Trash? by Ministry. They use it in a heavy breakdown riff (starts at 2:03).

 

So, if you?re ready to try the exciting world of 8-note scales, then in this tutorial you?re gonna learn our 5-step method for writing octatonic riffs. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

2023-09-14
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How to Write a Beautiful Melody ? Music Theory from Swedish House Mafia "Ray Of Solar"

 

How to Write a Beautiful Melody

 

There are 7 elements that create a beautiful melody. In our new PDF tutorial (download link below), you'll learn what they are and how to use them!

 

When I recently heard ?Ray Of Solar? by Swedish House Mafia on Spotify?s ?New Music Friday? playlist, the song?s beauty jumped out at me from amongst the almost 150 tracks that all seem to be sounding more and more alike each week.

 

And for the record, while I?ve heard the name Swedish House Mafia, I don?t think I?d ever listened to them before. In fact, I don?t even know if they?re from Sweden. I mean, you?d think the electronic duo Boards of Canada are from Canada, right? Wrong. They?re from Scotland! What?! Yep, it?s true. But I digress? So, despite not being a Swedish House Mafia fan, the beauty of this song is undeniable. And as a result, we?ve ended up in the rare situation of making two tutorials on the same song.

 

In last week?s tutorial BEAUTIFUL ARPEGGIOS (PDF) we taught our 6-step method for making a beautiful chord progression like you hear in ?Ray Of Solar?. In this tutorial, inspired by the same section, you?ll learn our 7-step method for writing a beautiful melody.

 

And no, you don?t need to have done the previous tutorial, this one is completely independent. If you have, though, then you can write a melody for the beautiful arpeggios you made from that tutorial. Alright, download the PDF at the link below, then read on to learn the music theory hacks that create this undeniable beauty, and how you can use them to write your own beautiful melody. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-09-07
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How to Write Beautiful Arpeggios ? Music Theory from Swedish House Mafia "Ray Of Solar"

 

How to Write Beautiful Arpeggios

 

If you play all the notes of a chord simultaneously, you?ll create an instant emotion in your listener. This is a powerful technique, and the most common way to play chords. While allowing a chord to unfold and reveal its emotion one note at a time is arguably less powerful, in the right context, it can be even more beautiful.

 

One such context is the new single ?Ray Of Solar? by Swedish House Mafia. I?ll be honest, I don?t think I?ve ever listened to Swedish House Mafia before, and I don?t know anything about them, but when I was going through the new releases on Spotify, this song instantly stood out thanks to its beautiful arpeggio intro.

 

And yes, arpeggios are widely used, but they?re almost always boring. Most producers clearly don?t know how to be creative with arpeggios. And as Swedish House Mafia uses so many clever hacks to make their arpeggios creative, we simply had to share them with you. So, inspired by ?Ray Of Solar?, here?s our 6-step method for writing beautiful arpeggios that will definitely stand out. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

 

2023-08-25
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How to Write a Melodic Bass Drop ? Music Theory from Grabbitz "Hero"

 

How to Write a Melodic Bass Drop

 

 

EDM producers didn?t invent the bass drop, but it?s easy to argue they perfected it!

Having said that, though, the bass drop has long since gone stale. After becoming so popular, it was sadly turned into a formulaic cliché. However, every now and then a creative producer comes along with a fresh angle. The recent single ?Hero? by Grabbitz (who?s probably my favourite EDM producer), contains an exciting example of this. At 57 seconds into the track, he drops an absolute beauty!

So, inspired by Grabbitz, here?s our 5-step method for making melodic bass drops. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-08-18
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How to Write a Rhythmic CHORD Progression ? Music Theory from Maribou State "Midas"

 

How to Write a Rhythmic CHORD Progression

 

One of the most common mistakes producers make when writing chord progressions is focusing exclusively on the notes (i.e. the harmony). Now, it obviously goes without saying that the notes are a vital ingredient in chord progressions, however, another vital ingredient that is often ignored is rhythm.

 

As a result of this widespread oversight, it?s normal to hear chord progressions that are entirely lacking in vital energy. This lack is more obvious in certain genres than others, but the problem most certainly occurs in all genres.

 

British electronic duo Maribou State has a great example of what a lively chord progression sounds like. You can hear it in their song ?Midas?. It?s a super chill track and the chords are not at all dominant, yet they?re full of vital energy.

 

So regardless of whether you want to write something uptempo or something chill, the 3-step method in this tutorial (inspired by Maribou State ?Midas?) will guide you through making a chord progression that?s full of life, by using a creative rhythm, inversions, add chords, and 7th chords. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-08-11
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How to Write "Peaceful Piano" Music ? Music Theory from Ludovico Einaudi "Experience"

 

How to Write "Peaceful Piano" Music

 

I?m just old enough that I got in my Grade 1 to 12 school years before computers and the internet took over. If you?re a Gen X like me, and there wasn?t a computer in your school building either, then our schooling experience was pretty much the same as our grandfathers? schooling experiences in their youth. How crazy is that?!

 

And the deeper you go back into the past, the longer those stretches of time are where nothing changed. Fast forward to today, and robots are making music and cars are driving themselves! It?s not surprising that there?s a tidal wave of nostalgia sweeping industrialised countries. People are desperate to find anything that can lessen the unpredictable nature of this relentlessly-changing modern world.

 

For most people, an unpredictable world causes anxiety. And the opposite is true too: A predictable world causes calm. It?s totally understandable that this desperate desire to find some predictability in our world has resulted in ?Peaceful Piano? being one of the most popular playlists on Spotify. Every track on this playlist creates a predictable musical environment, which counterbalances all the change.

 

If you?ve been in the Hack Music Theory family for a while, you?ll probably be amused right now, as I?ve spent decades teaching people how to make music that?s not predictable haha! Well, my views on music have evolved over the decades, and I now see (and hear) the benefit of well-written predictable music. For the record though, I don?t mean the manufactured ?content? that makes up most of the new releases every week, I?m talking about artistic music that?s predictable, like Mozart.

 

One of the most popular composers in the Peaceful Piano ?genre?, who?s been paving the minimal path since the mid-90s, is the Italian pianist and composer Ludovico Einaudi.

 

So, inspired by ?Experience?, one of Einaudi?s most popular songs, here?s our 5-step method for writing ?Peaceful Piano? music. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-08-05
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How to Write in 2 Modes Simultaneously ? Music Theory from The Brooks "Pain & Bliss"

 

How to Write in 2 Modes Simultaneously

 

Humans are walking paradoxes! You know those times when you?re feeling two contradicting emotions at the same time? Like when you?re in a difficult situation but you feel hopeful about the future, while simultaneously doubting your own optimism. How on earth would you reflect those contradicting feelings in music?

 

As we cover in our Songwriting & Producing PDF, each mode conveys a general emotion. Feeling optimistic in a difficult situation would be well represented by the Dorian mode, which is the natural minor scale* with a major 6th (i.e. the cloud?s silver lining). Cancelling out that optimism with doubt would revert back to the natural minor scale, where the cloud doesn?t have a silver lining.

 

So you may be thinking now that it can?t be too difficult to write something using the Dorian mode then switch to the Aeolian mode. And you?re right, that?s not difficult. However, using one mode first and then moving into the other one, does not reflect the paradox of feeling both of the contradicting emotions simultaneously.

 

But you can?t use two modes at the same time, can you? Yes my friend, yes you can!

 

This is where things get juicy. Are you ready? Right, so in the title-track of their album ?Pain & Bliss?, The Brooks play in both the Dorian and Aeolian modes at the same time. The guitar plays in Dorian while the bass simultaneously plays in Aeolian. It?s awesome!

 

So, inspired by this great song, here?s our 6-step method for writing music in two modes that will be played at the same time. But first? Tea!

 

*Natural minor scale is another name for the Aeolian mode.

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-07-28
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How to Write a Mixolydian MELODY ? Music Theory from Sigur Rós "Klettur"

 

How to Write a Mixolydian MELODY

 

Music in a major key is uplifting, but the downside is that it often sounds childlike.

 

This is because the major scale is the most predictable scale. Predictable things are comforting and reassuring, so it is indeed used in almost all children?s music. The ease at which children can sing along with melodies in the (predictable) major scale is one reason, but an equally important reason is its innocent and naive sound. This is due to its consonant intervals, but that?s acoustic science, so I won?t bore you.

 

Here?s the problem so many producers face when trying to make uplifting music: How do you write a song that?s happy but not childlike? Or, far worse than childlike? Cheesy. Urgh! And yes, it?s scary/funny how many songs we hear that were obviously intended to be uplifting, but just ended up sounding cheesy instead.

 

So how do you make uplifting music that sounds beautiful and mature? Just ask Sigur Rós, as that?s exactly what they did with their song ?Klettur?, from the beautiful new album ?Átta?. This song has a wonderfully uplifting melody, but instead of sounding like children?s music (or cheese), it sounds solemn.

