Creating Good Melodies or, does that note fit?
A producer once told me in the middle of working on my album (titled Irrational and on sale at the WOMANROCK.com store), that what came out of my mouth was the most important thing on the album. I've taken that lesson to heart, and now that you know all about chords, we are going to take this lesson to discuss melodies - the icing on the cake! Most songwriters I know tend to write melodies naturally by singing what they hear in their head. While that is a great approach, this lesson will cover tools to help you expand beyond your standard tricks, and add to your melodic repertoire, plus at the end you'll have the chance to jam along with STING!

Does that note fit?
There are some basic rules of thumb you can use to determine whether a melody note works against a particular chord. Keep in mind, these are just guidelines to which there are some exceptions.

1. Notes that are in the chord (The Root, 3rd, 5th, 7th and any extensions included) will always sound "consonant" or pleasing.

2. Notes that are not in the chord, (2nds, 4ths, 6ths 7ths, 9ths 11ths and 13ths) but are in the scale*** will sound only slightly dissonant. Furthermore, these create melodic interest when used in passing, to and from chord tones. ***

3. Notes that are neither in the chord or in a related scale*** will sound very dissonant, but can create great tension and release in music, particularly when used in passing to and from chord tones. ***

**So what are these scales?
We covered the Major scale in Lesson 4, but there are hundreds of scales (probably only 10 that get used 90% of the time). Scales are the building blocks from which you can construct a good melody using the three basic principles listed above.

A good comprehensive list that shows which scales go with chords can be downloaded at one of my all time favorite music educators' site. Jamie Aebersol makes excellent instructional aids for musicians, and very nicely offers this scale syllabus for FREE! You will need Adobe Acrobat reader to see it.

Download Here:
http://www.aebersold.com

Rather than trying to learn every single scale at once, I have found it better to take them one at a time, and really get comfortable. We already did a bit with the Major scale in Lesson 4, so in this lesson, lets take another popular scale, and apply it to some chords. Once you've done this, you should be able to consult the Jamey Aebersol syllabus, and apply any of those scales to the chords you already know.


The Dorian Minor Scale and STING
Now, did you think I'd give you all this to do without something fun? Of course not. Try all the steps below against this song I found on a great little FREEBIE MUSIC SITE called www.worldjazz.ch. You will need a QuickTime plug in for your computer, or a way to play a MIDI File.

Download Here:
http://www.worldjazz.ch

Once you have the song, here's what you're gonna be jamming on:

The E Dorian Minor Scale
Corresponding Chord    Whole and half steps        Scale in E
E-7- or E-                         W H W W W H W       E F# G A B C# D

EX:

1. Play the scale on your instrument while singing the notes.
E F# G A B C# D. Then try moving it to other keys. Now try it against the song.

2. Play (and sing) the chord tones one at a time - this is called an arpeggio: E G B D E (and go backward too E D B G E). Now try it against the song.

3. Play (and sing) the Non Chord tones that are in the scale F# A C# and listen to them against the chord. Try playing them and the resolving to a chord tone. Now try it against the song.

4. Play (and sing) everything that's NOT in the scale: F G# Bb C D# and note how they sound against the chord. Try playing them and the resolving to a chord tone. Now try it against the song.

Have a great time with this. As always, I welcome your comments, questions and feedback.

Till next time-
Pi