Getting started

[mikaelrw]

So I'm starting at the very bottom. Im interesting in songwriting/producing but I don't know how to get started. I have a DAW and various instruments but when ever I try to record a short riff or musical idea I've got I can never figure out how to find a starting tempo or know what time signature I should be in for the song or idea. If I try to get the idea down at a random tempo I can never lock in the with click. Id like to do a lot of ambient synth pads and swells so I feel like that makes it even harder. How did you guys get over those humps when starting out? Are there any good free or affordable resources out there?

 

[Dan Bozek]

So I'm starting at the very bottom. Im interesting in songwriting/producing but I don't know how to get started. I have a DAW and various instruments but when ever I try to record a short riff or musical idea I've got I can never figure out how to find a starting tempo or know what time signature I should be in for the song or idea. If I try to get the idea down at a random tempo I can never lock in the with click. Id like to do a lot of ambient synth pads and swells so I feel like that makes it even harder. How did you guys get over those humps when starting out? Are there any good free or affordable resources out there?

When I’m getting started on a song, I usually ask the artist to play a little of it while I tap out the tempo in Pro Tools. (If you have the tempo box open, you can do this by tapping “t.” I’m sure you can do the same thing in other DAWs, but I’m mostly a PT user.) Then I usually figure out some subdivisions to add to the click or add a loop to get a little bit of a “groove” happening. Then we might bump the tempo a few BPMs on direction or the other depending on how it is feeling. Thats about it.

Playing in time with a metronome or loop comes down to practice. There is no magic bullet for that beyond the comfort level that comes with repetition.

 

[mikaelrw]

Thank you tapping the tempo is a great idea. Currently I've been using few different books to teach myself piano, guitar and bass but the books don't seem to have any lessons on playing with a click. Anyone know any good books or videos out there for beginners?

If anyone would like to share their stories of how they got started working on music I'd be interested to hear them.

 

[jmjbassplayer]

Pro Tools has the "Identify Beat" protocol which helps get a tempo map together for whatever source material. There are tutorials for this.