TOP 10 COMPOSING HACKS!

These are my tips to make composing a bit easier; a bit easier to get started, a bit easier to find new ideas, a bit easier to develop those ideas.
The full performance of my piece Undula mentioned at 9:14 can be found on my 2nd channel at • Undula by David Bruce ...
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Hack 1 0:06 Collect Instruments
Hack 2 1:00 Sketching with Technology
Hack 3 3:08 Walking with a smart phone
Hack 4 3:46 Listening to very short clips
Hack 5 4:36 React to the choice of instruments
Hack 6 5:36 Using plugins
Hack 7 6:48 Two essential Books
Hack 8 8:00 Impose arbitrary restrictions
Hack 9 8:53 Games
Hack 10 9:14 Imitate something non-musical
Elaine Gould: Behind Bars:
www.amazon.com/Behind-Bars-De...
Blatter: Instrumenation and Orchestration:
www.amazon.com/Instrumentatio...
Hisokana Pianisuto
An amazing pianist I've worked with in the past, who now does fantastic piano arrangements of experimental rock and other music.
/ @sequoiasounds
Embrace the quirky brilliance of Not Right Music
/ @notrightmusic

[@johnnyboy1232]

I think I'll use #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, and #10. So thanks!!!!!!!

[@kirkwahmmet8406]

Johnny Music kid? lmao hey john

[@StefaanHimpe]

My hack would be to take a text (e.g. a poem that resonates with you) and try to "sing" it. The melodies you come up with can form the basis for a piece. By following the text you ensure there's an underlying structure/story/movement/logic - whatever you want to call it.

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Glad my suggestion was useful - great video!

[@DavidArdittiComposer]

I think you missed out the most obvious ‘hack’ (to me, at least), which is: build a library of sketches: brief or longer phrases and passages or ideas that are characteristic of you, but divorced from any particular project or instrumentation. These sketches form my wellspring: they are what I go to when I need to compose something, and need a starting point. I have so many, books and books, years’ worth, that there is usually something that fits, or can be adapted to fit the project in question. It’s a way of starting.

[@halasimov1362]

David Arditti Interesting could you elaborate on this a little? Are you talking song structure, progressions, or a list of other elements perhaps?

[@allegrovivace6806]

ooh I do that

[@brianjungen4059]

@@halasimov1362 I just write down an idea in my head, be it a chord progression, bit of a melody...anything. Often I will come back to it much later when subconsciously I’ve figured out what to do with it.

[@mosthatedminnesotan]

I do this all the time and have a very full "library" now, if you will. I find it useful in the sense that you can get the ideas down and out of your head; however, it can also be a detriment of sorts. A lot of the ideas lose the original context when you do this too often, and going back to them later, they feel out of place. You try to add to it, and it feels forced. A double edged sword in my opinion.

[@ninosawbrzostowiecki1892]

Oh god I have thousands of these mostly smartphone recordings 😅

[@waxmax001]

#1 collect instruments to improve your writing for them #2 sketching with technology => sculptural process #3 walking with a smartphone. catching ideas with audio recordings #4 listening to very short clips (2 secs): what's coming next? guess, use your imagination #5 react to the choice of instruments. each instrument has its characteristics #6 using plug-ins (other modes, reverse, etc.) #7 two essential books: *Blatter: Instrumentation and Orchestration *Elaine Gould: Behind Bars #8 impose arbitrary restrictions (e.g. odd time signitarues, only maj9 chords, 12 tone technique) #9 games #10 imitate something non-musical

[@sashaathanasia7464]

Hack: listen to some unfamiliar music at really low volume, so you can't really make out the melody, and allow your imagination to fill in whatever you're uncertain about. be sure to have a recording device on standby for note taking. (You can also do this by going into another room from the music source or running a loud machine in the vicinity to make it hard to hear). another one that i haven't used yet but i've heard of: play 2 pieces of music at the same time and see what the mesh and clash of them produces in your imagination. i also tend to get good ideas when i'm falling asleep or waking up. i ALWAYS carry a recording device with me. you never know when inspiration will hit.

