what makes a tune catchy?
- Thread starter djzalzer
- Start date
2BMCreationz
Member
Full on style, emotion (it might sound crazy but listeners can sense the emotional effort in the track. I can....), something that sounds contemporary and either original (more so towards original)
There are lot of good things to make a tune catchy. You can have a pedal note, Slash from guns n' roses/velvet revolver/slash's snakepit uses this. You can also use EXTREME repeating. You'll hear alot of songs like cherub rock by the smashing pumpkins use this. They just cram it into your head. Using a song that fits well with the emotion at the point of time it was played, remember sephiroth's theme?
Chris Hurn
Member
One of the biggest problems with people trying to come up with tunes is people think the more notes you chuck in the better. So many RPG tracks all over the web have people throwing in way too many notes. It always sounds crap. Like just notes in the scale. A melody being catchy is usually due to how it interacts with the chord progression - you have to be careful about which chords you use and at what time. It's not just a matter of chucking down some tacky I_V_VI_IV progression and then a silly repetitive melody. The best thing to do is listen to music over an extended period of time. And keep it simple.
Chris
Chris
So, in other words, Like I said, use the circle of fifths to help you figure out what chords you want to use, and use a pedle note, or pedle tone to make it sound catchy, make sure the chorus (for lack of a better word) is always the same,(it doesn't have to be EXACTLY the same though) and finally, make sure that your tune doesn't have mixed emotions.
Chris Hurn
Member
What's up with you trying to reword the previous persons post every time? You've posted 3 times in this thread as if you're trying to take it over and show off your misspelled and confused terminology. Making sure the tune doesn't have mixed emotions isn't good advice, what if that was the point? That could be the thing that actually makes your tune catchy if you did it in a certain way. I know you like whipping out the circle of fifths, but that's basic stuff and once is enough.
If you have to refer to the circle of fifths to write a melody then there's other things you could be doing instead of trying to create catchy melodies. My advice is get a good idea in your head of what you think sounds good. Listen to the stuff that you like and then compare it to your melodies. Your music will come out sounding like you want it to sound if you know how to form it that way, and part of that process is blocking out the crap stuff. So as soon as you write a few notes that don't work - cut them out and go back a step instead of continuing. If you do this, your music will come out as you let it.
Pay close attention to tune development, and like I said before, HOW it interacts with the chord progression. The guy above me tried to reword my post but completely misunderstood what I said. It's got nothing to do with picking out chords in the "circle of fifths" it's about how you treat the whole process with these chords. For example, you have a progression in mind - do you need to bring it all out at once? How can the tune relate to the chord changing? A good example is the 6th chord. Because this is a minor chord of the major key, (for example, in C major, chord 6 is Aminor)
this can evoke some sort of emotion with the right melody. So let's say you are playing around with chords I IV and V in some way. Or maybe just two of them, or even just one chord. Then you introduce chord VI - the Aminor (if we are in Cmajor). The melody could go up here. Or it could go down in such a way that it evokes an emotion. Hold back, use restraint. When this chord comes in, the feel changes. How can the melody work with this? Do I have to use a million notes here? Will only one note work? These are just a few of the things you should be thinking.
Tune development should be a natural, honest process. Forget your theory book. Study theory, yes, but not at the same time as you are composing. When you are writing, use the theory you have, chuck it in the back of your brain and then whip it out with restraint.
Some people like to sound mature by using lots of words to impress. But the real maturity lies in the restraint that true smart people know how to use. And it shows. Same sort of thing applies with music. Don't show off, nobody but University or classical wanks will care if you change key signatures every 3 bars. But people will know if it sounds like rubbish because there are a million notes and no melody.
The melody going up and down in certain places evokes different feelings and with the right restraint can be amazingly powerful AND catchy at the same time. Some of the worlds catchiest (and most annoying :P) tunes are just over two chords and just repeat forever, and then some are more complex, both are equal in their own rights.
While this advice is one way to go about it, the best way is to just listen. Listen to your favourite music and play it. Don't just give it the once over general listen - find out why it's good! And then you'll know everything you need to know to make your stuff sound just as good.
Keep composing, do it all the time, every day. Whenever you can. The more you do, the better you will get. And you won't notice it straight away, but I swear, compare your stuff months apart, or a year, and you will notice big differences. And by the time you are ready to write "catchy" tunes, you won't need to ask how, because you'll be ready to do it yourself.
Chris
If you have to refer to the circle of fifths to write a melody then there's other things you could be doing instead of trying to create catchy melodies. My advice is get a good idea in your head of what you think sounds good. Listen to the stuff that you like and then compare it to your melodies. Your music will come out sounding like you want it to sound if you know how to form it that way, and part of that process is blocking out the crap stuff. So as soon as you write a few notes that don't work - cut them out and go back a step instead of continuing. If you do this, your music will come out as you let it.
Pay close attention to tune development, and like I said before, HOW it interacts with the chord progression. The guy above me tried to reword my post but completely misunderstood what I said. It's got nothing to do with picking out chords in the "circle of fifths" it's about how you treat the whole process with these chords. For example, you have a progression in mind - do you need to bring it all out at once? How can the tune relate to the chord changing? A good example is the 6th chord. Because this is a minor chord of the major key, (for example, in C major, chord 6 is Aminor)
this can evoke some sort of emotion with the right melody. So let's say you are playing around with chords I IV and V in some way. Or maybe just two of them, or even just one chord. Then you introduce chord VI - the Aminor (if we are in Cmajor). The melody could go up here. Or it could go down in such a way that it evokes an emotion. Hold back, use restraint. When this chord comes in, the feel changes. How can the melody work with this? Do I have to use a million notes here? Will only one note work? These are just a few of the things you should be thinking.
