PLEASE give an artist some inspiration!

[nickythenose]

OK here is the scene, I started with Modplug a while ago and played around and had some fun, but was crap at music and so only created stuff that was no good. Then I got me a go on Sibelius software that meant that I had the ability to think in musical notes and place them on Sibelius and then export the music (only in Piano as I still have not got my ear into adding lots of instruments) to MIDI, and then to importy the MIDI track into MODPLUG for editing in terms of tempo and volume, and possibly to add the beat/ rhythm section so to speak. Now I am researching more into music and am starting to get some sounds that actually sound like music, you know, that stuff you listen to on the radio that actually makes you feel good rather than that stuff that used to come out of my computer speakers as something that would make you think "What was he on at the time?"

Now when I was creating the dross, there was this chap on the radio who would give me suggestions as to themes to follow when composing a piece of music. One of them was so general it gave me more of a writers block ("Try creating a piece on a journey you have taken?") so to speak than any actual creative feedback.

So, I am turning to you lads and lasses who have spent more time in music in general and may understand what floats your boats more to provide me with a piece of inspiration.

WHAT should my next piece be about?

Please give me the spark of inspiration that I need!!!!!!

Nicky Tne Nose

[Squirrel Havoc]

How about a peice about the frustration of not knowing what to make a song about? Sounds kinda silly, but you know what it's like right now  

[Harbinger]

It's good to see an artist get his tools!   Now you're all dressed up with nowhere to go!! :lol:

Do what i do. I recently found ModPlug Tracker, and have found a simple and somewhat intuitive tool for composing. However, since i'm still learning MPT without A DECENT MANUAL (!), i've just devoted myself to experimentation. I liken myself to these modern painters who throw paint on a canvas and call it Art (as a real artist, i find them dispiccable and beneath me ? no joke). However, i'm merely experimenting with the tools while i throw this paint around as a form of self-education.

As it turns out though, some of my experimental tracks are not too bad for listening to. And unlike 95% of my music, they did not start out with an inspiration ready to be manifested into this world. But after the composition was done, i noticed that the music seemed to show me a movie, if you will ? a future soldier being fitted with Borg-like bionics, or an assassin who shuns guns and uses blades, as examples. They're mostly instrumental as opposed to vocal songs, and they're good enough to keep around.

So might i suggest that you just dive in without inspiration. You sound like you have a basic knowledge of music theory, so you can compose. Generally, i'll start with a basic beat, add a twist to it, add bass in order to root chord progressions (or non-progressions), add strange samples to give the music its own psychology, then add a melody (if you understand voice-leading) if i want to the song to be telling a story.
Sometimes, however, i hear (or create) a .wav sound that just screams to be put in its own environment, like a gyroscopic metal fan, or an ambient loop of an orbiting space-station. Try just listening to ? and if you can, editing ? some samples that reflect the kind of music you're looking to put together. For example, right now, i'm on a techno-industrial  bent, so i'm constructing metallic or robo-synthetic samples to use in my .it projects. If you like acoustic music, on the other hand, you could sample a piece of a string quartet and chop it up, apply some strange effects to it, or perhaps apply a rock beat to its background. I find that the best way to get inspired is to apply strangeness to something perfectly normal and maybe even clich?ed.

Let us know what you did, and what became of it!

[Sam_Zen]

2 Harbinger
Nice points there.
This whole inspiration-thing is a myth from the past of the trendy imago of art and artists.

Making a new piece while having a writers block ? Just be patient. Focus on the sounds of the day you experience, because it will be the sounds itself to get you going again.

[Squirrel Havoc]

It's good to see an artist get his tools!   Now you're all dressed up with nowhere to go!! :lol:

Do what i do. I recently found ModPlug Tracker, and have found a simple and somewhat intuitive tool for composing. However, since i'm still learning MPT without A DECENT MANUAL (!), i've just devoted myself to experimentation. I liken myself to these modern painters who throw paint on a canvas and call it Art (as a real artist, i find them dispiccable and beneath me ? no joke). However, i'm merely experimenting with the tools while i throw this paint around as a form of self-education.

As it turns out though, some of my experimental tracks are not too bad for listening to. And unlike 95% of my music, they did not start out with an inspiration ready to be manifested into this world. But after the composition was done, i noticed that the music seemed to show me a movie, if you will ? a future soldier being fitted with Borg-like bionics, or an assassin who shuns guns and uses blades, as examples. They're mostly instrumental as opposed to vocal songs, and they're good enough to keep around.

So might i suggest that you just dive in without inspiration. You sound like you have a basic knowledge of music theory, so you can compose. Generally, i'll start with a basic beat, add a twist to it, add bass in order to root chord progressions (or non-progressions), add strange samples to give the music its own psychology, then add a melody (if you understand voice-leading) if i want to the song to be telling a story.
Sometimes, however, i hear (or create) a .wav sound that just screams to be put in its own environment, like a gyroscopic metal fan, or an ambient loop of an orbiting space-station. Try just listening to ? and if you can, editing ? some samples that reflect the kind of music you're looking to put together. For example, right now, i'm on a techno-industrial  bent, so i'm constructing metallic or robo-synthetic samples to use in my .it projects. If you like acoustic music, on the other hand, you could sample a piece of a string quartet and chop it up, apply some strange effects to it, or perhaps apply a rock beat to its background. I find that the best way to get inspired is to apply strangeness to something perfectly normal and maybe even clich?ed.

