Changing tempo

[Esker]

I'm currently working on a new composition, I was following my general workflow with no trouble at all and then I realized that the melody will sound better if I raised the tempo a little bit, and implying I don't want to clip or prejudice the drum programming I already made.

So... even I did all the stuff, the song is still kinda empty, I could possibly overlay patterns but it is not this what I want to.

Now the questions, it's nice to write things in a lower tempo or there's a way to perceive it will sound good when I put the song at the tempo I first intended.

Thanks for reading.

[Nabeel Ansari]

I'm currently working on a new composition, I was following my general workflow with no trouble at all and then I realized that the melody will sound better if I raised the tempo a little bit, and implying I don't want to clip or prejudice the drum programming I already made.

So... even I did all the stuff, the song is still kinda empty, I could possibly overlay patterns but it is not this what I want to.

Now the questions, it's nice to write things in a lower tempo or there's a way to perceive it will sound good when I put the song at the tempo I first intended.

Thanks for reading.

Are you asking how to write full sounding music?

[Moseph]

Yes, can you rephrase the question? I don't understand what you're asking.

[Esker]

Full sounding music is exactly what I meant.

I just thought time tricks could help me a lot. Am I right?

[Nabeel Ansari]

Full sounding music is exactly what I meant.

I just thought time tricks could help me a lot. Am I right?

Nope, tempo doesn't really affect it at all. You can change it to whatever tempo you want, but it will still sound empty or "lacking".

Try this

[Rozovian]

That doesn't actually answer the question of what you mean.

Q: How do I change tempo in (insert DAW here)? Can I change it in the middle of the song?

A: Check the DAW manual/user guide.

Q: How do I write full sounding music?

A: Use harmonically rich instruments spread over several octaves.

edit: darke's guide is a useful read. READ IT.

[Nabeel Ansari]

That doesn't actually answer the question of what you mean.

Q: How do I change tempo in (insert DAW here)? Can I change it in the middle of the song?

A: Check the DAW manual/user guide.

Q: How do I write full sounding music?

A: Use harmonically rich instruments spread over several octaves.

edit: darke's guide is a useful read. READ IT.

Excuse me for attempting to answer a question without a question mark.

[Rozovian]

Excuse me for attempting to answer a question without a question mark.

Dude, not you. It was directed at Esker.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Dude, not you. It was directed at Esker.

No, he answered it fine.

He said full sounding music is what he was asking, and that he thought tempo changing would help.

[Souliarc]

Try this

Great, concise, applicable article. I seem to have only truly figured out these concepts recently, but MAN would it have helped to have read that years ago.

[Esker]

It's still confusing me these questions. I read here once that layering many instruments in the song will cause some trouble, so let's say I use just the four guys that article recomend which I already did and I still have an empty song.

I confess a little lack on the chord progression side but I really don't feel like it's just this the main problem.

So the basic doubt remains.

[Rozovian]

Post an example, it's easier to hear what someone's doing wrong than to have to guess what's wrong from what they're saying... especially when you're confusing everybody with what you write.

[Nabeel Ansari]

It's still confusing me these questions. I read here once that layering many instruments in the song will cause some trouble, so let's say I use just the four guys that article recomend which I already did and I still have an empty song.

I confess a little lack on the chord progression side but I really don't feel like it's just this the main problem.

So the basic doubt remains.

You didn't read the article fully. Also, if you admit your chords are lacking but don't think that's the problem:

UR DOIN IT WRONG

Chords are very important, and it's important they fill up your space in the middle. I had a lot of trouble with this a few years ago. If a song sounds empty, just fill it up with more chords.

What you can also do is look at a visual frequency spectrum analyzer that shows you what your song is taking up (the bouncy lines in Winamp or a monitoring plugin like SPAN) and look at what's lacking. Add an instrument that boosts those frequencies and doesn't crowd regions that already have adequate... (can't find a word for it) That already have bars that match the basic average loudness of everything else. Balancing is key.

Now, I'm certainly not suggesting that you only use four instruments in your piece. I, for example, might use a drummer, a few pianists, one or two bassists, and some trading leads for variety. Many times in the piece, I'll drop out some guys and bring them back in later. It's all a matter of how the song is going.

Focus less on the actual instruments, and more what space they take up and what they are doing.

The drums take up the entire frequency spectrum when you properly balance hi hats, kicks, snares, toms, etc.

The "pianist" in this article is the chordal instrument. It usually ends up in the midrange of the frequency spectrum (leaning high or low depending on what you want) and plays harmonies. Not just two notes at a time with major or minor harmony, but a three or more note chord.

The "bassist" is just kind of following the chords but has a groove that follows the drum beat.

The lead is basically your main melody.

Now, just like he mentioned, you could have more than one for each. When I make trance music, I have a synth pad doing thick chords (usually sidechained to let other stuff through) but also have a high arpeggio synth that does fast notes that outline a chord.

For a bassline, you could have both an acid bassline that outlines the chords and is more midrange and have a deeper but not-muddy-subbass catchy riff.

For drums, just have kick, snare, hi hats, and toms. Make sure all of the four elements are balanced so your listeners can hear everything, but have the lead more of a focus by making it louder, having less (or more) stereo separation, etc.

[Esker]

Post an example, it's easier to hear what someone's doing wrong than to have to guess what's wrong from what they're saying... especially when you're confusing everybody with what you write.

It's just an unfinished .mid file. Those doubts I described is for every song I composed and when I got something more "musical" I can't explain how I got it.

It will be kinda unfair if I post that song I mentioned here. Anyway I hope with what I get so far I can make a better song and then I post it here, after I migrate it my DAW and things like this.

@neblix

Thanks for all explanation.

[Arcana]

Post the example anyway. Just because "it's just a MID file" doesn't mean that we can't listen to it and comment on the quality of the composition. I think it'll help everyone.

[Rozovian]

If you've only got a midi file, all you'll get out of it is a blueprint. Unless the songs you're comparing your work to are also midi, you'll never write full sounding music because of the limitations of the default sounds for your midi. If you're comparing the sound of your midi and whatever small samples are used to play it to music made with big orchestral packages (or real orchestras, if you believe in such things) you're doing it wrong.

Just in case you're too newb to have thought of that.

As for layering sounds, that's more a matter of sound design than composition, tho if it's how to break up chords between instruments or melodies and stuff you wanna learn, talk to Gario.

[erineclipse]

Full sounding music is exactly what I meant.

I just thought time tricks could help me a lot. Am I right?

You can change the drum beats, arpeggiate, and alter the rhythm to create an illusion of a different tempo. That might help make your song not so boring as well.