anyone have tips for someone writing music?

[wierdo]

I have a mental block,see I write music for myself and friends and i'm working on this one piece and i don't know if it's what would be considered "correct"....i've had my instructer look over my music and he sometimes tells me it's incorrect what does that mean?! anywho i would be really thankful if someone could give me tips or advise on how to work out time signiture(sp) I think if i could find out what it means to be correct then i might be able to figure out the rest
~-~i don't know if it fits in this category but i'm sort of new to music writing~-~

[themusicalone]

I don't quite understand what you mean by working out the time signature. Could you try being more specific maybe? I'll be glad to help ya out. :)

[wierdo]

ok what i mean is the tempo and that sort of thing sorry if i called it the wrong thing my mind is somewere else today, but i don't know how to work out the speed of the piece, should i get someone else to play it as i figure it out? haha

[BlueNote]

You should always have the melody in your head before you put it down on paper. You should be able to hum it (and be able to play it) in time before notating it. Always have a metronome handy, especially if you are unsure of what the tempo should be.

Also, do you ever use Band In A Box? It's very useful for composition help because you can input chords and have it play it in time. I needed to do that the other day when I wrote out this rhythm changes tune. Using it actually fixed a huge rhythmic mistake. They highlight each measure as it goes by, so it is very obvious when there is a downbeat.

The hardest thing for me is when I'm writing out a tune and not knowing how it really sounds with a band. BiAB is the closest thing to a band as you can get. I've been writing this funk tune, and it is really hard to do, because I am trying to get this funk rhythm section in my head and trying to see if what I wrote fits with everything else.

[redhead]

There is software available in England called Sibelius- don't know if you guys have it across the Atlantic- it expensive, but even the student version will accept input from a keyboard, (assuming the right wiring!) and you can play your tune- it prints it for you- you can input one line at a time, or play the harmonies as well, and then edit it- add instruments etc. There is then a play back feature- listen to it, and edit the tempo or whatever. Some versions will automatically transpose! There are other cheaper versions, which do supoort direct entry via a keyboard. Have a look around - maybe a music teacher at college would know?

[gary]

Wierdo - your posts are way too vague for something with as many things that composition has to it. I would suggest you get with someone who writes music and let them guide you step-by-step through all the processes you wil need to know to become a good, effective writer.

FWIW - Sibelius is international and is a superior notation system; I use it as a matter of fact. But there are other far less expensive that will do what you need for the present.

[Joe Linux]

Maybe you have a time signature of 4/4, but only have 3 counts in a bar or something like that. Your teacher should show you exactly what is wrong. If he's a public school music teacher, he may not have enough time to help in detail.