To the other music producers out there, curious what you start with... Do you write the melody first? Do you sketch the final part of the song? Do you make the intro first? Or do you make a drop? Do you focus drums first? or the lead? I feel like I just make a piano sketch and then expand... - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

nmyteki.bsky.social • 88 days ago

To the other music producers out there, curious what you start with...

Do you write the melody first? Do you sketch the final part of the song? Do you make the intro first? Or do you make a drop? Do you focus drums first? or the lead?

I feel like I just make a piano sketch and then expand...

Comments

shaiitea.bsky.social•88 days ago

I find a really cool pad and build off that

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

sometimes atmos is all that's needed! Maybe I'll try this next time!

ripridermusic.bsky.social•88 days ago

What I usually focus on first is either a chord or lead. I can add bass and drums later if needed. I flip flop between drop and beginning. Shadows was drop, Cosmic Aurora was straight from the beginning.

chrisledwidge.bsky.social•88 days ago

Probably 1 in 5 times it's a riff or a melody first. Build the harmonic structure around that. Deconstruct and arrange the whole piece from there.

Most of the time though it's an interesting chord progression first. Then a riff or groove type thing. Layer all the other parts over that.

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

This is the closest answer to what I do now. It's extremely effective at creating a song that I like, but I think the only disadvantage with me is that the song itself is guiding me as opposed to me guiding the song to what I wanted to make in the first place.

chrisledwidge.bsky.social•88 days ago

That's really interesting. Don't forget about the deconstruct part I mentioned. The 1st or maybe 2nd or 3rd time I tear the song apart may only be a starting point. Or especially if I'm collaborating and someone has given me their idea to work on. Each time I'll put the elements together in new ways

chrisledwidge.bsky.social•88 days ago

But yes I get your frustration with how you intend the song to go vs how it guides itself. If we keep writing enough songs, one of them has got to stick right?

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

Bingo. I also see you're a teacher, so I wonder if we have the same mentality.

Since I'm ALSO a music teacher lol

You have 10 fails for every 1 big success, so keep at it!

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

I don't mind the method! But I wish I had a clearer way to convey my feelings/intention with whatever I'm writing...

dandeless.dsktpgrl.com•88 days ago

I make lots of voice recordings of melodies or rhythms I imagine, and I often just look back into the recordings to find a base, then work from there

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

Okay, so I did try this and it like...sorta works? But it's very weird since I don't have relative or perfect pitch, so it feels really hard to convey what I imagine.

Maybe I just need to develop it more, I guess

m3galodn81.bsky.social•88 days ago

for the instruments
drums -> melody/chords -> bass

for the arrangement
1st drop -> verse -> intro -> rest of the song

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

This seems pretty close to what I thought! I need to focus drums a little more!

Thank you Surtr!! 😭

viyella.bsky.social•88 days ago

i uhh

find something to sample first LOL
(acapella, instrumental, etc)

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

funny enough, this was how -1 started! And nevergod.

I took a piano sample loop, transposed it, then screwed around with note placement and the rest fell into place!

I just don't want to totally rely on that method as it feels unoriginal for some reason... 😅

viyella.bsky.social•88 days ago

yeah it defo feels unoriginal, but my music is all based around sampling so i think it works out for me!!

(this is why i make hyperflip. no need to be stressed on how to start, just sample an exsisting song!)

yumiyacchithedj.bsky.social•88 days ago

I usually make a groove then I start layering stuff on it.

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

So drums first I'd assume? They layer more?

yumiyacchithedj.bsky.social•88 days ago

Usually I write a melody over the drums and harmonize over it, then I start adding things such as the basslines or the countermelody

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

would love to hear some thoughts from others. I wanna try making songs in different ways.

dendycrew.com•88 days ago

i really just start by pooling instruments and making a vertical slice of the beat. either chords first or drum kit first. this has started to change now that i use the syntakt...

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

Yeah I'm finding new ways to write with my expanded Kontakt library.

Sometimes I'll try to write chords with piano and/or strings, as I felt like that's the harmony in its rawest form.

asdominemusic.bsky.social•88 days ago

Melody -> chords -> first drop, then work from there

kurei-0.bsky.social•79 days ago

Deffo heavily depends on what I'm making. Personally it's whatev clicks in my head first bcoz I just have an intention/theme and my brain knows what it wants to do !!

I strongly feel like the way you start really shouldn't matter much coz what does is the fun you have making it & the end product :0

nailik-noteworks.bsky.social•88 days ago

I almost always start sketching with general MIDI (it just works) Specifically, I start with the chords, then melody, then harmonies. Drums/perc are always last.

raiiri.bsky.social•88 days ago

I am working on a "melody first" composing work, but I am learning to do the drums first as well

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

the more I do this, the more I realize drums start to pull it together, so this confirms my suspicion a little!

professeurwhom.bsky.social•88 days ago

Usually bass line then expand, sometimes I have a drum groove stuck in my head which I expand. Occasionally I start with a spoken word piece and force it to fit music.
I tend to post-punk/darkwave so bass first is thematically appropriate

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

Even though it's a vastly different genre than what I write, it reminds me to try messing with bass more, so that's a good idea too!!

cloudninja.bsky.social•88 days ago

Man it's all of the above it's random

psyquo.bsky.social•88 days ago

usually I try to make a hook/drop/chorus with all the parts complete (melodies, bass/sound design, drums) then fill in the rest of the song from there

tho sometimes writing a cool intro sets off the song writing

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

It's weird though, because I'll draft an intro and I really get into it, but I think I set the expectation so high with the intro that everything else ends up sounding worse?

It's almost like I spend all my gas on the intro and I wonder if that's stumping me...

zqr.bsky.social•88 days ago

usually i start on the drop and build back then back front for a clearer vision on what the song will look like

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

this is how what I THOUGHT the most common answer would be.

But my brain just can't wrap around how a drop would lead into everything else...maybe I'll have to try harder when doing this approach!

devidotnova.bsky.social•79 days ago

it depends a lot on what it is im making, most times i try to write a melody first to then build off of it, and other times id have an idea in my head already and just start with whateverll be the easiest to sound design, it can also depend on if the genre likes percussion or melody appearing first

brooklyngibbs.bsky.social•88 days ago

i start with the chords and then just kinda improv from there

ritsumugo.bsky.social•88 days ago

I start with the chords and then work on the drop first

saxxon.bsky.social•88 days ago

I usually build my stuff from the inside out, and I like to start by finding a good sound or building a patch myself, and then writing a hook. If I get something I find to be catchy, I'll stack other parts to make a complete "slice", then do what comes before and after, then whatever sounds good.

saxxon.bsky.social•88 days ago

If I don't end up with a slice I really like, I'll swap parts in and out, or shelf the project and start again, maybe come back to it. Vocal work is among the last steps, but I'm usually leaving room for them to fill in the mix as I go.

nmyteki.bsky.social•88 days ago

Yeah only recently have I started coming back to old project files! Sometimes I just feel fake because it feels like I'm putting off the creative phase of brainstorming, etc.