making tunes on a laptop - tutorial(s) needed!!

pauliewallie

I have the laptop, the interface, the software (protools, reason and more) and a keyboard. Now I just need to learn the basics to get started. Particularly interested in making my own drum tracks for songs but struggling getting it going.

Ideally looking for someone to call to my gaff. I live northside dublin.
Anyone out there or know anyone who knows there stuff and can translate their knowledge? I'm fairly computer savvy.

Malice

Moved to Music Production, you'll probably get more suitable answers here.

drumdrum

pauliewallie wrote: »

I have the laptop, the interface, the software (protools, reason and more) and a keyboard. Now I just need to learn the basics to get started. Particularly interested in making my own drum tracks for songs but struggling getting it going.

Ideally looking for someone to call to my gaff. I live northside dublin.
Anyone out there or know anyone who knows there stuff and can translate their knowledge? I'm fairly computer savvy.

Em, I'm not sure exactly what you're looking for exactly, but I'll try to help where I can. What you're asking is a lot, and anybody who comes to your house will probably want money. Approach home recording in steps and you'll be flying in no time.

As for programming drums, I suggest you get familiar on programming MIDI instruments and being able to read and write MIDI tracks from within your DAW. This is very handy when programming drum tracks and indeed any other midi compatible instrument. Start slow. Program a simple drum beat with the kicks on 1 & 3 and the snare on 2&4 in a simple 4/4 pattern. Then learn how to throw in a fill or two.
I suggest you buy yourself a copy of EZdrummer or EZdrummer Lite (both are cheaper than on the official site if you shop around EZDLite is about €39 on thomann) and get familiar with it and look at the provided MIDI grooves it comes with and understand whats going on.

You can use a MIDI keyboard to record the hits, but this is usually quite messy. IMO, you're better off using your time and your mouse!

If you dont want to spend any cash most DAWs that I know of come with some sort of basic drum machine so investigate that one first if you want.


So basically to start you off:
1 - Set up a software instrument track within your DAW (DAW = Digital Audio Workstation - basically its your sequencer package whether that be ProTools, Logic, Ableton Live, Reason or whatever...)

2 - Load up your drum machine / sampler into the input of the software instrument.

3 - Depending on your DAW, create a MIDI region on the track and expand it to however long you think your drum track will be. You can always change the length later at any point.

4 - Click into the midi region and enter the EDIT mode of the midi track. This step varies from DAW to DAW, but in Logic 9 you just double click on the MIDI track and the pianoroll interface pops up. I don't use ProTools myself so I'm not sure exactly how ProTools handles this. But most DAWs offer the same functionality, just some take different routes to get there. Shouldnt be too difficult to find.

5 - click on the different keyboard keys in the midi track to hear which drum sample is assigned to which key by default. With most drum samplers you can change the key mapping but generally I find that the default setup is the best.

6 - Start drawing in some midi notes. You may need to change the cursor to a create tool (its a pencil tool in lots of DAWs).

7 - Look at the grid on the screen and see how it maps different divisions of the time signature into each bar. Learn this and create for yourself a simple 4/4 beat (see above)


When you're familiar with all this, if your drum sampler supports it, learn how to change the velocities of the drum hits for different timbres. You can usually change a lot more than just the velocities for different MIDI instruments, but sure you can discover this for yourself.

This is just a rough guide to help you get the basics of MIDI programming for drums. If you get stumped at anytime I suggest you google it, look up a tutorial for your DAW, or post your issues back here. You'll probably find that although very few of the "professional" engineers use MIDI, it helped me learn a good few concepts about recording and sure lots of bands and home musicians use it with great software instrument packages to achieve a great sound. For drums, the best I find are Superior Drummer 2.0 or Steve Slate Drums depending on the genre of music you're doing. I myself use SD2.0 in my music and I program the MIDI in by hand as I currently do not have the facilities to record my own drumkit to a high enough level. Hoping to change that soon though!
I've even heard of bands/artists recording entire albums using an electronic drum kit to trigger the midi notes and use a high end sampler (with post processing) for professional results.


