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Pan flute melody composing Part 2

Okey , here is the second part of the tutorial about shaping your own ideas , how to get an understandable approach to create your own melodies.

In part 1 I discussed about the scales degrees, or note degrees, and how they relate to each other, did you notice that some Roman numbers where written in capitals while others in small text?, this is done intentionally for a reason I ii iii IV V vi vii*

In a major scale, triads are built from the root note, if you stack thirds above each note, you will get minor chords and major chords on each degree, capital  letters stand for a major chord and the small ones for a minor chord, the seventh degree vii* is a diminished chord, a little different from the other because it contains a diminished fifth giving the chord a very dissonant sound.

In a melody, which should fit the harmony , this aspect works the same, I IV V give a sense of ending and a sense of weight, while ii iii vi and vii* are usually played in the offbeats or joining the other notes in between.

The other characters

As I said before , there are no rules, but this approach can give you a sense where the melody is progressing, let’s talk about these other degrees.

ii is a major second in the major scale, this interval is sometimes used as a substitute for I or V, it wants to resolve to iii though, it can be quite versatile, generally if played at the end of a phrase, it won’t sound as strong as I , IV or V, in fact it can go to V or iii, but used between the main notes to join in the offbeats, it serves as a smooth connection to the overall pattern, let’s call it a hyphen ( – )

iii is a major third, has a bit more weight than a major second, in fact it’s a consonant interval, in can function pretty well at the end of the phrases, also, playing major thirds up and down, create arpeggios which is a good way to fill new patterns. Iii blends well with IV, it wants to resolve to IV , let’s call it a slash (/)

vi, this one is a major sixth, but it’s a bit tricky, because it implies a change of key, a change of mood, when you play a major sixth, the listener will automatically fill the minor feeling of a minor scale, because the vi degree of a major scale is the first note of the relative minor scale, it works great when a minor chord is played, because it blends perfectly with the theme.

You can use it to shift the color of the melody, often in the section B or that section where the listener wants to hear something completely different, if you play a third after this degree you will be playing a minor third instead, reminding the minor scale.

Vii* finally , this is the seventh degree, this one is the most dissonant one, it strongly wants to go to I, you can go to any other degree of course, but it generates a tension that it needs to be released sooner or later, going through the other degrees ( ii, iii and vi) is a way to keep on building tension, don’t linger too long, here is where the climax usually occurs , if repetitive , the listener will feel confused. Let’s call it a scribble (~~)

Having explored the notes of a major scale can help you understand where the melody is leading, which is crucial to let know the listener about the story you are trying to convey, because after all writing a melody is like writing a text, you want to add details, you want to put commas, and stops and you want to give the paragraph a quality of being whole and sense, you want to keep someone entertained, and as like any text, punctuation rules are needed.

Experiment and tell me about your results and observations.

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Easy Approach to Pan flute melody composing Part 1

Composing melodies may seem far beyond the reach of pan flute students or players who have just started but with an interesting approach and exercises, it can be an interesting and creative way to develop your ideas, your own music and sound.

There are no rules, or magic formula to make great, catchy simple amazing melodies, but an exercise like this or approach helps you to get you started , it’s not an end, but the means to an end, bearing this in mind is important for a good result.

Melodies are based in structures and all of them follow a cycle of tension and release, it is what it keeps the listener entertained, when the listener expects a change you include a repetition , yet when your listener expects a repetition you used something to contrast it, this is the challenge and the technique that has been used for so long in so many styles.

Before approaching to compose your own melody or idea, I think it’s useful to lay out a structure and to write visually how the melody develops over time.

The smallest element of a melody is called motif, a motif can compile many notes in one bar, they are very often no long than one bar.

This could be a simple motif , several motives develop into a phrase, and several phrases develop into a period

Notice how the next motif derives from the previous, this is called variation, because we vary certain elements, such as the contour, the rhythm, and some pitches

So with this elements taken into consideration, we can start composing our melody or idea.

