You’re an artist. We all are. You want your phone to remind you, and everyone around you, how creative you are whenever someone calls you. Compose your own ringtone. It’s easy. And, it gets you out of awkward situations shamelessly–you can walk away with your art melding the silent air.

“I try to do melodies that are intriguing enough to capture a crowds attention,” said Martin Plante, a ringtone artist, in an article on About.com.

You might be skeptical about the title “ringtone artist.” Plante may be onto something, however. You don’t need to title yourself. It may not seem like there’s anything artful about ringtone composition. But, it’s a way to carry around your own jingles and let others hear your creativity without you forcing them.

Many people spend money on ringtones; some sites with the “hottest jams” can charge up to $9.99 a month for certain downloads. iTunes lets you convert songs into ringtones, but you still have to buy the song.

Wouldn’t you rather let your cell phone squeak out something original, something that’s going to turn heads and make people say, “who is that?”. You may be on the forefront of a new composer revolution. You may be one of the first composers to tap the ringtone medium.

You can start with a USB keyboard or a free online ringtone composer such as Bimtones.com. Your symphony doesn’t require the background and theoretical knowledge you might think it needs. All you need is a willingness to experiment.

Ring Makers

Bimtones.com uses a visual interface dressed like a piece of graph paper with a note-labeled keyboard as the y-axis. You can choose up to four different instruments at one time, from grand piano to gunshot, and compose your digital melody with your color-coded instrument. When you have your masterpiece, you can use your phone’s browser and visit the address Bimtones provides you to get your ringtone.

With your USB keyboard, just make a song. If you’re on a Mac, GarageBand allows you to convert your music into ringtone files that you can e-mail to your phone.

If you’re on a PC, you can use Makeyourownringtone.com. It’s pumped with advertisements that keep it going, but don’t let that discourage you. You can upload your various file-formats of different works, select the portion you’d like to be your ringtone, make it, save it to your desktop and e-mail as an attachment to your phone. The site lets you tinker in “expert mode” and add effects like reverb, echo, or reversing the track.

Ring Tips

Keep it short. You’ll probably be answering your phone in a couple of seconds. You don’t want to stand in the crowded elevator with your phone in your hand and make everyone hear your two-minute take on, “A Whole New World.”

Personalized rings let you add a layer to your character. If you really want the folks around you to sneer and gasp as you pull your screeching–breeching–pitch-breaking phone from your pocket only to say “hey Mom,” then you should crank up the phaser and make sure your synthesizer is close to cracking your speakers each time you hit a note.

If you’d like someone to remember you in good company, keep your tones softer and your pitches lower. Try to think about the radio station that everyone can listen to, but twist it enough so you don’t just blend in with the background.

Be original. Variations on popular songs are great, but think about how many people have “Lollipop,” blare as their favorite ring. As of Valentine’s Day, Thumbplay.com list Lil’ Wayne’s “Prom Queen” as the most downloaded ringtone. Show Lil’ Wayne who’s boss in the ringtone world.

Turn your phone off in movie theaters. You might be a great artist, but if you’re so important that you can’t sit in silence for two hours that you and many others have paid for, your ringtone sounds like a baby getting punched. No one wants to hear that.

Almost every site is compatible with every phone that has a speaker. Check your phone’s manual or your service provider to find out if your phone is capable of receiving it’s own ringtones.