Challenge: A picture tells a thousand words... is there a song in there?

michelew
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Mon Mar 20, 2017 8:21 am

Corina, I absolutely second David's suggestion (I bet that's shocking right?! :silly: )

You are absolutely capable of finding the melody for your song. Just take the first verse and start singing it. Just keep playing with melodies and rhythms, until you find something that you want to keep coming back to. Once you get the first bit happening, you'll build momentum.

I bet you find melodies you like much faster than you think you will.

Just have fun with it.

And I'm betting that you might just have a friend or two who may be able to help you with the accompaniment once you're on your way. That's just a guess of course. :) :kiss: B)

David wrote
...you should definitely try and put a melody to the words... if you record even a sketch of the first line then the rest will surely come.


spinland
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Mon Mar 20, 2017 3:15 pm

Very much appreciate those words of encouragement, Shel (is that too familiar?).

I'm intimidated as all hell by the raw vulnerability of trying to put my feelings to words and notes and letting someone else into them. I want to get over that. You guys are a massive inspiration.

Thanks, so much.

Mark


michelew
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Mon Mar 20, 2017 5:08 pm

Hey Mark. Shel is just fine.

I suggest you take the inspiration and run with it. What have you got to lose? If you don't like what you come up with enough, then you never need to post anything. Just put it away for a while and pick it up later.

David is able to write three fully realized songs before lunchtime. I can do lyrics and melodies relatively easily but when it comes to progressions (especially interesting ones) it takes time and trial and error. Still even though I'm stumbling around in the dark, I've managed to write and record a few songs. If I can do it, you can too. You just need to make a start and approach it with a sense of fun and exploration.

Give it a go. There could be a song writer in there just waiting for the chance to meet the world.

Cheers

M

Edit: As for being vulnerable... being brave enough to tap into that is likely to open doors for you. Sharing it will the world is another thing altogether. You don't need to go there if it's a step too far. Don't let that potential exposure stop you from starting your journey. It's like videoing your performance, you're in control of who you let see your creations.

It is scary stuff. But it can be extremely rewarding too if you share it with the right audience.

Small Steps Elle - of course, a love song is a pretty personal thing. You might want to be a little bit easier on yourself and work on a song that's less personal in the first instance; especially if you plan to share it with the TG community. Food for thought.


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neverfoundthetime
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Thu Mar 23, 2017 3:38 pm

Great advice there for Mark, Shel, and for anyone else. I hope that others are having a think about writing a song to a special picture. I'm still wondering if I can ever get close.

I've been pondering the power of such photos and of words in general and specifically in lyrics. A photo paints such a complete picture which would take so many words to just sketch. But words are also very powerful spell makers. Ever consider that, that we spell words? We spell it. Words cast spells. Put them to music and its powerful spell making and a song can be spell-binding. There is magic in our world and songs is where you will often find it. I am fascinated by the (real) meaning of words and their power. And we are dabbling in spell making and are exposing ourselves to this magic every time we listen to or play or write a song. Why is it magic? Well, if I say to you, for example, "a host of golden daffodils", I have put directly into your mind's eye a very strong image.... and its certainly yellow, isn't it? So my spell cast a colour and certain shapes directly and instantly into your mind from a distance of however far you live from Zürich! Powerful stuff, no?

EDIT: Ah, Freud just whispered in my ear, there is a line in a Moody Blues song, " A fleet of golden galleons upon a crystal sea"... I guess that's what I had in the back of my mind. :)

Take another sip my love and see what you will see,
A fleet of golden galleons, on a crystal sea.
Are you sitting comfortably?
Let Merlin cast his spell.

Ride along the winds of time and see where we have been,
The glorious age of Camelot, when Guinevere was Queen.
It all unfolds before your eyes
As Merlin casts his spell.

The seven wonders of the world he'll lay before your feet,
In far-off lands, on distant shores, so many friends to meet.
Are you sitting comfortably?
Let Merlin cast his spell.

- Are you Sitting Comfortably - from On the Threshold of a Dream


michelew
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Fri Mar 24, 2017 1:23 am

Chris, you've got some lovely observations and concepts in there.

In truth... maybe there's a song in your musings alone; maybe about how words and music cast their spells on us. Personally I know I've been spellbound often by the magic of a performance, by the expression in the music, by the expression in the words. I've been swept away in the imagery; swept away to another place; swept away to another time; swept away by the emotion... it's definitely powerful stuff.

You're right, great songs and great performances are modern magic.

Thanks for the philosophy.

:kiss:

Shel


crieniecat
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Fri Mar 24, 2017 4:25 am

I want to thank you all for the wonderful response to my poem/lyrics!
It kind of overwhelmed me
Indeed as Chris said, writing a poem in a non native language can be pretty tricky, as it might not do justice to the feel and full meaning one wants to produce by words...
So I started to write and was most happy to see the ink form it's words as it did ;)

To fiddle around with some lines and humming... hmm... I can't put my mind to that, (yet)
It was so great to have done a collab with Tom and Claire, was it a year or more ago? He told me he instantly heard music to my poems, when we met at the first TG camp, so we decided to do a collab one day, which resulted in a very lovely song, where even Claire wanted to help us out with her beautiful and very talented voice. I'm still very grateful for that :kiss:

And on an even more personal note, so be warned for all of you who aren't up for that, you can still click away to a different post :laugh: Yes Shel, it's my dad in the picture and whom I'm referring to in my poem. He died from lung cancer not too long after that picture was taken. And every word in that poem is authentic. And yes, magic, as it indeed is able to bring up emotions and images that are able to bring you there with me into my past for a little while, as with what I write I allow you all to have a look and be there with me.
So Chris, wonderful thoughts about words and their influence and yes, so so so true...

What a nice thread! I'm up for the next picture with lyrics!! Who dares to share? ;)


spinland
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Fri Mar 24, 2017 6:47 am

Here's my first toe-dipping foray into trying to do my image justice. I decided to try to go back to the day we met and take it from there.

Not a lot yet but it's a start.

She entered the room
I stood there in wonder
She gave me a smile
And I knew I was gone.

I asked for her name
Her answer was music
And right then I knew
We'd sing the same song.

Mark


michelew
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Fri Mar 24, 2017 6:40 pm

Hey Mark!

Great to see you jumping in the deep end boots and all. Good for you. :)

That's a great start. There's a sense of anticipation. I'm engaged and wondering where you'd take this. Will it be a peek into the beginning or more parts of the story. :) I'm with you for the journey. :) and looking forward to seeing how this one evolves.

Good one. Thanks for sharing.

M.


spinland
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Sat Mar 25, 2017 6:13 am

Thanks, Shel.

Writing that was easier than I thought, but now I have to develop the scene I set up. I'll get there, and in my own good time.

Gonna let this little project flow as it wants to and not force anything. I tend to be focused and driven, and I'm my own worst whip-cracker and critic—and music shouldn't be like that.

Part of my current inner growth is working to let that go and just "Let it Be." :side:

Mark

NOTE: no way implying I'm feeling the tiniest bit of pressure from anyone, just musing aloud on the self-imposed forces at work here. ;)


michelew
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Sat Mar 25, 2017 6:49 pm

That's a great plan Mark. I often find that the hardest bit is making a start and you've done that. Now you can build on it. Don't worry if you end up taking it apart and rebuilding it as you get further into the story you want to tell. It can just be part of the process as sometimes the focus of the story or how you want it tell it changes.

Of course... finding the right time to work on these sort of projects can be a real challenge too.

Have fun. We'll be here if and when you want to show us where this has landed down the track.

M


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