Here are some tips to remember when trying to programming realistic drum tracks:
- Keep it in the genre! If you're doing a simple pop song, dont put in mad fast metal-esque drums just because you're testing your drum programming skills. Its an obvious one, but often overlooked.

- KEEP IT REALISTIC!! This for me always gives away a realistic sounding drum part from a programmed one. What I mean specifically by this is to think of the drumming from a drummers perspective. A drummer has two hands and two feet. Therefore the most that he can realistically play at once is 4 things: 1 kick, a 2nd kick OR 1 hihat, + 2 different drums or cymbals combination. Dont have "him" hitting 3 toms and the snare AND doing a bass drum double kick roll while taping out the tempo on the hi-hats.....unless he's Virgil Donati or something! It just sounds unrealistic, UNLESS there is supposed to be a multiple drummer effect in the music.

- Vary the velocity. Nothing tires the ears more and gives the game away than a snare that sounds IDENTICAL from hit to hit. Drummers are human (yes its true!) and as such we never hit a drum the same way twice. It ALWAYS varies slightly. Most upper market drum samplers have "humanizer" functions that takes care of this for you in theory. These can be good, but sometimes I often find these functions too "wide" in their velocity differences and can make for some inconsistant level monitoring and timbral differences. I find that turning these functions off and doing it by hand is often the most consistant way of doing it. Depends on the drum sampler IMO. I mean sometimes I get lazy and let SD2.0s humanizer do the work and sometimes it sounds grand. Usually depends on the velocity of the inout strikes though. The higher the velocity values, the more variance you get in the timbre of the drum. Its hard to explain without hearing it, but sure its something I'm sure you wont have to worry about for a while....and when you do you'll know what I'm talking about anyways!

As you'll no doubt discover for yourself, recording music has no set rules, but there are some practices that usually yield decent results. In the end though, it either sounds good or it doesn't!

Hope this helps mate!
-DD

pauliewallie

Hey Drumdrum

Thanks alot, I really appreciate the very detailed reply. I should have mentioned in my post that I am willing to pay for someones time, I wouldnt expect it for nothing.

I will study your tips carefully but I still want someone to show me as I find practical tutoring is the best way I learn.

so anyone interested get in touch.

Sky King

It depends what kind of music you want to do. A poster above says 'keep it realistic' and that's very true in a sense to make (say) a rock track sound human, yet lots of the more electronic producers will layer up drum samples and claps etc to fatten the beats up... totally imkpossible to play on the drums.

You could also have a real drum recording and augment it with other, programmed percussion. i wouldn't set myself restrictive rules like that, personally. If it sounds good, do it. Even if it's "cheating".

I had the bug for tune making for years. I hadn't a clue where to start so in the end I did a 2 day ableton course. Taught me the bare essentials and I picked up the rest along the way from forums and youtube and mates.

Getting shown the first few bits and pieces will save you HOURS of banging your head on the wall trying to get the sound you have in your head onto the track.

pauliewallie

kilkenny flyer wrote: »

Getting shown the first few bits and pieces will save you HOURS of banging your head on the wall trying to get the sound you have in your head onto the track.

Yeah hit the nail on the head mate. This is exactly why I need some practical tutoring to get me started.

drumdrum

kilkenny flyer wrote: »

It depends what kind of music you want to do. A poster above says 'keep it realistic' and that's very true in a sense to make (say) a rock track sound human, yet lots of the more electronic producers will layer up drum samples and claps etc to fatten the beats up... totally imkpossible to play on the drums.

Oh yeah, agreed!

I was talking about trying to mimic a "real" drummer take and the limitations that come with a real person behind a kit!

Still, I think its a good starting point to learn MIDI programming. May as well walk before you run! But yeah agreed....if it sounds good, do it!

seannash

pauliewallie wrote: »

Yeah hit the nail on the head mate. This is exactly why I need some practical tutoring to get me started.

