{ "schemaVersion": "v1", "slug": "part-writing-turning-notes-and-chords-into-music", "title": "Part-writing: Turning notes and chords into music!", "kind": "solo", "listenUrl": "https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/lovemusicmore/episodes/Part-writing-Turning-notes-and-chords-into-music-e1ls8uc", "publishedAt": "2026-10-14", "source": { "provider": "whisper", "model": "faster-whisper:base", "normalizedSchema": "v1", "transcribedAt": "2026-06-09T10:00:10.291Z" }, "paragraphs": [ { "startSec": 0, "endSec": 28.45, "text": "Music Appreciation. Making these podcasts is super fun for me because I have to think all week what's an interestingenough thing to talk about for like 10, 15 minutes about music.And I usually have just ended up looking at what am I doing right now?" }, { "startSec": 28.45, "endSec": 49.73, "text": "I'm making a bunch of remixes, I'm doing some sessions, I'm doing all these things inmusic, but what am I fundamentally doing right now?I'm writing melodies on a bunch of different instruments, that's it, that's the gistof what I'm up to.And so I wanted to talk about part writing, what makes a part a part?" }, { "startSec": 49.73, "endSec": 76.05, "text": "How do you take notes and transcend it into something that is worthy of going on toa record?And part writing for me comes down to vocals, everything has to sing.And what I mean by that is that every single part has to sing in its own way." }, { "startSec": 76.05, "endSec": 96.65, "text": "Base has to sound like a bass player, it can't just be playing notes, it has to be doingbase things.Guitar needs to sound like a guitar player, it can't just be notes, it has to do guitar stuffor you know, interesting stuff, doesn't have to be like, this is what a guitar soundslike, you can break the mold, but like you have to be informed by a certain sort of vocabulary" }, { "startSec": 96.65, "endSec": 124.01, "text": "or certain sort of like thing that that instrument does, the role that it plays.And I figured this topic would actually be a really fun thing to tie into the recentpots, talking about music history because all of my parts go back to music history witha thing called polyphony.Polyphony is the idea that you end up having two voices going on at the same time." }, { "startSec": 124.01, "endSec": 150.53, "text": "And early polyphonic work, it was like a Gregorian chant in Latin, like chanting the scriptor scripture or something like that.So like picture a bunch of monks in red robes going like, you know, Iplorub is unum andsinging and singing in a church.Usually you realize, hey, not everybody has to do the exact same thing, you can have twodifferent parts." }, { "startSec": 150.53, "endSec": 170.69, "text": "And so they used to sing in something called organum, which is a straight harmony, theywere singing the exact same vocal line, but separated by an interval, usually a perfectfourth or a perfect fifth.And so they were just kind of following the same direction until some innovators came upwith the idea that they don't all have to do the same thing at the same time." }, { "startSec": 170.69, "endSec": 198.05, "text": "In fact, you can have two completely different melodies going on at the same time if you'restrategic enough.And that's where polyphony comes in, is it ends up being two melodies that on their ownare interesting enough, but they're being played at the same time to create harmony, to createinterest.It's the same basic idea that comes from that develops into what Bach did, which is calledcounterpoint." }, { "startSec": 198.05, "endSec": 222.01, "text": "But you're instead of just having two independent melodies, you're having a bass player and a vocalistor a bass voice and an upper register voice like an alto or a soprano, doing two differentthings that highlight and augment the other while providing interest." }, { "startSec": 222.01, "endSec": 246.97, "text": "I was actually talking with my buddy Okudaxij, we were at my bachelor party, and as one doesat a bachelor party, we were talking about music theory.Actually counterpoint, because he was telling me that he's trying to do more of this likeclassical stuff in his music, which is kind of hilarious.If you listen to the music, I don't think you would know that, because he's like very alternativefolk." }, { "startSec": 246.97, "endSec": 266.89, "text": "But he's quite a musician, he's a good thinker.So he was reading some of these textbooks on counterpoint and trying to develop theminto his own music, and the part that he added up instructing me is that it's not justlike following math.Even though there's a lot of that kind of stuff going on with counterpoint, it's an old school" }, { "startSec": 266.89, "endSec": 293.89, "text": "way of doing music, but he said like the goal is yeah, to use the