How do YOU produce music?

zosomagik · Post by **zosomagik** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:19 am

I've been thinking about this a lot lately, and seeing as how i am the only one in my immediate circle of friends that produces there's no one to really discuss this with; but im curious as to what process other people go through to make music. Im not talking about things like what DAW or plugins you use, but more like what is the order of things or steps you take to get from start to finish?

ehbes · Post by **ehbes** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:31 am

drums
pads
?????
#1 on beatport

Crow Steppa · Post by **Crow Steppa** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:36 am

Im weird. I start with a template i made, load two kicks into an EXS24 and EQ and compress them until it sounds good. Then Ill make a snare, the same way and make a simple beat. From there, Ill make a 2-4 bar bassline, not in sync, and try to make it as wavy and distorted as possible without any effects. Then Ill bounce that to audio and chop up little sections I like and make that into a melody and add a ton of effects onto it to make it even more twisted. From there, Ill add the sub and EQ everything to taste. Then Ill duplicate that original bassline I made and make some more twisted sounds with more modulation and maybe some pitchdrop and repeat. At this point Im experimenting alot more with bouncing to audio and using audio to make a bassline. You have waaaaay more control that way.

zosomagik · Post by **zosomagik** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:44 am

ehbrums1 wrote:drums
pads
?????
#1 on beatport

Im talking a track as a whole, not just a specific aspect of the track. like do you move from creating a lead synth and then move on to drums, or do you get a messing of sounds you think sound nice together and fill in from there, etc. basically whatever steps you take from not having a track to having a finished track.

Crow - i used to start with drums as well but ive been trying to think outside the box lately, thats why i posted this so i could see how other people approach producing. ive been trying to start with my bass first or a lead synth or something other than drums and IMHO ive found it allows me to be more creative

ehbes · Post by **ehbes** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 1:46 am

find a sample i like
build drums around it
build pads around drums
sidechain tings
find obscure vocals
layer rain and vinyl hisses over everything
final mix
win

Reversed · Post by **Reversed** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:08 am

-jam out on my keyboard on different / unusual scales
-think of a setting that fits the scale i want to make the tune in
-jam out some more
-think up basic idea and make first 4 bars of chords, then melody
-shape the synths to the setting
-drums
-think of a structure for the track
-think of general timbre of sections
this is where i just get creative and build stuff as i think it should be built etc. i guess this is a good way to creatively shape a track

Kilo Graham · Post by **Kilo Graham** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:34 am

I compose entire songs in tux guitar (freeware version of guitar pro) before they ever even see a DAW.

supaOGninja · Post by **supaOGninja** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:44 am

Naked

Hircine · Post by **Hircine** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:57 am

DRUMS. BASS. THEN MORE BASS. THEN WHITE NOISE, THIS IS DUBSTEP BRUDA.

zosomagik · Post by **zosomagik** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 4:12 am

supaOGninja wrote:Naked

best answer

ortamusic · Post by **ortamusic** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 7:20 am

I usually try to mix things up. There are some occasions when I start out with building a strong groove. Other times I just play guitar and mess about with chords and different chord progressions. On many occasions I just create some sort of noise in my DAW and go from there. It differs, really. And that gives me strength to always learn new things and to get more experienced.

NinjaEdit · Post by **NinjaEdit** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:30 am

^^^ That. To stay creative, change your starting points.

wub · Post by **wub** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:37 am

Another thread on this = another cut & paste;

wub wrote:I've ranted on this enough, so am going to be lazy and do a copy paste of a previous rant;

wub wrote:This is copied from a previous thread we've had re; workflow...

wub wrote:Ok, I'm going to be lazy and just quote myself from a previous topic on this subject so bear with me...

wub wrote:Got my main template already set up with several different buses, routing etc etc. I'll usually start with messing around with something. Whatever that something is changes every time I start. Sometimes a vocal sample, a crazy ass effect I've been working on, some synth patterning with modulation, instrument loop from a dusty old 50s record I've sampled, whatever.

I'll play around with that for a bit, loop different bits, chop it up, add effects, bounce & reimport, create some basic patterns etc, find out what works and what doesn't. Once I've got a nice little pattern looping for about 16 bars or so that won't drive me crazy on listening to it hour after hour, I'll start to construct the tune around it. Place the drums where the sample dictates they should be placed, or apply the bassline so that it evolves organically around the sound.

Generally once I've got that done, will work on tidying up the drum programming a bit more, making a few variations of the patterns, spread them out over the course of the tune. Same with the bassline, add some variations, plenty of automation to give it some movement. The tune programming should be evolving organically at this point, as it becomes apparent when listening where the necessary elements should change or drop in/out of proceedings.

I'll usually add a few bells & whistles at this point, incidental sounds, echoey bits, heavily reverbed hi passed sirens, vocal snippets (nb; I mean spoken word samples in this case, not actual vocals), maybe some white noise sweeps etc etc, extra layer of ambience, stretched our snare sample over 64bars to give some background grit, working it into the arrangement to keep things interesting.

