Making melodic phrases

A scale is a set of notes. A melody is a decision about which notes, in what rhythm, and where to stop. This lesson gives you a simple frame: a question phrase that ends away from home, and an answer phrase that returns.

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Build a phrase that ends on a stable note (root, third or fifth).
• Play a question-and-answer pair.
• Create your own four-bar melody in G major.

A phrase is a musical idea with a start and an end, like a short sentence. Most melodies are built from phrases that ask something and then answer it.

Question phrases end on a note that feels unfinished, such as the 2nd or 4th of the scale. Answer phrases end on a note that feels settled: the root, third or fifth.

Three tools turn scale notes into melodies:

• Rhythm. The same notes sound completely different with a different rhythm.
• Shape. Skips, repeats and direction changes make a line interesting. Straight runs sound like exercises.
• Rests. Silence gives phrases room to breathe.

Repeat a small idea, then vary it. Repetition is what makes a melody memorable.

Making your own.

1. Choose a starting note: the 3rd of the scale (B) is a good place.
2. Write a two-bar question phrase using 4 to 6 notes, ending on A, B or D.
3. Write a two-bar answer phrase that ends on G.
4. Play it over a G chord. If the answer does not sound finished, change the last note.

Try the example with a different rhythm: make the first two notes short and the last two long. It is the same melody and has a very different feel.

Do these in order. Each one is small. Tick the ones you have practised.

• 1.Question and answer

  5 min · 60 → 80 BPM

  1. Play the question phrase from the lesson. Listen to where it ends: it feels unfinished.
  2. Play the answer phrase. Listen to how it settles on G.
  3. Play both together as one melody.

  You have it when

  • You can hear the question as unresolved and the answer as resolved.
  I practised this one

• 2.Change the rhythm

  4 min

  1. Play the question notes again but make the first two notes short and the next two long.
  2. Try a version with a rest in the middle.
  3. Keep the notes the same; change only the rhythm.

  You have it when

  • You can make at least two versions of the same notes sound different.
  I practised this one

• 3.Write four bars

  5 min

  1. Choose notes from the G major position. Write down a question phrase (two bars) that ends on A, B or D.
  2. Write an answer phrase (two bars) that ends on G.
  3. Play it over a G chord and record it on your phone.

  You have it when

  • You have a four-bar melody that you can play from memory.
  I practised this one

Choose a slow tempo of 60 BPM and give each note room. Melodies rely on rhythm as much as on notes; do not rush.

• Running straight up and down the scale. Use skips, repeated notes and rests. They make a line sound like a melody.
• Ending on a random note. End answer phrases on the root, third or fifth. They sound settled.
• Never repeating anything. Repeat a small idea and vary it. That is how listeners recognise a melody.

You can write a melody over any chord progression you know. The simplest approach is to play the chord, then answer it with a phrase using the matching scale.

Short version (10 minutes)

Play the example question and answer, then change the rhythm once.

Standard version (about 30 minutes)

Do all three exercises, then record your four-bar melody and listen to it.

• A phrase is an idea with a beginning and an end.
• Question phrases end away from home; answers return.
• Rhythm changes the identity of a melody.
• End on the root, third or fifth.

You are ready to move on when you can honestly say:

• I can play a question-and-answer pair.
• I can vary a phrase by changing its rhythm.
• I can play a four-bar melody of my own, ending on the root.