Composers from different genres of music might have different ideas about what is meant by being experimental.
That said, and despite this variance in meaning, it’s important for one and all to shake things up a bit or even get out of the compositional rut.
For this, here are 5 ideas that can help you compose music a bit differently:
#1: Try storytelling
Any successful work of art will involve telling a compelling story. Once you’re done working on the piece, make sure you listen to it objectively and check as to whether it takes your listeners on a captivating journey by through engaging storytelling. If it doesn’t, then you should think about starting over again.
#2: Randomization
This is probably the best technique when it comes to creating experimental music. When you use it well, it helps you arrive at places that you might have never reached whether timbrally, melodically or structurally too.
#3: Break the rules
Before composing an experimental piece, think about the conventional boundaries or rules that govern a particular genre of music. Once you understand these ground rules, you will know which rules to break as a result.
#4: Melody
Always keep in mind the melody of any piece, even if it is experimental in nature. However, melodic beauty does not have to be consonant, sweet or lyrical but also mean dissonant, harsh or even violent.
#5: Scales
Any musical piece consisting of key, melody and harmony depends on its central scale. For this, you can either combine a few scales or even invent one yourself.