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[themusicmaker]

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[muntjack]

Not sure why you insist on a I/IV/V progression, though you can still write a sad melody over it.  You are remembering that the IV is minor, correct? Am-Dm-E

[lelle]

Use the third. The third is what gives the chords their major/minor color. For example the only difference between the a major and a minor chord is the third. So utilize the third. The sixth falling to the fifth sounds very expressive too (f to e). Base your chords on the harmonic scale, not the melodic. So only the dominant should be in major (E major). Use the minor subdominant (d minor). The major subdominant can be used too, but mostly in cadenzas like IV-V-i.

[themusicmaker]

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[themusicmaker]

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[lelle]

Yes and no. You should use the IV in minor to make it more sad (which fits the harmonic minor scale), and in your melody you could use both scales depending on what fits. The harmonic scale works best if your melody plays within this range: #g a b c d e f. If you oost an example of something in a minor that sounds too happy I could try to help you more specifically. Sorry if I'm confusing you!

[themusicmaker]

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[lelle]

Correct. It is common to write minor chords with lower case letters, so you should write i - iv for extra clarity

Example: This progression in a minor:

Am - Dm - E - Am

should be written

i - iv - V - i

[themusicmaker]

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[lelle]

I'm not sure I understand, what rule do you mean?

[themusicmaker]

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[lelle]

It depends if it sounds good, or if it sounds like you want it to sound, and leads you where you want to go. There are lots of different chord progressions to explore. The one from Pachelbel's Canon in D is fun (I V vi iii IV I IV V I), as is progressions along the circle of fifths. You can combine different progressions, or even shorter sections of them, to create new stuff.

[nystul]

There are a lot of factors which can contribute to the emotion of a piece.  For a "sad" melody you probably want a slow tempo, first of all.  You probably want a soft dynamic to avoid bright tone and energetic feeling.  Descending melodic ideas might mimic a sad voice more than ascending ones.  Suspensions or appoggiatura can give that sense of dissonance followed by resignation.  You might not want staccato or similar effects that might come off playfully or bringing a sense of liveliness.  The minor tonality factors in here somehow too, but it's not the only thing or even necessarily the most important thing.

[themusicmaker]

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[themusicmaker]

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[stillofthenight]

Ok I am no pro composer or anything but I can give you some advice that worked for me.

It sounds like you may be having some ear issues so you may need to work on your ear. Try this...just have a single note ring in the bass. Try an A note as the drone and do not play anything else in the bass except another A. Now in the treble start playing the A minor scale and just experiment how the intervals sound, try composing a melody, just anything. Concentrate on how the intervals fall into each other and the feelings you get. Then you can add the fifth in the bass to create an A5 fifth chord and keep doing the same thing.

The goal here is to train your ears to understand and hear minor tonality. Then...you can start adding more and more to the mix such as chord progressions once you get comfortable and continue your melodies to flow with the chords.

The real secret is to REALLY understand/hear intervals and consonance/dissonance. Once you understand that then you are on your way.

You said it so sounds" happyish." If you did not know there is a PURE major scale in that A minor key known as the relative major. So be careful not to delve to far into that key. But if you stick to A as the root and think intervals against the A...it should not sound very "happy". Although it could if you do not have the minor tonality drilled into your ears (i.e you may have an untrained ear).

[themusicmaker]

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[1piano4joe]

Hi themusicmaker,

I find that a diminished chord can add not only to the sadness but can help harmonically to establish a minor "sound". Listen to Heller's etude in b minor to see what I mean.

The shape of phrases play an important role. The tempo should be slow and the melody should be mostly legato. Personally, for me, fast tempos in minor keys just don't seem sad. Chopin's Prelude in c minor is sad and Barry Manilow put words to it and that is slightly faster yet still maintains the sadness. So, you do have some flexibility with the tempo.

Maybe your looking for a modal sound? For example, "Greensleeves" is modal.

Finally, do the opposite of the William Tell overture.

I hope this was helpful, Joe.

[themusicmaker]

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[1piano4joe]

Hi themusicmaker,

I forgot to mention that there are "Diminished Scales" which can be used for melodies. I think it's a pattern of whole step, half step, whole step, half step...etc. But it's been a while so you might want to do a search.

I hope this helps, Joe.

[gregh]

Just saying, but there are some sad/melancholy songs like "Here's That Rainy Day" and "Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans?" that, I believe, are written in major modes. Mostly, except a bridge or something.