So What Makes You Start A Song?

General Discussion
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my considerations (one way i try, have not yet reached) …

with the basic idea of an motif you can begin to create from that point … first write the max highlight of the motiv down in renoise (use at this point a simple synth sound/piano to get an insight into how it can listen to later), then you have it, programm the synth to fit the motiv best AND stay awy from changing the motiv to fit a preset!
After having the main, you can create all the other elements around this part and in link to it.
It is good to programm/search the sounds little by little to take place in the spectrum without beating each other. So you must not heavy eq if you take advantage how you set from the first element in the whole spectrum.
Ask youself: What is the direkt way from your basic idea to the result? Fit it with more and more tracks … or can you reach it with less but, catchy living parts?
Decrease complexity to the needed minimum ^_^

17

Something I’ve been playing around with is the idea of mind-mapping tunes.

Mind-mapping is a brainstorming technique that was in vogue a while back, but it’s seeing a resurgence in software development circles due the availability of easy-to-use, free tools that facilitate their creation.

Mindmaps make it extremely easy to get started via free association. Just type as fast as you can, making dependencies however you want, connecting whatever you want, deleting whatever you want.

Here’s how it looks when you start…

… and here’s one that I’ll use to make a tune:

2010-08-17_1955.png877×458

I made it while I was sitting on a couch at a car dealership, waiting for an oil change. It took maybe ten minutes and now whenever I get around to it I have a decent place to start from.

P.S. anybody who wants to steal this idea, please do, I think it sounds like it would be a kickass track. =)

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2010-08-17_1955.png877×458

WOW, THAT IS COOL.

Better than trying to store it all in your brain.

heh.

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This is great and a linux version is also avaible … thx for the tip … ^_^

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I believe it is better to store ideas in your brain, or else they won’t develop over time and you will keep your ideas at what you’ve written down.

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There might be something to that, too.

This way of working, for me, has been more about fleshing out the ideas in the initial stage and letting myself type really fast and randomly take ideas down than it has been about being a memory aid.

One thing that is beneficial about having a list of things-to-do on a track, though: at a certain point while I’m working, my mind gets too tired to be creative. At that point, I could just stop for the night, but if there are some tasks in the mindmap that I know I need to do, which don’t need a lot of inspiration (building a sample-based instrument or something) I can still work on that stuff and mark it off the list…

23

Mainly I start making a song on pure impulses… when an idea suddenly comes up in my head or when listening to music.

I can do nothing at all easily during 3 weeks or so, and from one moment to another I have to drag myself away from my computer.

My workflow is pretty chaotic though, usually I am working on 3 or 4 tracks at the same time!

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Well I wouldn’t say I’m writing at all, much less great tracks… but those of mine I do like a bit, they just happen. I start out with something, anything, and then I add stuff. Then I remove stuff. Then I add stuff. Then I don’t listen to it for 3 months and realize it’s totally lacking bass and crank that up, etc. It’s not that productive in terms of songs per week, but it’s MUCH more satisfying (to me) than trying to make something I have in my head, and failing. My main tunes are sung under the shower and will forever stay there haha. Seriously, my “music” is just an excuse to have speech samples for intro and outro (and of course it’s something to rap over). Nothing more to it. I know that’s no help but it’s the truth ^^

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hahaha, EXACTLY! :)

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I guess I can try that. Im still having troubles stated back when I made this topic :P

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That’s just one example that share the idea of parts and wholes.

If you purchase an item that requires assembly, there’s usually a step by step guide.

If you visit a country or city you’ve never been before, you either free-roam it or find a map to guide your trip

or in this case, your musical journey, your musical assembly.

Maybe instead of making tracks as whole pieces, you can do some XRNS exercises in some of the musical ideas that interests you.

What are the names and categories of musical ideas that interest you ?

After doing exercises in your chosen categories, ex: a synthesis.xrns exercise, rhythm.xrns, recording.xrns, etc.,

maybe you can start piecing each category together to build your city.

What does your city look like, what does it sound like, does it look and sound like a party ?, world war 2 ?, or maybe sex on the beach ?

The thing about maps is that, for the most part it stays the same but directions for each journey is most of the time different.