 

In case you ask Sigur Rós but don?t get a reply, here?s the answer: their secret is the Mixolydian mode. There?s a few other brilliant tricks they use as well, like the two different ways they deal with tension and resolution, and you?ll learn all these in our 4-step method for writing Mixolydian melodies, which is in our new PDF tutorial. But first? Tea!

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

2023-07-21
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How to Write Calming CHORDS ? Music Theory from Portishead "Roads"

 

How to Write Calming CHORDS

 

Within seconds of hearing the opening chords in Portishead ?Roads?, you can feel your cortisol levels dropping and your body?s tension releasing. This intro has to be one of the most calming moments in the entire popular music catalogue.

 

Unlike the mad rush that songs are in nowadays to grab your attention with a catchy hook (in order to avoid the dreaded skip!), the ?Roads? intro unfolds at a pace so leisurely that it feels delightfully pre-internet. Aaah? Remember those days? Back when humans had attention spans longer than goldfish!

 

On that note. According to Spotify data, about 25% of listeners skip a song within five seconds. If those people skipped ?Roads? a mere five seconds in, they wouldn?t even get halfway through the chord progression. Oh well, their loss.

 

In this dizzyingly fast-paced world, if you want to cater to the distracted listener, then it?s impossible to create a calming atmosphere, as that takes time. For almost the whole first minute of ?Roads?, all your hear is the legendary sound of a Fender Rhodes organ. Rumour has it that the song is actually named after the Rhodes.

 

The vintage sound of a Rhodes organ obviously adds to the atmosphere, but in terms of music theory, what makes these chords so relaxing? Well, it?s not just one thing, it?s many! And in this tutorial you?ll learn them all, as well as our 5-step method for making your own calming chord progression. But first? Tea!

 

Download PDF Tutorial
 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

2023-07-14
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How to Write Standout DRUMS ? Music Theory from Aphex Twin "Blackbox Life Recorder 21f"

 

How to Write Standout DRUMS

 

 

A standout drum beat can make or break a song. Want proof? Listen to the new Aphex Twin single ?Blackbox Life Recorder 21f?.

 

He?s actually reversed the roles of the instruments in this song, as the melody, chords and bass step into the background while the drums take centre stage. In other words, if this song was played by a live band, the spotlight would be exclusively on the drummer. Drummers rejoice!

 

So, what makes the drums deserving of the spotlight? Well, compared to the ?regular? beats you hear in most songs nowadays, Aphex Twin has added a whopping 5 standout features to his drum beat.

 

Each standout feature elevates Aphex Twin's drums to the next level, and in this tutorial you?ll learn all 5 levels of that standout-ness. But, these levels are totally independent (they?re not accumulative), so you can use only the levels that your song requires.

 

And remember, if you use all 5 levels, your drums will demand the spotlight too, so your other instruments will have to step back. If they don?t, you?ll have a fight on your hands, and no producer wants an instrument fight, not in your DAW at least.

 

Right, click the link below and subscribe to learn how to make your drums worthy of the spotlight. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

2023-07-06
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How to Write BASS Lines That Move People ? Music Theory from Nine Inch Nails "Closer"

  How to Write Bass Lines
That Move People

 

I remember the first time I heard ?Closer? by Nine Inch Nails in a club back in the ?90s. I?d never before seen people literally running to the dance floor. Running!

 

My fellow Gen Xers will remember this, but by the time the bass line starts after about 20 seconds of drums, the dance floor would be completely packed. And this phenomenon happened in every club! The power of a great bass line to move people (even over a simple four-on-the-floor beat, like in ?Closer?) still amazes me.

 

Ever since then, I?ve felt that the ability to get people physically moving is probably the most fun aspect of making music. So, inspired by ?Closer?, here?s a step-by-step method for writing bass lines with the power to move bodies, minds, and hearts. But first? Tea!

 

 

Download PDF Tutorial

 

 

Lastly, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing. Enjoy!

Ray Harmony
Multi award-winning college lecturer

 

2023-06-30
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How to Write Heavy BASS Lines ? Music Theory from Front Line Assembly "Purge"

 

 How to Write Heavy BASS Lines 

 

Step 1. Syncopated Octaves

Set up one bar of 4|4 with your grid on 1/16 notes, and your tempo at 110 BPM. You?re gonna start by using only one note, and the octave of that note. We?re using A in our example. So, draw in every 1/16 note on the low A. Now, play around with moving a handful of them one octave up.

These high notes will make accents in your bass line, so you want them to create a cool rhythm all on their own. And one of the best ways to do that is to syncopate most of them. In other words, most of them will not be on the main beats. All that syncopation adds tons of energy!

 

Step 2. High Line

Your bass line actually consists of two lines now: a high line, and a low line. So in this step you?re gonna add a melodic element to your high line. A great note to start on is the ?3 (which is C in our example), as it?s super strong and moody! And by the way, if these flats and numbers confuse you, no problem, just read hack 8 in our free book (link below).

Right, so what other notes should you use in your high line? Well, as we?re writing a heavy bass line, you wanna crank up the dissonance, so throw in a ?2 somewhere (which is B? in our example). And if you use the ?3 and the ?2, then you could also use the 2, which is the note in between. And feel free to repeat notes. In our example, we played the ?3 twice, the 2 twice, and the ?2 once. And a shoutout to local Vancouver BC legends Front Line Assembly, as this lesson is based on the song ?Purge? from their 2021 album ?Mechanical Soul?.

 

 

Free Book

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 Step 3. Low Line

So as you could hear, the bass line is already sounding good. And to be honest, most producers would think it?s now complete, but not Front Line Assembly! No, they?ve got one more trick up their sleeves, and that?s the dissonance they add to their low line.

Most of their low line remains on the root note, however, they?ve moved a few notes down one semitone to the 7 (which is G? in our example). Also, at the very end, you could throw in a ?3 for a little variation. This makes the bass line loop more smoothly as well.

Adding this dissonance to your low line is a game-changer, as it?s super subtle (seriously, most people won?t even notice it), but it adds a feeling of heaviness that you simply can?t achieve without it!

 

 

PODCAST

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2023-06-11
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How to Write Advanced DRUMS ? Music Theory from Royal Blood "Mountains at Midnight"

 

 

How to Write Advanced DRUMS

 

 

Step 1. Pattern

Set up two bars of 4|4 with your grid set to 1/16 notes, and your tempo at 136 BPM. Now, instead of starting to make your drum beat with the usual kick on beat 1 and snare on the backbeats (like everyone else does!), you?re gonna start by writing your kick and snare pattern on the hi-hats.

Wait, what?! I know that seems like a really odd thing to do, but this method is gonna result in a far more creative (and therefore ?advanced?) drum beat. Okay, so there are many ways to write a creative pattern, but here?s an easy method. Start by playing every 1/8 note. Then, delete a couple of those. This creates variation. And then, move one or two hits over to the next 1/16 note. This creates surprise.

 

 

Step 2. Beat

Right, now that you?ve written a creative rhythm, it?s time to turn it into a drum beat. To do that, simply divide up your pattern between the kick and the snare. In other words, move some notes to the kick and others to the snare. But, instead of falling back into the conventional approach of kick on beat 1 and snare on the backbeats, purposefully avoid doing that in the first bar. This unusual approach in your first bar creates a huge amount of interest that grabs the listeners? attention.

But, if you repeat this approach in your second bar, it won?t sound as interesting any more, as they?ll be expecting it. So, in your second bar, you?re purposefully going to switch to a conventional approach with the kick on beat 1 and snare on the backbeats (i.e. beats 2 and 4). This cycling back and forth between an unconventional bar and a conventional bar keeps your listeners constantly engaged.

And a shoutout to Royal Blood, and especially their drummer Ben Thatcher, as this lesson is based on his beat from their new single ?Mountains at Midnight?. Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

 

 

Free Book

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 

Step 3. Pulse

This is the easy part. Just add an 1/8 note pulse on a cymbal. This simple rhythm glues the complex beat together. Ben actually switches the pulse between the hats for the verses, and the crash for the choruses. And if you need more help with your beats, download our Hack Drum Beats PDF (link opens in new tab). It contains everything you need to know for making great beats, all in one PDF.

 

PODCAST

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2023-06-04
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How to Write Locrian BASS Lines ? Music Theory from Rezz "Suffer in Silence"

 

 

How to Write Locrian BASS Lines

 

Step 1. Basic

Set up four bars with an 1/8 note grid, and your tempo at 97 BPM. You?re gonna start by writing a basic bass line that plays every 1/8 note. This creates momentum. We?re in B Locrian here, which is just all the white notes from B to B. The Locrian mode is exceptionally dark, and what makes it so dark is the ?2 (which is C in this example) and the ?5 (which is F in this example). Now, because those two notes are what make Locrian sound so dark, you wanna be sure to use both of them in your basic bass line. But, start by playing the root note (which is B in this example) for the whole of your first bar, as that anchors it into the key. And by the way, if you find modes confusing, just read the mode hack in our Songwriting & Producing PDF (link opens in new tab).

