Hi there,
I recently subscribed to Sonic Academy having felt tempted to make electronic music for a long time. I started off with the basic instructional vids (Beginners Guide to Musical Production / Scales / Rhythm / Make Music With Ableton Live etc) which seemed easy enough to understand, before moving on up to the more specialised videos - what can I say! It was a big step up!
I first tried the electro house tutorial. I’m sure to a seasoned user of Ableton or other music software, the video series would probably provide a valuable insight into producing a certain genre or sound, but to me it just felt like I was following steps. When Bryan Spence says ‘we’re just going to add a compressor to sort of control this sound’ or ‘I’ll just sidechain this to keep it sounding clean’ and then fiddles around with 10 different settings I honestly didn’t have the slightest clue what was happening or why!
I know there’s no easy way to produce music, it’s a profession that takes years and years of practice - I’m just feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
I’m just wondering if anyone could point a complete music newb taking his first steps in the production world in the right direction?
Where should I start? Or even better; where did you start when you first got into producing music?
Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks guys!
[quote]Arceupins (07/06/2010)[hr]Hi there,
I recently subscribed to Sonic Academy having felt tempted to make electronic music for a long time. I started off with the basic instructional vids (Beginners Guide to Musical Production / Scales / Rhythm / Make Music With Ableton Live etc) which seemed easy enough to understand, before moving on up to the more specialised videos - what can I say! It was a big step up!
I first tried the electro house tutorial. I’m sure to a seasoned user of Ableton or other music software, the video series would probably provide a valuable insight into producing a certain genre or sound, but to me it just felt like I was following steps. When Bryan Spence says ‘we’re just going to add a compressor to sort of control this sound’ or ‘I’ll just sidechain this to keep it sounding clean’ and then fiddles around with 10 different settings I honestly didn’t have the slightest clue what was happening or why!
I know there’s no easy way to produce music, it’s a profession that takes years and years of practice - I’m just feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
I’m just wondering if anyone could point a complete music newb taking his first steps in the production world in the right direction?
Where should I start? Or even better; where did you start when you first got into producing music?
Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks guys![/quote]
the quickest and easiest way to get to grips with areas like this is to actually just play around with the controls. you will quickly see how they change and manipulate the sound.
that being said, we have a course coming out in the next week or 2 which explains compressors from a beginners view and also takes a more in depth look at them for people who want to know more.
i personally was self taught when it came to music production. and i find it is the best way, trial and error. i think following books filled with statements of fact and rules can sometimes not be the best way to learn.
just keep making tracks, do it for a few months, and when you look back you will see a significant improvement just from trial and error. and of course keep watching our vids 
you could also look at make music with ableton intro … its a more step by step guide to building a track.
first off, read the ableton manual, watch all the intro videos for ableton you can. i personally got my footing after being a member of this site for a couple of months. it just takes time to get a understanding of the basics and to know your way around your DAW.
just like bryan said fiddle around with the devices and hear the results .drop a sample or loop in a track put a compressor on and adjust the threshold, ratio, atack ,release etc. note how these controls change the way it sounds. its a bit daunting at first but if you keep at it im sure youll look back to this post and see just how far youve come.
hey buddy, like what tommy said it takes time, so dont be too overwhelmed with following the tuts/vids , it may be frustrating at times to not know what you’re doing but just keep at it 
also everyone here is always ready to answer any questions no matter how noobish you make think it sounds. also try and search around here and in other forums even, someone somewhere almost always has asked the same question somewhere down the line.
Thanks for the replies! It’s reassuring to know that playing around with the controls like I’ve been doing is the best way to go about things. For now I’ll just stay patient and put in a few good hours each day and I’m sure I’ll get there in no time.
Thanks again guys!
supplement playing playing about with information, read up on what those parts of the device are for.
if it makes you feel any better im trying to teach myself music theory and probably feel as overwhelmed as you. just gotta keep chippin away
Agree with what everyone else says just keep chipping and twiddling
But importantly make sure you have fun, if it gets to a point your overwhelmed have a little break go for a walk - take you frustrations out on a video game or something
I am sure the SA team, top producers and the more experinced and helpfull members here learn something new everyday
[quote]Arceupins (07/06/2010)[hr]Hi there,
I recently subscribed to Sonic Academy having felt tempted to make electronic music for a long time. I started off with the basic instructional vids (Beginners Guide to Musical Production / Scales / Rhythm / Make Music With Ableton Live etc) which seemed easy enough to understand, before moving on up to the more specialised videos - what can I say! It was a big step up!
I first tried the electro house tutorial. I’m sure to a seasoned user of Ableton or other music software, the video series would probably provide a valuable insight into producing a certain genre or sound, but to me it just felt like I was following steps. When Bryan Spence says ‘we’re just going to add a compressor to sort of control this sound’ or ‘I’ll just sidechain this to keep it sounding clean’ and then fiddles around with 10 different settings I honestly didn’t have the slightest clue what was happening or why!
I know there’s no easy way to produce music, it’s a profession that takes years and years of practice - I’m just feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
I’m just wondering if anyone could point a complete music newb taking his first steps in the production world in the right direction?
Where should I start? Or even better; where did you start when you first got into producing music?
Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks guys![/quote]
It’s just persistence my man, when I started out it’d take me half hour to watch a 10 minute video, working out exactly what and why Phil was doing things. You’ll find the more you watch and practice the faster you’ll get and the more familiar you’ll become. Then you’ll get to a point where you know what sounds you like, how to make them, how to automate them and your personal style will be born. But quality production doesn’t come over night, takes serious hardwork, but you’re at the right place for advice feedback and questions.
Keep at it!!!
Keep going it really does all start to click in place.
When I started over 6 months ago I knew nothing and was completely clueless, I would have no idea why I was doing the things I was doing when following the videos. But having done a few now I am now at the stage where I can can pause it and tweak the settings to something I like before continuing. It feels less like painting by numbers now and is more satisfying.
Reading everything you can get your hands on really helps. The book Dance Music Tools and Techniques had an exaplantion of compressors that made them make sense to me.
[url=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dance-Music-Manual-Tools-techniques/dp/0240521072/ref=pd_sim_b_2]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dance-Music-Manual-Tools-techniques/dp/0240521072/ref=pd_sim_b_2[/url]
In my case, simulateneously learning a DAW (starting from what the hell is a DAW?); programming synths; music theory; music production; composition is a steep learning curve but its something I am really enjoying.
i started about 10 years ago using a 4 track tape deck. one of these:
http://www.randallareed.com/Nov%202405%20Pix/Tascam_Portastudio_414MII_1.JPG
only been recording in a DAW for about 2 years. wish i got on the PC years ago… theres just so much more you can do and the quality you can produce is so much higher.
between the PC and 4 track i was using a Korg Triton, and a Roland workstation. what a pain in the butt that was compared to the PC
Wow old skool man…