Baroque Guitar Music Composition Site!

[Frei]

Hello all, I am starting a Baroque music compostion site:

http://bgmcus.ning.com/

I would like to get more into composing, in a proper style, and know there are lots of people here who could contribute musical knowlege to this end.

I would like to hook up, with a chat programs, to trade ideas, and basic composition strategies. I think alot of basic stuff can be recorded as lessons, or 'jam groups' can also be recorded if they are any good, and posted.

I am really trying to get to the roots of composing, and Baroque style is pretty basic, and I think it could be fun! Still working on getting a voice chat program up. I have skype, that is very cheap, but there are probably free programs out there, for people who are interested in trading ideas, or if you have some specific knowlege.

It might go nowhere, we might find another Bach!

For Baroque music lovers, not absolutley just guitar! I will put up some basic basic composition stuff ASAP, and we'll see what kind of disaster it turns out to be!

[Martin McDowell]

I hope you have fun with that project - I daydream about composing sometimes but then I find there's far far too much wonderful music by others keeping me fully entertained, exploring and learning to play, there's just not the extra time for me and musical composition....
mind you, if I had aspirations to be a performing musician (which I don't) I'd surely want to be composing my own stuff...

[Frei]

Thanks Martin, actually, the intent is to help you improvise, as was often done in the 'Baroque" era. I of course, will have to do some digging. You should be able to pick up the guitar and play your own tune, this was done for centuries with the guitar, as it was the 'common' mans cheap version of the lute in many respects. Most everyone should be able to improvise "correctly", if that makes any sense!

[Chris Despopoulos]

Actually, I'm finding it easier to improvise on the baroque guitar than I do for the mandore, or even for early music on the modern guitar. I guess I get the benefit of the proper instrument for the music, plus some familiarity with the logic of the instrument (after decades of modern guitar). Am I doing it correctly? I think I must be close... The instrument can be very idiomatic. Messing with the Jacaras I find the mode very compelling, and if I search for companela passages they seem to fit well enough. So I'm sort of looking for a vocabulary of "guitar licks" that I can pull out of my hat when I want.

I know there's less idiomatic work out there... improvising in those veins is a more formal problem. And of course, just as my ignorance caused a stir concerning how to string the instrument, I'm sure I could offend in this realm as well...

I think this is a good idea for a splinter group. To improvise you have to compose your own sketches on the given theme. After doing *lots* of that, you find yourself able to mix and match. It takes time for any given key and song form, and there are plenty of forms to work with.

I wonder... How shall this group focus on the "correctness" of sketches and improvisations?

[Martin McDowell]

Yes, you're quite right really, we shouldn't be so shy of composing, and one ought to be able to pick up and play, lots of baroque guitar pieces do invite improvised extending, and there's all those alphabeto pieces crying out for improvisation... me I just have a terrible tendency to like looking at those notes on the page... never even learn things off by heart... (used to once upon a time).
The renaissance cittern also makes one want to think about such composing.... as does ye olde ukulele... I suppose the renaissance guitar ought inspire the same too ...

[Frei]

Well Martin, I would approach this from the 'artistic' end, and see what happens. Here is a book that covers all of this, but this is technical, I'm artistic.

http://socrates.acadiau.ca/courses/musi/callon/3103-13/3113.htm

First execise I would reccomend is: "Compose" 3 simple melodies using 4 or 5 bars, and the top 3 bass strings (Baroque Guitar). Record them. Is it 'musical' or are they just noise? This is just to get into the habit of writing simple melody. Counterpoint would be combining 2 melodies, and then do it according more or less to the rules. There are lots of rules of course, but melody is first, counterpoint is added per se, so the blending should be smooth.

The book above is the college book on all of this, probably some people here have the book, and have taken courses. So maybe they can demonstrate some stuff?

But in my mind, melody first! Lots of them!

[Frei]

IF this process too difficult, then what you would do is take a section of music on guitar, say something and then add to it, and record it, post it, so others can hear your masterpiece, or your mangling. You have to get our hands dirty. This is just an exercise, to stretch the mind. Like anything else, your not going to be an expert at it in the beggining. But eventually, the brain picks up on it, and boom, you can hear the counterpoint before you play it!

[Frei]

Ok, I have to sketches up, now to add the counterpoint. Just testing this out, you can hear a big difference as to why counterpoint is needed. Baby steps but steps forward anyway.