Once I've got a rough arrangement of how the overall tune is going to be, I'll bounce out a rough copy, burn onto CD then go whack it on the main system in my lounge. Get myself a cup of tea, sit down on the sofa with a notebook and listen to the track on repeat. I'll make notes as to what I like/don't like, what needs working on etc, then I'll go back to my studio machine and make the necessary changes.

Then it'll just be a case of doing a basic mastering job (not too fussed about mixdowns, these generally get done as I'm working through the tune), and jobs a good 'un.

Basically, starting with the drums is IMO boring as hell. If I start a tune with drums, the tune will be dictated by those drums and anything I add to it after the fact will be added to and around the drums. FUCK. THAT. I'd much rather get some fun stuff going on, samples/pads/synth loops/melodic bits etc, get them looping the way I like then construct the drums around them.

I never listen to a track for the drums. If I'm trying to tell someone what a tune is like, I won't bang my desk to give an idea of the drum programming. Course not, I'll hum the melody, sing a poor version of the vocal, whatever. The fun bits of the tune, basically. And it's for this reason that I'll start with those bits, as those are the bits I want my tunes to be identified for.

That way I'm changing the emphasis of the track from the drums to the more interesting bit. Like thinking of a tune as a sandwich. The drums are the bread and hey, you can't have a sandwich without bread (this isn't an excuse to correct me on sandwich preparation techniques nor is it an excuse to give examples of great sandwiches that don't involve bread so don't bother), but at the end of the day I'm not eating a sandwich for the bread, I'm eating it for the filling.

antipode · Post by **antipode** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:16 pm

i pretty much just spend hours writing perc loops and sometimes they turn into tunes

deadly_habit · Post by **deadly_habit** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:22 pm

power up DAW and hardware
mash on midi keyboard till something close to a chord progression
add some drums
???
profit

Samuel_L_Damnson · Post by **Samuel_L_Damnson** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 2:28 pm

fuz · Post by **fuz** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 3:03 pm

1. Find a melody, maybe two. It's gotta have some impact (aka. short). Call it the theme. (guitar or keyboard) [Short]
2. Find chords progression around this melody. (maybe 2, they don't have to be related) [Short]
3. Write drum lines pool. (drumline often repeat themselves too much, basically : hitting on my desk right hand is bass drum, left hand is snare/clap mouth is hat) [Short]
4. Bass line [Short]
5. Figure a general structure out (as much as possible BEFORE you search for the sounds) [Short]
6. Get the stuffs (5) ordered in Ableton, Use the drum lines pool (3) cleverly. [VERY Short if you did 1-5 right and don't get distracted]
7. The endless search for sounds [LONG, can extend on 2 nights]
8. Mixing it, elaborating the build ups [LONG]
9. Sleep.
10. Next day, 2 options : (a) it sounds (headphone and crappy loudspeakers) right --> mix more, with dynamic in mind. (b) it sounds crap --> double check everything starting from 7
11. Repeat 9 and 10. with : (b) it sounds crap --> get back to previous day state
12. Repeat 11.
13. If it still sounds crap, it goes to the drawer, and usually stay there, forever. But sometimes a wild flash appears (and it's a restart from 2).

Note: part 1 to 3/4 (and even 5) doesn't alway take a computer. It has to be fast (avoid the mouse) and fault tolerant and focused. By fast I mean real fast. Computer WILL get you unfocused (it has funny samples, porn, about 4732 VST FX, ...)

14. leave the project for >5 days, focus on something else, don't bounce it yet. After that period, or longer : bounce the stuff, listen to it. If you're fapping vigorously to it, get a close friend/gf to hear it. if not... well you know what to do.

Mr 50 · Post by **Mr 50** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:37 pm

Faff about like a dickhead, lay down virtually nothing. At some point in the week it all comes together in a mad 3 hour production and creativity volcano.

Repeat.

traktion · Post by **traktion** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 9:58 pm

It varies with every track. In DNB it tends to start with the drums. I electro/dubstep I tend to start by messing with a synth or suddenly coming up with a nice melody, then I work from there.
Samples and FX usually come last. I mixdown the tune as I go along, at the end I will start listening to the mix more carefully to finish things off. Then I give it a very small bit of EQ, stereo widening, and I squeeze out as much volume as possible with the maximiser (or whatever it's called).

mthrfnk · Post by **mthrfnk** » Thu Aug 16, 2012 10:46 pm

>Open up my blank FL template, which has around 50 premapped mixer channels with alotted busses (bass, synths, drums, vox, orchestra, fx, other) and basic FX on each buss. Also has the 4 default sends setup for different reverbs and delays.
>Start with chords, always chords. Melodies/Bass follow naturally.
>Compose everything in Orchestral (using pianos, violins/violas, cellos etc).
>Faff with drums, perc and hats.
>Breakdown my "classical" piece into synths.
>Make a normal track structure (intro, break/build, main track, breakdown, main track pt2, breakdown outro)
>Add obligatory white noise, fades, risers, vox, one shots etc.
>Upload to soundcloud, regret 50 things I did with the track and realise it only sounded good when I was hysterically tired at 5am the previous morning.
>Post on DSF WIP thread hoping someone enjoys it.
>Never finish track, start a new one.

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