[@teodorpeev1444]

Hey there, dear Mr. Bruce! I am 17 years old and compose since I am ten. I do not really possess a smartphone and have an old school one with a keyboard on my disposal, but it still has an audio recorder (pretty simple one, but does it). I wanted to mention that I am really happy about that you mentioned this hack I have been using the advantage of for years.

[@Bigandrewm]

Throw musical elements together that seem completely unrelated and make them fit together. It doesn't always work, but when it does, it can be magical.

[@DBruce]

something along those lines was going to be No.11!

[@Bigandrewm]

Cool! I haven't tried the "listening to very short clips" idea. Definitely going to play with it.

[@xLucio91x]

How would you suggest going about it? Could you give an example?

[@aiden_macleod]

Taking story writing hacks as an example, say there's street construction going on outside. Listen for the rhythms they make, (everything produces a rhythm of some type if we only listen for it) and create a simple bar of music utilizing that rhythm.

[@halasimov1362]

Awesome! This is sort of like the working within defined limits hack but more additive versus subtractive. I like this idea

[@JJBerthume]

Great points - especially the "what's next?" technique.

[@NotRightMusic]

!!! I was wondering why I had a boost of views and subscribers! Thanks David! I hope you continue Composing Hacks as a series. It's a fantastic and useful idea that can be pushed in many directions. Besides #9, my favorite here would be #10, "Imitate something non-musical." A simple one I would add is to get into free improvising as much as possible. Like meditation. Use it as your creative musical playground. Alone and with others.

[@DBruce]

That's great to hear you've had a boost! Sorry I should have warned you but I was busy last few days! Keep up the great work!

[@NotRightMusic]

You too. And I hope to hear a composition involving that hanging spring soon.

[@mckernan603]

What non-musical things have you imitated? I love Hack 10 too and have used it myself. Can you hear the church bells in the last three measures here? ;) kzbin.info/www/bejne/pnLan52ZrNKIqpI

[@allegrovivace6806]

Hmm I improvise a lot and record random ideas. However a lot don't really grow into any of my pieces.

[@Scott-zm3ip]

Something I do, which helps me to get and stay inspired is keep a composition journal. I regularly write about my difficulties and solutions when composing. This allows me to temporarily take my mind off of composing, if I am really stuck. I often find that, simply by writing about what is happening, I can come up with a solution, and inspire myself. It's kind of like I become my own teacher, and reach a more objective viewpoint on the problem. I also put a subject tag at the beginning of each entry, so I can search back through for solutions in the future.

[@yourboyskeeter]

I'm glad I'm not the only person who walks around with a voice recorder talking about chord progressions, lyrics and gibbering out melodies.

[@paulsaganski2070]

Tip #1. In school, education majors had to take techniques courses on all the instruments, but it was my thought that composition majors should do the same. Too many student composers end up writing parts that are somewhere between impractical and impossible to play.

[@GerardCousinsMusic]

The best hack for me is a deadline! gotta go now I've got a week to prepare 4 scores - help!

[@Krieghandt]

Abe Lincoln?

[@Tempusverum]

Sounds like he took philosophy class from Calvin and Hobbes.

[@MassiveBridge52]

How did it go?

[@GerardCousinsMusic]

Well, thankfully I was working with Jazz musicians so they could fill in any gaps!

[@chrissahar2014]

Yes, he forgot that one.

[@aiden_macleod]

I find that re-writing an existing piece of music, (changing the key, placement of chords, rhythms, and even tempo) can open new avenues of composing by analyzing what the original composer did and inventing new directions they didn't implement.

[@BillHilton]

Blimey, you've had your money's worth out of that copy of The Quincunx (fine novel, btw, if a bit baffling)

[@akf2000]

Just going through David's vids - bit sleepy and I read this one as 'composting hacks' with the cover image of a stack of sheet music being cut and thought 'ok, bit tangential but yeah that would create compost'

[@adamblock2577]

Wow, you water piece is amazing. Where can I hear it in its entirety?

[@Krieghandt]

Good composers borrow, Great composers steal. ;) I find simply reading titles of songs from other genres can bring out my imagination, without ever listening to the music.

