Composition Lesson: Add an Ending

It’s common practice to add a few extra bars at the end of the form in order to signal a crisp and clear sense that the piece is over…

A standard idea is to “turnaround” to the V7 chord and to postpone full resolution of the melody for a few more bars. Notice how the extra four bars fits with the established melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic flow of the piece…

This lesson brings us to end of the series on music composition. I hope it’s helped to demystify the process of creating music and given you the confidence that you, too, have to power to make music–with the same joy of a curious child playing with musical building blocks!

learn more… How Music Works

5 responses to “Composition Lesson: Add an Ending”

  1. paula graham Avatar
    paula graham

    How wonderful, it makes so much sense..I am frustrated as to how long it takes me to know the notes!! the effect is easily lost if I have to think, hit the wrong note, try again, get it right…start again… In the meantime the housework is ignored. Oh dear, it is obvious I want too much too quickly!

    Reply
    1. Frank J Peter Avatar
      Frank J Peter

      Indeed, Paula. As you can see… mastering the fundamentals of musicianship (scales, chords, chord progressions, etc) is absolutely essential so that we don’t have to fuss over the details. Is there something in particular I can help you with? By the way, it’s okay to let the housework wait on occasion! : )

      Reply
      1. paula graham Avatar
        paula graham

        I thought you were going to offer to do some housework!!! Indeed, I do understand I MUST get the fundamentals under control and know instinctively which black dot belongs to which key…simple stuff that is still too difficult for me. Never mind…it is very, very early days.

        Reply
  2. Piano Student Avatar
    Piano Student

    Thank you very much for this well-done series. Indeed it helped a lot to see which ideas and concepts are commonly used, I’ll try to use them in meaningful ways as well.

    Reply
    1. Frank J Peter Avatar
      Frank J Peter

      Music to my ears, MooMoo! It really means a lot when artists like you discover my work and appreciate the messages I am trying to share. All the best to you in music and life!

      Reply

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