A Melody Tutorial With Maestro Meow Unibrow
Melodies should be composed by ear,
wherever you start, wherever you are, it is always about finding the next note.
You should use a violin to make the sound,
there is nothing more beautiful sounding than a lovely violin.
And just keep going until you make it till the end,
make a whole song out of just the melody, and you will find what ever it is that you are looking for.
Before we begin composing our little melodies,
I want to introduce you to the most beautiful song ever composed.
And the greatest, and most magnificent story ever told,
and the story told is different for all of us.
The song is named, Capriccio Italien,
and composed by Pyotr Tchaikovsky in 1880.
I think it contains all the secrets of music,
it is a wonderful masterpiece to learn from about instrument composition.
Now, let us return to the task at hand and make a melody together,
something with long notes and positive directions.
Something non too cheerful,
and non too sad.
The way I usually do this is by meowing first,
and then following it up with an instrument like this:
* initial call *
Don't stop, when you find something that you like,
keep going.
Let us add a second part,
something more uplifting.
Before you add,
you have to listen to what you have thus far, and then add something that makes it better.
* a small extension *
Everybody always teachers melody making to be about asking questions,
and making answers.
But we can do a lot better than that,
in the third part of our melody we will call out to the universe out of loneliness.
It is not a sad call,
it is just a way to remind all the stars that we are here.
Here is how you speak to the universe:
* an expression of feelings *
And of course,
our listeners will now expect an answer.
Now, of course, the universe has it's own voice,
this does not mean that you abandon the violin, no, no, no, no.
It just means that in this moment in your melody,
you will have to speak for the stars.
Sure, you may not agree with the way I think that stars speak,
but since they are tiny little plops in the sky that are always all too far to get to.
So, to me they make a plop sound - please don't laugh,
and a music box - that in my mind is associated with going to sleep - is a neat interpretation of that.
* the universe speaks back *
And now we add a second violin,
one that is more distant.
Whatever the stars of the universe say,
the make the new voice respond.
I add distance by increasing the reverb and tail of the notes,
and I make it different from the voice asking the question, by giving it a different tempo.
* the friendly response *
Here is our little melody in full,
first I will play my meows, and then the instruments.
* full song plays *
Both of these versions are available for download as a free phone ring or a terrible alarm.