Want to make some music?
Here's what I use, and what I've learned, in creating my little homestudio work space and getting the first EP actually published and out there for people to hear.
My plan is to have this be an ongoing series so that as 7-DAYZ grows it shows the progression in what I've learned, the gear I'm using, and my process. Hopefully, it will help you take a few shortcuts or give you a good reference point for starting your own musical journey.
For a long time I've played and composed improv pieces on the piano, but didn't ever take it seriously that I could compose and record modern music like the pros do. I am not a pianist so just straight recording was out. Also I didn't pursue it more because I'd had bad experiences trying to use MIDI back in the late 90's - it just wasn't musical enough to me and I couldn't stick with it. Well, fast forward 20 years - now music technology is amazing. It may still have some goofy limitations due to the way digital interacts with analog, or the bandwidth of different systems, but by and large I think it is a really amazing time to start into music production! You have access to great teachers online, amazing free and paid tools, and even moderately powerful computers are fast enough to serve as great music making workstations.
So where do we Begin?
What I ended up needing to get the Begin EP done was:
A dedicated workspace
A good Digital Audio Workstation (software for mixing/mastering)
A good quality keyboard/MIDI input controller
A good computer
A dedicated audio interface
A good set of headphones
A good set of monitor speakers
A decent set of audio plugins (ie a synth, compressor, equalizer, etc)
Eventually I also added:
A microphone
A second pair of ears (someone you trust that can listen to your mixes for you)
A better keyboard
Much better audio plugins
More mixing and mastering plugins
Another set of headphones
In the coming weeks, we'll walk through what these are, why you need them, and what you want to consider when looking to add these to your setup. So in the mean time do me a solid and subscribe to the blog, and I'll see you next time when we take a look at figuring out a dedicated work space for you music making!