Music Composition

The aim of this page is to again document my process used during the creation of my songs, as I seem to do things different to other musicians. I hope to publish notes on how I produce some of my works.

I have been interested in music for many years now.

I have been an enormous fan of the music of Jean Michel Jarre since I was in my teens, with my favourite album being his original 1976 release, Oxygène.

I cannot read or write music, despite trying for many years I just cannot do it.

I have not received any kind of formal musical instrument training either. My instrument of choice is the keyboard and have a range of different ones that I use for my work.

I compose using a few different methods:

• I have two apps on my phone, Apple Garageband and Mellowsound by Fingerlab. 
  Both apps are used for musical doodling. I play around with an idea for a song and then develop it further later.
• I also have Garageband and Logic Pro on my Mac. 
  I can import the Garageband tracks from my phone I had previously worked on, then develop them from there, adding more effects and instruments, which I cannot always do on the phone version.

When I compose my usual location is in the car, in the car park when Lex has gone into the Supermarket. There have been occasions where I have got the solid basis for a song whilst waiting in the car for him, then gone home and worked on the song for an hour or so.

Other times, I get a spark of an idea whilst I’m doing something in the house and quickly record it on my phone for later.

I seem to write a lot in the minor chord rather than the major, not out of choice but it seems to be how the structure of my compositions occurs.  I seem to come up with a lot more instrumental works than lyrical ones. I get an idea for a melody and not necessarily need to have words to go with it.

To date I have recorded over 30 of my own original songs, which are all registered with BMI under the name oxy63n, in commemoration to Jean Michel Jarre.

I have also recorded covers of some famous songs, especially Jarre’s Oxygène Part 4 and Depeche Mode’s Just Can’t Get Enough.

Please go to my SoundCloud and have a listen here

As always, nice comments are welcome!

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