 

Step 2. Energy

Next, change your grid to 1/16 notes. You?re gonna create some syncopation now, which is when you accent an off-beat. This will pump energy into your rigid sounding basic bass line and bring it to life. You can add syncopation however you want, but here?s an easy method: shorten an 1/8 note to a 1/16 note, then lengthen the note next to it to fill the gap. Add a couple of these to each of your four bars. And a shoutout to fellow Canadian producer Rezz, as this lesson is based on her recent single ?Suffer in Silence?.

 

Free Book

Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

Step 3. Next Level

By now your bass line will already be sounding good, but to take it to the next level, you?re gonna add some octaves. Rezz does something really cool here. She moves some of the notes that fall on the backbeat snare, up an octave. This accentuates those backbeats, and adds even more energy to the bass line. However, don?t do this on every backbeat snare, as that will actually lessen its impact. Also, somewhere in your bass line, move one syncopated note up an octave. This keeps your bass line fresh and unpredictable. Lastly, here?s a bonus step. Use a rest somewhere. This gives your bass line space to breathe. Rezz used a rest at the very end of her bass line, so we?ll do the same thing by deleting our last two notes.

 

 

PODCAST

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2023-05-28
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How to Write Beautiful CHORDS ? Music Theory from Sleep Token "Take Me Back to Eden"

 

 

How to Write a Beautiful CHORD Progression

 

 

Step 1. Beauty

 

Set your grid to 1/16 notes and your tempo to 113 BPM. We?re in the key of A minor here, which is just all the white notes from A to A.

Right, so the first step to writing a beautiful chord progression is finding a beautiful chord. There are many beautiful chords, but a good guideline is to leave space for the harmony to breathe. Think about walking into a beautiful cathedral. The space is as beautiful as the structure.

When applying this concept to chords, it?s as simple as not cramming too many notes in. Three notes is enough. But yes of course, you can use more notes if you want, it?s your music. In this example, the first chord contains the root, ? 3 and ?7. And if all these flats and numbers are confusing, read hack 8 in our free book.

 

 

Step 2. Chord Beat

 

This is the fun part! You?re now gonna turn your chord into a drum beat. A ?chord beat?, if you will. If you?re playing this on a keyboard, you?re gonna play the root note (A) in your left hand, and the other two notes (C and G) in your right hand. Now, pretend your left hand is the kick drum and your right hand is the snare drum, and come up with a cool beat. And if you don?t play the keyboard, no problem, just do this step right here on the MIDI grid.

Each hit is only going to be a 1/16 note, so the final result will sound really percussive, like a pitched drum beat. All those rests add rhythmic space to your harmonic space, creating a beautiful simplicity. And a shoutout to Sleep Token, as this lesson is based on their beautiful song ?DYWTYLM? from the new album ?Take Me Back to Eden?.

 

 

Free Book

Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 

Step 3. Bass

 

Okay, so we?ve got one beautiful chord played over one bar. Now, let?s turn this into a four-bar chord progression. So, start by copying and pasting your first bar into the remaining three bars. You?re actually going to leave your right-hand notes the same throughout the four bars. This creates unity, which adds to the beauty.

Next, spend some time moving your bass note up and down in bar two. Once you?ve found a beautiful place for it, stay there for the whole bar. Then, do the same thing for bars three and four. Sleep Token stays on the same bass note here for the two bars. You can do that, or you can move it, like we did in our example.

 

 

PODCAST

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2023-05-22
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How to Write a BASS Line with Harmony ? Music Theory from GoGo Penguin "Everything Is Going to Be OK"

 

 

How to Write a BASS Line with Harmony 

 

Step 1. Low

 

Harmony is when two or more notes are played together. And sadly, it?s rare to hear harmony in a bass line. The word ?line? is actually used to convey the fact that it?s a melody, not a harmony. That?s how rare harmony is on the bass!

You see, most producers think the bass frequencies are too low to play harmony. In other words, if you play two notes together, it?ll sound like a rumbling mess. But, that?s not true. That only happens when the two notes are close to each other. For example, if your root note is a low A, and you play a D above that. It doesn?t sound very nice if you play the D that?s five semitones above the A. But, if you play the D an octave higher, so it?s now 17 semitones above the A, it sounds absolutely beautiful!

Alright, so now we know how to successfully add harmony to a bass line, however, we don?t yet have a bass line to add it to. So, step 1 is to write a cool one-bar rhythm on the root note. And we?re using A natural minor. Then, copy and paste that rhythm to three other notes, so you?ve got a four-note bass line over four bars. And feel free to throw in some passing notes to smooth the line out.

And a shoutout to the British band GoGo Penguin, and especially their bassist Nick Blacka, as this lesson is based on the title track from their beautiful new album ?Everything Is Going to Be OK?.

 

 

Free Book

Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 

Step 2. High

 

Now it?s time for the fun part: writing another line over the top, so you?ve got two lines playing together. Start this step by choosing what note you want to use for the harmony over your root note. And this is where Nick Blacka was super creative, as he actually used one high note that sounds good over all four bars. You don?t have to do that, but it?s very cool, so we did something similar in our example. We used D as our high note for three bars, then we varied it in the fourth bar.

Once you?ve chosen your high note, write a cool rhythm for it over your root note in bar one. Then, copy and paste that rhythm into the remaining three bars. Once you?ve done that, feel free to add some rhythmic and melodic variations to keep things fresh. But you don?t have to do that, if you just wanna keep things simple.

 

 

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2023-05-14
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How to Write a Standout MELODY ? Music Theory from PJ Harvey "A Child's Question, August"

 

 

How to Write a Standout MELODY

 

 Step 1. First Impressions

There are many ways to write a standout melody, but it?s difficult to improve on the method PJ Harvey uses in her new single ?A Child?s Question, August?. That?s because nothing grabs our attention like a bold first impression. And by first impression, I literally mean the first note of the melody.

You see, PJ Harvey starts her melody in the Dorian mode, and the very first note she sings is the major 6th. That?s the one-and-only note that makes Dorian different from the super common scale that we hear all the time: the natural minor. The vast majority of people are not used to hearing a major 6th over a minor chord, so when her melody begins with that unusual note, it instantly stands out.

So, in D Dorian, which is all the white notes from D to D, the major 6th is B. When we play B in our melody over a D minor chord, you can hear exactly how powerful that one note is at grabbing our attention. So step 1 in this method is to use that unusual note to begin your melody, then finish the phrase with usual notes.

 

 

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Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 

Step 2: Second Impressions

Your listeners are now familiar with that unusual note, which means that if you play it again, it won?t be unusual any more. In other words, your melody is now at risk of losing its initial impact and therefore losing your listener?s attention. The way PJ Harvey deals with this issue is brilliant!

In the second half of her melody, instead of singing the major 6th again, she sings the minor 6th. That?s the usual 6th note in a natural minor scale, which we?re used to hearing. But, after getting our ears used to that unusual note, the usual note now sounds unusual haha. What a brilliant trick!

So to maintain your listener?s attention, step 2 of this method is to create a powerful second impression by using the minor 6th (which is B?) in the second half of your melody. In other words, you?re using the natural minor for this phrase.

Just to recap, we?re starting our melody in D Dorian, then switching to D natural minor. So use the major 6th (which is B) as the first note of your melody, then use the minor 6th (which is B?) in the second half of your melody. And if you need more help writing melodies, just download our Songwriting & Producing PDF (link opens in new tab) and follow the seven guidelines in our Melody Checklist.

 

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2023-05-07
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How to Write a Locrian RIFF ? Music Theory from Metallica "72 Seasons"

 

 

How to Write a Locrian RIFF

 

FREE: Download This Tutorial as PDF
Includes multitrack MIDI example

 

 

Step 1. Octaves

Set your grid to 1/16 notes and your tempo to 97 BPM. You?re gonna start by writing a creative pattern using only octaves. If you?re writing this on guitar, use your low open E string and the E one octave higher. And be sure to play every 1/16 note, as that?s what gives the riff that heavy momentum. At the very end of the riff, though, play four 1/8 notes. That creates variation, and gives the circle pit a few seconds to breathe!

Quick shoutout to Metallica, as this lesson is based on their song ?Too Far Gone?? from the new album ?72 Seasons?.

 

Step 2. Mode

Now that you?ve got an outline of your riff, it?s time to start thinking about the melodic element. For this, we?re gonna use the Locrian mode, like Metallica. So, to get the E Locrian mode, which is what they use, start with the E natural minor scale.

Now, flatten the 2nd and 5th notes. And ?flattening? just means lowering the note by one semitone - or one fret, if you?re on the guitar. So the 2 (which is F?), becomes a ?2 (which is F). And the 5 (which is B), becomes a ?5 (which is B?). That?s E Locrian! And if all these numbers and flats are confusing, just read hack 8 in our free book.

 

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Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

Step 3. Melody

Finally it?s time to add the melodic element to your riff. Now, you?re not actually going to move any of your low E?s, they?re gonna chug away down there. You?re only gonna move the high E?s. So, have some fun playing around with where you can move those high E?s to.