Elevator music may take the same route like someone who takes the same boring route to work everyday.

Rock and Roll may take an adventurous route, what route does electronic music take ?

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For me personally, I always start with a break and one or two complimentary melodic samples that slot in nicely together and that kinda gives me the main hook. From there I try to jam out guitar or synth ideas (i.e. notes that I have actually composed to flow with samples) and then make this a seperate section without the main melodic hook. After my own ideas are down in this section I often start to hear other samples going with it that may not have occurred to me from the original break / sample main hook, and then the process just repeats itself until I have a whole pile of parts that I can then start chopping and arranging.

It’s like a daisy chain effect: samples > composed parts(inspired by samples) > more samples (inspired by composed parts) > composed parts 2 (inspired by more samples) > even more samples (inspired by composed parts 2) > etc…

I am not a big fan of samples downloaded off the interwebs and I come from a kind of hip-hop /crate-digging background so I would recommend spending a few hours raiding yours or your parents / friends / girlfriends CD or record collection on a regular basis and try going for stuff you wouldn’t normally touch with a cattle prod!

Remember, the Amen break did not miraculously appear out of thin air when some guy decided to invent Jungle - the sample came first and it was lifted off a hither to little-known 60s soul record!

Other people’s music is a constant source of inspiration whether listening to it gives me my own instrumental ideas or I’m just flat-out ‘borrowing’ chunks of it in my own tracks.

Edit: You might want to revisit this thread / vid as a working example of the above approach:

29

noodling on either my guitar, bass or my axis usually makes me sit down in front of renoise.

wish i could just sit down and noodle by programming alone but that has never worked :<

would be awesome if i could do that cuz it looks cool y’know lol! :>>

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If the writing process is stressing you out, then you could just set aside some time for purely messing about, with synths or samples or whatever. Don’t set out to write a track, be prepared to “waste” the time just learning the tools.

Ironically most of my best tracks have started like this ^_^

Also I would advise any creative person to keep a notebook for jotting down ideas on the go. You don’t even have to refer back to it later - often just writing an idea down helps it crystallise.

31

Usually when my boredom wins my laziness, i start making a song.

32

He’s a couple ideas that might help:

  1. Open up a song you like in iTunes, load up a selection of synths on Renoise and then jam out to the song. Afterwards see what you’ve got~ (try the same thing with drums)

  2. Plan stuff in the shape of EPs or mini albums, decide on the style and then think about the mix of songs that will go on it. Now you’ve got a half dozen songs to begin, which sounds more daunting, but- when you’re stumped on ideas for one, start another on the album. I dunno, for me this really helps. Working on a collection of songs rather than just one, or rather than a couple of non-related tracks, means your ideas won’t stagnate as quickly and often the creation of part of one track will help you mentally map-out what needs to go in the others.

  3. Buy a Computer Music type magazine, have a look through the tutorials and try them out~ if it’s not directly for Renoise or a VST you own, then that just adds another level of challenge haha~

  4. Make a new instrument; try and recreate one from a song you like, or just playing around with your VSTi’s. I find a new instrument often brings in a flood of ideas

  5. Just rock-out on your keyboard~ lay down a simple beat. Play 4 (or more) basic chords, now build upon this with layer after layer of harmonies and riffs~ once it’s cooled down, take a look at what you like and delete the rest.

I find making electronic music is like throwing clay at a wall, just wait till something sticks and then you’ve got stuff to work with! (worst analogy ever, but w.e :P)

33

Take a break. Music… well… just sorta happens, and if it isn’t happening, take a break.

Beats^KICK+SNARE+HAT + HARMONICS%CHORDS = SONG

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You know what, that’s one of the few advices I’ve been given that actually worked for me. It was put to me slightly different; Be inspired. So when I’m not, I try not to create any music as I think it makes me pick up bad habits, or at least makes me just create the same thing over and over…

Otherwise I tend to just jam around until I find something I like and build on that. Doesn’t matter what it is, a lead hook, chord progression, bass line, beat, whatever. As someone mentioned, playing around with sounds work well here. Many people say start with the drum + bass so that might work for you. Get a fun beat going, then jam on top of that and you’re off! :D

On top of that, listen to new, good and well produced music.

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