Composing Melodies in Major Keys

Let's start with the prelude 🎵

Today, we're diving into the exciting world of composition! A melody is a sequence of musical notes that form a tune. But to create a truly harmonious and pleasing melody, we need to incorporate our recently acquired knowledge of keys and key signatures.

As we just learned, a key signature is a set of sharps or flats at the beginning of a piece of music that tells us which notes are raised or lowered. By understanding key signatures, we can:

Establish a tonal center | This is the main note around which the melody revolves.
Identify the available notes | Knowing the key signature helps us choose notes that sound good together.
Create a sense of direction | By moving between different notes within the key, we can build tension and release in our melody.

In this lesson, we'll explore how to use key signatures to construct melodies that are both melodically interesting and harmonically satisfying. Let's embark on this musical journey together!

Staying within a Particular Key

Remember that any given major key has SEVEN different notes (plus the octave), and for this lesson, we will only use notes within a particular key when composing melodies. For example, C Major has a key signature of no sharps and no flats. Thus, the notes within the key that are available to use for a melody are within the C Major Scale: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. No other notes should be used when composing a melody if the goal is to stay 100% within a particular key. If you are writing a melody within the key of B-flat Major, you need to use those notes from the B-flat Major Scale: Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, A, Bb. By using only the notes within a particular scale, you are establishing a tonal center within that key.

Using the Available Notes

Slide through the list of notes below for some strategies to use when composing your melody.

View the full text from the interactive above.

Now that you know using only the notes within a particular major scale is the best way to establish that major key, there are a few other strategies to consider when composing your melody:

Choose a melodic contour. This refers to the overall shape of the melody. Is it ascending, descending, or a combination of both? Make a choice about the overall direction and shape of your melody before you write it.
Consider Rhythm. The rhythm of your melody is just as important as the pitch. Experiment with different rhythms to create interesting patterns. Don’t simply write a melody that is built with all quarter notes.
Start and end your melody on the TONIC (the first note of the scale). If your melody is in the key of F Major, starting and ending the melody with the note “F” will establish that particular key for the listener.
Use mostly PERFECT notes-scale degrees 1, 4, and 5. Chords based on the first (tonic), fourth (subdominant), and fifth (dominant) notes of the scale are known as Perfect chords in music theory. This is because the tones in those chords are the most pleasant-sounding chords that fit best within the major key. In G Major, for example, the first, fourth, and fifth notes of the G Major Scale are G, C, and D. Using a lot of these notes further establishes the tonal center in the most pleasant way possible.
The leading tone should resolve to the tonic. The leading tone in a major scale is the seventh note, which is only a half step away from the tonic (octave). The upward motion that is implied by the leading tone should be considered when a composer writes a melody. When you write a melody and use the leading tone, make sure that the note after the leading tone is always the tonic. Yes, sometimes composers will not follow this melodic progression, but it leaves the listener with a sense of unease when the leading tone does not resolve.

Adding Interest to Your Melodies

To make your melodies more interesting, try these techniques:

Leaps | Instead of moving by step, try jumping to a note that is farther away.
Repeated notes | Repeating a note can create emphasis or a sense of rest.
Ornaments | Add embellishments like trills, mordents, or grace notes to your melody.
Phrase structure | Divide your melody into phrases of 2, 4, or 8 measures.

Remember: The key to writing good melodies is practice and experimentation. Don't be afraid to try new things and make mistakes. The more you practice, the better you'll become at creating beautiful and expressive melodies.

Sample Melodies

Let’s look at a couple of melodies and see how closely they follow the techniques suggested in this lesson.

First, here is the “Ode to Joy” melody from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.

The “Ode to Joy” melody from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9

Beethoven, L. (1824). Excerpt from Symphony No. 9. www.imslp.org

Composition Checklist

Let’s go through our composition “checklist” and see how closely this melody follows our guidelines.

This “Ode to Joy” tune is a children’s song, which is meant to be simple and easy to sing. This kind of melody is one that would really stick in the mind of the listener!

Now, here is another example of a famous melody from Brahms’ Symphony No. 1.

Brahms, J. (1876). Excerpt from Symphony No. 1. www.imslp.org

Composition Checklist #2

Again, let’s go through our composition “checklist” and see how closely this melody follows our guidelines.This lovely melody by Brahms is another example of something that the listener will remember, thanks to the composer’s use of repetition, melodic leaps, and phrase structure.

👏 Encore! Bravo! Wrap-up

So, it’s official—you are a composer! Ok, so perhaps you may not be ready to take on composing as a career, but you do now have the knowledge and skills needed to compose simple melodies in major keys. That is an accomplishment!

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