[@BenjaminStaern]

That's a Stravinsky quote. :;D

[@Scroteydada]

And fantastic composers interpret

[@TheMikkis100]

That's not only Stravinsky quote, but a Steve Jobs, Picasso and T.S. Elliot quote. Every one of them have said it, which kinda proves their point, quote stealers!

[@BenjaminStaern]

Even Ingmar Bergman said someone like: If I see something great, I'll steal it!

[@jonassholmberg8071]

That's a great idea! I often come up with (imo!) suggestive titles while doing whatever, thinking "Ooh, this would be interesting to explore". Then I don't do it, but still, it's very creatively stimulating.

[@vincescuderi]

Alll good stuff, as always. Hack number 10 had special resonance with me, as I had a kind of double major in college, music and art. I found after completing an art assignment - visiting a major art museum - I would come home and just rip through my theory/composing assignments with ease. One discipline's stimulus feeding ideas for the other.

[@keithsparrow7717]

Agree with you about the usefulness of technology in showing new directions of development for a piece.

[@FranzKaernBiederstedt]

Something that helped me in some of my compositions was to draw a visual sketch of it before dealing with concrete pitches. Sometimes you get stuck in those little details like which note to use next, then you lose the feeling for a broader development of the piece on a larger scale, for its proportions and its energetic landscape. So in that case I find it useful to have such a sketch, which can contain visualizations of the textures of different sections, of the movements in tonal space, of density, activity, climaxes, retarding elements, remarks on instrumentation, playing techniques etc.

[@ninosawbrzostowiecki1892]

I had a few melodic ideas come to me during nightmares or as hypnogogic hallucinations I had during times of immense stress, depression or insomnia. These were sometimes accompanied by truly horrific imagery and the melodic ideas are quite mournful and uncanny. I’ve had this happen 11 times since early 2020. I wish I could have such musical ideas in my waking life.

[@Scroteydada]

In my school GCSE, we are taking the start of some piece a kid in another class did and building on it in different ways. Mine is best

[@pablobasstb]

I really love that your music despite being modern and conceptual still has several moods and atmospheres, unlike many other modern composers where their music sounds always scary and horror movie like.

[@mr88cet]

I really like your “what comes next” hack. It strikes me as a fantastic way to use others’ creativity to spark your own!

[@HighWideandHandsome]

I sometimes take a piece that I like and use it as a compositional model, intentionally imitating the voicings and whatnot, and then after the first few bars, it grows organically in its own way.

[@d3a1990]

David, you’re tips are priceless!! As is your channel! Thank you!

[@sbutler860]

Some very interesting ideas for us lower-range, small-budget composers. I have always trusted my ear - if it sounds good, I'll use it, regardless of whether it is theoretically 'correct' or not. But then, I am sitting in my living room in front of a computer with an overdraft and a small puppet for company. x

[@jericolozares8446]

I love your accent. It reminds me of my friend from England who I could talk about classical music with for hours. Now he’s in Tel Aviv. :,) Keep up the great work.

[@EclecticSceptic]

Your videos are so good man. Very informative, but accessible, and you have a very laid back way of speaking which I can listen to all day.

[@erka4646]

Just want to say that your channel is one of my favorites! As an average piano player (I hope I will improve though since I'm quite young) and amateur composer, I'd say 50% of my ideas come from number 2, I use musescore to write my music and without it I don't think I would have finished a single piece yet, because of my limitations in technique and knowledge. And I also love that feeling of discovery you speak of when writing this way!

[@normanfreund]

Reminds me of a hack I once used, random scale, put note names, naturals and sharps on paper snippets, throw them in a hat, draw randomly 8 (or some other number :) ), that is now your scale. Then compose music based on this.

[@megazoned3973]

Hack number 4 is something I do all the time. It’s almost involuntary. When I am listening to new music my brain races ahead in a what if manner. I immediately stop the music and go pick up a guitar to get the idea down. I probably have about 100 of these ideas. But I never actually finish anything which is why I’m up late watching KZbin videos. I guess my instincts are natural. I should just go for it. Thanks for this video.

[@peterblenko9081]

Thankyou !! This is the exact video I was looking for.

