General Composition Help Wanted (midi example)

[Grayburg]

midi - http://ifile.it/zutbmfp

mp3 - http://ifile.it/8n9uhr4

Okay, I read part of a music theory book (complete idiot's), skimmed/skipped the sheet music notation stuff, transposing charts.. etc, since I really don't think I'll ever have to do those. I've just been using FL8 and plan to only have to use that. Piano roll (ez mode) ftw?

I think I understand the important stuff, though, so I've been trying to create the most generic, standard possible stuff to understand the basics.

The song's in C Major, simple as possible, lol. So, I started off trying to make a chord progression. I think I understand the flow a chord "should follow". I > iii > ii > vi > I > iii > ii > V; I think they all follow the "should follow" chart, except for the ii > vi, which I thought was fine just because it sounded all right. I am understanding it, right? I translated the chart into one without the roman numerals and capitalization because I don't get what they serve, really. I get that they're major, minor, etc, but I don't get where they got the stuff like: 4 goes into 1, 3, 5, 7 naturally, but 5, also a major chord, only naturally goes to 1. etc.. but I do guess I understand that I could make a random progression just looking at the chart and picking random options.

Anyways, I then tried to make a melody to that with a pentatonic scale (or at least I hope it is), which is played by the organ. Added a random quick arp played by the koto. Standard drums, too.

Needed another section, so I was lazy and just used the same progression stretched 2x. I read about this call-and-response thing two melodies can do, so I tried to do that with a simple one, wind instru clarinet, with a more complex(lol) one, the guitar. The guitar gets to its catchy part when the clarinet plays a long note.. That is an example of it, right?

The intro's just random long notes + slower drums. The mp3 doesn't have the intro melody anymore.

The bass writing.. I read a bit, and using only the root of the chord is supposed to be OLD. When I tried to add some other notes like the 3rd, 5th or 7th, the melody sounds too 'happy' and 'high'. Also, the soundfont i was using for the bass guitar only has like, one octave of the same sound type playing, so if I move it down an octave, goes into the different sound.. and in its normal form has the happy uppity sound.

It's scary moving away from pure roots.

Help?

The solo (bar 73-80).. That IS how one is supposed to be lead into and out of, right?

Tips on solo writing? The first 4 bars of it sounded like random garbage, but the second part sounded kind of sexy, like it actually was a melody. I like it a lot. Solos are supposed to be flashy, but what i've been creating are notes more random than my normal melodies.

No ending. Lazy, and kind of scared of figuring out how to.

Off-topic Q.. I don't know of any good midi sequencers. Back when I was a youngin', I used my friend's Voyetra Orchestra MIDI, but I'm pretty sure it's discontinued now, or something. I remember it looking simple and built for function. I downloaded Anvil Studios to quickly edit the midi for uploading, but I don't even understand how to change the notes I had in my cymbal track. It defaulted to some hideous vibraslap sound, but, somehow, the other drum tracks were changed to their correct drum notes.

So, sup?