1. Start choosing which key your melody will be in ( mine is G major)
2. Pick the rhythm and time signature ( here 4/4 )
3. Define the contour, rhythm and notes of your first motive
4. Analise them visually as you continue developing motives to see how they connect each other, giving a sense of flow, when you think you can give a stop or ending to the period, very likely you will end in the tonic note of the scale

In here, I have used a change in the contour, rhythm and varied some notes , but notice how we end in G, the tonic of the scale, this ensures the listener feels and end to the periods, as well as expecting a beginning.

Notes degrees

Instead of addressing notes by its name, it’s easier for players to address them as degrees as in classical music, or as if we were composing the harmony for the tune, with chords. So from now on , instead of thinking of G A B C D E F# G…. think of them as I ii iii IV V vi vii*, you will understand why, an explanation of this degree naming is based on chord harmony theory, triads, chords are built from the root notes, the note the lowest on the chord, every degree as its own function within the scale, the same in a melody, I is the tonic, V is the dominant and IV is the sub-dominant.

Every degree has its own weight, let’s call it, or its own colour, and they are like magnets tugging at each other, you can hear how some notes wants to resolve to other ones, just like with chords.

I is the tonic, we call it “home” because this is the strongest and easiest way to resolve any tension created with the melody, any phrase ending on the tonic, will create a sense of ending, as well as a sense of a different beginning.

V is the dominant, it has a strong tendency to resolve to the tonic , it can also be used after or before IV, V creates a sense of ending, but it’s like a stop at the end of a phrase, it’s not a full ending.

IV is the sub-dominant , it creates a sense of ending, more like a comma, like a pause, IV has a strong tendency to go to V.

After all this explanation, you can play and experiment, try ending the phrases in this notes or degrees, this will depend on the key of the song naturally, in the key of G, these notes would G C and D, if you pay attention to your ear, you will hear the relation between these degrees, like a cycle, play notes out of your own ideas, and end the phrases in I, V or IV, you will see that the tonic will be where all tension rests and makes starts a new cycle, V will release the tension created by IV, and IV will add some minor tension but it can also add a temporary rest, not as strong as V or I, think of them as:

I = A final stop and a new paragraph

IV = a comma within a verse

V = A full stop of a phrase.

After having understood this approach to understand how the notes of a scale relate to each other and how they are involved in creating the cycle of repetition – contrast, tension – release of any melody, you will find easier to give a shape to your ideas.

The other degrees: ii, iii, vi,  and vii* have their own function too, but for today there is enough information to grasp, in the next post I will explain how to work with these other degrees.

Experiment and keep your interest alive is a must for everyone to enjoy the subtleties of creating and playing a good melody.

Go to part 2

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I stumble upon with many videos about pan flute, sometimes I come up with good great performances.

Intervals on your Pan flute

Pan flute like any other woodwind works in intervals, or the distance between the notes to create a melody, however, this is specially true and emphasized in a pan flute, why?, because you have to move your instrument and head to reach the notes, unlike a flute or a sax where just the fingers are involved, see the importance of this? no pan flute player can become a pro if he is not yet to master the art of accurately being able to hit every note with the correct tone and tuning by playing large intervals.

What is it an interval?

It’s the distance between two notes.
Every interval has its own name, no matter if the notes are ascending
or descending, the interval is the same, learning this will be of great
value to you as it can help to familiarize yourself with your instrument
quickly, the pipes are arranged in a distance of a second interval by
default in a pan flute, therefore , if you are to play a major third, you
should skip one pipe, see the utility of this?
Unison, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Octave
Intervals can be major or minor any major interval which has been
lowered a semitone becomes minor
Unison, Minor/Major Second, Major/Minor Third and so
on….

