Modes & composition guide

• Motif: start with a short idea (2-5 notes) with a clear rhythm. Repeat it, then vary it: change the starting note (sequence), the last note, the rhythm, or the direction.
• Contour: a melody usually has one high point (climax). Arches and waves are common; stepwise motion feels smooth, leaps add drama, and a leap is often followed by a step back in the opposite direction.
• Range: keep it within what the singer or instrument can play comfortably, often an octave or a bit more.
• Phrases: 2 or 4 bars each. A common shape is 4+4 (question and answer) or 8 bars with the phrases in the pattern A A' B A''. Rest points between phrases give listeners room to breathe.
• Chord tones: put chord tones on strong beats and passing notes on weak beats; end phrases on stable notes (the tonic, 3rd or 5th).

• Functions: tonic (I, vi: home, rest), subdominant or predominant (IV, ii: leaving home), dominant (V, vii°: tension that wants to resolve). The usual path is tonic → predominant → dominant → tonic.
• Cadences (phrase endings): authentic V-I (strongest ending); plagal IV-I (the "amen" sound); half cadence, ending on V (an open question); deceptive V-vi (a surprise).
• Borrowed chords: chords from the parallel key, for example ♭VII, ♭VI or iv in a major key, add colour.
• Secondary dominants: a dominant seventh of a chord other than I. V7/V is the dominant of V (D7 in C major); it leads strongly into that chord. See the table below.
• Modulation basics: the closest keys are the dominant, subdominant, relative minor/major and parallel minor/major. A common way to move is a pivot chord that belongs to both keys, followed by the new key's V-I.

Cadences in this key

Secondary dominants

Closely related keys

• Verse-chorus: verses tell the story over the same music; the chorus carries the title and hook. Often with a bridge: V C V C B C.
• AABA (32-bar form): two similar A sections, a contrasting bridge (B), then A again; four 8-bar sections.
• 12-bar blues: three 4-bar lines over I, IV and V (see the styles guide).
• Rondo: a returning main theme with contrasting episodes: A B A C A.
• Sonata form (outline): exposition (two themes, usually moving from the home key to a related key), development (themes are transformed), recapitulation (themes return in the home key).
• Through-composed: new music throughout, with no repeated sections.

• Bass lines: start with root notes on the first beat of each chord; add the fifth, an octave jump, or a passing note leading to the next root. Walking bass uses a note on every beat, usually stepping toward the next chord.
• Voice leading: move each note of a chord to the nearest note in the next chord; keep common tones in place. Smooth movement makes chord changes sound connected. Avoid parallel perfect fifths and octaves between independent voices in classical style.
• Rhythm patterns: mix long and short values; repeat a rhythmic pattern so it becomes recognisable; syncopation (accents off the beat) adds drive; leave silence.
• Arranging for a small band: give each instrument its own register and job: bass and drums set pulse and root, a chord instrument fills the middle, melody sits on top. Change texture between sections (drop out, add layers) rather than just playing louder.