Let us know what you did, and what became of it!

Modern painters do more than "throw paint on a canvas and call it art" than you do throw samples into a tracker file and call it music. It all depends on how you look at it.

Starting without inspiration is something I do all the time because I never have any. The only times I ever really had an idea and wanted to work on music was when I was away from the computer for weeks, and by the time I got back it was all gone, even though I jotted down notes of themes and such. So it works, but the results aren't always pretty. They are usually interesting though, but interesting wont really cut it in alone in the music world.

[georg]

remix xm and it songs

you can find good ones and they will teach you tricks while you requisition your groove back

[MisterX]

Try this:

http://www.fortunecity.com/tinpan/fluke/807/oblivion.zip

Run it, take the resulting MIDI file, load it into MPT, try some various instruments and see what you get.

[LPChip]

One of the things I strongly discourage at the moment, is creating an idea prior to putting it in the tracker.

If you have a strong imagination like me, you'll hear all the sounds you want etc, but you'll never get it in the tracker like that.

Sometimes the best way to get inspiration 'on the fly' is by playing around with samples while searching for them.

EG. You make a new song, go through your other songs/samples to find a nice sound. You play a little witht hem to see if you can do anything with it and are comfortable with the sound. If so, drag it in your project. During this time, it might be that you can find a great melody you are comfortable with. If so, drag it in, and start tracking that melody right away.

When done, create a new empty pattern, and continue your search for samples untill you think you have enough. Often you get the same thing with several kind of samples/instruments, giving you like 4 to 5 patterns with "basic tools".

When you have this ready, listen to each pattern for several cycles to get the feeling they have. This will boost your inspiration a little bit. Then all you need to do is turn it into a song. You can combine the previously made patterns, or you can use them in an adaptive way. (eg. if 2 patterns don't match that well, try to alter them and use them as such. They are your creations, and you can do whatever you want with it. If you feel that your inspiration has gone after these patterns, save the song and put it in your playlist to come by from time to time. It'll help.

[Rylo]

As the other guys have said, I don't think you actually need to be inspired before you start work on a song. For me, this would lead to frustration of not being able to get exactly what's in my head into the tracker! I have not been tracking very long (months actually!) but I find that experimentation is the best way to start a song.

Sometimes I will download 5 or 10 mods and listen to them for ideas or inspiration, but normally I will just go through my sample collection and find a sample that grabs my attention and then play around with it until I find I've made nice sounding riff. From there add some drums, and a harmony and from then just see where it takes you.

[Squirrel Havoc]

Sometimes I will download 5 or 10 mods and listen to them for ideas or inspiration, but normally I will just go through my sample collection and find a sample that grabs my attention and then play around with it until I find I've made nice sounding riff. From there add some drums, and a harmony and from then just see where it takes you.

Thats one of the 2 ways I start music, the other is kinda the same, but start with a drum beat, and work on that. To me, atleast with my music, drums define a song's genre. Or atleast it's mood. So I  like to start with that and work on what kind of mood i've created.

[KrazyKatz]

I sometimes lose inspiration for over a year at a time. Literally.

Want inspiration... stop playing around and have goal. A goal gives you direction for the inspiration instead of 1000s of ideas floating around with no co-herence.

Enter a Compo. There are plenty always coming up. It gives you a time limit, and a restriction to work within.

or

Get someone to pay you to compose something for them, or work on a MOD for a game.

Sometimes a limit gives you more freedom.

Good composing!

[yrk]

Some of my best tunes have grown out of a simple idea... Not so much an idea for a specific tune or genre but more wanting to try something specific, for example using a specific sample, or do something in 7/8ths or maybe I want to try and include some effect I've never used in a tune before... More often than not, this will turn into some sort of direction or inspiration for a tune...

Also, I have lots of mods lying around that are just one or two patterns and just a few tracks... Sometimes I revisit them later and something comes out of it, sometimes not... It's not like every single idea you get needs to become a finished piece... Some ideas are just dead ends...

They say the best cure for writers block is to write anyway... So if you have no inspiration, my advice would be to just go ahead and track something anyway... Anything... Don't set any requirements for yourself but just track something, anything, and see where it leads you...

[erwat14]

These are all very good ideas here; I often have similar problems.  Sometimes inspiration just seems to be lurking around every corner, I sometimes dream about melodies in my sleep!  Sometimes, on the other hand, it's like the whole artistic side of by brain has gone on strike, and it's very frustrating!  All I can tell you is pretty much what's been said already.  Don't let the lack of inspiration keep you from sitting in front of your computer and just playing around with ideas, melodic riffs and motifs, or a sample loop that you favor.  More often than not, it's these non-inspired projects that turn into something magical.  I think there's a saying that goes "inspiration breeds creativity", or something like that.  Well I disagree to the point that you don't always need inspiration to be creative, all you really need is patience.  

[KrazyKatz]

I'll tell you whats worse than lack of inspiration...

Being Inspired and being a mile away from a computer or other medium...and then when you finally get there...

You forget the piece.

[KrazyKatz]

Heres an Idea for Inspiration..

Compose the piece that Mr X's skeleton is playing.