Tune development should be a natural, honest process. Forget your theory book. Study theory, yes, but not at the same time as you are composing. When you are writing, use the theory you have, chuck it in the back of your brain and then whip it out with restraint.
Some people like to sound mature by using lots of words to impress. But the real maturity lies in the restraint that true smart people know how to use. And it shows. Same sort of thing applies with music. Don't show off, nobody but University or classical wanks will care if you change key signatures every 3 bars. But people will know if it sounds like rubbish because there are a million notes and no melody.
The melody going up and down in certain places evokes different feelings and with the right restraint can be amazingly powerful AND catchy at the same time. Some of the worlds catchiest (and most annoying :P) tunes are just over two chords and just repeat forever, and then some are more complex, both are equal in their own rights.
While this advice is one way to go about it, the best way is to just listen. Listen to your favourite music and play it. Don't just give it the once over general listen - find out why it's good! And then you'll know everything you need to know to make your stuff sound just as good.
Keep composing, do it all the time, every day. Whenever you can. The more you do, the better you will get. And you won't notice it straight away, but I swear, compare your stuff months apart, or a year, and you will notice big differences. And by the time you are ready to write "catchy" tunes, you won't need to ask how, because you'll be ready to do it yourself.
Chris
*sigh* You are telling hime how to use the progression, I am telling him how to find it. This guy doesn't reply, so we are not sure on his level of terminology. I am trying to put your words in more simple terms for this guy to understand, because, chances are he is not to advance if he needs our opinion on what makes a tune catchy. I didn't mean to come off however I came off, but since this guy doesn't reply, I guess this thread needs to be closed.
Well, look at it this way, Josh. You're not only helping him, but also other musicians/composers that view this topic, that are maybe shy to have some input as well like me : ) . I always thought what made a song catchy is how it's brought to you visually (like a music video, AMV, etc). I think it's a psychological thing since it differs from person to person on what they find 'catchy'.
gladly, Th circle of fifths is a diagram that shows the relationship of the 12 tones in the chromatic scale.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_of_fifths
Wiki can probably explain it alot better then I can. :thumb:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_of_fifths
Wiki can probably explain it alot better then I can. :thumb:
mega_man_aXe
Member
Don't know if you're still checking up on this topic, but here is what helps me:
1.) NEVER over-analyze your work. I used to do that a lot and only came up with sub-par songs. If you are worrying about what people will think of your song, or if you think a part is too (insert problem here), chances are its not going to come out right. Let the music flow, BABY!
2.) Don't be too technical about it. Musical theory is a great asset to have and be knowledgeable about, but don't let it be your only method. You need emotion and imagination, not just knowing notation or what a particular chord is called.
3.) Experimentation is your friend. Try something you've never done before, or a style of music you've never tried, even if you don't like that style. Mixing and melding of different styles can sometimes lead to very catchy tunes!
4.) Listen to a bazillion songs and take those parts you feel are most catchy. Try to replicate them and see how its done. Once you get the hang of it, you can start to come up with catchy melodies of your own. Don't let the thought of sounding too similar to a certain song derail you from writing it. Don't downright copy and say its yours either, but its OK if a part is like something else you know.
I'm sure there is more to be said, but I hope that helps a little.
1.) NEVER over-analyze your work. I used to do that a lot and only came up with sub-par songs. If you are worrying about what people will think of your song, or if you think a part is too (insert problem here), chances are its not going to come out right. Let the music flow, BABY!
2.) Don't be too technical about it. Musical theory is a great asset to have and be knowledgeable about, but don't let it be your only method. You need emotion and imagination, not just knowing notation or what a particular chord is called.
3.) Experimentation is your friend. Try something you've never done before, or a style of music you've never tried, even if you don't like that style. Mixing and melding of different styles can sometimes lead to very catchy tunes!
4.) Listen to a bazillion songs and take those parts you feel are most catchy. Try to replicate them and see how its done. Once you get the hang of it, you can start to come up with catchy melodies of your own. Don't let the thought of sounding too similar to a certain song derail you from writing it. Don't downright copy and say its yours either, but its OK if a part is like something else you know.
I'm sure there is more to be said, but I hope that helps a little.
thanks for all the replies, fellas. I've been reading but not replying.
I am not concerned with creating a chord progression; those are easy enough, and if I can't think of one, there's 1,000,000,000 that i can fall back on.
It's the melody that gets me. Maybe I'm just overanalyzing and they could be catchy, if repeated enough.
I'm taking your feedback to heart, it's just recording takes FOREVER for me.
edit: a good example of an extremely catchy song with two chords only is "gone to the movies" by semisonic.
it's on youtube; look it up.
I am not concerned with creating a chord progression; those are easy enough, and if I can't think of one, there's 1,000,000,000 that i can fall back on.
It's the melody that gets me. Maybe I'm just overanalyzing and they could be catchy, if repeated enough.
I'm taking your feedback to heart, it's just recording takes FOREVER for me.
edit: a good example of an extremely catchy song with two chords only is "gone to the movies" by semisonic.
it's on youtube; look it up.
