Take The A Train

Day 6

Creating the A section of your composition

ABA form

Somewhere Over The Rainbow and Great Balls Of Fire. What on earth could these two songs have in common? The answer is their form. Many compositions are underpinned by a structure we call the ABA form. A and B are the names of sections. The underlying chord progression of the A sections always remains the same. If the A section is in a major key, which it often is, the B section might move to a minor key to keep things interesting. (We’ll get to minor keys tomorrow). The B section typically introduces a new melody, another way to reinforce the new mood created by the minor key.

Exploring the A section

I want you to explore an A section in the major key you’ve already set for your composition. You could move around the major key circle from the last lesson, that would be perfectly acceptable. However there are more options for your sequences of chords beyond the basics of the musical circle, more creative possibilities, all of which are captured here for you.

iiim

vim

iim

viio

The beauty of this diagram is that you can start on any of the Roman numerals, on any of the chords. From there you simply follow the arrows to determine what comes next. The viio chord only has one arrow moving it forward. That means there’s only one chord that will sound right after viio and that’s I. All the other chords though can move forward in at least two different ways, like vim can move to IV or iim, and V to I or vim.

The I is special. From here you can move to any other chord. It’s also the best chord to bring things to a close, to make things sound finished and complete. This is because the I chord is your root, the key you are playing in. In other words, it’s like coming home.

You could move endlessly around the chords in the diagram, but I’m going to ask you to improvise for just one minute. Remember you can start on any of the chords, and when you’re ready to bring things to a close move to the I and stay there. You might like to try:

Playing with one hand only (RH or LH).
Playing HT.
Using one rhythmic value for each chord (eg. half notes).
Switching between rhythmic values as you move between chords (e.g. whole and half notes).

By now you will have found many beautiful chord progressions. Write your favourite four bar progression on your worksheet, write in the A section.

𝅝

𝅗𝅥 ♩ ♩

Improvise with the chord tones of your chord progression, the individual notes that make up your chords. Use both hands all over the piano. Improvise without any specific rhythm or pulse restricting you. Be free.
Now play your chord tones to the rhythmic phrase written on your worksheet, still using both hands. Steadily work towards a pulse.
Can you play the last step using only your RH?

Time to choose: With your LH, play your chord progression, as chords this time, not individual chord tones. Choose a rhythmic value for your LH e.g. half notes. Whatever value you choose, the chord change should always fall on beat one. Meanwhile your RH is going to play the chord tones that correspond with each LH chord, set to the rhythmic phrase on your worksheet. Challenging? It will be. Now try this:

Keep your LH in a really low register.
Move your RH all over the piano, even down to the lower registers.
Experiment with the sustain pedal (under your right foot).
Now choose a different rhythmic value for your LH and repeat this exercise.

Draw on the moments of your improvisation that you enjoyed the most to create a short excerpt. Something memorable that you can repeat. Practise your excerpt until it’s committed to memory and you can play it perfectly. Perform it, to a real person this time, not just to the cat. It’s never too soon to start composing and playing for others.