Has your composing ever benefitted from playing an instrument?

Hello!  From my own experiences in composing and playing music, I've always wondered if anyone has learned and/or improved in composing through playing an instrument, such as the violin, piano, or trumpet.  Don't get me wrong: you don't need to learn an instrument to learn how to compose.  I've created my own melodies in my head long before being introduced to my first musical instrument.  So my question: Has playing an instrument ever influenced your ability to compose music?

For me, I say it has.  Playing the violin lets me know what it is capable of, so I know that it can play only certain chords and use bowing techniques like spiccato.  On the other hand, playing the piano taught me a lot about music theory, so I wouldn't have known the works behind the music that allowed me to compose as well if I never played it.  What's your answer?

The composition of ideas itself? Probably not. Some people loop composition and orchestration together, but I don't. Knowing how to play instruments has definitely made me a better orchestrater, no doubt. Too many times have I gone and asked my wind friends, "hey, is this fun and playable", and, kind souls that they are, they put up with my constant asking. I play the cello as my "main instrument" and compared to most of my wind writing, the scores just look more professional, because I know what it can do

Coming up with a melody, motifs, laying out structure, planning textures, etc. are all things that don't really require instrument knowledge, I think. Instrument familiarity helps with executing those, but not much past that, I think.

I should be saying "no" because I barely play anything. However, as a kid I messed around with a guitar long enough to get a hold of all major and minor chords, as well as their relationships (thus allowing me to transpose any tune to any tonality at will). That, in turn, made me conscious of having perfect pitch, since my relatives and friends often asked me to listen to any given piece and immediately tell them the chords needed to play it along - which led to the real discovery of my own ability to craft tunes and work on musical relationships. So, there's always an added benefit when you know how a thing works - but only to some extent. For instance, I have greatly improved my piano writing in the last few years - without ever being able to play it. Same can be said of orchestral writing (my biggest strenght, I think), since nobody actually "plays" an orchestra, and I have never been a conductor.

4 minutes ago, Monarcheon said:

The composition of ideas itself?

 

Explain please!  :D

Just now, spike473 said:

Explain please!  :D

 

Like I said, I don't consider composing and orchestrating to necessarily be the same thing, although they definitely overlap somewhat. I can compose a melody in my head, right? Let's say I did, but if I wanted a horn to play it, and it goes over a transposed high B or C (which is the limit of comfortable range for most). In this case, then I KNOW I'll have to transpose it down, or give it to another instrument, which is basic orchestration, yes, but maybe you'll see what I mean separating the two concepts.

All in all, I think composing refers to the building of ideas and structure, while orchestration is the execution of those properties.

It helps me with harp and guitar.

100% yes, everything I've written has benefitted from my experience as an instrumentalist.

Trombone less-so than piano, but I find writing music at an instrument to be considerably quicker, more intuitive, and more organic than anything I could produce without it. Hearing physically how tones will react to each other is valuable, regardless of the eventual orchestration.

As a brass player, having an understanding of how instruments work: harmonic series, air, breathing, dynamic control, flexibility and physical limitations is helpful when it comes to orchestration. 

One of my composition teachers once said to me, and I quote, "Good music can be made without any instruments at all." Well, I assure you that there's no point in going down that rabbit hole imo. The more you know about the idiomatic characteristics of instruments and the humans that play them the better composer you will be. Can you imagine a doctor who's only seen a dead body in text books?

Well, for me it's a yes and a no. Being an instrumentalist in an ensemble definitely has helped me in a million ways musically (including composition) and it's doubtful I would have the inspiration to compose without the appreciation and understanding what is means to come together and produce music. In terms of the actual process, I have had little passion for noodling/improvising on a instrument outside of piano (and I can barely play one) - it's probably because solo playing has never appealing to me, and whenever I'm playing alone I almost always envisioning the ensemble sound as I play. 

Additionally, the things I want from my music right now barely align with what I've heard and experienced in ensembles (clarinet player, so largely wind bands) and I find myself questioning if what I already know how to write is what I actually want to be writing. I didn't realize it until recently, but I think in some ways being an instrumentalist has impeded my composition as well as helped it, in this respect.

I recognise that maybe I am not the greatest composer, but certainly I compose better than what I can play any instrument.

As well as you said, I had musical ideas without knowing how to play them. And when I had an instrument in my hands I hated those repetitive exercises for beginners, so much that I can tell you that I practically learned what I know about guitar and piano from 0 completely by myself. In the past I knew how to play other instruments, like clarinet, and I attended classes, and they were acceptable. But I think I could not have done what I have done if I had followed a teacher in guitar and piano.