[@daisybetlej765]

Holy moly, thanks! Decided to use hack #4 immediately after watching and already have some good ideas brewing...

[@veejay5730]

David, just discovered your videos. I'm enjoying and I am glad to be here!

[@Symphing12]

Hello, David. I'm a Bassist. If you're looking for one, try for a plywood instrument. I'm in the US so I am not sure how this works in the UK, but here, those tend to be the starter instruments. They're relatively cheap too.

[@treehann]

Exactly the kind of video i was looking for! Tyvm

[@tripsichord]

Most of the time I'm totally lost, but I always glean one or two pits of helpful info...thank you.

[@veot.2869]

*Music storm.* I use it to generate creativity. First you do it by listening to a lot of basic music, maybe what you have heard before, then you wait for the cathartic release. This may take moments, hours or days. Then, map out by composing what you are starting to hear based on your subconscious renderings. *One-pointed listening.* Starts with listening to your imagination, then allowing it to manifest. I use it to hone in on focusing a piece or an album and thus give it a bridge from the beginning, middle and end.

[@mrewan6221]

For fact 1 (collect instruments): I've recently been given a saxoflute - a toy desgined for children. It has many segments to change the length of the tube. Three of them have finger holes. It has a fipple for a mouthpiece, but despite this (and its name ), it's a brass instrument. I've been experimenting with harmonics, and shorter or longer instruments. It has helped my understanding of how brass player play. (I'm a woodwind/keyboard player, and this had only been a theoretical understanding before.)

[@christiaandemarezoyens4720]

Hack #4 is how I usually find inspiration when I need to write something. Great tips, thanks! BTW, Undula is awesome! 👏🏼

[@jacobszekely4069]

Thanks David!!! Great as usual

[@Batvolt]

Great video and some great "Hacks". When I was a kid a hack was somebody who was washed up. What's funny is I live 5 miles from the David Bruce winery.

[@douglasthomson2986]

Some nice starting ideas. Thanks for this.

[@Euphman]

Appreciate your thoughts, David. Have to agree with these techniques!

[@Dhooparty]

Great tips! Walking with a smartphone is a very relatable one for me, I often end up writing small chord progression in my notes on my phone while I'm out.

[@DaGuys470]

I appreciate this video, it's really helped me out a lot with my current project.

[@brianmeiser4121]

I may not find David Bruce's music captivating, but instead find it weird, I still like his videos because his tips and guides are pretty helpful when it comes to the process of composing.

[@sebastianzaczek]

I feel like i really gotta get my hands on my school's Harpsichord and Bass Recorder

[@tdubveedub]

Hack #4! I used to do that when I was a kid; it still happens, though I frequently get surprises, especially with contemporary music. I deeply appreciate your instruction. As an autodidact, I employ many sources in my attempt to hone 'The Craft of musical composition'; your videos are among my most useful resources. BTW singing in a semi-professional choir was the best ear training I could ask for.

[@calebcreates8555]

Amazing Content!!! I'm inspired by your ideas and I'm going to compose something today haha!

[@pericologan]

Thank you very much David! I need to use all the hacks you mentioned! Kind regards.

[@philb4462]

Wow! I love Undula!

[@longschlongsilver7628]

The third one I can relate to a lot. I remember always whenever I walked to school, a melody would pop up into my head and I'd think "That sounds really good, I'll use it" given the current module in Music at the time was composing, but I never recorded them and would forget them the moment I walked on school grounds. It's a shame really, because now all those compositions that could've possibly made me the next Mozart or Beethoven or Tchaikovsky, are gone forever

[@MolnarPohdap]

All excellent ideas, thank you! I would add a third book: Henry Brant's _Textures and Timbres: An Orchestrator's Handbook_. This is not the typical orchestration method, giving ranges of instruments etc. Rather, it's a thorough study of how to fit the various instruments together for best balance and blend -- a topic too little dealt with in standard methods. After reading it, I promptly revised all my orchestral works! I now consider to be an absolute _must_ for any composer.

