How to Arrange a Theme for Woodwinds

[@ericfalley]

One thing I'll mention as a bassoonist, the contrabassoon is perhaps my favorite instrument of the orchestra but it's actually a relatively soft instrument, just like the normal bassoon. It's not a woodwind version of the beefy tuba. With just woodwinds playing it can probably carry the bass line by itself, but especially when strings and brass are added the contrabassoon might not be enough to carry the bass line of the woodwind section by itself. To add more strength to the bassline in the woodwinds, adding a bass clarinet or the bassoons to the bassline is often a good choice (often along with the cellos or basses like Ryan's example). The contrabassoon's presence is probably best felt when it's playing in octaves with the bassoons or bass clarinet, just like basses sound much stronger when doubled in octaves with cellos.

[@alakazam482]

As a bass clarinetist I can say with certainty that its just as quiet as a bassoon. All my time in highschool was spent learning how to project myself more as I was the lead bass clarinetist. All of this is because basson and bass clarinet have relatively small bells when compared to the rest of the instrument. Something like bari sax, tuba, euphonium, or strings like a cello or double bass will perform much better in the majority of situations, especially if you're going to be performing this live. However, if youre going to be doing something like that of Instrument Maniac, and you're going to be recording all the instruments separately you can go for whatever timbreal contrast you want, and boost the quieter instruments in post

[@plazmatic954]

Just spent a few months playing some stellar wind ensemble rep as the lone double bass and I can say that generally doubling bass lines with bass clarinet, contrabassoon, and the bass is usually enough in a well balanced ensemble

[@georgejones5019]

As someone who plays clarinet and saxophone, woodwinds are close to my heart. This video is something I was wanting.

[@extremelybaldcardboard]

imma be honest, i was kinda skeptical of this method at first because only having a melody, harmony, and baseline seemed like it wouldn’t be able to create impressive sounds, but after trying it on my own for a full woodwind ensemble (including saxes), i’m pleasantly surprised what i managed to create in around an hour. thank you for showing me this method!

[@SheikhSoundz]

These kind of tutorials help so much. A complete breakdown. Also advice on what to do when instruments clash. What to double and how to double it. I enjoy your teaching style Ryan. It's gotten even better as well. I definitely elevated since watching your vids.

[@JonAnderhub]

Thanx! You brought out a point that doesn't often get discussed and that is needing to change the key of the music to fit the instrumental ranges.

[@gavinleepermusic]

Wonderful stuff as always! I enjoyed that you showed those playable ranges in the DAW so it's accessible to those who are less fluent with sheet music.

[@gavinleepermusic]

These considerations for key selection based on the instrument ranges is such a powerful framework btw!

[@JeanWJoseph]

I like how you used the piano roll to visualise the ranges in relation to the upper and lower limit of the given melody.

[@RyanLeach]

📄 Get the free guide to accompany this video: tinyurl.com/rlwoodwinds

[@OngakuSensei86]

Just FYI, that link is returning an error saying that the IP can't be reached for me.

[@RyanLeach]

@@OngakuSensei86 thanks for letting me know, seems to be working on my end so will need to hear from someone else

[@BobBobenstein]

Thanks for this video. Very simple and easy to follow and understand. Could you please do a video like this for the other sections of the orchestra? (Strings, Brass, etc.)

[@noelleggett5368]

Any decent woodwind arrangement sounds better with horns included! 😊

[@RodrigoEscalona]

Agreed!! But then Horns everywhere? They get tired of the lips by playing so much, they need some rest. Good to keep this in mind

[@codydavis5525]

These are great tips! I’m a little hesitant about adding the melody to bassoons along with flute and oboe. It sounds like too much to me. There was a great idea I started using from one of your videos when arranging for orchestra which was “think of your clarinets and bassoons as your string section.” Ofc I arrange in context of an orchestra and not purely woodwinds. I think if there was a tenor line of some kind, I would have given it to bassoons. Either way, these are some good places to start.

[@jpob5]

I would assume most NES and other 8 bit tracks would be great for practicing arranging. Its all just sine, saw and square waves so it leaves a lot to the imagine which is where we can get creative. SNES/16 bit wouldn't be to bad but a lot of games were using samples of real instruments (or something similar) by that point.

[@RobSeib]

I'm so happy you used Zelda 2 music, some of my fav

[@ppheard1254]

4:00 I think I found a new favorite LoZ piece

[@chuck_moore]

Thanks for the video.

[@richardsargent4444]

How would you suggest adding counterpoint within the context of the preharmonized line, in order to add more depth to the overall line? I see that Robert Russell Bennett does this subtly in his orchestrations - so it isn’t just a direct quote from instrument to instrument.

[@RyanLeach]

I'd love to hear an example do get a better sense of the question, do you have an excerpt I can check out?

[@penguinexpress12]

Suite of old american dances

[@chasvox2]

Always astute. Keep up the good work, young man!

[@edbuller4435]

that's such a good book!...I found it eventually .

[@kiwij1424]

Have you got one of these style videos for the brass section too?

[@SDSMOfficial]

Thank you for this information, woodwinds are always portrayed as the hardest family to arrange for.

[@44faithy41]

I liked this video, i got some input tho, and some advice as a clarinet player You labelled the range on the piano roll as C3 to G4, I'm gonna assume the notes on the piano roll were borders, because C3 is not a playable note on soprano clarinet. Realistically, even for just a high school band, a more realistic range for the clarinet is D3 to D6, though above Bb5 is kinda squeaky. And concert Eb4 to concert Ab4 is a range you generally don't wanna hang out in too much, those notes tend to sound airy, and don't project well. Obvs its not a huge deal if there are some notes in this range but dont live there. The BEST range is Bb4 to Bb5 (not at all written on your This range projects the best, has the best intonation generally, and sounds the least airy. I'm not a flute player, but for anyone just writing stuff, you also don't wanna write near the bottom of the flute's range, write at least an octave above what he labelled the bottom, so it will project better. Love your videos

[@RyanLeach]

on this piano roll C3 is middle C

[@feraste]

Great vidéo again!

