From the mind... to the page...

I know there is a similar topic to this, but my problem is slightly different. I have no problem composing in my head. The problem starts when I try to put it on paper (or, in my case, Sibelius).

For some reason, something is lost in translation... it's as though I don't know how to properly transfer what's in my head onto the notes on the screen. I'm always putting the notes in, then playing it back thinking, "ARGH... that's not what it was supposed to sound like..." And it happens to me EVERY TIME... it's really quite annoying! lol

Any suggestions? :)

I know exactly what you mean! I used to have a lot of trouble with this until I started paying attention to how notes interact. Basically you gotta learn what various intervals sound like (esp. fourths and fifths). What does an upwards fourth sounds like? How about a third? Maybe a downwards fifth. If you wanna be able to take the music directly in your head to the page you've got to learn what these sound like. That's all I got dude, it takes awhile but eventually you get better and better.

How long have you been composing for?

On a side note, I hate it when a note in my head isn't part of the standard 12-tone scale. Man does that tick me off, cause there's no way to fix it on a computer program, you can write in on paper but you're gonna have a tough time getting an instrument to play it. :P Worse still is the harmonic seventh, really wish the piano could play those...

Thanks for the advice. :)

I've been writing "classical" music for about a year and a half now. I've been writing instrumental pop tunes on my keyboard for much longer though, about 9 years, but that's a totally different ball-game. lol

Harmonic 7th? I wonder what that would sound like... lol

Composing is just as much about your own personal auditory tastes as it is about mental work. If the piece sounds right to you after you input and play it back... then you know you got it right. If it doesn't, then perhaps what you input in was not what you heard. That's how I look at it. There have been times where I thought what I put in was what I wanted - but to listen to it... it just sounded like rubbish. Best thing to do is keep plugging away until you get it right.

I've been frustrated with this problem before; however I think a lot of what is beautiful about music is within the mistranslation you get between the ideas in your head and the notes you actually play. One thing I found interesting is how I remember melodies differently in my head after I hear or come up with them. I came up with this whole tone melody and i put these chords underneath to link them all up harmonically; every time I try to sing the melody to myself on the street I always end up singing it more diatonically and correcting all the diminished fifths into perfect ones. But I know a lot of people tend to do that anyway. This probably did not really answer any questions for you, but at least it made me exited!