The process of learning to cook is similar to learning how to compose music. When you think about it, you have some of the same things at play. Both require deliberate copying of other peoples recipes first. It would be pretty hard to learn to cook without recipes. And it turns out, that composers of the past used a lot of recipes. They go by many names – chord progressions, models, partimenti, patterns, voice leading skeletal frameworks – but they are basically the same thing as common recipes for composers.

With cooking, you choose your cuisine first

With cooking, it all starts with the style of food you are cooking. This is important because not only does it dictate the ingredients, but process, cooking utensils and time. If you are gonna make some spaghetti, it could be a lot quicker than say, roasting a turkey. Most of the time you don’t mix different styles, although it can be done. It takes a master chef to do this.

With music you choose your style

The same goes for music. If you are trying to compose something in the style of Mozart, which there is nothing wrong with copying a style, then you probably wouldn’t have a drumkit and trombones playing a ska beat. I think you know where I am going with this.

Fresh Ingredients

Next if you don’t have fresh ingredients, then your food won’t taste very good. What is a fresh ingredient in composing music? I believe we get fresh ingredients from listening to music, studying scores and learning music theory. Not just western classical music theory, but also other cultures.

New Musical Musical Vocabulary

I always like freshness in my vocabulary. The best way to do this, is to frequently listen to new music. New to you at least. You can listen to music of any time. Even if you are listening to an old favorite of yours, you can always find something new by listening deeply.

Learning different new music theory helps as well. I have a full course on the fundamentals of composition, which will give you a solid foundation in composing.

A podcast that I recommend listening to is the Labyrinth of Music Theory. I’ll warn you now, it is a little creepy sounding, with a drone in the background, and the guy’s voice is compressed, which adds to the creepiness. But the info in the podcast is awesome and very unique. Unfortunately, he only made 8 episodes and stopped in 2008, but it should still be enough to start whetting your appetite on studying deeper music theory.

Other People’s Recipes and Learning How to Compose Music

The main difference between learning to cook and learning to compose, is that people who learn to cook, are willing to use other peoples recipes to start. They realize there is a lot that goes into the process and mixing ingredients and cook times, etc. And yet, when they serve their meal, no one says to them “You just copied someone elses recipe, that means you actually suck at cooking.”

Sure, they may have used another guys recipe, but did they cook the meal? Yes they did. Did the meal suck? Maybe, hopefully not. But if it didn’t they can take the credit because the recipe is just a guideline, its not the meal.

But in music, everyone seems to be against using “the other guys recipe.” In reality, using the wisdom from composers in the past is a great way to find out why they did what they did, so you can come up with your own “musical recipes.”

Beethoven’s Final Piano Piece

I read an article on pianostreet.com about Beethoven’s Last Piano Piece. You can listen to it here. It is not a huge sonata or anything like that. It is a short Bagatelle.

Simplicity

What struck me immediately about this piece was it’s simplicity. This was written at the end of Beethoven’s life, mixed in between pages of sketches for his String Quartet Op. 135. This is written by the same man who wrote the 9th Symphony!

It is in ternary form, uses simple harmony, a repetitious motive and musical periods, and yet, it is still nice to hear. I wouldn’t say its his opus magnum, but its not bad by any measure.

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Simple and Use Familiar Recipes

My point is, if Beethoven wasn’t afraid to write simple periods in ternary form, using simple harmony, then maybe as composers, we shouldn’t be afraid either. Don’t be afraid to follow Beethoven’s lead and use a “recipe” that you or others have used before. The worst that will happen is that you get better at making that recipe. No one even has to taste it but you! You never know when you are going to happen on something that you really like, and turn it into your own “Sonata No. 1.” This is exactly what I did for my course on Composing in Sonata Form.