[@derekhummerston757]

Listening to short clips has just freed my writer's block, thankyou David. I was writing a piece, going nowhere, and then had a break and listened to poulenc's nocturne in c major. The final chords jumped straight into a space in my own song, so I basically stole them! changed the song completely, but all for the better.

[@SpaceWizardSupreme]

I found your piece 'Steampunk' (an absolutely fantastic piece!) ages ago - the video that's on your channel - but I was unable to find it again for some time, until I came across the Camerata Pacifica performance, then recently one of your newer videos came up in my recommended and I have now subscribed :)

[@sebastianzaczek]

No. 5 is one that i probably do the most, as, once i have a rough idea of what the piece should be about, i usually first choose the instrument(s) before writing any notes

[@rcjinAZ]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.

[@chrismeyers7487]

I like to make up a story, or some sort of movie scene/script idea in my head and try to score it

[@sprkymrt]

I enjoy doing this also; music for a grand ballroom, or perhaps a chase through a railroad yard with the strings suggesting the chugging of the engines; or maybe the Old West of cowboy country and suggesting the "open skies" of the territory with a wagon train starting on the way west. Lots of possibilities here.

[@wfly81]

It was such a relief to find out that you record different melodies and rhythms on your phone with your mouth. I do this all the time, and if anyone ever heard them, I'd be committed.

[@GaryGP40]

I have used Piston's Harmony for many years (almost 35) as well as his Orchestration. I have learned a lot from them. I will definitely check out your book recommendations though! I do tend to collect musical instruments too. I don't yet have a horn (I have played one however) and I find that playing them helps me learn the intricate nuances of each instrument. Your work is helping me put aside the daily drudgery and get back to composing. I have a choral piece I am working on so I may incorporate some of your hacks into my own writing. My mentor has a Ph.D. in music and is very encouraging. A good mentor or teacher is another good "hack". I am encouraging my brother to write more as well and explore musical creativity. Nice channel, Mr Bruce!

[@gemmachaos]

Hack 5 is brilliant. Will use for sure.

[@IconforShort]

These should be very helpful, thanks so much!

[@stevenlinden1638]

Hey, you've got The Quincunx on your shelf! An amazing novel that deserves to be better known! Wasn't expecting to see that in the background.

[@verandi3882]

I loved the piece Angela, really amazing

[@pussfacebusy297]

Very useful, thank you so much

[@LeMans512]

Brilliant!

[@rosiefay7283]

Great selection of hacks! To build on your no. 8: one good hack, I find, is imposing a restriction by removing something during *part* of a piece, to provide contrast. When you bring that thing back, it might introduce tension (by building the texture up) or release (by introducing the resolution of previous tension) or just variety (as modulation does). Examples: * instrument(s). E.g. an a cappella section in a work for accompanied choir * part of the range (e.g. introducing dramatic treble stuff over bass stuff, or dropping a bass under high-pitched stuff) * some pitch classes (e.g. modulation) * short-duration notes * all but a restricted choice of chords (to be resolved by cadencing in a new key)

[@TheNandato]

Amazing video, but can we talk about how adorable that lego piano bit was 😍

[@OumiKapilaMusic]

loved your piece

[@wangyiming3341]

that last piano piece was amazing so good

[@Hailey_Paige_1937]

I’m new here! This is one of the first videos I’ve seen of yours. I’m definitely going to check out your channel! Also, your piece “Undula” makes me think of Ravel’s “Jeux D’eau”. 😀

[@herrvonunknowngut7141]

Thank you very much for the video.:)

[@MadCowMusic]

that song at the end is crazy it could make a nice lead in for a dubstep drop

[@pobz100]

Great stuff

[@NeelDhar]

Great tips!

[@ewencousin]

wonderful!

[@domshov]

Nice hamming by DLP! Thanks David.

[@pipestud3corncobpuffer785]

Good video. Behind Bars just might be a book I pick up soon. I do have some off the net how to guides on writing notation, instrumentation, dynamics, etc. Unfortunately, don't own a computer just a smartphone and keyboard. I took a year of music theory so it's more of DIY approach. Written several pieces and have found that studying other scores is very useful with knowing range, rhythm placement and writing in the proper form. Also find a group of instruments you feel comfortable writing for. For example, if you have trouble with double bass or trumpet use cellos, French horn and trombone instead. Writing chamber music or for small orchestra might be the way to go. Knowing Viola clef has really helped with bridging the gap for instruments that can go from high to the lower range. My motto is simple time, simple keys, simple rhythms, rich harmonies. Thanks for the videos. They're a godsend for us amateurs.

