This week we began to incorporate our ideas for section B into our actual composition. My initial ideas were a lot different to what I decided to go with eventually, however I Kept the same chord progression as I felt that it fit well with section A. I learnt how to make a tempo marking on Sibelius, which means that I can change the tempo whenever I feel, even in between sections if i really wanted to! This benefited my song as I put the tempo up by 20bpm and it sounded so much better than it being at 100bpm. After learning this, it gave me a good insight as to how to add dynamic markings and crescendos later in the project as the tempo settings are in the same place.
For both section A and B, I added a melody part to at least one of the string instruments. I used fairly simple ways of creating a melody, like the use of diatonic passing notes and neighbour notes to make the composition sound more fluent. I used different intervals between the notes, however keeping them quite close together so there are no big jumps in intervals. This gives the melody good transitions and makes the whole composition much more exciting. As well as this, I created a pedal note on the bass in the B section. This sustained note works well with the chords I am using and I feel like it works because not every note has to change all the time; it is sometimes better to keep it simple.
As well as melody, I also started to work on rhythm. When combined with each other, it creates a great piece of music that the strings can play, with the violins harmonising with each other and the viola playing something different over it. In terms of rhythm, I kept it quite simple. Trying to get rid of as many semi-breves as I could, I replaced them with minims, crotchets and quavers. When I am working further on the rhythm in the strings, I want to use triplets, dotted notes and perhaps even semi-quavers here and there.
So the song can be more interesting and I can do more with it, I definitely need to extend the composition. This includes making both section A and B longer so they are around a minute-thirty each as this is the recommended time for both sections. As of now, both of my sections are just over the one minute mark, meaning I need at least 8 bars to get around the minute-thirty time. As well as this, I can expand the composition by making both an intro and an outro, which should both be at least 30 seconds long. By doing this, I will have the time to make new melodies and just generally make it more interesting.
After exporting the audio file and PDF, I realised that I had done the chord progression for section B incorrectly. I was meant to write a sequence that goes V ii V ii, however, I ended up writing a chord V throughout for some reason. Even though it still sounds OK, I am planning to change this when I next get time to work on it, as the chord progression I want is much better and it adds depth to the piece, other than it being just one chord through it all.
Overall, I am really enjoying making this composition as I have full creative freedom over what I want it to sound like and I am looking forward to the end product. I am gaining a good grasp on Sibelius now like how to input things easier and add tempo markings. I am also happy with the melodies and rhythms I made for both the strings and piano as it sounds much more enjoyable to listen to now, compared to last week.
Targets For Next Week
-Finish both sections A and B.
-Correct the chord sequence in section B.
-Extend the composition and create more rhythms and melodies.