Look at this:

Thirds , fifths and sevenths are always one-line notes or space notes:

Seconds, fourth and sixths and octaves are always one-line note and one-space note:

Traditionally you would take the keyboard of a piano, or arrange the
notes in order and then count, including that note, for example. The
interval between C and A in a major scale is a major sixth, you count
C,D,E,F,G and A a sixth
Quite simple really, but this stuff will really help to move across the
pipes because here is the trick:
to play a major second , be it ascending or descending major or
minor you don’t skip any pipes….to play a major third, you skip one
pipe…
Here’s a table to help you remember how the musical intervals are
related to the pipes along the instruments, it’s all in the order

Whether the interval is diminished, augmented or minor, it doesn’ t matter, the rules applies the same

The practice

When playing a melody, you wil come up with random sequences of notes, each of them separated by an interval, it’s crucial for you to familiarize how many pipes you will skip in order to go to the next note, mastering this ability will make progress and learn to play song much easier, it’s a logical approach rather than just figuring out where the notes correspond, also a mirror will be of great help too.

An exercise like this, that’s to say involving large intervals is quite a challenge, but well rewarding

that should keep you on practice for a while, until then have fun with your pan flute.

Pshh, this post was extracted from one of the chapters on my e-book, if you liked this lesson, I would give it a look to the whole book to learn everything you want to know about pan flute.

go to have a look

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Silence

It is quite ironic coming from someone who likes to make music saying I want silence in my life, yes I do, because I know that silence is precious, like time and food and air and water, it is in silence when I have the most rewarding insights, it is in silence when I feel most alive, in the beginning there was silence, before anything comes to existence, there is silence, silence should be sacred, in the end there will always be silence, in a melody it is in the rest where the interest and the character of an artist is engraved, think of when you stand at a crossroad in a busy road full of traffic and roadworks, silence is needed in this world full of unwanted noises and words, listening is more rewarding than talking, and when you talk with someone , it is in the gaps of silence where the conversation lays , you can hear the silence, silence is a rare thing nowadays
I like to wake up a bit early because in the morning, before the city wakes up , that little bit left of silence is just a gift.
At least for one minute make sure there is silence in your day

Gratitude

Gratitude comes unnoticed so easily, how comes? I think I can’t , I am unable to remember everything happened for a single day, but as time goes by, I remember most of it, and these tiny things are like drops in a bucket, what you say, do, think, don’t do, don’t say will be one bucket one day, maybe after a month a year and a lifetime, there is never too many times to say thanks, there is always something to be thanked for, maybe just for today , but think if that will be there in year’s time, do you see yourself enjoying that in time?, at least say thanks you will be remembered as a thankful person, you will be offering gratitude.

Courage

Later on , I have found that courage gives enourmous peace, fear only makes you feel more fearful, more afraid, but if you jump to the unknown, if you take the courage you have, then a sensation of peace follows as if it wasn’t that bad, I heard once “you will regrett the things you didn’t do not the ones you did”, that’s true, you live with your choices, but every moment is a fresh start, you write it as you go along but you can’t erase, you never know when the time is over, everything else is just excuses, you won’t have more courage or will be more ready than you are now, if you have to wait , wait, but make sure the courage have erased all the fears away.

Simplicity

I want my surroundings to be simple, so I can understand them, simple is complex, getting rid of something every day is an act of simplicity, leaving a gap free is an open door to something new, as your life gets simpler and simpler, the very basics come to the surface and what it seemed complex at one time, it’s now so plain and simple.

These four things, I want them and I am glad to have them, these are the true important things behind every person’s needs and desires, this is what one looks for and why we strive most of the time in this world, like going round in circles when it’s all so simple, sometimes it doesn’t seem so, that’s true, but in the end, as time goes by everything is reduced to the basics, what it seemed far and distant becomes now and here, have you said thank you? can you listen to the silence? did you have the courage? was it simple?

Alex

I just realized today that many of the ideas I play every now and then come and go, and some of them can be a good source to be developed later on.

Here is my approach to create and shape your ideas into song. First of all , if you know how to read and write music, it’s a big advantage to your work, if you don’t , not to worry, just make sure you write them down in a way that you can play it back.

Write down in a blank sheet music paper

I have found that, writting the chords and put the melody after is the approach which works mostly and for most people, however you can do it the other way round, but personally I think, melody is hard to develop if you don’t have a base or foundation to lie on, like a chord progression.