To be honest you dont,you just gotta pull your finger out and sit down with the tutorials that come with ableton.
coupled that with youtube videos and maybe asking questions youll get the basics pretty quick

I still want someone to show me as I find practical tutoring is the best way I learn

Everyone learns best when there shown how to do it,Its not that its the best way "you" learn its the simplest and requires **** all work on your part.

Sky King

Tutoring is by far the most efficient use of time though, which is the reason I opted for it in the early stages (as opposed to for reasons of laziness).

You could spend 10 hours wading through the basics of MIDI or get shown it in 2 and spend the other 8 hours making little tunes and loops to practice.

If you're not enjoying the learning process you're more inclined to pack it in through frustration. You need to see results reasonably quickly I think.

pauliewallie

seannash wrote: »

To be honest you dont,you just gotta pull your finger out and sit down with the tutorials that come with ableton.
coupled that with youtube videos and maybe asking questions youll get the basics pretty quick

Everyone learns best when there shown how to do it,Its not that its the best way "you" learn its the simplest and requires **** all work on your part.

Not sure where this attitude is coming form? I just want to get started with some one on one tutorials and then I'm willing to put in the long hours that I know will be required to produce decent results. For me the best way to get started is to sit and observe someone who knows what they are doing. asking for help doesnt mean I'm lazy, just aware of what I need to do.

seannash

pauliewallie wrote: »

Not sure where this attitude is coming form? I just want to get started with some one on one tutorials and then I'm willing to put in the long hours that I know will be required to produce decent results. For me the best way to get started is to sit and observe someone who knows what they are doing. asking for help doesnt mean I'm lazy, just aware of what I need to do.

Its not about attitude but whilst you wait for replies and setting up tutorials you could be just getting on with it.
Its honestly not that difficult to get the basics down and your money would be better spent on equipment rather than tutorials
Check youtube,ask questions and youll be up and running in no time.

At the very very basic level you can purchase tutorial dvds which guide you through the very basics using these programmes
All proactive things to get you started,go find the info instead of waiting for someone to bring it to you

Rockshamrover

The only problem with learning from one individual is, they might be teaching you half arsed stuff so you could pick up their bad habits. And because of your inexperience you wouldn't know the difference.

If you are going to spend money, I'd suggest this crowd http://macprovideo.com/ .

You get the basic stuff you need for a pretty ok price. You also get to keep the tutorial videos on your computer, so you can refer back to them if you're stuck.

Good luck in your recording adventures.

old gregg

It could be worth looking at something like a short general sound engineering/music production course that uses one of the well known DAWs to get you going and within which you have scope to ask your tutor to allow you focus on drums/midi or whatever.

I mention this because in my case I'd worked with various DAWs over the years and learned all of those via the manuals/books/'net resources and was pretty comfortable with what I needed to know. Then I started using Ableton. Ableton is easy. Yet for some reason it just did not click with me. I tried the manuals/books and even spent considerable time working through Tom Cosm's pretty cool free video tutorials and still it never clicked. Then I found a Level 5 Fetac Sound Engineering/Music Production course that was based around Ableton and enrolled. The tutor allowed me to focus on my own music and helped me to resolve the types of issues I would encounter. I knew most of the engineering stuff anyway but what the hey, I got to mic up a set of drums, which is pretty cool for someone who makes beatless ambient

Dunno, my pre-music production days background was in Training & Development and the whole learning styles theory does lean towards the concept that some folks learn best by hands on face to face learning, some by hitting the books and some by just trial and error. And that can alter for us depending on a whole series of life and social and psychological events. Mayhap the OP just needs that face to face learning experience right now and even the best book or youtube tutorial is not going to meet that learning need. It might in 6 months time but not today.

pauliewallie

thanks for all the replies and tips. I found someone who is gonna call over and go through the basics with me.