In my 5 years of making music, I have heard one saying that struck a chord and really embodied what I strive for with my music. "Three chords and the truth." That is honestly all you need to write an amazing song or masterpiece. Some would argue that in order to make a masterpiece work, especially a classical, one would have to have all of these complicated chords that flow together. If that were to work for some other individual, that's all well and good. But for me, I like to use a few chords and make the most out of them to really express what I am trying to say and let me explain how this is done.
The chords speak for themselves, they portray the overall mood. Some arrangements of chords set the undertone for a happier upbeat song. Whilst others have a more melancholy undertone that really strike a sense of sadness into someone's heart. The truth can come from the lyrics if you have any or can arise from the pacing of a song or the dynamic contrast of the music, let me explain this a little more in depth by using a piece of music I just recently constructed. "Ironman," the story behind the name is because of a superhero, but not the one that automatically comes to our mind. This particular superhero is certainly one that impacted my whole community in a huge way though he is actually very small. This shows that you are never too young to really put an impact on someone. As for me, he taught me that in the face of adversity, and when nothing is going right to just keep pushing. Unfortunately, he fought valiantly and is no longer with us physically, but I know spiritually he will reside with us always.
So when I wrote this song, I used strong melodies that indicate strength, endurance and a heroic sense. The overall tone of the piece was trumpet, yet with a touch of dismay and sadness. That was me speaking the truth in that instance without really using words. I simply put my words in the music without really even having to say anything. "Ironman" is just one of my compositions that use that same formula, where I just speak my mind without using any words. I admit sometimes it's challenging, but I usually am happy with what I end up with.
One day I really aspire to touch the world through my music. Call me crazy, however, I really do think if I work hard it is something I can obtain, as long as I stick to my formula of composing my songs with "the truth" as the latter part of the saying goes.