So, I suggest to write a chord progression in a blank sheet music paper first, choose the key and tempo, choose the theme and try to stick to your idea, don’t worry about seeing any music at this stage, the song is developing.

It could be a progression like this: A Bm7 C#maj E7 for the first four bars, I start laying a chord progression, trying to keep it simple, usually in 4 bars and in a 16 bars page, the good thing about this , it’s that you can edit it as you go.

After you’ve created the chord progression, you can start laying down the notes, which will be your melody, you may have a melody first, however I have found that very often ideas morph and change as you work along, so be versatile and ready to modify the original source.

Some rules to take in consideration.

These are some rules of thumb every musician knows at some point,

• Don’t play a minor third over a major chord, you will get a very dissonant sound if that is what you are after.
• Same goes the other way round, don’t play a major third over a minor chord.
• Try to match or make a close rhythm which fits with the chord rhythm, if the melody is fit in 8th notes rhythm, your chords should be a bit longer, or the same rhythm, it depends on what you are after, but try to keep it simple.
• Improvising with pentatonic scales and the scales of that chord being played is a safe bet to get a harmonized melody
• Make sure your phrases has a beginning and ending, playing a V chord or I is the simplest way to it.

Take your time

You may have been working some time in developing your idea for your song, and found that you are not getting that sound you were looking for, or just want to sound different from the usual, take some times and come back to your saved song when you get new ideas, ideas come and go often, some it’s worth catching them others just don’t serve your purpose but they may be quite good in other keys or situation.

Improvise

What I like to do some time, is to create a chord progression and improvise along, it’s interesting the different themes you get, depending on what chord you use, there are many available, and if you give first a structure to what you are trying to play, the song itself develops, whether others like or not, that’s a different story and it goes out of any creative endeavour my friend, do your stuff without worrying, enjoy your music while it lasts.

I know there are lots of healthy advice and info nowadays, but there must be a reason for that, people are hungry for it, hungry, no pun intended.

While you may or not want to include these in your life, I am sure there is some benefit you can take off them.

It is well-known that body and mind are connected, this is not whishy-washy stuff, everyone knows you mind has to be clear if you want your music to be soft and clear.

Early rise

It is not always easy to wake up early, let alone the fact our daily jobs and ruts, and so on, but starting by organizing yourself and spending less time at night doing the things you usually do, skip them for once and leave them to do in the morning, you will see the difference, re-program your internal clock,it is in the morning time when the body is clean and fresh and empty like a vase, all excesses from yesterday have been purged and we wake with new energy, or at least this is the way you’re supposed to wake.

In the morning, the mind is at its clearest point, you can focus easily on your ideas, also, look at the window, and see what tone the day is in, this can give you ideas about what to compose next, maybe it’s raining and grey, try including a minor scale, it’s sunny and looking bright, something happier maybe. Morning is the best to practice as well.

Food and Drink

I am not going to talk about food or drink choices , but it is good to know that these don’t mix well while playing, first it’s the cleanliness issue, some instruments are quite expensive, if drinks are spilt, well, you can figure out the results, I wouldn’t let any drop of wine or whatever drink on my pan flute, it will spoil the surface as well as the voicing if i gets inside the pipes.

While you are playing you want to stay away from any eating or drinking, specially caffeine or stimulant drinks, as this has an effect in the mind, making it difficult to focus or concentrate though the main believe, caffeine doesn’t help concentrate or gives a boost of energy, it just wears you down. Also food, even if it’s a healthy piece of fruit, it’s an stimulant added to the body, specially if late at night, so I think it’s best not to drink or eat anything at all, there is a time for eating and there is a time for playing.

Kick off Smoking

This is specially true for woodwinds players, smoking reduces the capacity of your lungs drastically making it really hard to play a whole passage entirely without taking a break/breath again, if you are not a woodwind player, the fact is not much different though as, again, smoking stimulates and quicken the pulse, making you feel alert and unfocused,there are incredibly resources nowadays for those who still want to quit, if you don’t want to quit, make sure you don’t smoke while playing, though you won’t believe it, there are many folks who smoke within the field.