However, be sure to play the notes that make the Locrian mode different to the natural minor scale, as those are the really dark heavy notes. In other words, play F and B?. Also be sure to play G, as that?s the ?3, which is a relatively dark note too.

Lastly, here?s a quick bonus for my fellow theory nerds. At the end of their riff, Metallica plays some 5ths, which guitarists call ?power chords?. What?s interesting about this is that the 5th of the root note E, is B. But, in E Locrian there?s a B? not a B. So theoretically that B pushes the riff into Phrygian for a split second. However, because our ears only pay attention to the root note of each power chord, that end part of the riff still sounds like it?s in Locrian.

 

 

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2023-04-23
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How to Write a Catchy MELODY ? Music Theory from Beastie Boys "Sure Shot"

 

 

How to Write a Catchy MELODY

 

FREE: Download This Tutorial as PDFIncludes multitrack MIDI example

 

 

Step 1. Scale

There are two types of catchy melodies: annoyingly repetitive ones you can?t stop singing but actually hate, and awesome ones that are memorable cos they?re unique.

So, to write a catchy melody that isn?t annoying, you need to make it unique somehow. There are numerous ways to do that, and in this example we?ll be using two. The first way is to use an unusual scale. You see, our ears are so used to hearing melodies in the major and minor scales that they often fade into the background. By using a scale that?s more rare, your melody will instantly stand out.

In this example, we?re using the Blues scale. So, to get the Blues scale, you start with the natural minor scale. From the root of A, that?s simply all the white notes. Next, you delete the 2nd and 6th notes. This gives you a five-note scale called the minor pentatonic. Now, to turn the minor pentatonic into the Blues scale, you add what?s known as the ?blue note?, which is the ?5. So in the A Blues scale, that?s E?.

And a quick shoutout to Beastie Boys, as this lesson is based on their song ?Sure Shot?, which features that much-loved flute melody from Jeremy Steig.

 

Step 2. Rhythm

Another great way of making your melody unique is to use an unusual rhythm. And one of the easiest ways to do that, is to use triplets. So, change your grid to 1/16 note triplets. Next, write a cool rhythm on your root note. And to create variety, be sure to use three different note values. Also, use a rest somewhere, which allows your melody to breathe. And by the way, our tempo is 98 BPM.

 

 

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Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on YouTube.

Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 

Step 3. Contour

Finally, it?s time to create a melodic contour. So, change the pitches now by moving your notes up and down on the grid. And most importantly, remember to play the ?blue note? somewhere, which is E? in this example. If you don?t play that ?5, your melody won?t actually be in the Blues scale, it?ll just be in the minor pentatonic. And that?s it!

If you need more help writing melodies, download our Songwriting & Producing PDF (link opens in new tab) and follow the seven guidelines in our Melody Checklist.

 

 

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2023-04-09
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How to Write Energetic BASS Lines ? Music Theory from The Chemical Brothers "No Reason"

 

 

How to Write Energetic BASS Lines

 

 Step 1. Rhythmic Energy

 

There?s a super energetic bass line in the new single ?No Reason? by The Chemical Brothers. To write a bass line like this, you need a lot of movement. Not just rhythmic movement, but melodic movement too. So, start by writing an energetic 2-bar rhythm for your bass line. Just use one pitch for now. We used A. You see, if you can get your bass sounding cool on one note, imagine how amazing it?s gonna sound when you bring in the melodic movement!

Here are three guidelines for writing your rhythm. First, use a combination of 1/8 notes and 1/16 notes. This provides speed and variety. Second, use lots of rests. This allows your bass line to breathe. And third, use a few syncopated notes, which are off-beat accents. This makes it groove! And by the way, the tempo is 128 BPM.

 

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Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment. Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE BOOK (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

 Step 2. Melodic Energy

 

Now it?s time to add melody. So, first think about the chord progression you want your bass to outline. We?re in the key of A minor here, which is all the white notes from A to A. And the chord progression we chose to outline is: Gmaj, Fmaj, Am. Next, move some of your notes an octave higher. This hugely increases the energy, because it hugely increases the melodic range.

It?s sounding good already, but the bass is still only playing the root note of each chord. So, next you wanna move some notes off the roots. Over the Gmaj, we?re playing F a couple times. That?s the ?7. This is a funk favourite, so try to use a ?7 somewhere. Over the Fmaj, we?re playing E a couple times, which is the 7.

And by the way, the ?7 (over G) followed by the 7 (over F) creates a motif. A motif is a short musical idea, which is repeated to give music structure and make it more memorable. Then lastly, over the Am, we played C. That?s the ?3. This creates some variation. And, the ?3 is also another funk favourite, so throw one in somewhere if you can!

 

 

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2023-04-02
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How to Write a Lydian MELODY ? Music Theory from Depeche Mode "Ghosts Again"

 

 

How to Write a Lydian MELODY FREE: Download This Tutorial as PDFIncludes multitrack MIDI example

 

Simple music can be great music. Depeche Mode?s lead single ?Ghosts Again? from their new album ?Memento Mori? is proof. It has a well-written and creative vocal melody in the verses, but it?s really simple. So, here?s a method for writing melodies from a band that?s been going for over 40 years!

 

Step 1. Mode

If you?re going to write a simple melody, it helps to choose an interesting mode. They chose Lydian, which is an uplifting but quirky mode. So, we?ll use F Lydian for our example, which is all the white notes from F to F.

Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment. Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our FREE Book (link opens in new tab). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

Step 2: Roots & 3rds

Write a simple four-bar chord progression, then mute your chords and only play the root note of each chord on your bass. That?s the only thing Depeche Mode plays under the vocal melody in their verse.

Right, are you ready for a melody masterclass from Dave Gahan? So, most of his vocal melody consists of only the 1, 3 and 5 of each chord. These are known as harmonic notes, as they form the chord. Over the first two chords, he only sings the 1 and 3 of each chord, and over the third chord he only sings the 1 and 5.

But, his melody sounds extra beautiful for two reasons: First, it?s in Lydian, which makes it unusual. And second, there are no chords playing, so his vocal melody is what creates the harmony and therefore the emotion. The 3rd note of each chord is the most emotional note, as it makes a chord either major or minor. And because there are only root notes in your bass, your melody will create that uplifting sound when it plays a major 3rd, and that sad sound when it plays a minor 3rd.

Also, in a F Lydian melody we wanna use the note B somewhere, as that?s what makes the mode different to the F major scale, which has a B?. If you wanna learn about the modes and how to use them, that?s in our Songwriting & Producing PDF (link opens in new tab).

 

Step 3: Variations

Over the last chord in the progression, Dave sings the 2 and 4. These are non-harmonic notes. In other words, they?re not in the chord. This is what makes them sound like they?re floating, as they?re not anchored into the chord. So use a couple of non-harmonic notes at the end of your melody, to avoid it becoming predictable. Then lastly, in the second cycle of their melody, Dave sings a small variation to keep it fresh, so change a few notes when you loop your melody.

 

 

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2023-03-20
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How to Write Polymeter DRUMS ? Music Theory from Periphery "Atropos"

 

 

How to Write Polymeter DRUMS

 

Step 1. Kick in 7

The new Periphery single ?Atropos? (from the album Periphery V: Djent Is Not a Genre) opens with a classic djent polymeter, which we love! Staying true to Meshuggah?s original polymeter recipe, the kick is in odd time while the snare and cymbals are in 4|4. So, start by programming a one-bar kick rhythm in 7|8. And just cos you?re in 7|8, doesn?t mean you have to only use 1/8 notes, so change your grid to 1/16 notes. By the way, the tempo is 80 BPM.

Once you?re happy with your kick rhythm, copy and paste it over four bars of 4|4. At the end of your 4-bar loop, you?ll notice that you can?t fit a full bar of 7|8. Don?t worry, that?s part of the fun of playing these polymeters. Simply chop off whatever doesn?t fit of your 7|8 rhythm. In fact, that?s how you get those abrupt-sounding loops that are one of the main characteristics of djent polymeters.

Just before we jump into the next step. If there?s an artist you want us to hack, drop us a comment on the YouTube video. Also, are you new to music theory? Or are you experienced, but you want a refresher? Then download our free book (below). It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid theory foundation that you can instantly apply to your songwriting and producing.

 

Step 2. Snare in 4

This is the easy and fun part! Start by playing a crash on every 1/8 note. This keeps the pulse and lays your 4|4 foundation. Then for momentum and to give the djent kids something to shake their heads to, throw in a regular backbeat snare, which is on beat 2 and beat  4. Right, now you?ve got a polymeter! But, there?s more.

Periphery?s drummer Matt Halpern does this really cool thing that most people won?t even notice. Where the kick and snare overlap in bar 2 beat 4, he moves that kick a 1/16 note earlier. This tiny variation makes the repeating 7|8 rhythm less obvious, which melts the two time signatures together a little bit. Small tweak, but it?s super creative!