I hardly play a score, I practically know only a few pieces... But I can play a lot, and for hours, improvising and exploring freely.

I did obtain ideas from what I improvise, and I have seized them a lot in my compositions, although they are not as great and sublime as those I can imagine in my head.

I think this is because I know how to easily imagine any sound in my mind, but not in a piano -not at the level I can in my mind-. So, perhaps if I had a more advanced technique I could improvise better and get better ideas. Perhaps it would help, but you are correct, it is not mandatory, and I have composed symphonies, and even pieces that I could not play myself, but I make them possible to play by other better experienced players.

Yep..I usually take lessons on other instruments to understand it better.

One semester of instrumentation, spending a day or two on each instrument.... it's impossible to really understand an instrument this way. You need to feel its sound, envelope, study the scores by the masters.

I was always afraid my sounds would be awkward until I got my hands on an instrument. Once I could feel its soul, I could do anything with it. Is that odd?

You can read the basic limits of an instrument (range, etc.) in a one page summary in an orchestration textbook and use that knowledge to write music that is technically playable.  But unless you really know an instrument well, it's easy to write music that is technically possible, but a little awkward for even the best players.  And it's not going to sound as musical as you might hope as a result.  A large number of players won't be able to play it successfully to match your original vision.  And the few who can, aren't going to want to invest the practice time to make it work when there is so much other good music available in our time period.  

There's a reason I write so much a cappella vocal music.  I spend a lot of time singing, so I know what's realistic to ask of the average singer much better than I know how to write a fluent trombone line.  I know what sorts of problems eat up rehearsal time for a choir, or risk never going quite right.  Things can be possible, but still dangerous.  Sometimes something is really necessary to the character of a piece, other times you can find another solution that you like just as much that is more certain to work in performance.  

I play the keyboard but I cannot compose. I do improvise but I only do so based on the music I listen to. You are what you eat.

I want to be a composer so I can start finishing up my songs!! 

See, I can play, but I can't write it so that it can be finish. I play for a little while then I quit, start a new project. I have roadblocks. I cannot get pass the 16-32 bar. This is why I want to learn composing so I can advance forward. Does anyone know where I can start?

2 hours ago, noobcomp said:

I play the keyboard but I cannot compose. I do improvise but I only do so based on the music I listen to. You are what you eat.

I want to be a composer so I can start finishing up my songs!! 

See, I can play, but I can't write it so that it can be finish. I play for a little while then I quit, start a new project. I have roadblocks. I cannot get pass the 16-32 bar. This is why I want to learn composing so I can advance forward. Does anyone know where I can start?

 

I think it does help to atleast know certain chords so you can keep your tracks consistent. Knowing chord progressions can help as well. Say you lay a piano part down that you improvised. Well how about taking a different instrument and playing over your previous recording? If it sounds out of place that is because your notes were not kept consistent and were random. 

I say it does really help to atleast know the basic fundamentals which are not hard to learn if you wish to finish what you start but that also needs to come with dedication. I know how it is to start but not finish so I usually stop and start listening and studying. I read the reviews that others posted on my works over and over and over so I can pin point what it is they think could be improved.

Just gotta take it one step at a time you know?

I must say yes to this.

If I could´nt play the piano. Most of my compostions would not be so good.

I am not so good at transcribing melodies into notes. So I usually record them as MIDI and then quantisize them.

Very interesting question with very interesting answers. For me, the answer is yes.

It partly depends on the sort of instrument you play.
When playing a keyboard instrument, you may already be familiar with chords and the balance between melody and accompaniment.
When playing a ''one-voice''-instrument, you may have less experience with these aspects of composing.
As a saxophonist I notice that for me composing melodies is way more easier than creating stable harmony following the melody.

Before I began composing, I was already able to read simple music notation. Without the ability to read scores, it would be immens hard to compose. 

I think it is worth too to discuss the following:

• Has your composing ever benefitted playing an instrument?

The technical aspects of playing saxophone have, in my case, not been improved by compositions. 
Embouchure, finger velocity etc. do not improve by composing.

However, I notice that my music theory (for instance Italian terms) and music interpretation (such as frasing) do improve by composing. The primary benefit is the latter, which helps me to understand how the music has to sound and what the composer wants to express with his creation.