How to WRITE LONGER MUSIC with the REPS METHOD

How do you develop a standard 8 bar melody into longer music?
🎵 There are TWO PARTS to a GREAT MOTIVE in MUSIC • Don't COMPOSE A MOTIVE...
📚 Many of the ideas in this video come from my favorite music book of all time: Analyzing Classical Form by William Caplin amzn.to/3AqkWcu
🎹 MIDI files of the examples in this video are available on my Patreon! / ryanleach
________
SUPPORT THE CHANNEL
🎼 You can now Early access, exclusive content and more on Patreon! / ryanleach
☕️ Buy me a coffee for those late night edits! www.buymeacoffee.com/ryanleach
👕 T-shirts and other merch is now available! tinyurl.com/ryanleachmerch
🎓 Info about private composition lessons: ryanleach.com/lessons/
FOR MUSICIANS
🎶 ScoreClub - tinyurl.com/scoreclubryan
OUTSTANDING composition courses including “Orchestrating the Line” which completely changed my approach to writing music.
Master the Score
🎻 20th Century Orchestral Writing - master-the-score.teachable.co...
🎚 Mixing Cinematic Music - master-the-score.teachable.co...
💥 Hybrid Orchestral Composition and Sound - master-the-score.teachable.co...
🤖 Syntorial - tinyurl.com/syntorialryan
The ABSOLUTE BEST way to learn how to use a synthesizer. It makes learning how to program a synth feel like a video game!
🎹 Master the Score www.masterthescore.com/
🎵 Sound Stripe tinyurl.com/soundstriperyan
Where I get my background music (awesome for KZbinrs).
STAY IN TOUCH
🤖Come join us on DISCORD! / discord
🌍 Website - www.ryanleach.com
✉️ email - ryanleachmusic at gmail.com
GEAR I USE EVERY DAY
🎹 M-Audio Keystation 61 MK3 geni.us/oTCT
🖥 LG 34” UltraWide Monitors geni.us/dux3mE
⌨️ Logitech MX Keys Keyboard geni.us/PkPvYs
🖲Kensington Expert Wireless Trackball Mouse geni.us/QKnLbJ
🎧 Apple AirPods Max geni.us/jzYq5
________
PS: Some links may be affiliate links which I receive a small kickback at no extra cost to you.
0:00 Intro
0:35 The REPS Method
1:01 R
3:00 E
5:02 P
7:57 S
#composition
#writingmusic
#composer

[@RyanLeach]

🎵 There are TWO PARTS to a GREAT MOTIVE in MUSIC kzbin.info/www/bejne/haaTqpeZltdqatE

[@sjaakankersmit6510]

What software do you use for your compositions?

[@RyanLeach]

@@sjaakankersmit6510 Dorico for notation

[@jjrussell]

Did you ever find a KZbin channel that has apparently existed for a while and you can't imagine how the "algorithm" hasn't seen fit to show it to you before despite everything else you watch and search for about orchestration? Yeah, this one. Every one of these is a gem

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks John, glad the algorithm finally came through!

[@ronelel2109]

@@RyanLeach I probably got recommended these videos because I watch TwoSet. Pretty good timing by the algorithm because I was thinking of composing again. :P

[@towenaar7422]

@@RyanLeach Same here! Funny thing is I used to read his articles on Tuts+ and loved them. Glad you're making video content now, it's stellar

[@Qermaq]

The s can be for stretch. Double the note values, for example. Doing this toward the end of a theme or even a section of a theme can increase anticipation for a resolution.

[@PelleKuipers]

Ryan you're videos are great. The pacing and explanation is done so well. There's no fluff, and every single time there's a new video I look forward to learning more.

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks I appreciate it

[@cowatt502]

For the record. If Ryan made a music composition book I would buy it. I would buy it hard.

[@lanadragonfly]

Suggestion: S is for Signature: An often underutilized form of development of a melody, changing time signature, removing or adding a certain number of extra beats for a bar or two can prolong a cadence, add a certain amount of metric tension, change the way you experience a motif, or create metric ambiguity at any point in the phrase.

[@casperdewith]

S is for Super Sick Suggestion!

[@lordwillibur438]

S for sick jazz magic

[@pilcaroo]

This is one of the biggest challenges for me, so thanks for the very clear and practical explanation! It's very evident you really care about helping people make music and be better at what they do, and I truly appreciate that.