Have a walk

Sometimes when you’re practicing you don’t get the results you were expecting, and that’s fine, or you may be in the middle of a song or composing, and have just run out of the next idea, it’s wise to take a break in the form of a brisk walk, you may get new ideas and your body will have the time to disconnect and stretch.

Meditation, Yoga and Calm

You will be quite amazed if you start practicing or playing your next jam after a relaxing session, be it in a spa, yoga center, or just after a meditation in your own home, if you don’t know how to meditate, you can sit down, close your eyes, and leave your thoughts pass by in your mind, feel calm and play soft music, after a session like this, again, the mind is clear and productive, you will play relaxed and easy, and you will feel that ideas flow easily in your head.

Basically, the idea, is create the right conditions for you, starting in your body and mind, since music comes from within you, what do you think will sound best? a polluted body and stimulated mind or a clear mind and  simple fit body?.

Leave your comments below if you know more healthy choices and tips for us musicians

I just thought today it would be useful to share some of the stuff I know about tuning your pan flute in the scale you like.

I tuned mine the other day to A major, because I like the mood of F#minor, this is a personal choice though, a pan flute in the key of G, it’s usually the standard and it’s what most folks are used to hear, if you want to switch to the minor sound of E minor, that’s great, specially for Celtic tunes.

One thing I stumbled upon a year ago, it’s a little fancy tool , really useful, a program designed to tune a shakuhachi, which it did the trick for me, it’s basically a simple accurate tuner that it works with a mic input and it tells you whether your note is sharp or flat.

http://www1.ocn.ne.jp/~tuner/tuner_e.html .

You can use a standard chromatic tuner, a gadget, I have personally found them too expensive for what you get, as the built-in mic they come with is pretty cheap, best source is to rely on your ears.

I am going to give you some instructions about what to do to tune the pipes to other scales, however I must tell at first to be careful, modifying the original tuning of your pan flute is not harmful at all, you can always tune it back to default, but the stoppers are delicate and if you insert sharp or pointed objects in them, you may pierce them , making a leak of air, and getting no sound at all.

I am assuming your pan flute is tunable, some aren’t, Romanian pan flutes are usually tuned with beeswax, and they come with special stick to add or remove wax, but some pipes , come with rubber plugs, this means they are tunable by moving the stoppers up or down.

If you have just taken a pan flute, I recommend you to stick to the normal tuning first, and then experiment in other keys later on.

a wooden dowel is the perfect tool to move the plugs up or down

As you can see in the picture on the left, the stopper found at the base of every pipe, it’s the piece responsible for retaining the column of air and making the pipe resonate, also it’s what it gives the pipe the corresponding note along with the length and diameter of the pipe of course.By moving the stopper up, the pitch goes sharp, moving it down will make it flat.You may want to use a wooden dowel, don’t use a pencil, a pen or something with a point, the stoppers can be easily pierced or damaged.

1. Start blowing and put the wooden dowel inside touching the stopper, as you blower push it up and you will immediately hear the pitch going up, keep going until you hear the desire note,the same goes for the flats.
2. If you using your ears, it’s recommended to use a external source, like someone playing the same note in another instrument, after all, this is what being in tune is, to sing, or play the same exact frequency, concert tune or concert pitch A4 440 hz is just a standard tuning in western music used widely, there is however another tunings, which gives different colours.
3. If you are using an app or program then keep on pushing until the needle gives the exact note, not very sharp or flat.
4. If you are using your computer, it’s recommendable to use a decent microphone so the input is clear and the reading is accurate, make sure there are not noises around.

The good thing about tuning your pan flute to a certain key, is that it gives more possibilities, some songs have just too many flats to constantly making flats in the usual technique, so I encourage you to experiment. You will notice that some times you want to stick back to your old tuning, then some day you fancy something more jazzy or maybe a harmonic scale, or an exotic scale.Experimentation is a really creative juice.

