I originally started making this guide to help me with fantasy composition as a reference of things that I learned from hearing and reading what others have said about it, and smaller patterns that I’ve realized for myself through studying and listening to the music. These turned into a list of tips I made for myself that I wouldn’t want to forget. Then these tips naturally started organizing themselves and became something much bigger, which is this guide.
Something that might be going through a reader’s head at this point is, “What makes your interpretation of fantasy my interpretation of fantasy?” And the truth is that they are probably not exactly the same. Anyhow, our culture has generalized and stereotyped some common themes and ideas into a fantasy genre; this applies to art, objects, architecture, many other things, and of course music. This led me to find songs that are used in fantasy context and compare and contrast them. The contexts I’m referring to include games, shows, and songs that were just composed and had a picture chosen to accompany them. This allowed me to classify certain aspects of the music. So what I’m trying to say is that this is not only my interpretation of fantasy but taken out of contexts of others’ interpretations of fantasy as well.
And I'd like to clarify something. This is not me trying to tell anyone how to compose music; I’m just using patterns I’ve seen amongst ‘fantasy’ compositions and using them as a guide filled with tips to help maintain a genuine and authentic ‘fantasy’ feel that other composers captured similarly in their compositions. As a composer, you can use as much or as little of this as you want and still feel a genuine sense of ‘fantasy’ from your music. At the same time these aren’t tips ONLY used in fantasy music; they’re tips applicable to all music to some degree, so even if you’re not into fantasy specifically, this may pique your interest. That much is personal for everyone. On a similar note, please don’t dismiss this guide because of its methodical approach to composition. While many composers can make wonderful works like this from their heads without following a specific set of rules, I still think this is relatively important. For me personally, composition in this fantasy style was more of a “hit or miss” where sometimes I’d feel like I got it right, and other times I wasn’t remotely pleased with the outcome. Using a methodical approach like this makes me much more efficient with time and accuracy while at the same time, letting me use my unique approach to composition in general to make a piece my own. This methodical approach is also a great way to kick start your ideas and destroy writer’s block.