[@Jath2112]

The SMB2 kinda hit home. I'm binging your channel. Cheers, and thank you. Your work is making a difference for me. I hope you hear this. I am being brutally sincere. Your channel has made a genuine difference in my life. It means a lot to me.

[@petertremblay3725]

Graham Plowman is a master at making lengthy melodic compositions and often without a single percussion.

[@rayphenicie7344]

Thanks for the reference to Analyzing Classical Form by William Caplin ! HIghly recommended

[@jakubeden]

I always wished for such a channel! 😊 The best I found on the internet. Thank you so much and keep going 👍

[@recksroller2220]

I'm a fan of prog and jazz fusion, so this will help me a ton when I write... something.

[@ecksdee9768]

this channel is a BLESSING, i love you thank you for making these

[@spencermartin5622]

Thank you so much Ryan. Your channel has helped me break a seriously long rut of struggle with writing. I feel so silly for not realising my problem was as simple as not using the period or sentence form for my melody writing and using that structure. The ideas are now flowing!

[@Markrspooner]

I might have need to watch this a couple of times to make sure I absorb this. Thank you Ryan, videos like this are so helpful!

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks Mark, at some point the follow up will be what to do after you’ve made it through the A section

[@ggblast8818]

This…this is exactly what I needed help with sir! I’m a beginner and this helps me so so much! Your channel is fantastic! :)

[@RyanLeach]

That's great to hear, thanks!

[@OliKember]

I wonder if S could also stand for Simplify: A reduction or fragmentation of the theme, useful in the intro or the outtro but also for a B section perhaps.

[@jackdennis9286]

Immediately Frank Ticheli’s “An American Elegy” comes to mind; he drops out the melody and countermelodies and leaves the harmonic framework of his idea on the clarinets alone. It’s super neat and helps transition to the next, softer part

[@rodterrell304]

Good video Ryan. Thanks for posting

[@dropkickedmurphy6463]

There are also false leads which I like. A good example of what I mean is the intro to "sex on fire" by Kings of Leon. You expect the beat to land one way and it lands another way.

[@pillsburymusic]

Excellent video, great use of examples.

[@stormRed]

YES! Systems like this are such a reliable way to learn for me.

[@SurnameName]

exactly the problem i had, thank you!

[@uffevonlauterbach]

It's great you made a chart for this. I'll have to follow these steps. I have a few tracks in mind that I'm working on.

[@henrique_zsp]

Awesome video! That is an awesome way to remember these concepts

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks I hope you can remember it!

[@JanCarlComposer]

I really like your videos and there are so many helpful ideas contained. If I have one issue, then that your videos sometimes feel as if you are in a rush ;) Perhaps this is caused by the many cuts, or that you speak very fast, dealing with topics quickly. That said, your content is admirable and I will continue to watch!

[@DJaycerOfficial]

You could also try variations of the melody that combine both the A and B that sort of transitions your way into the B melody.

[@eliasalija9570]

Wow this video is what Ive been struggling with lately, I knew it was not just intuition. You've literally saved me a lot of time of discovering all this by myself (I was just starting to use sequences effectively lol). Thanks :)

[@eliasalija9570]

Btw, did you come up with this? Seems to be just a common sense thing but I've never seen a method for it

[@RyanLeach]

I’m glad it’s helpful! REPS is something I just made up, a lot of the basic ideas of extension and expansion come from Schoenberg and William Caplin, but their focus is more Classical.

[@5BBassist4Christ]

When I was working on my first symphony in college, I really found Sonata Form actually serves extending music longer really well. You have to have really simple material to create a short Sonata. I'll let a person interested study Sonata Form on their own, but basically it is divided up into four sections excluding the intro: the Exposition, the Development, and the Recapitulation, and the Coda. The Exposition is framed in a way which can easily extend up to two and a half minutes without even trying. Given that it repeats, it is easy to use up five minutes before you're even getting off the ground. The Development is a free stage where you can do whatever you want. It's a time of playing with your themes, so it is a good time to really extend your material and see what works. Given there are no rules for a Development, it can range from 30 seconds to 3+ minutes. The Recapitulation is simple: it is a repeat of the Exposition with minor changes. (Easily another 2.5 minutes). The Coda is then the conclusion where you wrap everything up. It can be anywhere from four quick notes (Beethoven's 7th Symphony Movement 3), or half of the length of the piece all in itself (Beethoven's 5th Symphony Movement 1). So, between a 30-150 second Exposition x2, a 30-180 second Development, a 30-150 second Recapitulation, and a 5-180 second Coda, you could easily be looking at a 7-12 minute piece of music. And for other inspirations, Rush's instrumental music (YYZ and Leave That Thing Alone) acts quite similarly to Sonata Form.

