Wota in Translation

1: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:08:49.90 0.net
Because I don’t really know the answer to be honest.

2: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:10:03.69 0.net
>>1
Well, it depends on the arranger. But as a general rule, the composer comes up with the melodies and everything else is the arranger’s responsibility.

3: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:11:06.25 0.net
It’s the job of completing a song.

8: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:14:12.32 0.net
Well, you know how a song can sound completely different if you play it on a piano versus if you play it on a guitar? What the arranger does is take the melody created by the composer, figure out the mood the song needs to have, and choose the most fitting instruments to make it happen.

6: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:12:42.62 0.net
The composition is the bones of the song.
The arrangement is the flesh around the bones.

4: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:11:49.74 0.net
So the instrumentation and stuff like that are part of the arranger’s job?

5: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:12:05.19 0.net
>>4
Right.

10: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:14:51.50 0.net
They listen to Tsunku’s humming and turn it into a song.

12: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:15:59.07 0.net
The singing and chord progression are the composer’s job.
The rhythm track (bass, drums) are mainly the arranger’s job.

15: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:21:24.80 0.net
>>12
There are a lot of composers who leave the chord progression entirely up to the arranger, though.

18: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:23:53.45 0.net
Did you hear those updated EDM-ish versions of Musume’s Renai Revolution and The Peace? The atmosphere of a song can be totally different depending on the arranger.

19: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:24:52.85 0.net
It’s often the arranger’s role coming up with the intro and outro, too. The composers are usually just coming up with the singing parts.

25: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:30:08.98 0.net
And the intros are important. It’s literally your first impression of a song.

28: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:33:32.91 0.net
Take JJ’s Black Butterfly, for example. The arranger is the person who made that song into a tango — although we don’t know if it was Tsunku’s or the arranger’s idea to actually do that.

30: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:33:49.16 0.net
Still though, I’m sure it’s normal that the composer at least gives a little bit of guidance to the arranger. I don’t know about Tsunku specifically though.

48: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:40:20.72 0.net
Isn’t Terada the type who’s really detailed about telling the arrangers what he wants though?

20: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:26:09.78 0.net
Honestly, even a complete amateur could compose something. Arranging, on the other hand, is something only a professional can do.

24: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:29:30.27 0.net
The arrangement is everything. You could literally have a cat running on top of a keyboard and it could compose something.

14: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:19:24.72 O.net
Any sort of shitty melody can be turned into a good song if it’s a good arranger working on it.

29: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:33:44.38 i.net
A shitty song is going to be a shitty song regardless of the arrangement.

22: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:27:30.69 0.net
It’s not an exaggeration to say that whether a song turns out good or bad depends on the arranger. Even a good song arranged by a third-rate arranger won’t sell.

26: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:31:16.75 0.net
That’s why choosing the right arrangers to work with you is also a necessary talent.

66: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:54:07.36 0.net
There’s no way that composers have the easier job of the two. They are the ones who have to start from zero and come up with a melody. The arrangers already have that melody to build on, so it’s easy to make something of it. It’s true, though, that only the arrangers need to have some technical knowledge of what it is they’re doing.

56: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:44:12.98 0.net
Many of you are saying it’s all about the arrangement. That may hold true for the average, run-of-the-mill melody line. But understand that there can be melody lines that are nothing short of godly, too — ones that go beyond the arrangement.

68: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:56:04.87 0.net
There are lots of composers out there who can’t arrange.
But there’s not a single arranger out there who can’t compose.

78: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:06:35.93 0.net
Not all talented arrangers are necessarily talented composers, though.

31: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:34:13.54 0.net
Also, what’s a “chorus”?
Seriously, what is it?

35: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:35:42.69 0.net
The chorus is like the main feature of the song.

94: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:29:53.87 0.net
Example of a song’s mood changing considerably due to the arrangement:

95: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:32:03.54 0.net
Wait, so what about people like Bach or Beethoven? Was it composing those guys were mainly doing? Or arranging?

98: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:34:31.81 0.net
>>95
Both?

99: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:38:21.68 0.net
>>95
If it’s a piano song, the left hand actually plays the melody line, too, so if I had to call it one of those things, I guess they’d be composers. But if they changed those piano songs to be performed by a large orchestra, then that would be arranging. “Pictures at an Exhibition” is a famous example of a song being made into an orchestral piece after the composer’s death.

43: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:37:59.61 0.net
Is the arranger the one who makes the most money out of a song?

51: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:41:37.83 0.net
>>43
The arranger gets no royalties out of it, only a pre-agreed sum of money.

55: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 20:43:44.80 0.net
Japan is really bad when it comes to giving proper recognition to arrangers.

103: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 22:13:14.15 0.net
I feel bad that arrangers get so little money compared to the composers with their royalties. I bet overseas arrangers get a lot more.

110: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 22:57:27.73 0.net
Easy to understand examples of an arranger making similar sounding-songs even though the composer is completely different, exhibit A.

Fight! / Takahashi Yumiko (composition: Ito Kaoru, arranger: Negishi Takayuki)

Condition Green / Kasahara Hiroko (composition: TSUKASA, arranger: Negishi Takayuki)

Ready Steady Go! / Nagai Mariko (composition: Maeda Katsuki, arranger: Negishi Takayuki)

114: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 23:05:39.71 0.net
Easy to understand examples of an arranger making similar sounding-songs even though the composer is completely different, exhibit B.

Toki ni wa Mukashi no Hanashi wo / Kato Tokiko (composition: Kato Tokiko, arranger: Kanno Yoko)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VYuzNJZ1vc

Gin no Spoon de / Okui Aki (composition: Okui Aki, arranger: Kanno Yoko)

91: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 21:24:29.27 0.net
The idea of an arrangement can be difficult to grasp for people who don’t know music very well. I mean, in a sense of the word, coming up with instrumental phrases and rhythm patterns is part of “making a song,” so I can see how they might be confuse it with composing.

105: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 22:42:07.98 i.net
The composer does the singing melody.
The arranger does the intro, the interlude, and everything besides the main melody.
That about right?

106: 名無し募集中。。。 2014/08/15(金) 22:44:34.20 0.net
That’s about right.

Henkka: Now that we know what the fans think, next it’s time to hear from the arrangers themselves. In case you missed my announcement on Twitter/Facebook, here’s my next project. I’ll have the first of many translated interviews with Hello! Project’s arrangers up on the page below very soon.

I love Tsunku. But if there's one thing I love as much as Tsunku, it's Tsunku music. So here's my next project. https://t.co/2sjaaqS49O

— Wota in Translation (@wotatranslation) March 7, 2016

Source: http://hot.hatenablog.com/entry/2014/08/16/140000