How can I become a better arranger?

[Xiang A. Wuu]

Let's face it. Some of your arrangements are phenomenon and I am awed by how many notes are in a single page in some of your arrangements. For me personally, I can discern what notes are being played on Youtube and I can copy it down to Finale, but the main problem for me is the dynamics and articulations. I don't know how to understand time signature well, when to add the slurs, and all those fancy shenanigans.

How do you become better at arranging? Any tips will be appreciated.

And for practicing, how can I get better at arranging when I don't know what I'm doing. Do you guys have a professional or a mentor to help you out?

Thanks and sorry if this is asking too much.

[Static]

Although I am also still relatively new here and new at arranging in general, here are some things that I do that help me:

When adding notes (finding pitches), I listen to the song at a slow speed (usually around half-speed), but in order to decide the time signature and when to add articulations and dynamics, I listen to the song at normal speed. It helps me get a better idea of how the entire song is supposed to sound and gives you the bigger picture. I also find it a little easier to get the articulations and dynamics correctly this way. Basically, I just try to get my sheet to sound as close to the original as I possibly can.

The only way to get better is just by making more sheets, getting feedback on them, and learning from that feedback. Also, personally, I do not have a mentor; it's just me, my headphones, YouTube, and Finale.

Again, this is just my method. I'm sure there are other (and probably better) ways to arrange songs, but that's how I do things.

[daj]

I love this question, and I love that you have the guts to ask this question <3

Y'know, the first step to becoming good at anything is to admit that you are nothing. ^^ dang that just sounds so dang chinese please forgive me and my ancestors

How do you become better at arranging? Any tips will be appreciated.

You've actually stumbled upon the best place on the Internet if you wanted to do VGM arrangements, haha. Welcome to NinSheetMusic! ^^

As with most disciplines, the best answer to such a question is simple - just do it more. So do some arrangements for a start And then once you're done, take a listen, think about what might be missing, reflect a lot more, and then start the next arrangement with those ideas in mind.

Sooo, basically: internalise, drill, reflect, repeat.

That being said, you've come to a community of VGM arrangers, most of whom are more than willing to help you write better. We all have our own experiences, we all have some things to share, so if you approach some of us we probably won't mind guiding you along! (though don't go overboard <3)

Yeah, you've come to a fantastic place! ^^ Do some arrangements yourself, post them on an arrangement thread, make it clear that you'd like us to help a little, and people will come over and guide you along in a jiffy. When I came back here after a long hiatus, one of the updaters instantly hit me up and we worked some sheets (and talked Pokemon DPPt) on Skype - we're still working really closely today haha.

(I'm talking about you, Latios, you're amazing <3)

So I've rambled on a bit about what you can do, but the bottom line is that you just need to constantly reflect on your own work and don't be too afraid to ask us for help.

And for practicing, how can I get better at arranging when I don't know what I'm doing. Do you guys have a professional or a mentor to help you out?

Erm...as for this, I'll need to redirect the question to someone who wasn't formally taught in performance. Yeah, I kinda get where you're going at - we write as we would imagine us playing it, so it's very hard to go beyond if you don't understand the capabilities of the instrument well enough. Hmm.

I guess if you're not too interested at pursuing performance, the best way to pick up new writing ideas and techniques is to analyse those sheets that you really like. Maybe ask the arrangers some questions too and they can provide you with better answers.

Thanks and sorry if this is asking too much.

Not at all, by the way! ^^

In fact, I'll go ahead and open myself up first. My PM box is open and ready - if you'd like to talk music I'll be more than happy to help

Much cheers!
~ daj

[WaluigiTime64]

As with most disciplines, the best answer to such a question is simple - just do it more.

Basically this. Don't expect yourself to be a fantastic arranger at the start, it takes time. A lot of time, I'm afraid. Your mistakes now will guide you through the learning process.

Try to arrange something simple/easy at first (that is rather popular, so that you actually get noticed). If you feel like you've done all you possibly can, feel free to post it in an arrangement thread so people can give feedback on it. If you're uncertain about anything you can just ask. We're all somewhat nice people, so don't expect harsh criticism.

Through doing that over and over again, gaining more experience and learning more techniques, you should become a pretty solid arranger. Again, it can take A LOT of time, so be patient!

[Latios212]

Yep! Just don't be afraid to try and fail.

I would stress the importance of picking something easy to start with - NES or Game Boy music is a good starting point because it has a maximum of three voices of roughly equal volume (generally speaking). My first two sheets were really bad because they involved chords and heavily orchestrated sections. But then I started arranging Pokémon Gold/Silver music, became more familiar with listening for voices and putting notes on the page, and used that as a jumping off point before attempting harder pieces.