[@horseenthusiast1250]

I’ve never composed before (as I’m not very good at reading sheet music, much less reading it), and I’ve been feeling inspired lately after learning guitar (and feeling like I should get back to choir, violin, percussion, and piano). I think I’m going to read Behind Bars soon.

[@MrRightThinker]

the best idea Listen to lots of folk music of all cultures. and copy those tunes to our compositions partly or fully !

[@petervanderwaart1138]

A combination of #4 and #10: Back in the early 1960s, I heard a talk by Samuel Barber in which is described how the seminal idea for a movement in his piano concerto was what he heard when he dragged a stick over the top of a woodpile while hiking.

[@adenneuwirth]

Undula sounds amazing

[@LuukSwinkels]

I am a composer as well. You can check my channel iff you like. Sorry if you dont like these kind of advertisements.

[@dirkstrickland135]

I really want that wine. David Bruce produces the finest wine at the competitive price range.

[@vittoriomelon4331]

I love jazz music and I keep learning more and more on what swing is! I think that you are correct in many ways. I would just add that it is also common practice for jazz players to feel the movements 2 and 4 in a bar with a strong accent. On 3/4 time signature the movements 2 or 3 can be stronger... It is usually thought to clap the foot on those movement and practice this way. The swing ratio is important too but it's more a personal choice and matter of taste...I would guess. Rythmic superimposition is also common practice and whenever possible keep the swing going and the accents on the up beat 😂. It's additionally possible to play laid back (by being slightly late on the beat )or forward (?).... I am not sure about the correct English term for it but it means being slightly anticipating the beat).

[@pete4ism]

A bit late to the party but composing contrafacts is a great way to get the ball rolling. Take the changes of a Bach partita or a jazz standard etc. and impose your own melody. Then, if you see fit, you can adjust the harmony to your liking.

[@jacobbritton7359]

These are all great tips! Thankyou Mr. Bruce

[@LuukSwinkels]

I am a composer as well. You can check my channel iff you like. Sorry if you dont like these kind of advertisements.

[@jacobbritton7359]

@@LuukSwinkels Don't worry about it! I understand, any chance you have is a chance to get yourself noticed. Your music sounds very nice. I really enjoyed Play de la Vida. Keep it up!

[@NicolasGarciaLieberman]

As a lover of repetitive music, one of my basic tools for composing is my loop station. That piece of technology I always find helps me out of "composer's block". Many times what I make on the loop station doesn´t seem like something that would appear in a "classical" piece of music, but then the job is figuring out how to actually get away with it... Or just using it as it is anyway!

[@user-kp5kg5dl8h]

Wow, the first hack was one that I just sort of was drawn to after trying orchestration for a while. I realized my dream would be to collect instruments and become acquainted with them

[@heavynov]

Damn it, David, I'm a bit of an instrument hoarder and you've just given me another excuse :D Jokes aside; thank you for the video! By the way, is there any chance of you making a video on what you consider "must-reads" for a composer?

[@Schwallex]

Excellent tips. In the spirit of giving something back, here's mine: type "bow hold" in the search box above this video. :-D Like OMG, David, that bow hold. RIP. And I don't even play the violin. Never saw one up close in 40 years.

[@Unus1Mundus]

My go to book is Principles Of Orchestration by Rimsky - Korsakov. Highly recommended.

[@alexh1687]

Undula is amazing !

[@KaruveliRaSaMahendran]

Thank you very much..

[@neilwalsh3977]

I think that 'don't use the piano caveat' is a very, very silly idea. Great video!

[@simonkarakulidi984]

Mr. Bruce, thank you for your videos, I can’t find any recording or score of this great piano piece of yours that you talk about in this video. Can you help me with that?

[@thatoneguy7359]

Woah life hacks that are actually helpful