Quathan

Oh, believe me, I'm reading every word and sentence in this thread, and one other that I posted in the music production section. Sorry if I'm being rather ... quiet. I usually have a habit of doing that on a forum. I checked out the Songstuff Songwriting Articles section. All you guys were right - there is a wealth of information there that I literally spent hours reading on. So far, all of you have been particularly helpful to me, as you are posting your own unique thoughts on my questions. Anyway, I read that RoadRunner Records website on the typical writing process for Dream Theater. I was actually surprised at how they do it; they usually jam and find ideas in their riffs and such. The way I thought it worked was when they had an idea in their heads, they would play it out and write it to paper. At least, that's how I try to do it. Perhaps the reason I become frustrated is because I might have this complex guitar or keyboard riff in my head, or I want to play a chord on the keyboard, and I immediately think that I should find how to play it, and formally write it out. Either that, or if I make up a riff on the guitar, and I try to write it out, I can't always get the form right. I suppose that what I want to do in the future is develop an extremely large understanding of theory, so I will know how and why things sound they way they do, as stated by Lazz. Once again, thank you. You all, so far, have been very helpful. Any other information would be appreciated, by the way. Thanks, -Mike

I have several questions. Whether they're on topic or off, I need help! This looked like the best place to find it, since it had to do with song production and things of that nature. 1. What exactly is a record label? How does one attain it? 2 (Multiquestion). Let's say that you have a song all written down and ready to go. How would you produce it? If you want to put it on a cd, do you go to a studio for that? Where can I find a studio? Are there any world famous studios? 3. Let's say I arrive at a studio with all my equipment. What do I do next? How am I supposed to know how to use all the studio equipment? 4 (Multiquestion). Let's say that my band and I are completely willing and able to write and produce music that people across the world will probably love to hear and see. What do I do from there? Do I get a record label? What do I do? 5 (Multiquestion). How did bands like Dream Theater get famous? What exactly was the whole process, from day 1? They learned to write music, they learned theory, they practiced, but when they started writing things in their own homes, how did they get their stuff produced? How did they get their stuff out there, for people to listen to and eventually enjoy? How did they go on huge world tours, where the arenas they played at were sold out, filled with passionate fans? Knowing that it's very hard work, how can I get there? Can I have some suggestions and helpful tips?

I have a bunch of questions, and if anyone can answer them for me, it would solve A LOT. I feel very overwhelmed and confused at the fact that I do not know the answers. 1. When someone wants to write a song, how and from who/what do they learn theory, musical notation elements, musical writing elements, etc? 2. I stare at a blank piece of staff paper and I almost feel like screaming due to the fact that I cannot write the hundreds of musical ideas that flourish in my head. What do I do? 3. When a band or a single person wishes to write an entire song (consisting of lyrics, guitar, bass, drums, keyboard, etc.), what is the typical process of songwriting that bands go through? In particular, I am talking about progressive artists, such as Dream Theater. 4. I sort of made up a song on the bass, and I won't have a problem adding drums to it (since I am natively a drummer), but how do I add guitar chords and other instruments to it? How do I even write it out? 5. Are there any good books that teach the reader all about music theory? Any good books for beginning music theory learners? How about intermediate? Sorry if my questions seem too broad.

I recently started writing, I guess you can say a poem, because they are lyrics to a song I have yet to write. Before I actually started writing it, I arranged it so that certain lines have a certain amount of syllables. Trying to write something within these boundaries is fun and challenging, almost like a puzzle. But the question is, what do YOU think about it?