How to Transcribe Soundtracks for Piano

I hope this is the right place to post this. <.>

I've compiled together seven steps that I use when transcribing movie & video game soundtracks for piano. I will link to the video & list the seven steps. Sorry if this is the wrong forum. :/ I was stuck deciding between the piano forum and the soundtrack forum.

YouTube - How to Transcribe Soundtracks for Piano

Because of a pianist's ability to play chords and several rhythms at once, the piano is an ideal instrument to play soundtracks on. The following are seven steps which will help make the transcription process much more organized and much less frustrating.

1. Choose a song, and become familiar with its construction.

While this may seem straightforward, it's easy to become ensconced with a song that undoubtedly sounds great. Avoid songs that have a huge emphasis on percussion or that would require your fingers to move at an unrealistic pace. If you're not already familiar with the song, listen to it several times while taking note of the various instruments.

2. Divide the song.

Divide the song into several segments; good places to separate the song are key changes, melodic changes, time signature changes, and tempo changes. Dividing the song will provide you with stopping points, which you will most likely need. Frustration can get the best of you, causing you to rush and overlook your transcription's accuracy.

3. Transcribe the melody.

The melody is most often the easiest element of a song to hear, though this is not always true. It serves as a good foundation for the rest of the transcription because of its audacity.

4. Transcribe instrument by instrument.

When transcribing a song, listen for a single instrument and write its notes down before moving on to the next instrument. This will alleviate your sense of completion.

5. Transcribe the octaves.

The best thing that can happen to a transcriber is an octave. Octaves give a sense of closure when it comes to fingering. If the octaves are the lowest and highest points, then you will most likely be able to transcribe towards the melody from them, though some cases may require you to breach the octave.

6. Transcribe towards the melody.

Transcribe the lowest and highest instruments before progressing to the melody. If the lowest and highest instruments are octaves of the melody or another significant tune, you're lucky. This process defines the boundaries. Once you've done this, fill in the instruments between the extremes and the melody while retaining an inward progression.

7. Sacrifice notes.

There will be some notes that are too complicated to play because either they are too hard to reach or they drastically complicate playing. Be willing to sacrifice the notes you feel are least important based on the song so that your transcription will be playable.

I moved this to the appropriate forum.

Oh, wow, I didn't even see this forum; guess that's what I get for not scrolling down.