Just One Can a Day, That's All We Ask!

Getting To Production Level

For the past couple of months, I have set a goal for myself to arrange new pieces at a production pace. While there's no pressing need for new choral works, we are always happy to hear a song done in a new way. As I've said before, music is one of those endeavors that's got the power to effect big change and it's created out of nothing but ideas and emotion. Maybe it's the Boy Scout in me that gets a big kick out of making a bonfire out of two sticks....

Anyway, after studying this craft most of my adult life, one way or another, I'm beginning to want to take it to the next level and start selling my work. The music we're singing in Blue of a Kind is having an ever stronger impact on our audiences and the guys are telling me they're grooving on it. So, I'm thinking of the next level and I'm pretty sure the next level involves establishing a higher level of production.

Yeh, It's Work

Production is something we think about at work, or at least our managers and executives force us to think about it. After many years in the workplace, you start to get the notion ingrained that to produce you lean into your task, you take it on with a gusto and never let it loom large and intimidate you. You break big jobs down into small pieces, address things in stages to achieve your goal. The longer you're in a production environment, the more you habituate to this process.

I work at Palm now, and every product demands the utmost attention to quality and every worker owns that to a very large degree. The many pieces and parts of the things we make require planning, communication and teamwork. Complicated components have to be cranked out on a deadline and be nearly flawless.

Arranging music is not always that complicated, but let's not underestimate the difficulties. When you start from note #1 of a new song, or try to arrange your first piece, the experience is much like trying to climb Mt. Everest in flip-flops. But like every great journey, it begins with a single step and is completed literally one step at a time, just like those gargantuan projects we do at Palm.

Just One Can a Day....

Remember that Diamond Nut commercial from a few years back, "Just one can a day, that's all we ask?" For the last couple months, I've been testing myself with a high production schedule to put all my years of learning and experience to the test. Some songwriters have put themselves out there with a the "One song a day" challenge and at least one, Jonathan Coulton, has taken it to the next level in the process. While I'm not ready to publicly declare I'm arranging a song a week, I will admit that's how I'm currently working.

Besides, these things take time...

In my defense, I'm hiring out singers to lay down part-predominant Learning Tracks of my songs. Yes, I am planning to sell for real. The singers take weeks to complete their work. I really have nothing to show without giving away the store. Besides, I might want a week off!

Which brings me to my point

You can chip away at pretty much everything with the right tools and some idea about where to apply them. Like many things, the more you have it in your hands, the more your skills develop. All this work has hardened up my approach and I thought I'd develop and share a tip sheet with you, in case you're thinking about how to do this, or want a look inside some else's head who is doing the same thing you are. If you want to give me some knocks, make some comments, offer other suggestions - well maybe this will open the door for you!

My Arranging Tipsheet:

1) Listen, listen, listen

There's a lot of treatments out there of whatever song you're thinking of arranging. Make sure you're familiar with as many treatments as possible. Listen to these and let your mind wander. Let some ideas develop and make sketches of sections of the song to lay down these ideas. Spend time getting these right. Sing each part and consider how it will work in the mouthes of men and women. Some of these pieces will become building blocks of your big idea and if they're shaky, you'll spend a lot of time fixing things later in the project. Sometimes a single idea will form the entire basis of your arrangement.

2) Develop an idea and a plan

a) Why are you thinking of singing this song before audiences? What are you hoping to impart? Is it joy, sorrow, laughter, inspiration? Figure out what is the point and let it permeate your thinking as you develop your plan. If you don't know the point of it all, chances are your arrangement won't strike a chord with your audience.

b) Structure, structure, structure

Arrangements are constructs built of members, smaller parts, sequences and musical figures. Continue to make or develop your sketches as your ideas evolve. Every song has a beginning, middle and end. The end has to evoke something - the thing you're going for. How are you going to get there and will you actually arrive? Will there be a magical moment? You build it to it, piece by piece. Make the pieces hang together and develop your idea. You don't have to do all 17 verses of a song to achieve your effect.

3) Stay within the lines.

a) Like orchestral instruments, singers have their limits. Working with music software, it's possible to make a violin play notes it's just not possible for a violinist to play. It's the same with the human voice. Watch out that your great ideas don't have the first tenors singing high C's and C#'s because it sounds really cool on your synth. Few tenors can do anything up there. Basses sound amazing on a low D, but don't make them sing too many of them or they'll lose their voices. Singers need to move through their ranges or they tighten up. Try to avoid keeping any voice in the pessagio for too long. Know where these limits are for each voice.

b) Repetitive figures and variation are something you should pay attention to. Singers hang their hats on repetitive figures. They want to learn a rhythmic pattern and apply it over and over. If you vary it every time they'll struggle to master the piece. The same is true for melodic figures. But pattern changes (variations) are what add interest to a piece. Use variation to enhance the desired emotional effect, so use it always and use it tactically. Then your singers will hang their hat on both the repetitions and the variations that evoke your emotional goal.

4) Go outside the lines

Great arrangements go to extremes, one way or another. Spend some time trying things you have not tried before. Study other arrangements and see what cliches you might be able to incorporate into your work to expand your expressive power. Once you try something new, it becomes a new trick in your book.

5) Chords, chords, chords

a) Make beautiful chords and be very concerned about developing rich, colorful harmonics. Experiment adding or shifting the chord colors in your musical sketches and see what effects these have on you. Rich chords will move audiences very deeply.

b) Be a minimalist. You don't always need 9 notes in a chord to evoke the color you want. Typically, you have 4 instruments or voices to work with. If you divide your forces, do so to a purpose.

6) Lead your voice lines

Singers sing vocal lines that are "led" well better than jumpy lines where they have to plug holes in your chords. Pay attention to the line that each voice sings. Make adaptations to the lines to lead them better through your beautiful chords. Ultimately, your chords-chords-chords become woven melodies.

7) Counter melodies

In your listening, pay attention to the counter melodies and echoed melodies. You'll hear them in the backing band or orchestra and sometimes among the backing vocalists. Weave these kind of delicious elements among your chords. Liberate voices from the job of occupying a note in a chord and let them sing these small melodic figures.

8) Where the basses go, so goes the world

The bottom is the foundation. Make it the most interesting and dynamic voice line you possibly can. It's amazing how little your audiences remember about the bass line, despite the profound effect it has on them. Why? It's the root of the emotional part of their experience. Their intellectual attention is on the melody and the lyrics. But if you want to grab them at their core and make them laugh, cry and scream - develop the coolest bass lines you can!

Thanks for reading

Before I sign off, I'm copying here a list of songs I've completed since the first week of November, 2009. They're all TTBB a cappella with the exception of Botch-A-Me which is SATB with piano accompaniment.

Unchain My Heart

Hit the Road, Jack

Wild Ox Moan

I Can't Go Home

People Get Ready

Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye

Save the Last Dance For Me

Talking About My Baby

That's the Way Love Is

Baby I Need Your Loving

Botch-A-Me

Blue Bayou

Love Hurts

Let me know if your group might be interested in previewing one of these.