how do you actually get started producing music?

J

jackie11

New member
Hi there

I've been learning to play the guitar on and off for over 2 years now, I also own a decent keyboard of which I can play a little. But I've only been learning other people's songs. How do I start creating my own? Do I need to learn music theory first? What else do I need to learn? How long can I expect the process to take until I produce my first song? Any help you can give me would be great. Many thanks, Jackie.
 
You make noise until you like it and hit record. You could produce your first song right now. You could book some studio time with a producer or even buy a DAW yourself.
 
mitchiemasha said:
You make noise until you like it and hit record. You could produce your first song right now. You could book some studio time with a producer or even buy a DAW yourself.
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Hi thank you for the reply.
But surely there's some kind of strategy? I don't wanna book time with a producer as I think that would be very expensive, and I want to create the music myself. Is there a way to produce without a daw? I was looking for a way that's not digital, or is it unavoidable in this day and age? Thanks again.
 
It's possible to make songs without a daw, it's just a different type called hardware.


I'm a in the box dude [software] so I have basically no experience with hardware out side of a mic for folly and effects/drums.
But making music without a daw is basically using the hardware versions and real instruments and would require a high quality tape recorder machine right?
If you don't use a daw then you'd need one of those tape machines or learning how to use hardware sequencers.

I use software 24/7 but the hardware should be the same in look and design.
 
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Some good friends years ago recorded and layered straight into Audacity through some mics.
In time they saved up and wired into some firewire mixer and external audio stuff.

I've sat and listened to them jam out and play random notes which was inspired through the environment at the time weather it was something playing on the TV or what they saw outside. Someone began playing and stepped around some pedals and things lead to another and they had some song.

In my own experience a 'song' could take me a couple hours to a couple weeks only because it's good to step away sometimes to think about how to continue a certain part. Sometimes I don't make something for a long while because I'm trying too hard to force a song.

There's no time limit, or anyone to tell you how to do something. Sure you can learn music theory and read some books or listen to some podcasts but that just depends on how far you're wanting to take it. Just jam out and something will hit your ears.
 
Not sure what your computer setup is, but there is a cheap DAW you can get called Reaper for $60. You can try it out 60 days for free (sorry I don't have a link as I can't post them yet).
 
Would this be a good purchase to start producing? Zoom R8 8 Track SD Card Recorder Interface and Controller: Amazon.co.uk: Musical Instruments

Product Description

THE ZOOM R8 Recorder : Interface : Controller : Sampler The Zoom R8 combines multiple audio production tools in one compact device. In addition to being an 8-track recorder, it's a pad sampler and a rhythm machine, and can even serve as a DAW control surface and computer audio interface. Advanced features such as built-in stereo condenser microphones, dual mic/line/instrument level inputs, onboard DSP effects and chromatic tuner complete the picture, making the R8 a great choice for home recordists and road warriors alike.

Box Contains

Operation manual AC adapter (Zoom AD-17) 2GB SD card containing 500MB of drum loops from Big Fish Audio USB cable Steinberg Cubase LE software


Many thanks


 
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Yep, as you've probably realized by now, non-digital either means a complex tape recorder setup with a separete mixer - or a lofi route with a 4-track c-cassette type thing (which can be fun in all its limited glory, though).

But just because you're using a DAW, it doesn't have to mean you're doing music "in" the DAW; you can use it as a fancy, unlimited-tracks-tape-recorder instead. The Zoom R8 is a good all-around device, but you'll probably still want to do your final edits in a DAW environment, because frankly even simple copy-paste jobs are fairly involved affairs in standalone recorders like this one (and will take a second or two in a DAW). I perfectly understand the creative need to get away from the computer, but unless you want to do things the hard way and/or be a purist about it...I don't think throwing the DAW completely out the window is a good idea.
 
krushing said:
Yep, as you've probably realized by now, non-digital either means a complex tape recorder setup with a separete mixer - or a lofi route with a 4-track c-cassette type thing (which can be fun in all its limited glory, though).

But just because you're using a DAW, it doesn't have to mean you're doing music "in" the DAW; you can use it as a fancy, unlimited-tracks-tape-recorder instead. The Zoom R8 is a good all-around device, but you'll probably still want to do your final edits in a DAW environment, because frankly even simple copy-paste jobs are fairly involved affairs in standalone recorders like this one (and will take a second or two in a DAW). I perfectly understand the creative need to get away from the computer, but unless you want to do things the hard way and/or be a purist about it...I don't think throwing the DAW completely out the window is a good idea.
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Yeah I agree, I realise that analogue recording and mixing would take a lot more time and effort than using software to do so. Yeah I just didnt want to produce music with a computer and I realise I wont be :)

Thank you very much for the advice!!
 
I started at 15. Me and a friend, 2 acoustic guitars, 2 SM58's, a set of bongos, a shakey-egg & and a cheap Casio keyboard going into a Tascam 4-track cassette recorder.

Later (late teens/20s) on I upgraded to an Akai DPS12i for demoing but was in larger studios a fair bit at the time.

I walked away from the scene - when I walked back (near 10 years later) - everything was computer based (or so it seemed) and although I was set on making an entirely different genre of music - I needed something to hit, something more physical than just a mouse/keyboard combination.

computers have changed the way we record - but the developments in hybrid soft/hardware instruments have also changed the way we make music with them.

The 90's saw huge popularity for grooveboxes which seem to be making a fairly big comeback (I just bought Circuit and it's utterly brilliant) - prices of old Electribes are on the rise (get em early!)

I think there may well be a resurgence of a more hardware based home studio on the way - Not one that'll close out the computer but one that'll certainly give more options to ignore it.
 
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