It’s a lot more fun, and it’s faster than adding the melody by point-and-click via the mouse, though in this tutorial I’m using just the mouse. Usually, I use my MIDI keyboard to play and record different kind of melodies live. I’ll do this until I find a melody that plays along nicely with the chord pattern. Which I’m going to use to play a melody that works with the strings chord pattern. I usually choose oboe instrument with the strings. So, the next task is to load up another instrument and start to design a melody that works well together with the chord pattern There’s a ton of possibilities and combinations, and it may take a while before I come up something catchy. Now, the string chord pattern I have just created is very basic, but it’ll give me a guideline for adding the melody. Here I have added another chord and the chord pattern is slowly starting to form:Īnd here’s the whole chord pattern ready: This is the very first chord which is the beginning of the whole musical idea:

Here are pictures showing how I do it in FL Studio’s Piano Roll. Keep doing this until the chord pattern is 8 bars long. The chord pattern should progress logically. The chords must fit together when played one after another. …and try different notes in it to find a combination that plays well with the first chord. And my first chord (triad) is now created. I go to the Piano Roll view in FL Studio and choose a root note, then layer one or two more notes on top of it, and experiment until I find a note combination that sounds good. But you can use your favorite VSTi of course. Miroslav Philharmonik has some beautiful sounding strings, which are good for experimenting with chord combinations. So if you don’t have music theory knowledge, don’t worry, you can still make music, and your ears will get trained the more you do it.Īlright, the step-by-step guide for this method goes like this: 1. At this point, I have to say that I don’t have a lot of music theory knowledge (seriously, I can’t even read the notes), but I do have a bit of a musical ear so I can pretty much tell what chords, chord combinations, and melodies work together.

How to make melodies in fl studio