Help In Arranging (FL Studio, or in general)

[BrothaDom]

So yeah, I need work on arranging. I feel that I'm pretty good with the program, and have a decent ear for what sounds good.

However, I don't have the ear or skill to actually put the original "notes" in to actually rearrange it. What I mean is that I feel I could remix a song, but not actual build the original to be rearranged.

I was wondering if someone might be able to help me out in that regard. Possibly provide tips, or a FL file with some chords to practice arranging, or something like that.

Any kind of help would really be appreciated, thanks.

[Chernabogue]

You should look for MIDI files. They actually contain the "original" notes and are very, very helpful. Check this website, I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for.

[BrothaDom]

I've seen that site! Been a fan for a long time.

So I can basically go there, load the midi file, and then rework it? Is that considered poor taste?

[Nabeel Ansari]

You should look for MIDI files. They actually contain the "original" notes and are very, very helpful. Check this website, I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for.

This is bad practice to develop as a composer. I mean, for maybe really fast sections, but if you can't figure out the most simple passages in songs, MIDI files won't help you (won't help develop skill, they'll obviously help tell you the notes for the song).

You should practice doing things by ear. Hum the melody (yes, hum it) out loud really slowly. At the first note, keep humming that note until you click all the keys in the piano roll from C to the next C. When you find the matching note, move on to the next.

A great shortcut in this process is to learn intervals. I haven't had formal training in theory, so I'm going to leave someone else to answer how to do that. But basically if you know your intervals and you know what note you started at you can get a good idea on what the next one will be. Or, eventually down the line you can just recognize note patterns that composers like to use and put them down without going through each note.

@OP: It's not "poor taste", a lot of people do it, but doing things by ear helps you so much more as a composer.

[Garpocalypse]

A great shortcut in this process is to learn intervals. I haven't had formal training in theory, so I'm going to leave someone else to answer how to do that. But basically if you know your intervals and you know what note you started at you can get a good idea on what the next one will be. Or, eventually down the line you can just recognize note patterns that composers like to use and put them down without going through each note.

You're going to have to learn how to play scales. and sing them to understand what neblix is talking about. Play right up the scale you are learning. DO re mi fa so la ti DO(1-2-3-4-5-6-7-1) then try some different ways DO re DO mi DO fa DO so etc. (or 1-2-1-3-1-4-1-5 degrees of the scale) This will teach you how notes relate to each other. Also, get a drone cd and practice moving in towards consonance then outwards towards dissonance with your voice. That's pretty fun to do though your parents/neighbors might look at you funny.

After scales and intervals you can move on to triads and chords. by then you should have a pretty good idea on how music flows.

I wouldn't start with more than one midi rip. Really more for learning what instruments go well together and mixing practice than anything else. Try to do as much by ear as possible. Hear something on TV? fire up your instrument of choice and figure out how to do it. On youtube and want to imitate the sounds of a cat being hit by wicker furniture? again, get your instrument and figure it out.

Good luck. You have a ways to go but each day you'll get closer.

[SonicThHedgog]

I kinda disagree about using other midi's as bad practice.....Arranging, workflow, and production wise.

Especially if your learning how to put together a type of piece or a new type of song/style.

But If he is trying to say he wants to learn music and music theory then I agree with both posts below about learning theory and aural trainning, maybe learning to read sheet notation(I did ;|) if he wants to and not just learning scales and modes.

midi recycle is alright for tricks, but definatly not a must for learning music.

Just my tiny opinion, but pretty much everyone summed this up.

[Rozovian]

I used midi for years, and still do for parts I can't transcribe myself (altho I try to avoid remixing sources that are too difficult). Go for it. Not only will it help you get those parts you need, but you get to see how the source looks like from the inside. Or as good as the midi transcriber got it.

Just don't make the mistake of copypasting everything from midi into your arrangement, it'll make it difficult to make your own arrangement of it. You'll be tempted to use the chords from source, the rhythms from source, everything from source - because they work so well together. If you're not aiming for a conservative arrangement, you should probably set some rules for yourself for what you can and can't do with the midi.

But yeah, either change to an easier source, consider your attempt to transcribe it a way of personalizing it, or rip from midi. Whatever you do, you'll get something to work with. Good luck.