One thing I would like to add is to browse a lot of sheets (from the main site, perhaps). Try to pinpoint what you like about the masterpieces, and avoid doing the things that the... less desirable... sheets on site do.

Being helped out by a professional/mentor? Not in person, but by working closely with a select few people from NSM, essentially, yes.

(I'm talking about you, Latios, you're amazing <3)

<3

[Sebastian]

Well, there isn't really "one way" to arrange correctly. There are 4 great explanations above, so there isn't really much more I can say.

You gotta find what works for you. For me, it took me a while to do just that.


What I'd say has already been said.

Slow down songs for note accuracy:

When adding notes (finding pitches), I listen to the song at a slow speed (usually around half-speed), but in order to decide the time signature and when to add articulations and dynamics, I listen to the song at normal speed. It helps me get a better idea of how the entire song is supposed to sound and gives you the bigger picture. I also find it a little easier to get the articulations and dynamics correctly this way. Basically, I just try to get my sheet to sound as close to the original as I possibly can.

Get lots of experience:

The only way to get better is just by making more sheets, getting feedback on them, and learning from that feedback. Also, personally, I do not have a mentor; it's just me, my headphones, YouTube, and Finale.

Y'know, the first step to becoming good at anything is to admit that you are nothing. ^^

This so much^
One of my problems when I first started is that I thought I was really good. I thought that since I had a musical background, I didn't need to learn anything, but that was simply not the case. In fact, I was really really bad. Because of the time it took me to go from a snooty mindset to a "willing to learn" mindset, it was a much much longer road than it could've been.

I'm not saying you're like that! Just be careful.


Also, tacking on to what Daj said, don't be afraid to ask for help. I've been there. I was afraid to ask because I thought it made me look inferior or stupid, but don't be afraid. That's why we are here: To help.

Your mistakes now will guide you through the learning process.

Yes! Learning from your mistakes is key. Really study the criticism that Updaters give in your sheets/submissions. This is how you learn.

Try to arrange something simple/easy at first (that is rather popular, so that you actually get noticed). If you feel like you've done all you possibly can, feel free to post it in an arrangement thread so people can give feedback on it. If you're uncertain about anything you can just ask. We're all somewhat nice people, so don't expect harsh criticism.

I would stress the importance of picking something easy to start with - NES or Game Boy music is a good starting point because it has a maximum of three voices of roughly equal volume (generally speaking). My first two sheets were really bad because they involved chords and heavily orchestrated sections. But then I started arranging Pokémon Gold/Silver music, became more familiar with listening for voices and putting notes on the page, and used that as a jumping off point before attempting harder pieces.

Yet another mistake I made when I first started arranging. Try to pick a sheet that isn't too tough. I picked some of the hardest stuff out there...what a mistake xD


But yeah.
You have a lot of great people in this thread willing and ready to help, myself included. My pm box and skype box are always open. I would love to talk some more if you so desire!

[braix]

Disclaimer: I'm not a huge arranger and I'm still not good at it but eh

I'm only repeating others at this point, but I'll say it anyway for the sake of repetition:
The secret to getting better at arranging is arranging. You start off knowing nothing at all, but you pick it up as you go along.
Basically, the amount of effort you put into it is how much you'll get out. Arrange a lot and you'll grow insanely quickly. Arrange not so much and you can't expect a lot. So just pour everything you've got into it and trust me you'll get good.

As for outside help, most if not all arrangers on NSM would be willing to give feedback on arrangements or give tips.

It's important to know where your skill level is, but don't beat yourself up if you aren't where you want to be.

[Xiang A. Wuu]

Thank you guys so much for answering.

Before I asked this question, I was worried because I wouldn't know how you guys would react to someone so noobish.

Thank you for your answers. You've given me the little push I need to start arranging. Many thanks.

[JDMEK5]

Thank you guys so much for answering.

Before I asked this question, I was worried because I wouldn't know how you guys would react to someone so noobish.

Thank you for your answers. You've given me the little push I need to start arranging. Many thanks.

I'm going to say two more things. I haven't exactly read all the responses so it's possible I've been beaten to the punch. For that reason, I'll keep it brief:

1) NSM is a brotherhood family. (Brotherhood is the best word for what I'm trying to express but I don't want to sound sexist about it.) We don't slam people for not knowing what they're doing because everyone has beginnings. Help and fellowship is always available here and as long as you treat us with respect, we'll see to it that you receive the same.
2) Embrace your style. Arranging is full of grey areas where there isn't a straight right or wrong. As you progress and improve you'll develop certain signatures and such. As long as there isn't a superior way of doing something, I say go with what it is you want from your work.