Next, throw in some accents on a second crash (or china). You can do whatever you want here as your polymeter is already established. We accented the first beat in every bar of 7|8 with a china, as well as beat 3 in every bar of 4|4. This further melts the two time signatures together. And lastly, a little kick and snare variation at the end of the loop will act as a mini-fill to transition back around to the beginning.

 

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2023-03-09
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How to Write a Layered RIFF ? Music Theory from Polyphia "Ego Death"

 

 

How to Write a Layered Guitar RIFF

 

Step 1. Bass

The first thing you notice in the opening riff of ?Ego Death? by Polyphia is that there are two layers. There?s a bass line and a lead melody all in one riff, played by one guitar. By adding bass notes below the melody they?re implying chords and creating harmony. This adds a beautiful depth to the riff. And yes, this technique is not new. In fact, it?s hundreds of years old and is common in classical guitar pieces. But, it?s actually rare to hear it in popular music where the guitar usually plays either chords or melody, not both at the same time. So, you?re gonna start by writing a bass line for your riff. You can make this complex, or you can keep it simple and just play the root note of each implied chord. That?s what Polyphia does here, so we?ll do that too. Also, make your bass line at least 4 bars long. We?re in the key of G minor, but whatever you use, start on the root chord to establish your key.

 

Step 2. Melody

Next, you?re gonna write a 2-bar melody over the top. Once you?re happy with this, then copy and paste it over the rest of your bass line. Some of your melodic notes may not sound as good over different bass notes, but just move those ones. And that actually creates some nice variation too. By repeating the melody over different bass notes you create both familiarity and freshness in your riff. It?s a very clever technique, which Polyphia nails in this intro. And by the way, if you need help writing melodies, simply follow the Melody Checklist in our Songwriting & Producing PDF.

 

Step 3. Spice

Lastly, to spice up your riff, you?re gonna move one bass note outside the scale. This is called a non-diatonic note. Polyphia?s intro is in the natural minor scale, but then at the end of the riff they use the 7 instead of the ?7, which temporarily shifts the riff into harmonic minor. So, we did this too, by moving our ?7 (F) up to the 7 (F?). And if you find this 7 / ?7 stuff confusing, no problem, just download our Free Book. It only takes 30 minutes to read, then you?ll have a solid music theory foundation! Okay, so all you need to do now is check if there?s a ?7 in your melody above the 7 in your bass. If there is, move that ?7 up to 7 as well, otherwise it will clash. We didn?t have a ?7 in our melody here, so we didn?t need to change anything. Finally, if you?re playing this on guitar, you can mute a few notes for that percussive sound.

 

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2023-03-01
Länk till avsnitt

Drum Secrets of Hip-Hop Legends

 

 

Drum Secrets of Hip-Hop Legends

 

DOWNLOAD This Tutorial as PDF

Includes Bonus Hack, MIDI & WAV file examples

 

Could you hear the missing ingredient in our drum beat? (click play above). If not, don?t worry, that?s because the beat is actually pretty good the way it is. The kick pattern is a two-bar rhythm, which gives the drum beat variety. There?s also some off-beat kicks, which add groove. The hi-hat accents change in the second bar, which creates more variety. And the regular backbeat snare provides momentum. It?s a decent drum beat! So, what?s wrong with it then? Well, it?s a bit stiff and lifeless. And what?s the missing ingredient that will transform this decent beat into a great beat? Hip-Hop!

 

INTRO

Wait, what?! Isn?t hip-hop a genre? Yes, of course! But, as with all genres, there are theoretical characteristics that make music recognizable as hip-hop. And those characteristics can be isolated and applied to other genres to spice them up. Considering hip-hop has been the most popular genre for the last few years, if we want people to connect with our music, then there?s a lot we can learn from hip-hop?s secret formula. As you?ve probably heard in the music news, hip-hop is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2023. In its 50 years, hip-hop has influenced almost every other genre. That fact inspired the idea behind our epic new Genre Project. In this ongoing series, we?ll hack different genres to reveal their secret formulas and how you can use those formulas to make better music in whatever genre you work in. So, if there?s a genre you want us to hack, drop us a comment. And just a quick caveat. Genres are also recognizable by non-theoretical characteristics, like instrumentation, and even some non-musical characteristics, like culture. But, we focus exclusively on melody, harmony, and rhythm. Also, every genre?s characteristics have their roots in earlier genres. However, exploring a genre?s heritage is a rabbit hole! A fun one, but still, we?re not going down there. Alright, let?s jump in!

 

KICKS

Hip-hop is all about groove, and one of the easiest ways to instantly add groove is to change your grid to 1/16 note triplets. Okay, well you have to do a little more than just change your grid. But, that?s the game-changer right there. Seriously! All you do now is move your kicks onto that new grid. And by the way, the tempo of our example is 84 BPM. Also, depending on where your kicks were before, some of them might sound weird on the new 1/16 triplet grid, but just delete those weird-sounding kicks. The magic hip-hop kick that probably adds the most groove is on the 1/16 note triplet right before beat 3. So, that?s what we played. And you can hear this magic hip-hop kick everywhere, but a classic example is in Wu-Tang Clan?s 1993 track ?Cash Rules Everything Around Me?.

 

SNARE

Hip-hop usually uses a regular backbeat snare, which is on beat 2 and beat 4. There?s obviously nothing unusual about that. But, where hip-hop gets creative with the snare is by adding a syncopated hit to the drum beat. And syncopation just means that it?s played off the beat, in other words, in between the main beats. This snare is often on the 1/16 triplet grid as well, so we added this syncopated snare on the 1/16 note triplet right before our kick that?s on beat 3+. And you can hear this hip-hop snare everywhere, but a classic example is in Ice-T?s 1986 track ?6 in the Mornin??.

 

HATS

Many other genres use the hi-hats as the pulse; simply a way of keeping time. Not hip-hop, though. Oh no! Great hip-hop producers never waste an opportunity to be creative, so there?s none of those boring metronome-style hi-hat patterns here. Pretty much anything goes when it comes to the hi-hat, as your groove is already established from your kick, and the momentum is coming from the snare, so you?re free to experiment on the hats. That?s exactly what we did here, creating a similar but different rhythm for bar 1 and bar 2. Both are still using the 1/16 triplet grid. And you can hear those hip-hop hats everywhere, but a classic example is in Dr. Dre?s 1999 track ?Forgot About Dre?. A bonus hat hack is to change your grid to 1/32 straight, then add 1/32 note rolls in a few places. We replaced the hats in the beginning of both bars with 1/32 rolls.

 

So, no matter what genre of music you make, whenever your beats are sounding a bit stiff and lifeless, apply these hip-hop hacks and they?ll instantly pump your drums full of energy and groove!

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2023-02-17
Länk till avsnitt

Why You Struggle to Make Music

 

 

 

 

Why You Struggle to Make Music

 

Do you sometimes find yourself staring at a blank screen, with absolutely no ideas? Then we have the solution for preventing that from ever happening again. How can we be so confident that this solution will eliminate writer?s block? Because I?ve been writing music for over 30 years, and I?ve never had writer?s block. Ever!

So, what?s this magic solution? Music theory! I know, I know, it?s not the exciting answer you were anticipating, but it?s the truth. A solid knowledge of music theory (and how to creatively apply it) will end your writer?s block forever. How? Well, music is a form of communication, and do you struggle to communicate using your first language? Of course not!

If you want to express what you feel, you effortlessly explain it in words. And music theory empowers you to have that same effortless communication, but through music. If you want to communicate musically that you?re feeling joyful, you simply use the notes which express that emotion. And obviously the deeper your knowledge of music theory grows, the more nuanced your communication can be.

I?ve actually done a masterclass on how to turn your emotions into music: 5 Steps to Give Writer?s Block the Finger

 

So, you literally only need two things to overcome writer?s block forever: music theory, and feelings!

You bring the feelings, and we?ll bring the music theory! On that note, we invite you to download our free book, which will only take you 30 minutes to read. Yep, music theory really is that simple. If you?ve been confused by music theory in the past, it?s not you. You just had a bad teacher. You see, music consists of only 12 notes, and music theory is simply the relationships of those 12 notes. It?s that easy!

So, if you wanna learn music theory from Ray Harmony, a multi award-winning college lecturer who?s made music with multiplatinum Grammy-winning artists, then download our free book below.

 

Free Book    

Wooohooo!!! You?re a mere 30 minutes away from being even smarter than you already are. Just head on over to your inbox now for your free download.

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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2022-11-18
Länk till avsnitt

Sound Design Is Ruining Your Music

 

 

Sound Design Is Ruining Your Music

 

Have you ever opened your digital audio workstation (DAW) because you?re in the mood to make some music, but then you end up spending hours searching for the right bass sound? Then, feeling frustrated because you?ve wasted hours and didn?t even find the right sound, you close your DAW and open Instagram instead.

If you?ve ever done that, then we have a huge secret to reveal to you: forget about sound design, it?s probably the worst distraction in the music making process!