1. I have found that spending an evening on my own playing music is more filling than going out drinking with my friends
2. I have found that gazing a sunset five minutes a day is something many rich men don’t do and I can get it for free
3. I have found that I the things I own are not what it makes me who I am but what I make out of them
4. I have found that everything in life counts, even the smallest simple things and very often , these things are what it tops the day off
5. I have found that if you don’t go ahead with your goals today you will regret it later at some point
6. I have found that most people find success but most most quit just when they are nearly close to the finish line
7. I have found that what you find it too expensive to get today could be one of your best deals in 5 years ahead
8. I have found that silence is more rewarding than talking, silence speaks if only you are willing to listen.
9. I have found that discovering what you can do equals discovering yourself
10. I have found that what others think of what I do is not my business at all
11. I have found that answers are everywhere , it’s just that I choose the trickiest questions.
12. I have found that help always comes , you just have to help yourself and wait a little bit.
13. I have found that everyone is an artist and everyone can and makes good music, you just have to let go of your picky intellectual mind.
14. I have found that time is still running even when you are busy planning ahead
15. I have found that most things you worried about in your life, they never happened anyway
16. I have found that simple things are the most fulfilling in all sense
17. I have found that trying what you are afraid the most is the best vacation for your excuses.
18. I have found that what I am doing today will be probably be doing it at some time but in a very different way.
19. I have found that if you want to be original you have to stop thinking how cool you can be to others
20. I have found that the best ideas are rarely shared by the others even if you give them out freely
21. I have found that abandoning your dreams for the sake of an income every week is murder in its utter sense
22. I have found that trading your time for money is a real luxury none can afford in the long run.
23. I have found that you are the only person in this universe who can do the things you think cannot do, and only you know how to
24. I have found that trusting yourself is the best backup you’ve been looking in others.
25. I have found that the only way to pick yourself up is forgetting how you fell first.
26. I have found that to truly get  , you give out first and forget, then some day someone reminds you.
27. I have found that looking good can get you by pretty well for a while, after five minutes you have to think of something.
28. I have found that learning never ends and something is never learnt fully.
29. I have found that knowledge never ends cluttering in a pile of books in your room.
30. I have found that doing something for results is the result of something else.

This is my list of the things I have found lately since when I first picked up my instrument and realize I wanted to make and create music , and still realizing many insights, please don’t think that the sole fact of me picking a pan flute made me come up with these things, but the journey of self-discovering it stems from , apart from other circumstances obviously.
You may agree or not with these points above, I believe doing what you like is one of your biggest assets instead of doing what you think the promise of satisfaction in the first place.

And I must say that sometimes I find it a bit funny and ironic I chose pan flute journey to be the name of my site and how will people find me on the web, who were to  tell me in my early twenties  it would end up being my own journey instead?

I like playing pan flute because it opens a part of me, which wants to express and create something and leave something, if someone comes round and pick it up, fine, if not, fine anyway, I have brought it to existence, and in this existence , it will find its best place to be at the perfect time and space  be it in the form of information , an e-book about it, it doesn’t matter, just like me, I quit my job because I was reaching the limit and found myself empty and unsatisfied for the sake of “being safe” , what a price to pay, because I know in years time , the experience will look really really far more different than what it seemed at first.

I thought about monetizing this project of my site , like many individuals all around the world lately, however I would still do it if I would find there is none at all now , why , because money is not the answer to all the questions I came up with.

It has been and is my own journey and I am still on the wagon, sometimes I look at the window and like the landscape, sometimes we go through a tunnel, but I know it is just a time, it comes and goes, and what it seems far today , will be nearer than you think another day.

Be simple in whatever you do in whatever way you can do, less is more and getting rid of some things creates a gap to be fulfilled later, always.
Enjoy your journey.

Alex

Pan Flute F.A.Q

Your Pan flute questions answered

Ask a questions about any topic related to pan flute, are stuck in something? do you want to know where to buy a pan flute? pan flute care and maintenance? do you want to share your answers?

I inivite you to use the comments section below :

Here is an example at the bottom