My life goes through cycles, and some years I am more musically productive than others. I have been reflecting on what things I do that keep me creative and productive, and I came up with these 10 practices that help to juice up my creative ability. My hope is that you might benefit from these tips as well.
1. Listen to a variety of music. When you make time to listen to others’ music, it gives my creativity a jump start. It’s kind of like eating – try to digest a variety of music to give yourself a balanced diet of inspiration. When listening, your subconscious picks up nuances and riffs and tone, and later when writing your own music, you can find yourself writing much more fluently.
2. Practice singing harmony. One of the best abilities that you can develop as a songwriter is to be able to sing harmony on the fly. As you drive in your car, practice singing harmony to the music you’re listening to. Singing harmony on the fly is really an act of composition, and as you become more fluent, it will help your composition ability.
3. Keep a digital recorder with you. Make a habit to keep a digital recorder with you at all times. You never know when a great new melody might come to you, and you may even find that your're more likely to come up with a melody if you have a recorder with you. I especially recommend having one by your bed; I find that I will often wake up with a song running through my head, and having a recorder near enables me to get the melody down.
4. Practice your instrument while watching a movie. Practice jazz chords and scales while watching DVD’s, and I find that multitasking in this way helps to make my playing more fluent.
5. Make time to jam with others. Even if you’re not in a group, make time to jam with musician friends. I find that looking forward to a jam session helps me to be a bit more creative – I want to have a song to share, and I tend to write more under a little pressure.
6. Find encouragers. It’s really important to find a few people who like your music and can encourage you. Writing music is a very personal act, and it’s hard to produce when you don’t get any positive feedback. Having friends who really enjoy my music and who can give me encouragement helps to keep me motivated.
7. Read poems and short stories. In the same what that I try to digest a variety of music, I also make an effort to read poetry and short stories. I find that tuning in to others’ imagination through reading helps me to be more imaginative, which helps my lyric writing ability=
8. Improvise Melodies while alternating between two chords of accompaniment. I have found this exercise to be an impetus to writing good melodies: with my left hand, I alternate between two chords, and with my right hand I improvise melodies. Again, practicing writing music on the fly helps to keep me creative.
9. Develop your ability to think in multiple lines of instrumentation. When music is going through your head, try to stretch your composition ability by thinking in multiple lines of music. It takes effort, but the more lines of instrumentation you are able to hold in your mind, the better you will be able to compose when it comes time to write.
By taking time to practice these disciplines, I hope that you will find your song-writing ability increasing.
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