Pareto Principle: 80% Comfort, 20% Tension

Write ideas with 80% comfort, 20% tension, and they'll usually feel pretty good.

Or flip it to make some super uncomfortable ideas.

We’re borrowing Pareto's principle - a law of nature.

Here’s 2 examples:

MELODY:

Whole steps are often consonant and smooth.

Half steps are often tense but emotionally moving.

So write your melodies with 80% whole steps. 20% half steps.

Tip: The Major and Minor Pentatonic Scales are cheat codes to this - they ignore the half steps. That's why they work so easily!

CHORDS:

Chords that are substitutes of each other - sharing 2 or more notes - are typically comfortable. (Like C and Am)

Chords that are a whole or half step away, or a fourth or fifth away, typically create more motion. (Like C to Dm, or C to G.)

Let’s call these “journey chords.”

So write your progressions with 80% substitutes, 20% journey chords.

There’s obviously nuance to this and it’s much easier to show in person, but I wanted to at least get your mind thinking about this.

Your Homework: 80/20 Sketching Practice

Write 3 chord progressions following roughly 80% substitutes, 20% journey chords.
Write melodies on each following roughly 80% whole steps, 20% half steps.
Extra challenge: Flip it.

We're not trying to be perfect. It's about becoming aware of each note we choose and how it might hit this "comfort" or "tension" world.

This helps build our overall intentionality behind each note.

Now open that DAW and get to sketching my friend.

Avery