math and to use like themusic theory to provide support and to write interest in multiple vocal lines.But the other part that people don't normally catch on to is that each line is supposedto be interesting enough to just listen to it on its own.That goes back to that monophonic days, and the polyphonic days, and now to the counterpointdays." }, { "startSec": 293.89, "endSec": 315.73, "text": "Of you have multiple parts that aren't just supposed to just be glue people, particularlythe top and bottom line, sometimes the middle people are glue people.But you want to have a bassline that's moving, that's dancing with the melody.And that's the way that I like to think about it, not exactly like, you know, I'm goingto do what Bach does, but instead I'm going to do like what they did in Motown, what like" }, { "startSec": 315.73, "endSec": 339.85, "text": "James Jamerson did on his funk baselines, where you have a melody that you're supportingbut you're also providing syncopation and contrast and interest, dancing around and withand sometimes against the melody.And that's where part writing starts to click for me.Base and vocals are the best way to like think of all of part writing because fundamentally" }, { "startSec": 339.85, "endSec": 365.17, "text": "every other instrument is trying to act like a vocalist in some way.You're trying to write hooks, even like a drum part.I was just talking with Danny who's on the podcast about Forget Me Nots, Patrice Rushen'sgreat song.But the one of the biggest hooks in the entire song is two claps, that's a rhythmic hook.But the the way that it's laid out and the way that it's featured is is like thinking" }, { "startSec": 365.17, "endSec": 389.49, "text": "of a vocal hook and then applying it to a clap part where you think like a vocal hookand you apply it to a bass part and you get James Jamerson or Paul McCartney.It's that sort of mentality where you're not just playing notes anymore, you're beingvery intentional about the stresses, the accents, the flow, the patterns and the whatit's playing against, the role that it's playing as a dancer." }, { "startSec": 389.49, "endSec": 406.53, "text": "And so when you start pouring in all of these different parts, especially when I'm doinga remix, this is the ultimate because I have a steady vocal melody that I'm dancing around.And when you're making a remix, the people really want to see a dance, you know, you're notjust supposed to like be super subtle and transparent.No, it's like this is a remix." }, { "startSec": 406.53, "endSec": 428.21, "text": "This is your time to be producer man and show people what you're made out of.So it's like, all right, I'm going to play all my instruments.I'm going to do crazy stuff.It's going to be a dancer arrangement.We're going to go for it.But like it's so easy to start stepping on each other's toes.So how do you go for it?You have to be very, very aware of what the vocal is doing, dance with it and dance against" }, { "startSec": 428.21, "endSec": 450.77, "text": "it at certain times.And there's a moment and I think musicians would would really resonate with this when you'repart writing, when the stuff starts to go beyond just on playing chords.Now it's, I'm playing these specific chords in this specific order with these specificstresses and then most importantly, with this kind of voice leading." }, { "startSec": 450.77, "endSec": 469.37, "text": "We don't normally talk about that on guitar, but it's really, really important wherethe shape of the chord and the extensions on the chord, the jazz notes on the chord andthe way that they move from one to the next, informs a ton.It's part of the reason why I give you here somebody playing with a capo and you knowplaying a song.It doesn't quite sound right." }, { "startSec": 469.37, "endSec": 488.97, "text": "The capo is the way that you can just play these open, they're called cowboy chords.It doesn't quite sound right because you're not playing the right inversions of the chords.And inversions is just order of notes.You're not playing the right order of notes.And the order of notes is what transcends something from chords to a part." }, { "startSec": 488.97, "endSec": 518.37, "text": "I can put the same order of notes on any different instrument and it's still kind of feellike that part.It's going to be filling that specific place.So even on a chord that only has two or three notes, the order and space in between thosenotes creates a completely different vibe.It's like the difference between a power chord and a big sparkly dream pop chord.Very different vibes even if they're the same note." }, { "startSec": 518.37, "endSec": 543.17, "text": "But then you expand that out entire arrangement.Think of like playing six different guitars, a bass guitar, synthesizers, vocal harmonies,drum