Author: Dave Graham

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David Learnt composition (harmony, counterpoint and orchestration) to degree level through studying Schoenbergs Fundamentals of Musical Composition, the classic text on twentieth century harmony by Vincent Persichetti, Henry Mancini’s Sounds and Scores, Rimsky-Korsakov’s excellent books on orchestration as well as studying any scores that intrigued me. He is a founder member of two bands, avant pop duo Cnut, and orchestral doombience outfit Regolith, and have performed across Europe with them.

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 72 : Music Theory

30/04/2014

Music theory is way of labelling sounds and ideas in a way that highlights the relationships between them...

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Make Better Music 68: Words and Music

29/11/2011

Writing music comes easily to me for the most part, I’ve usually got a surplus of ideas, so the only the most interesting actually get worked on. The more derivative and unimaginative ideas get...

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Make Better Music 67: Raw Power and Sophistication

22/11/2011

For some, measured, intelligent songwriting skills are the pinnacle of musical enjoyment, for others it can be the antithesis of what music is there for - the expression of raw emotion....

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Make Better Music 66: Embrace the Chaos

15/11/2011

In the midst of a vast YouTube binge the other evening (I’ve got a thirst for seeking out to interviews with musicians I like, and seem to be hopeless at turning YouTube off), I happened to come...

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Make Better Music 65: A Musical Process

08/11/2011

So this week, having been inspired by a particular piece of music, I’m going to focus on one particular kind of procedure - which doesn’t really have a name. I’ll just try to describe it....

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Make Better Music 64: “What Comes Next?”

01/11/2011

Make Better Music 64: “What Comes Next?”The big question that always demands an answer, when you are writing music, is what happens next? It seems straightforward until you try it. Then...

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Hectic Zeniths – 2011 Album Review

26/10/2011

Hectic Zeniths are playing a dangerous game. It’s hard to describe the sound that pervades these tracks without recalling two very famous albums,  the very mention of which is likely to...

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Make Better Music 63: Simplicity vs Complexity

18/10/2011

Sometimes I like to overload a song with overdubs and production tricks - if that is what suits it. More can be more in this case. Of course the opposite is also true, less intensely produced music...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 62: Working Out Your Musical Muscles

11/10/2011

Of course, if you are writing a song every day, it’s unlikely that you are going to be churning out a double album of SOLID GOLD CLASSICS each months, but on the flip side, it will do you a lot of...

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Make Better Music 61: The Music Diet

05/10/2011

Every few months I feel like I need this kind of diet for my ears - I’ve either been over-indulging in one particular artist or genre, or I’ve been gluttonous and chowing down way too much of...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 60: Automation and the Human Form

27/09/2011

On the plus side, a new generation (one that has grown up with remarkably powerful music tech tools) will do things with music software that are incredible, ground breaking, ear-catching and mind...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 59: It’s not what you put in, it’s what you get out

20/09/2011

One of the joys of music is that it always has something to say that’s worth listening to, even in tracks that you have heard a hundred times. There’s a richness and enough ambiguity of...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 58: Go Where the Barriers Are

13/09/2011

The idea is simple - things that are easy to do can be done by more people than things that are hard. You want to make your music available as a “self release” via a service like bandcamp? Go for...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 57: Counterpoint

30/08/2011

I regard writing fine counterpoint as a bit of a lost art. In some ways it’s largely redundant in todays music, where single ideas right up front are generally king. This is not any kind of rant...

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Make Better Music 56: Celebrating the Old

23/08/2011

I wonder how it feels to be making music after fifty or even sixty active years. Some people have gone on even longer - Elliot Carter is about to turn 103 and is still an active composer - what can...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 55: Back to Basics

16/08/2011

Imbue your music with your passion. If you don’t have a passion for making music, then leave it to those who do. Fill your music to the brim with all the emotion, drive, energy, love, enthusiasm...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 54: Exile On Mickey Street

09/08/2011

Another interesting realisation, specific to time spent in a Disneyland Resort, is that it is hard to feel anything but happy when the air is constantly filled with ragtime, pumped out into the...

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Make Better Music 53: The Software Trap

26/07/2011

fter a slightly wild couple of days defending myself from various opinions on last weeks article, I’ve decided to go over what I was saying and clarify a few points that I possibly didn’t make...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 52: Practice vs. The Software Trap

19/07/2011

It occurred to me the other day, after I’d picked up my guitar for the first time in a while, and for the first time in my life my skills had noticeably diminished. I’ve not played much for a...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 51: Twenty Better Music Tips

13/07/2011

Your music is what it isn't. What it lacks will define it. Don't forget why you are writing it, don't get side-tracked by writing or recording it - you are making an experience for the listener....

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 50: What Would Jesus Do?

05/07/2011

Make Better Music 50: What Would Jesus Do?. One of the beautiful things about music is that sounds don't lie - they are what they are. This means that when you hear a piece of music that you adore,...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 49: Accepting the New

28/06/2011

Make Better Music 49: Accepting the New. Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 48: Putting Out – Production

21/06/2011

Make Better Music 48: Putting Out - Production. Getting people together to work on something as a group is forever getting harder, whilst making music via the computer (where so many of us spend so...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 47: Messiaen and the Blues

08/06/2011

Make Better Music 47: Messiaen and the Blues. Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 46: Satie, Reich, Schoenberg and the Limits

07/06/2011

Make Better Music 46: Satie, Reich, Schoenberg and the Limits. Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 45: Oh, The Possibilities!

31/05/2011

Make Better Music 45: Oh, The Possibilities! Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 44: Polyrhythms….the hallmark of complexity!

24/05/2011

Make Better Music 44: Polyrhythms….the hallmark of complexity! Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 43: Has everything been done?

17/05/2011

Make Better Music 43: Has everything been done? Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 42: Being the Next Big Thing

10/05/2011

Make Better Music 42: Being the Next Big Thing. Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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make better music. Trebuchet magazine

Make Better Music 41: Tempo, Rhythm & Time

03/05/2011

Make Better Music 41: Tempo, Rhythm & Time. Lessons in music composition, song writing, artistic motivation and making better music from David Graham. ...

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