[@narresnair1154]

Another Great Video! 💯✨

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks again!

[@sdghomero]

I... I did subscribe after discovering these last week. S got me.

[@DennisJamesChapman]

I've been studying Caplin's book as you suggested. This video is a nice complement.

[@RyanLeach]

Glad to hear it. I hope you're getting as much out of the book as I do!

[@danipar7388]

this has to blow up soon

[@jaikumarsivalingam]

Thanks, Ryan!

[@RyanLeach]

You’re welcome!

[@juanricardosanchezlopez3275]

Chapeau, Ryan !!!! 🎩🎩🎩👏👏👏

[@alirezanikkhah2884]

First of all, thanks for all your great videos so just wondering if is there any good book regarding melody writing that you can introduce?

[@andrewolivetreemixing]

Subscribed

[@danmillward3480]

Ive noticed you have srg. Pepper album on your desk...would love for you to go through some bealtles melodies and see how they fit into the period sentence form....is this form robust enough to use against the 20th century beethovens?

[@japanimated9683]

I've been doing this sh&t but I just didn't know what to call it. Interesting video.

[@kennethjackson4858]

Bring beer to writing and orchestrating, liking your videos, how do I start? I don’t have a lot of libraries, but I did get Opus Edition because I got on sale and pay monthly for. Is that bad? Just asking? Thanks ahead!

[@InventorZahran]

Another way to pause without leaving too much 'emptiness' is to use a complimentary or contrasting counterline to fill in the spaces between the main melodic phrases.

[@archangecamilien1879]

Another way is to compose instinctively, lol...by ear...I mean, if you have "good taste", you will probably do all this automatically...or not, lol, sometimes it might be better not to...

[@lordwillibur438]

Gotta get your reps in to grow those pieces

[@joshuadowling3930]

Love this video, do you teach/mentor composers privately?

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks! Yes check here for more info: www.ryanleach.com/lessons

[@The_Musical_Cartograph]

You look like you had a lot more sleep since the last vid ^^ You make great content, hope you're also taking care of yourself man :)

[@RyanLeach]

Ha, thanks. I think my Hungarian ancestors on my great-grandmother's side are to blame for the dark circles under my eyes!

[@petertremblay3725]

Always remember that no matter how you do it if it sound good then your good to go!

[@Jath2112]

Side note: you could be compared to Mr. Ballen... for music. You have a similar...storytelling to the camera... style. It genuinely helps just seeing you talk and following your gestures. Your videos are very engaging. I get....excited to try things. You are like a "favorite teacher". (Usually an English or History teacher...) ... cheers again.

[@mechanussunrise]

do you prefer to write on your computer or on the piano or keyboard?

[@RyanLeach]

I write mostly at the computer with MIDI keyboard, but I have an upright piano I'll use occasionally to hash out ideas or come up with basic sketches

[@mechanussunrise]

@@RyanLeach thanks! I've gone back and forth and sometimes wonder if id be more productive with one or the other

[@strikingtwice]

Ryan, I know the composer’s kinda out of the picture for obvious reasons, but would you ever entertain the idea of doing some skyrim “style” analysis and comp?

[@slikyviky]

Bro i have the oposite problem tried to make a 3 min ended up with a 10 minute musical piece

[@christopherheckman7957]

If you had kept it at REP, I'd have smashed the like button.

[@RyanLeach]

Violence against like buttons is not necessary

[@christopherheckman7957]

@@RyanLeach I've heard several KZbinrs use that expression.

[@Arycke]

@@christopherheckman7957 it was a joke man

[@christopherheckman7957]

@@Arycke Poe's Law, man.

[@Arycke]

@@christopherheckman7957 That's a phenomenon, man.I was clarifying for you.

[@dragon-id5uj]

shhhh don't tell nintendo! we don't need this guy getting a lawsuit for teaching us!

[@thestevegainesrockband]

Commercials? OK. Frequent commercials? Goodbye.

[@RyanLeach]

Oh wow yea that is the worst. I just used the default settings but I'm going through and turning the mid-roll off now thanks

[@lordlouckster2315]

That first example feels too repetitive to me. Trying to methodically improve a piece often doesn't work, because our logic and feelings don't match.

[@franciscoaragao5398]

The better “subscribe” I did. Você é mesmo bom.