This article is part of a series called Moving Beyond Chord-Centric Songwriting. The practice routines given here should help any songwriter become more melodically fluent, but they will probably be of particular interest to guitarists who’re sick of their own stale old riffs and licks.
Sing Everything You Play.
Whenever you practice scales on your instrument, sing every note. Whenever you play a solo, sing every note. Whenever you play any series of single notes on your instrument, sing them. This is essential to developing good hand-brain coordination with your instrument.
And while you sing, be sure to remain aware of your hand on the fingerboard or keyboard. Focus closely on the exact spot where each note lives on your instrument. In time, if you’re diligent with this, you’ll find it increasingly easy to visualize the instrument and actually play familiar phrases entirely in your mind, just as though the instrument was actually at your fingertips.
Once that becomes possible, within your own head you can change the tempo of a melody that you know well, and you can also begin to vary it in myriad other ways. If you’re stuck in a line at the supermarket or doing dishes or something like that, try mentally playing the first few notes of a melody, then reversing direction and playing them backward. Try playing those few notes in different rhythms, holding certain notes much longer than usual. Doing this kind of thing for the first time is an exciting milestone for sure! It’s the beginning of being able to compose entirely in your head, then quickly and easily find the notes on your instrument.
Humming and whistling are acceptable substitutes, if you insist… but c’mon, why not get in a little singing practice while you’re at it? In any case, the important thing is that you somehow vocalize.
Sing Scales and Intervals.
Mix up the notes in scales, playing them:
- Forward
- Backward
- In sequences of 4 notes forward and 3 notes back
- In different rhythms
- etc.
In short, play them every way you can, and—gotten tired of hearing this yet?–sing every note while you do. As you get more and more familiar with any given scale, try singing the next note you intend to play. Then when you play it you’ll immediately be able to tell whether you were accurate. If you were wrong, don’t worry—just try again. Your accuracy and precision will increase with time.
You should also learn how to play musical intervals such as major and minor 2nds, major and minor 3rds, diminished and perfect 4ths, and so on. Learn to distinguish similar intervals from one another by ear. Here’s an example exercise:
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Try singing a major third interval. Play and sing the root first, then its major 3rd.
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Pause for a moment, then sing the major 3rd first and descend back to the root note (again, use your instrument to find the pitches).
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Repeat steps 1 and 2 several times.
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Now try playing the root and 3rd on your instrument simultaneously, then singing the root, the major 3rd, and the root again while the double stop continues ringing.
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Repeat steps 1-4, but this time sing and play the minor 3rd of the root instead of the major 3rd.
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If needed, switch several times between major and minor 3rds as you practice.
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Repeat this entire process, steps 1-6, for all the intervals, from 2nds all the way through to 7ths.
Composers who can read music may also want to write figures down as notation and focus on the pitches written in the sheet music instead. A composer can become fluent with the music staff in the same way an instrumentalist memorizes her instrument. In this case, you can use musical notation software or any instrument to check your pitch accuracy.
Persistence
This kind of ear training takes time, but if you set aside even ten to twenty minutes for this every day, you’ll notice progress within a few weeks. Write reminders on your calendar, your wall, even your body if you must—sure, it’s a little bit of work, but it’s also kind of fun in itself and the rewards are more than worth the effort.