A: I use two approaches when composing pieces. The first, choreography-based composition, is where the sound and rhythms are based on the choreography. The second is sound-based composition, where the choreography is derived from the beats and rhythms.
Also, it's important to have a theme. If your theme is "Dotou" (angry waves), you need an image - for example of how a drop of water becomes a river, and how that river runs into an ocean. Or, you might imagine giant waves like the ones you see in Kujyukuri or Hawaii.
Also, when composing, I always try to incorporate "Johakyu," (see *1) or musical structure, into the image I have.
Although the composer's image is very important, it's also important to keep your audience in mind. Always remember, listening to good music feels good. You want your audience to feel something positive - such as excitement or emotional movement - when they hear your piece, so try to get as many opinions by showing your piece to as many people as possible.
"Rome wasn't built in a day," and the same thing applies here. You're probably not going to complete a piece overnight. Hammering out the rough edges can take months, and building the fundamentals necessary to play a piece can take years.
In order to compose good music, you need a strong belief in yourself, but you also need good fundamental technique. Most of all, it's important to really know yourself when composing.
Learn about yourself, believe in yourself, work on your fundamentals, and keep at it!
*1 "Johayku" is a word used to describe the format of many traditional Japanese art forms such as Noh, Gagaku, Shamisen, etc.
The word "Johakyu" is written using three characters, jo, ha, and kyu that mean "beginning," "destruction," and "fast." In this particular case, Jo (beginning) is used to mean an introduction. Ha (destruction) means expansion, and Kyu (fast) means closure.
Simply put, "Johakyu" means a beginning, a middle and an end.