[@chriswolf4715]

Hi Ryan. Great video as always. I was reading Korsakov's "Principles of Orchestration" today and on page 49, I interpret his writing as recommending somewhat against what you've done here. "I cannot refrain from mentioning how greatly I dislike the method of duplicating all the wood-win, in order to balance a group of strings". I have two possible thoughts on the dissonance between these two messages: 1. He is warning against doubling woodwinds completely as a tool for dynamic control, rather than discouraging our use of the texture itself. or 2. Times have changed and our years have evolved to enjoy the timbre and orchestration in modern day whereas Korsakov and his listeners didn't back in their time. What are your thoughts on this?

[@RyanLeach]

The only strings I used were to give some power to the bass line. His comment is about balancing with the strings but other than the bass like I’m not using strings

[@chriswolf4715]

@@RyanLeach that makes sense. I had misunderstood the passage when I read it. I thought he was warning about doubling the same content across all woodwinds in general. Upon, rereading it, he was warning about using it as a balancing tool against strings. Thanks for your insights!

[@RobinsMusic]

the composer of Zelda 2 is actually Akito Nakatsuka, not Koji Kondo

[@RyanLeach]

🤦‍♂️

[@aaronTmusic-250]

Great video!

[@k.louismusic]

4:17 Resolve the V please!!

[@RaptorT1V]

It's not a bad video, but it really only talks about the "working ranges" of each woodwind instrument. Nothing is said about what techniques of playing different woodwind instruments there are, what musical articulations there are (how they sound) and where it is better to use them, what combinations of instruments there are and where it is better to use them, how to compose counterpoint and additional melodies, how to enrich the harmony and so on

[@RodrigoEscalona]

You're totally right.

[@HarmoChopin]

Thanks for this tutorial! 01:02 Rather than a G on the bass, I would have written a B, that would have sounded better, I think. 🙂

[@storiesreadaloud5635]

5:05 That's the stuff for me lol

[@baronvonbeagle9787]

Bass Clarinet > Contrabassoon

[@the_atoms5242]

Clarinet gang approves of this message

[@homemadefilms5718]

To those scoring for saxophone, do NOT write a trill between C# and D

[@starwarsnerd47484]

Jeez Drama Queen, just use the Palm keys

[@Alexander-oh8ry]

Also, the low clarinet notes are no problem for even a newbie to play

[@RodrigoEscalona]

As an oboe player, I have to say from experience of playing new composers music, (unrelated to this video) Please don't use the oboe as an accompaniment for the melody, the oboe should be mainly used as melody in dramatic/passionate but intimate moments. I know that a composer is good when I see they made space for a good solo for the oboe (or English Horn, also of course depends on the piece). Just check the best composers of all time, always a good oboe solo in their piece (all Beethoven Symphonies, Mozart Haydn Bach Dvorak Mahler Tchaikovsky etc). I understand that it is hard to listen to an oboe student, and that is safer to give the melody to the flute, but then they give accompaniment to the hard-to-play oboe and it is just not designed to be below your melody, it should be your melody, or even above it! (Like in Mozart) Also don't forget to write for the English Horn, which is an oboe in F, it's just better to listen to.

[@neildawson6274]

I would in my real world experience of arranging orchestral parts for existing solo or choral songs, changing the key because it doesn’t fit the range of orchestral instruments is just not an option.

[@jaijeffcom]

I didn't get what you meant. I make the key of all my arrangements fit ranges (and the practicality of reading for transposing instruments). This is especially critical in arranging for a specific singer. I'm curious to know, please, what situations make a change of key not an option.

[@RodrigoEscalona]

Why not? 🤔 Your experience is from by ear learners only or something?

[@neildawson6274]

@@jaijeffcom My experience is an orchestrator for concerts at TV I will often get a commission for the accompaniment for a song where the original is solo piano or pop track and the key is specified by the soloist. Unfortunately I can't just change it to make the player's lives easier. So, yes, this ends up with a lot of trumpet parts in F# major when a guitar-based song is in E for example

[@jaijeffcom]

@@neildawson6274 Got it! We might be talking about the same thing after all. We seem to both be saying it's the soloist who dictates the key.

[@drJoep043]

i want saxophones! ;)

[@noelleggett5368]

You can write for saxophones but most small, local orchestras don’t have saxophone players. You might be lucky if they can find a local saxophone player to join the orchestra. But beware! Musical directors choosing scores for their orchestra’s next season might prefer an orchestration with standard instruments to save time and hassle. (Personally, I think every amateur orchestra should include a couple of good saxophonists!)

[@hygo64]

Really informative video, but what confused me was, that every time you showed a little example just for one instrument, you used a "final-double"-line at the end of the system, so i thought, that the melody ends there, which was not the case. I think for making it more clear you should just use a normal bar line.

[@Alexander-oh8ry]

The copypaste-and-octave-approach used here seems very dull and limiting and leads to range problems that could be avoided. Just change the octave of one of the voices, or transition from one voice to another when the melody gets very high or low or just do this for a nice sounding effect

[@Alexander-oh8ry]

2 more ideas: Dont simply use all winds at once, let maybe oboes and clarinets play the first part alone. Use some woodwinds for chords (arpeggios, whole notes, ...) and not for melody always and the whole time.

[@ParischneiderMUSIC]

First lol