Now, we?re not saying that you shouldn?t spend hours on designing the perfect sounds. We?re saying that you should not be spending your time trying to design the right bass sound, when you haven?t even written the bass line yet. How could you possibly know what the right sound is for a bass line you haven?t yet written?

Working on sound design before you?ve written the music, is like mastering before you?ve mixed. Yes, mastering is essential but it needs to happen after the mixing. Same with sound design. Yes, it?s essential, but it needs to happen after the writing.

And of course, the sound you choose will usually affect what you write for it. For example, the line you?d write for a bass guitar will be different to the one you?d write for a bass synth. But (and it?s a BIG but), will the line you?d write for a Fender 4-string bass guitar be different to the one you?d write for a Gibson 4-string bass guitar? No! And that?s exactly why you should use presets when writing.

Simply decide if the melody you wanna write is for a bass guitar or a bass synth, then choose a preset that?s kinda close to what you want, and get writing! Then, when you?re happy with your bass line, don?t start sound designing it. Not yet. You?re still in the writing stage, so move on to your drums.

And use the same approach here. Do you want a realistic sounding drum kit or an electronic kit? Choose a preset that?s in the ballpark of what you want, then get writing! Then continue on to the next instrument. And the next. Chords. Melody. Counter melody. Then move on to the next section. Keep going! Stay focused. Don?t start sound designing until you?ve completely finished writing.

You see, when you?re writing music, you?re in the sublime state known as Flow. This is where time disappears. You and your music are one. In fact, there is no you anymore, just oneness. The flow state is the ultimate high, but it can be lost in a split second. And one of the easiest ways to lose it is to switch tasks. Also, you?re exponentially more creative when you?re in the flow state. So, you can massively improve your creativity and therefore your music, by simply focusing on the writing process exclusively, and avoiding distractions like sound design.

However, it?s vital that you actually know the method for writing a song from start to finish. Especially when it comes to how you write a new section for an existing section, how you transition between sections, and how you structure and arrange your song. So, if you wanna learn Ray?s secret method, which he has used to make music with multiplatinum Grammy-winning artists, then enroll in our Video Course.

 

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2022-11-04
Länk till avsnitt

Stop Looping Melodies This Way

 

 

Stop Looping Melodies This Way

 

DOWNLOAD This Tutorial as PDF (includes MIDI file)

 

When you loop a melody, do you just copy and paste it? If so, that way of looping could be ruining your melodies!

But the good news is that in this lesson you?ll learn a creative way of looping, which will actually make your melodies better than they were before you looped them. Seriously, this looping hack can even make boring melodies kinda interesting.

But first, what?s wrong with looping a melody by copying and pasting it? Well, when you do that, the rigid repetition of the melody shortens its lifespan. In other words, even if your melody is really good, it will get stale and boring after a few loops. Remember: repetition kills a melody?s longevity, but variation extends it.

 

THEORY

Our brains are designed to pay attention to things in the environment that change, and filter out those things that stay the same. So, if your melody has been copied and pasted, your listeners will pay attention for the first couple of loops, but then their brains will shift attention away from your music to something in their environment that?s changing (like their Instagram feed).

This process will happen automatically and unconsciously in your listener?s mind, well, unless they?re an advanced meditator. So, the best way to hold your listener?s attention is to keep your music changing. And as our attention is usually on the lead melody, by continually varying that, your listeners will be utterly captivated.

If you keep varying your melody, though, won?t you end up with a long string of notes that?s impossible for your listeners to remember, resulting in them not wanting to listen to your song again? Well, yes. That?s why you need this looping hack. And for the record, there are ways to vary a melody just enough so that when it repeats, it?s familiar and fresh.

 

HACK

This looping hack bypasses that entire problem, though. It?s a way to create variation in your melody without actually changing any of its notes. I know, it sounds impossible, right? But, it?s not only possible, it?s also easy!

Are you ready? Here?s the hack: each time you copy and paste your melody, you rhythmically displace it.

What exactly does that mean? Well, it?s easiest to show you with an example, so let?s jump into the practical part of this lesson now.

 

MUSIC

This looping hack is used brilliantly by Björk in her new song ?fossora?, so this example is our version that we made using the music theory from that song.

Alright, so open your DAW and set the tempo to 100 BPM. Then create a track for your melody, make a six-bar section, and set the grid to 1/8 notes. This example is in the key of G minor, and if you find keys, scales and chords a bit confusing, then download our free book: 12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords. The link is below.

So, start by making a two-bar melody using 1/8 notes. And as this lesson is focused on looping, we?re not gonna cover how to write a good melody here, but if you need help with that, then simply use the Melody Checklist in our Songwriting & Producing PDF. The PDF also contains our other essential music making hacks. Over 10,000 producers around the world use this guide as their studio handbook. So if you?re struggling with your music, this PDF is for you!

Right, now it?s time for the juicy part. So, copy and paste your melody into bars three and four. Then, instead of leaving your melody as it is, you?re going to rhythmically displace it by an 1/8 note or a 1/4 note. In other words, move your looped melody a little earlier or later. Björk moves the second repetition of her melody an 1/8 note later, so we did that too.

Next, copy and paste your original melody into bars five and six. Then displace that third repetition as well. Björk actually did something even cooler here: she didn?t displace the first half of her melody, only the second half. She did this by moving it a 1/4 note later. We did the same thing, so you can hear how cool it is!

Then, to make her music even more creative, when Björk repeats this section later in the song, she actually changes the displacements again. This totally captivates your brain, because even though you?re expecting the displacements in the repetition of that section, they?re not where you expect them to be. Utterly brilliant!

 

BONUS

And here?s a bonus hack from Björk. This section in her song is only six bars, not the usual eight bars. So it actually sounds like it ends too early, which grabs your attention yet again. If you want your music to sound less weird than Björk, which I?m guessing you do, then use eight bars for this section. That will create familiarity.

And just a warning. There?s one caveat to rhythmically displacing your melody. If you?ve already written a chord progression and/or bass line below, then you?ll need to make sure that your displaced melody still works over that underlying harmony.

 

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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2022-10-20
Länk till avsnitt

Wrong Notes for Better Chord Progressions

 

 

Wrong Notes for Better Chord Progressions

 

DOWNLOAD This Tutorial as PDF (includes MIDI file)

 

Can you hear the weakness in this chord progression?

It?s a common weakness that you hear in most songs. Did you spot it? If not, here?s the answer: all the chords are in the key! Wait, what?! Isn?t that a good thing? Well, not always?

You see, there are only seven chords in a key. That doesn?t give you much choice if you?re trying to make creative music. And to make things worse, one of those seven is the diminished chord, which is super dissonant, so most producers don?t use it.

You?ve probably done the maths already, and yes, you?re correct. Most of the music you hear these days is made using only six chords. Six chords! How many songs can you write with the same six chords before they start sounding the same?

And I?m afraid it gets even worse than that. Of those six chords, four of them work effortlessly together. In other words, a producer doesn?t need to know any theory to get these four chords sounding good. Sadly though, most modern songs don?t even have progressions with four chords, a lot of them use only three chords, or sometimes even just two!

And yes, of course, simple music can be good. But honestly, that was much easier to achieve decades ago when there weren?t tens of thousands of songs being released every day! These days, if you want to write a simple song with only three or four chords, all of which are in the key, then you?re almost certainly going to end up with something that sounds like someone else?s song.

 

THEORY

So, presuming you want to make music that isn?t gonna get you sued for copyright infringement, how on earth do you do that? Easy, you use wrong notes!

Well, technically it?s not a wrong note if you actually intended to play it. So that?s what we?re going to do: intentionally play a note that is not in the key. And by the way, notes that are not in the key are called non-diatonic (or chromatic) notes.

Once you dip your toe into the thrilling world of notes that are outside of the scale, you open a door of endless possibilities, and you can say goodbye to boring music!

 

EXAMPLE

Alright, so now that you know the hack for making better chord progressions, you?re gonna learn how to actually apply it. So, open your DAW and set the tempo to 95 BPM. Then create a track for your chords and make a two-bar loop. Set the grid to 1/16 notes (or just for fun, you can set it to a 1/16 swing, like we?ve used).

The first thing you want to do is write a chord progression using three or four chords that are all in your scale. We used A minor in our example, so that?s all the white notes from A to A. And our chord progression is: Am ? Cmaj ? Gmaj ? Em ? Cmaj ? Asus4. That sounds like a lot of chords, but it?s only really four, as we just repeated the C and A chords. That?s actually another cool hack you can use to make your chord progressions more interesting in this first step.

After you?ve written your chord progression, use inversions to make it flow better, and use an interesting harmonic rhythm to make it more creative. And if you need help with inversions and harmonic rhythm, then simply use the chord progression hacks in our Songwriting & Producing Course. When you enrol, you?ll get all our essential hacks for melodies, chords, bass and drums in 12 step-by-step videos.

