There's nothing wrong with writing mood pieces, but be warned, you can only carry a 'mood' for so long before the listeners ear tires. I have a few of these, which don't really have a melody so much as cool, ambient sense about them. Some compositions are just 'mood' pieces. People don't generally hum introductions to themselves - they hum melodies. So, get to the melodic point quickly, and don't linger too long on your introduction. Finally and most importantly, the melody is the part of your song your listener will remember. It is also the device that holds the various elements of your composition together. Remember, the melody is (typically) what makes or breaks your song. It is sometimes tempting to write a long introduction (something I'm guilty of) to 'set the mood' for your composition. Then the song title becomes the 'goal' you're working toward, in a manner of speaking. I find it helps to give the composition a name early in its development. Doing so will influence the direction the composition takes. What is the song's message? Is it love? Faith? Winter? Water? Whatever your song message is, keep it in the forefront of your mind as you compose. 2) What is Your Song About?Īs you develop your overall melody, think about the emotion or image you want your composition to convey. Think of your chorus as your melodic destination.

The musical place it leads you to is usually your 'hook', or what I'll refer to in this article as your chorus. As you begin to compose, improvise on that melody and see where it naturally wants to take you.

It's the foundation and the focal point of your piece. That melody will be the centerpiece for everything else in your composition. Just start with one simple melodic phrase. You don't have to come to the piano with an entire song already in your head before you start composing. So, I've put together these 12 composition tips for anyone who would like to compose music for the piano. A fan who read my advice for pianists article asked if I'd write a similar article for beginning composers. In my 25 years of writing piano music, I've arranged over 180 compositions, about 160 of which I've released to the public on CD.

How to play in the end on piano