parts, all of that stuff.Everybody has to be dancing with each other and that's where mixing comes in and that wasmy conversation with Luke from a great good fine okay.He was talking about how as a synth player, he tries to play for the frequencies." }, { "startSec": 543.17, "endSec": 565.17, "text": "He tries to play for the spots in the frequency spectrum that are either like low, don'thear.There's a little bit of room there.So I'm going to put my chord, my cluster down there.I'm going to invert my chord so that it's smaller in the top end, tinny part, but it's biggerin this low end kind of area or vice versa.You find the pockets and you play to them." }, { "startSec": 565.17, "endSec": 585.53, "text": "And so when you're making an entire arrangement, you have to think in these pockets.You go, okay, I'm going to be playing this really percussive guitar part.But it's not going to have a ton of body, like low end stuff.It's going to be this tinny little, almost like a percussion instrument.So I need a synthesizer that's going to fill out that body so that it doesn't feel tootinny." }, { "startSec": 585.53, "endSec": 609.05, "text": "But I also don't need a synthesizer that's going to be too percussive because the percussionkind of sound is going to be coming from the guitars.So like each interacting with the other, being really intentional about the notes andthe way more than just the notes, it's like what's the next note and the note beforeit.Understanding the pathways, the ways that the notes are dancing together." }, { "startSec": 609.05, "endSec": 637.41, "text": "I think that if you let a computer pick your notes, which a lot of people are doing,it sounds a certain way.It sounds like blocky.And sometimes that's really cool, not saying that that's not always cool.Sometimes you want to be blocky.But there is a certain elegance to having the notes go in directions that they wantto, adding little sparkles of space between chords." }, { "startSec": 637.41, "endSec": 654.81, "text": "And that's where things transcend from just being, I'm going to throw some chords onthis thing to being, let me write a part on every instrument.The second that you just start being like, let's just throw something in there is sometimesat least for me is when it starts to kind of go off the rails, when it's like, oh, I justneed to add more guitars." }, { "startSec": 654.81, "endSec": 672.85, "text": "But without understanding what I'm trying to do or what kind of color I'm trying to throwonto the canvas, that's when the whole thing starts to get muddy.Kind of go off the rails.But if I'm saying, I want to have a guitar that's going to occupy this higher place and singwith the vocal, or there's this big gap in the vocal melody because it does this big" }, { "startSec": 672.85, "endSec": 689.81, "text": "leap and a big note, and then the vocalist like has to take a breath.That's where I'm going to put a guitar that's going to respond.So you're going to do, do, do, and the guitar's going to go, do, do, do, you know, there'sgoing to be a call and response in that, that gap.It's that singing with each other.And then, you know, everybody's listening to each other." }, { "startSec": 689.81, "endSec": 709.53, "text": "So when you are laying down a bass part, you're listening to the drums and the vocals andthe guitars.But then as you're layering onto that, you're listening to that bass part.Everybody has to dance together.And that's when it transcends.That's when it goes from being notes and chords and frequencies to being music, becomesordered and it becomes intentional." }, { "startSec": 709.53, "endSec": 734.46, "text": "And even if it's like supposed to be chaotic, like, there's intention behind that.There are ways to be chaotic and then still make it be like a good mix, good in termsof like getting the right message across.You have to use these like theory kind of things to your advantage." }, { "startSec": 734.46, "endSec": 761.26, "text": "Even if you're trying to do something that sounds like a tonal and weird, there is valuein listening, in participating, and in taking your notes and turning them into something,you can sing if that's what you're going for.And that's like the dawn of music, the thousand years ago, when we started to sing togetherand play together, which is funny, because it's like a folk tradition, but we had took" }, { "startSec": 761.26, "endSec": 790.03, "text": "all this a long time to get there in classical music.Like what you heard?Don't, whatever.Go to scoobertdoobert.pizza and let me know why.Happy to discuss other stuff, too.So reach out, suggest some stuff and I'll see you next week.Bye.I'll probably fix that next week." } ], "correctionsApplied": [ { "id": "scuba-duba-intro", "count": 1, "note": "Host intro name ASR typo" } ] }