So, now you?ve got a chord progression that sounds good, even though it still sounds predictable because all the chords are in the key.

This is the stage when most producers would click ?Save? and reach for their phone to catch up on Instagram, but not you! You?re a true artist. You want to challenge yourself and push your creativity to the next level. That?s why you?re here.

So, here?s the hack that?ll make your chord progressions stand out from the crowd: change one chord in your progression from major to minor, or vice versa.

Don?t change your root chord, though, as then you?re actually changing the key. And if you need help with knowing the difference between major and minor chords, and how to change one into the other, then that?s all in our free book (link below).

This ?wrong note? hack is so ridiculously simple, but as you?ll hear, it totally transforms the chord progression! And as a bonus, when you have a standout chord progression, it will inspire you to write a standout melody over the top, and a standout bass line below.

And just a quick warning, but it?s actually really important. Remember that some of your chords are inverted, so their notes are in a different order. This means you need to be extra careful that you move the correct note when changing chords from major to minor, or vice versa.

 

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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2022-09-29
Länk till avsnitt

Gorillaz HACK for Better Bass Lines

 

 

How to Write a Bass Line like Gorillaz "New Gold"

 

In the new Gorillaz single ?New Gold?, there?s a music theory secret that makes their song feel totally different to the other new releases out this week. That?s what you?ll learn in this lesson, as well as how to use it to write a Gorillaz-style bass line. But first... Tea!

 

INTRO

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music. If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

SECRET

Alright, so what?s the music theory secret behind this song? Well, it?s in 6|4. The time signature of 6|4 contains six 1/4 notes in a bar, instead of the usual four 1/4 notes in a bar that you get in 4|4.

The brilliance of 6|4 is that it doesn?t sound weird, because six is still an even number. Also, you can still nod along to the 1/4 notes, just like you do in 4|4. But, every bar is longer than you?re expecting. And this extended bar makes the music feel more laid back, as it takes longer to loop back around to beat 1.

So, you can think of 6|4 as the scenic route, whereas 4|4 is the direct route.

To balance out this relaxed vibe, though, Gorillaz use a dancey four-on-the-floor drum beat. Well, it?s actually a six-on-the-floor drum beat, because there are six 1/4 notes in a bar, and each one of those 1/4 notes has a kick drum on it.

So that?s their secret: it?s that contrasting combination of the dancey drum beat and the laid-back time signature of 6|4, which creates that unique vibe in this song.

 

BASS

Alright, so now that you know their music theory secret, you?re gonna learn how to use it to make a Gorillaz-style bass line. So, set your time signature to 6|4 and your tempo to 108 BPM, then create a one bar loop on your bass track. Gorillaz use the F? natural minor scale in this song, so we?ll use it too: F?, G?, A, B, C?, D, E.

The music theory in this song is all about contrast, so that theme continues in their bass line, where they use a contrasting combination of legato and staccato notes. And if those terms are new to you: legato notes are connected to each other, and staccato notes are disconnected from each other.

So their bass line is divided into two sections, the first section is legato and the second section is staccato. This results in the first section sounding smooth and chill, and the second section sounding more energetic and funky.

For the legato section, use longer notes like 1/8 notes and dotted 1/8 notes. For the staccato section use 1/16 notes with rests in between. Also, their bass has a ton of syncopation (which is an off-beat accent), so be sure to use a bunch of that too.

 

NEXT

If there?s an artist you?d like us to hack in a future lesson, drop us a comment on our latest YouTube video. Also, if you wanna learn our essential hacks for making great melodies, chord progressions, bass lines, drum beats (and more), then watch the 12 step-by-step videos in our Songwriting & Producing course. If you?re feeling frustrated because your music isn?t as good as you want it to be, then this course is for you!

 

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-09-07
Länk till avsnitt

Red Hot Chili Peppers HACK for Better Bass Lines

 

 

How to Write a Bass Line like Red Hot Chili Peppers "Tippa My Tongue"

 

In the new Red Hot Chili Peppers single ?Tippa My Tongue?, there?s a ridiculously funky variation of the blues scale, which we?re calling the RHCP scale. And that?s what you?re about to learn, as well as how to write a bass line or guitar riff using it. But first... Tea!

 

INTRO

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music. If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

SCALE

Okay so first things first, what?s the blues scale? Well, the blues scale is actually a variation of the minor pentatonic scale. Okay, so what?s the minor pentatonic scale? Well, it?s the natural minor scale without its 2nd and 6th notes. So from the root of C, the minor pentatonic scale is: C, E?, F, G, B?. And its spelling is: 1, ?3, 4, 5, ?7. Now, to turn the minor pentatonic scale into the blues scale, all you have to do is add the ?5, which in this example is G?.

Alright, this is where it gets juicy! So the Chili Peppers use the blues scale in the chorus of this song, but to make it extra funky, they add two non-diatonic notes (i.e. notes that are not in the scale). The two extra notes they play are the major 3rd and the major 7th. And to be clear, they?re using these notes to spice up the blues scale, they?re not technically part of the scale. But, when you do make them part of it, you end up with a super funky 8-note scale, so why not add them in?! 

So from the root of C, our RHCP scale is:  C, E?, E, F, G?, G, B?, B 

And the spelling of the RHCP scale is:  1, ?3, 3, 4, ?5, 5, ?7, 7 

And just a quick FYI for the more advanced producers. As you know, theoretically a scale can?t have both the minor 3rd and major 3rd, so we have to spell the 3 (E) with its enharmonic equivalent, which is the ?4 (F?). Same note, different name. By the way, if that was confusing, then read our free book, as it?s all explained in there!

 

BASS

Okay, now that we?ve got the scale down, let?s use it to write a bass line! So, set your tempo to 88 BPM, then create two bars of 4|4. The first thing you need to do is play the root note (C) on beat 1 in both bars. This was James Brown?s funk rule. His band could do whatever they wanted for the rest of the bar, but they all had to lock in by playing beat 1 together. And the most solid note to play on beat 1 is obviously the root, so that?s your starting point.

What you do for the rest of the bass line is up to you, but here?s a few guidelines. Be sure to use all 8 notes of the scale in your bass line, otherwise you won?t get the full flavour. Also, use lots of rests. Funky music actually has a lot of space in it. 

And related to that, you definitely wanna use a lot of syncopation, which is when you accent an off-beat. It ain?t funky without syncopation, so go crazy with that, as the root note on beat 1 in every bar will lock it all together. Lastly, use a variety of different note values, like 1/16 notes, 1/8 notes, and dotted 1/8 notes.

So to conclude, what we?re calling the RHCP scale is simply the blues scale plus the major 3rd and the major 7th.

 

NEXT

If there?s a song that you want us to hack in a future lesson, drop us a comment on our YouTube channel. Also, if you wanna learn our essential hacks for making great melodies, chord progressions, bass lines, drum beats (and more), then watch the 12 step-by-step videos in our Songwriting & Producing course. If you?re feeling frustrated because your music isn?t as good as you want it to be, then this is for you!

 

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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Podcast

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2022-09-01
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: See Sound, Hear Images

 

 

Steven Wilson: See Sound, Hear Images

 

"You imagine something as a guitar part, but then you transpose it to the bass, and it just seems somehow more exotic because of that." ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree songwriter-producer)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

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Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-08-18
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: Change Your Workflow

 

 

Steven Wilson: Change Your Workflow

 

"I?m not thinking like a bass player would. It gives you all of these possibilities as a bass player to play melodies, riffs, chords." ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree songwriter-producer)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

Free Book    

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer. 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Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-08-11
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: Biggest Metal Guitar Mistake

 

 

Steven Wilson: Biggest Metal Guitar Mistake

 

"It's all played on telecaster with an almost clean tone, and to me, it sounds heavier than if I'd played it with a whole bunch of overdrive." ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

Free Book    

Wooohooo!!! You?re a mere 30 minutes away from being even smarter than you already are. Just head on over to your inbox now for your free download.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

 

?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer. 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Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-08-04
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: How to Be Creative

 

 

Steven Wilson: How to Be Creative

 

"An amateur is someone who does something because they love to do it. So, professionalism is sometimes not a good thing." ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

