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Creative process

This is a related but different question for those of you doing original arranging and composition. What is your creative process? We all are unique in our approach. I have read some different books on the subject and have incorporated some habits into my life as a result.

I keep my iPhone handy and if I get a melodic idea or lyric idea I will sing it into my voice memo section. Once I hid among the veggies at the grocery store to record the melody for a new composition.

I have lots of Notebooks. One is full of lyrics which are all tabbed by name. I probably could take years to work on all these pieces generated by that book.

I have a notebook where I am writing down people I have contacted and what we talked about regarding music. Some of you will end up in this notebook! I can’t rely on my memory anymore.

I have lots of notes in my iPhone and am trying to decide the best way to organize them. It gives me something to read on long journeys. I have a lyrics section there as well as other material.

I have started leaving pencils and erasers in all the important spots: pianos, couch, table where I sort my scores, computer desk. I’m trying to get out of the habit of using pen because pencil can be erased much more easily! And I hate wasting time hunting for them as they seem to have legs.

Care to share any ideas?



 

Re: Creative process

Reply #1 –
Nice.

I have a single file on my laptop (with multiple backups) I use to record lyrics I get or invent, also ideas.
But the main "tool" is a musical sketchbook my daughter gave me as a present two years ago (and another one more recently) whch I take with me everywhere. Only since I have this, I started to write down enough ideas!
...both these are for "rough (small and large) ideas and sketches".

My actual process of creating a piece of music is much more focussed and organized - it would take some time to explain it - but essentially I "do" all the "aspects" of music systematically: Form, "harmonic language", "melodic language", motifs, "harmonic rhythm", "small rhythm", polyphony, harmonics, ...., sound/instrumentation, ..., "surpriseness" -  ah, I see I have some terms here I use for me, of which I dont know whether there are any "offical terms" for them - I never learned composing from a composer, so I ended up with that ... much I'd have to explain in more detail, I suppose ... Also, if at all possible, I do it "like work": Even though I hate some parts of it (checking voices ...), I force myself to do it as meticuosly and only with short breaks to get a glass of water. It's a 9-to-5 job.

But I have only written 10 or 15 pieces which I consider "acceptable" - all the rest, from previous years, was more planless playing around, seen from today.

H.M.