Candiria Posted February 5, 2003 Share Posted February 5, 2003 hey im a beginner guitarist and i just need some tips on creating melodies. like when i have a melody in my head or i'll hum a melody i cant convert it on the guitar very well at all. so i was just wondering what techniques do you guys use to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 5, 2003 Author Share Posted February 5, 2003 and also with chords Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLsound Posted February 5, 2003 Share Posted February 5, 2003 Think of it as tuning the guitar. Either match your voice to a note at a time, or match one note at a time to your voice. Although, for me it is much easier to match my voice with the guitar. Do you know about scales yet? Let us know about your knowledge. Jim http://www.artistlaunch.com/artist4.asp?artistid=3633 http://www.myspace.com/jlockmusic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 5, 2003 Author Share Posted February 5, 2003 yeah i know scales Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 5, 2003 Author Share Posted February 5, 2003 thanks for the tip but what about chords? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLsound Posted February 5, 2003 Share Posted February 5, 2003 Start matching your voice to eg. the minor pentatonic scale. If you play an A chord, then hum each note of the A minor pentatonic scale. That should help you get the feel of how your voice will sound while playing an A chord. See if you can fit your specific melody to a scale. If you can determine the root, then play that root chord. Start out with a Major chord, then experiment with minor, 7th. etc. The most important thing is to develop your ear. Of course it will help to learn theory. Hope that helps. It's not easy, but it is rewarding. Jim http://www.artistlaunch.com/artist4.asp?artistid=3633 http://www.myspace.com/jlockmusic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george costanza Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 It always takes a while for anyone to devlop these skills...it can be a long trip. As already suggested, the best way to start is to go a note at a time...but this can be tedious &, actually, confusing. After a while you may begin to lose the melody & get lost with everything beginning to sound the same. I suggest that, using whatever recording device (even a small cassette tape) you have, you record yourself singing the melody & then try to learn it from that. There are really no tricks or shortcuts, you just have to develop your ear & familiarity with an instrument for finding notes or chords. One thing does make this a bit trickier on the guitar: most notes can be located in several places; if you're still learning where notes are, it's more difficult to find the pitches. Sometimes it may help to try this on a keyboard, where all the notes are laid out linearly. Be patient but persistent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 6, 2003 Author Share Posted February 6, 2003 hey thanks for the keyboard tip george. and jl sound i didnt really fully understand what you meant... did you mean make the melody out of a certain scale and when thats finished then maybe change the scale but keep the same intervals of notes? like i could make the melody out a c major and if it doesnt sound exactly like that then i could change the scale or maybe change one or two of the notes? now both of you said it will take a long time to develop my ear...what can i do to speed up the process? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 6, 2003 Author Share Posted February 6, 2003 like exercises Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Compact Diss Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 sit ups, jumping jacks, and get one of those Tai Bo tapes--that should help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitefang Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 Georges tip about recording it is a good idea. Do that, just to keep it alive. Then learn a bunch of simple tunes. They don't have to be tricky, just some easy folky-type songs. Over and over. Soon, without the trouble of over intellectually analyzing what you're doing, you'll catch the knack of what's behind it. Sorta like riding a two-wheeler. You eventually caught on, didn't you? And it didn't take a physicist or doctor to explain all the little nuances that make up your ability to develope the balance for it, did it? Didn't think so. Otherwise, it would have taken you several years to lose the training wheels. Whitefang I started out with NOTHING...and I still have most of it left! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tedster Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 Originally posted by Candiria: thanks for the tip but what about chords?What I do is play a snippet from the melody on the high E (first) string...and where I hear a chord change...I'll try and sing down the chord arpeggio on first the B string..."HUMMMM"...(add note on B string) "Hummm..no, that's not righthummmmmm" (try another note until) BINGO!!...then go on to the G string until I get a matching triad. Then I've got the chord. "Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Borland Posted February 6, 2003 Share Posted February 6, 2003 Originally posted by Candiria: hey im a beginner guitarist and i just need some tips on creating melodies. like when i have a melody in my head or i'll hum a melody i cant convert it on the guitar very well at all. so i was just wondering what techniques do you guys use to do that.Candria When I was starting out playing and writing on guitar I spent a lot of time listening and learning songs by bands and artists who were doing similar styles of songs to what I wanted to do. That way you learn how chords, vocal and musical melodies work together and once learned can be added to your trick bag. Eventually you will be able to make musical and melodic connections automatically and start adapting them to fit your own style and playing technique. Always try and remain focused on what is carrying the main melody be it vocals or guitar or any other instrument as you need to make sure that the other instruments are providing the correct backing to let this melody shine through and not cluttering up. All the best Growing old is inevitable....Growing up is optional ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiria Posted February 6, 2003 Author Share Posted February 6, 2003 hey thanks everyone im trying all your tips and im improving already, its still not it, but i can get a lot closer to the melody thats in my head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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