Free Book    

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer. DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK /* Layout */ .ck_form { /* divider image */ background: #EAE9EA url(data:image/gif;base64,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) repeat-y center top; font-family: 'Montserrat'; line-height: 1.5em; overflow: hidden; color: #000000; font-size: 16px; border-top: none; border-top-color: #666666; border-bottom: none; border-bottom-color: #3d3d3d; -webkit-box-shadow: none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow: none; clear: both; margin: 0px 0px; } .ck_form, .ck_form * { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-sizing: border-box; } #ck_subscribe_form { clear: both; } /* Element Queries ? uses JS */ .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { width: 50%; float: left; padding: 5%; } .ck_form.ck_horizontal { } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: none; } .ck_form.ck_vertical { background: #fff; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content, .ck_vertical .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; overflow: hidden; } /* Trigger the vertical layout with media queries as well */ @media all and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form { background: #fff; } .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; } } /* Content */ .ck_form_content h3 { margin: 0px 0px 0px; font-size: 0px; padding: 0px; } .ck_form_content p { font-size: 14px; } .ck_image { float: left; margin-right: 5px; } /* Form fields */ .ck_errorArea { display: none; } #ck_success_msg { padding: 10px 10px 0px; border: solid 1px #ddd; background: #eee; } .ck_label { font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; } .ck_form input[type="text"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="email"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="text"]:focus, .ck_form input[type="email"]:focus { outline: none; border-color: #aaa; } .ck_checkbox { padding: 10px 0px 10px 20px; display: block; clear: both; } .ck_checkbox input.optIn { margin-left: -20px; margin-top: 0; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt { margin-left: 4px; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt p { display: inline; } .ck_form .ck_subscribe_button { width: 100%; color: #fff; margin: 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px 8px; font-size: 18px; background: #c83232; -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ cursor: pointer; border: none; text-shadow: none; } .ck_form .ck_guarantee { color: #626262; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; padding: 5px 0px; display: block; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by { display: block; color: #aaa; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by:hover { display: block; color: #444; } .ck_converted_content { display: none; padding: 5%; background: #fff; } /* v6 */ .ck_form_v6 #ck_success_msg { padding: 0px 10px; } @media all and (max-width: 403px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 30px; } } @media all and (min-width: 404px) and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 57px; } }

 

 

Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-07-28
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: Song Structure SECRET

 

 

Steven Wilson: Song Structure SECRET

 

"I love that idea of the callback to the intro. Making sense of the fact there is this intro, by using it as the basis not for the main song (not for the verse, not for the chorus), but going back to the intro in the bridge. You don't hear a lot of songs that do that!" ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

Free Book    

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?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer. DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK /* Layout */ .ck_form { /* divider image */ background: #EAE9EA url(data:image/gif;base64,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) repeat-y center top; font-family: 'Montserrat'; line-height: 1.5em; overflow: hidden; color: #000000; font-size: 16px; border-top: none; border-top-color: #666666; border-bottom: none; border-bottom-color: #3d3d3d; -webkit-box-shadow: none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow: none; clear: both; margin: 0px 0px; } .ck_form, .ck_form * { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-sizing: border-box; } #ck_subscribe_form { clear: both; } /* Element Queries ? uses JS */ .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { width: 50%; float: left; padding: 5%; } .ck_form.ck_horizontal { } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: none; } .ck_form.ck_vertical { background: #fff; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content, .ck_vertical .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; overflow: hidden; } /* Trigger the vertical layout with media queries as well */ @media all and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form { background: #fff; } .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; } } /* Content */ .ck_form_content h3 { margin: 0px 0px 0px; font-size: 0px; padding: 0px; } .ck_form_content p { font-size: 14px; } .ck_image { float: left; margin-right: 5px; } /* Form fields */ .ck_errorArea { display: none; } #ck_success_msg { padding: 10px 10px 0px; border: solid 1px #ddd; background: #eee; } .ck_label { font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; } .ck_form input[type="text"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="email"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="text"]:focus, .ck_form input[type="email"]:focus { outline: none; border-color: #aaa; } .ck_checkbox { padding: 10px 0px 10px 20px; display: block; clear: both; } .ck_checkbox input.optIn { margin-left: -20px; margin-top: 0; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt { margin-left: 4px; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt p { display: inline; } .ck_form .ck_subscribe_button { width: 100%; color: #fff; margin: 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px 8px; font-size: 18px; background: #c83232; -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ cursor: pointer; border: none; text-shadow: none; } .ck_form .ck_guarantee { color: #626262; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; padding: 5px 0px; display: block; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by { display: block; color: #aaa; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by:hover { display: block; color: #444; } .ck_converted_content { display: none; padding: 5%; background: #fff; } /* v6 */ .ck_form_v6 #ck_success_msg { padding: 0px 10px; } @media all and (max-width: 403px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 30px; } } @media all and (min-width: 404px) and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 57px; } }

 

 

Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-07-21
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: Common Songwriting Mistake

 

 

Steven Wilson: Common Songwriting Mistake

 

?Nowadays, with so much music being written on the computer, we?ve lost that natural push and pull that an ensemble and a band will have if they?re playing outside of a tempo map. A lot of modern music tends to get stuck in that single tempo across the duration of a piece of music.? ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree)

 

WELCOME

Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

HACK

Steven Wilson?s tempo hack:

write song with tempo track record without tempo track analyze natural push & pull create "natural" tempo map re-record with "natural" map

 

MORE

Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

Free Book    

Wooohooo!!! You?re a mere 30 minutes away from being even smarter than you already are. Just head on over to your inbox now for your free download.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.

 

?The most brilliant, fast, easy & fun music theory book I?ve ever seen!? DEREK SIVERS, CD Baby founder

We use this field to detect spam bots. If you fill this in, you will be marked as a spammer. DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK /* Layout */ .ck_form { /* divider image */ background: #EAE9EA url(data:image/gif;base64,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) repeat-y center top; font-family: 'Montserrat'; line-height: 1.5em; overflow: hidden; color: #000000; font-size: 16px; border-top: none; border-top-color: #666666; border-bottom: none; border-bottom-color: #3d3d3d; -webkit-box-shadow: none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow: none; clear: both; margin: 0px 0px; } .ck_form, .ck_form * { -webkit-box-sizing: border-box; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; box-sizing: border-box; } #ck_subscribe_form { clear: both; } /* Element Queries ? uses JS */ .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { width: 50%; float: left; padding: 5%; } .ck_form.ck_horizontal { } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: none; } .ck_form.ck_vertical { background: #fff; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content, .ck_vertical .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_vertical .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; overflow: hidden; } /* Trigger the vertical layout with media queries as well */ @media all and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form { background: #fff; } .ck_form_content, .ck_form_fields { padding: 10%; width: 100%; float: none; } .ck_form_content { border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa; } } /* Content */ .ck_form_content h3 { margin: 0px 0px 0px; font-size: 0px; padding: 0px; } .ck_form_content p { font-size: 14px; } .ck_image { float: left; margin-right: 5px; } /* Form fields */ .ck_errorArea { display: none; } #ck_success_msg { padding: 10px 10px 0px; border: solid 1px #ddd; background: #eee; } .ck_label { font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; } .ck_form input[type="text"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 20px; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="email"] { font-size: 16px; text-align: center; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 15px; padding: 8px 8px; width: 100%; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; /* stroke */ -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ background-color: #fff; /* layer fill content */ height: auto; } .ck_form input[type="text"]:focus, .ck_form input[type="email"]:focus { outline: none; border-color: #aaa; } .ck_checkbox { padding: 10px 0px 10px 20px; display: block; clear: both; } .ck_checkbox input.optIn { margin-left: -20px; margin-top: 0; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt { margin-left: 4px; } .ck_form .ck_opt_in_prompt p { display: inline; } .ck_form .ck_subscribe_button { width: 100%; color: #fff; margin: 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px 8px; font-size: 18px; background: #c83232; -moz-border-radius: 4px; -webkit-border-radius: 4px; border-radius: 30px; /* border radius */ cursor: pointer; border: none; text-shadow: none; } .ck_form .ck_guarantee { color: #626262; font-size: 12px; text-align: center; padding: 5px 0px; display: block; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by { display: block; color: #aaa; } .ck_form .ck_powered_by:hover { display: block; color: #444; } .ck_converted_content { display: none; padding: 5%; background: #fff; } /* v6 */ .ck_form_v6 #ck_success_msg { padding: 0px 10px; } @media all and (max-width: 403px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 30px; } } @media all and (min-width: 404px) and (max-width: 499px) { .ck_form_v6.ck_modal .ck_close_link { top: 57px; } }

 

 

Podcast

Listen below, or on any podcast app.

2022-07-14
Länk till avsnitt

Steven Wilson: The Songwriting Process

 

 

Steven Wilson: The Songwriting Process

 

"For me, writing music is like standing in front of a brick wall. You go to that brick wall, and you start to hit your head against the wall. And after about an hour, you stand back from the wall and you see if you've made any dent at all in the wall. And sometimes you haven't, and it's very frustrating!" ?Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree)

 

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Hello revolutionary music makers, we are Kate and Ray Harmony (AKA Revolution Harmony), and welcome to Hack Music Theory, the fast, easy and fun way to make music! If you?re new to theory, or if you just want a refresher, then read our free book "12 Music Theory Hacks to Learn Scales & Chords". It?ll give you a super solid music theory foundation in just 30 minutes. The free download is below. Enjoy!

 

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Subscribe for upcoming Steven Wilson videos on specific Porcupine Tree songwriting techniques. Also, the new Porcupine Tree album CLOSURE / CONTINUATION is out now, so be sure to check that out, cos it's awesome! Until next time, thanks for being here in the Hack Music Theory community, you are truly valued, and we're excited to hang out with you again soon.

 

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2022-07-07
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