Star Sword

"It worries me because there's a part of all this that just 'talent' beyond studying and hard work. Not everyone has it, and this entire thread has made me question if I really do have it enough to produce at a high level. I won't give up, but It's been very hard for me to push forward in this lately."

@Louis Calabrese I should post you works from 2014 I did..so that you see how I was back then...it is not your lack of talent..believe me. I can understand that sometimes it feels so stony that you come up to that conclusion. Believe me I was and sometimes do that to..but I believe thats wrong. Just take time..there is no shortcuts..it takes fucking time..and time..Mike said that to me to..and he is right..

 

You are lucky to hear on me, otherwise I would be a pissed dog

 

Hey Louis here is a shitty music example me trying in 2014 to write an AABA Form with some Williams kind of stuff which completely failed. See that? Hope that makes you more motivate to see what shitty music I had written back then. Production value was also in the basement. Here we go I don´t share the shit normally, but here I feel we all need to share shit to make sure that we all do and did suck which is completely normal. Hear all that woodwind runs in the piece? man...and all that trying to say something but I got stuck into nothing and I wasn´t able to lead with my idea somewhere ..just repeating over and over with no end and no development. But what can I say..man..suck level at its best!!!

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1p2upgfmgzm33sn/Back_in_Time_VTM_Vintage_2.mp3?dl=0

 

It is not working in terms of what Louis wants also to learn and to work on: If you reduce that piece for 2 handed piano..its has a lot of issues also in voice leading and development. And it has literally no "red line" throughout the piece and I DIDNT sketch anything out before on piano.. I was trying to write a way over my capabilities but not realising that. So what I did is "reboot" my system and start from scratch. That meant in particular trying to learn how to write simple AABA themes on the Piano. Don´t let you blend or fool by the orchestration in the track..please..maybe there are some tits and bits of cool sounding bars but thats it..it makes not great coherent piece of music.

 

Yes, I tried back in 2014 too, but I wasn´t that good. By posting that example I just want to explain and show that everything takes time and practise. Sure everybody has a different starting level.

What is your goal? Are there any music or composers how you love? I think a big part of learning is "to repeat" things. So for instance, lets say I love Back to the future from Silvestri. So how I approach trying to write something similiar from the vibe?

1. I listen to the score a couple of times.
2. I pick out one track, lets say the maintheme
3. I look at the structure, what is real A part, what is real B and what are so called "transition modulations" for excitement.
3. Then I try to transcribe the melody and the chords first and see why certain melodies and progressions are working: DO that. It is good ear training!
4. Then I start sitting down and I am writing a melody which is similiar and in the same key over the same chord progressions first.
5. I play around with that practise trying out different melodies to understand what anchors in the melodie tones are real outliners of the harmony or just passing notes in order to comprehend the why did Silvestri went by these tones and chords.
6. I do that for a couple of days to internalize the stuff, so I learn all of those progressions in my head.
7. And then I try to write a motif based on this progressions.
8. I experiement and altering sometimes one chord to see what the difference can cause. I experiment with borrowed chords and short modal interchanges to "hide" the obvious heritage.
9. BY repeating 1-9 over months..you start to develop and internalize "a style" and you start to make your little more own things out of that which do reference the typical original but are not just copycats.

I dont know but did you ever did something like that?

I do that with Works from Silvestri, Williams, Horner, also pop tunes from the 80s, Gospel Church music, also Mikes Music..E.g. I can play you dead through the races main motif in complete. I have that theme internalized in my mind, on my hands, I can write you a "version" of that. I learned all of Mike 12 Modulations, did you? Try them. They teach you a lot. You know..I am not saying: Hey look how cool I am, but trying to give you some answers why I progressed in my music since 2014. And I think a huge part of that is not that I am such of talented guy, I think because I am very hard-working, sometimes I feel more than others. I don´t say that this would work for you, every body has a different learning curve, but for me I understood pretty quick that I have to practise and repeat a lot to learn. Imo you can compensate other peoples natural talent by beeing dedicated. If you are able to live that attitude on a constant level through a couple of years you will make steps forwards I guarantee you that. I tell you that I believe most people fail because this working schedulde and working ethic is too uncomfortable PLUS not everybody is able to work like that because of other things like a regular job, family duties. SO there is the thing of decision of life. what is your goal? What would be possible for you considering your single case. I don´t know any background so this you have to answer for yourself.
Why is a thomas Bergersen so good in what he is doing? Because he busted his ass off...like there is no tomorrow..why is Mike Verta such of a allrounder composer and be able to write on a level of almost "John Williams"? Because he did and still do bust his ass off while others go to party he sits probably at home and plays the indians Jones theme in all 12 keys and modulates the hell out of it. Yeah..somewhere there is the truth for me: There are people how are insanely having the need to be outstanding in something and so they get nervous when they don´t practise one day on their craft. I don´t say that this practise is healthy at all. You need to make sure to have a balance in life.
For me for instance I try not to get insane with that. I have sessions where I start at 7 in the morning and at 10 in the evening I look at the damn clock and feel there is something a bit wrong with me..so I stop. But that happens not that often.

 

Thank you for the infos.

Short thing regarding talent (just my opinion of course):

It is of course not all talent! Talent is a good factor but ..most people are not beeing succesful not because of lack of talent but because of lack of the right working ethic and the way how they learn / practise. = This is my opinion based on a few experiences in my life. So this is nothing scientific here. I would say that of course talent exists for sure, and talented people have it easier to achieve things..but I see that the right working ethic is often underestimated and often this " I have a lack of talent reponse" is used for the reason to be safe. Having said that: Imo you can compensate quite a lot by beeing dedicated. It probably won´t make you a caliber of a John Williams without any talent but it will bring a descent amount of distance closer to him.


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