Scott Jarrett is founder of Monkey House Recording Studio. He has taught music composition and served as music director on Broadway. He has released three albums of original music. Holly Day has written for over 3,000 print and electronic publications, including Guitar One Magazine, and Music Alive! She is coauthor of Music Theory For Dummies.

Introduction 1

Part 1: Basics and Rhythm 5

Chapter 1: Thinking Like a Composer 7

Chapter 2: Tools of the Trade 13

Chapter 3: Musical Scrapbooks: Writing on Paper and Screen 23

Chapter 4: Rhythm and Mood 29

Part 2: Melody and Development 41

Chapter 5: Finding Melodies Where You Least Expect Them 43

Chapter 6: Scales and Modes, Moods and Melodies 55

Chapter 7: Building Melodies Using Motifs and Phrases 67

Chapter 8: Developing Your Melodies 77

Part 3: Harmony and Structure 87

Chapter 9: Harmonizing with Melodies 89

Chapter 10: Putting the Chords Together 99

Chapter 11: Composing from the Void 121

Chapter 12: Songwriting Structure 135

Chapter 13: Understanding Musical Forms 145

Part 4: Orchestration and Arrangement 163

Chapter 14: Composing for the Standard Orchestra 165

Chapter 15: Composing for Rhythm Sections and Small Ensembles 187

Chapter 16: Composing for Multiple Voices 197

Chapter 17: Composing Commercial Music and Songs 209

Chapter 18: Composing Electronic Music 231

Chapter 19: Composing for Other Musicians 241

Part 5: Behind the Scenes 255

Chapter 20: Utilizing AI to Help You Compose 257

Chapter 21: Using Samples, Standards, and Cover Songs 261

Chapter 22: Designing a Pro-Level Music Studio 267

Part 6: The Part of Tens 273

Chapter 23: Ten Career Opportunities for Composers 275

Chapter 24: Ten Platforms for Selling Commercial Music 285

Chapter 25: Ten Platforms for Promoting Your Independent Music 289

Part 7: Appendixes 295

Appendix A: Modes and Chords Reference 297

Appendix B: Glossary 317

Index 323