Composition for Computer Musicians
Michael Hewitt
Language: English
Pages: 240
ISBN: 1598638610
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
You might be extremely knowledgeable about the software that you use, have a good understanding of your own genre, and even have a good basic understanding of music theory. However, this does not necessarily mean that you can write effective music tracks. You need another kind of knowledge as well - the knowledge of composition. This friendly guide explains the basics of composing songs and music on the computer using any music using any music creation and recording program, whether you choose Reason, Live, Cubase, Logic, Pro Tools, Digital Performer, Finale, Sibelius, FL Studio, SONAR, or anything else. It's not as hard as it sounds, and this book eases the learning curve so you'll be making music in no time. You'll quickly learn how to program rhythm and drums, create basslines and melodic leads, and use FX and samples. You'll also learn about mixing and mastering your track and distributing it to a mass audience. Composition for Computer Musicians explains it all while showing you the basics of music theory throughout so you'll be sure you're not just making noise on the computer - you're using your computer to make professional-sounding music.
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Sticks. For starters, a drummer is not an octopus, although I imagine an octopus really would make a good drummer! The player only has two sticks to handle. I know this is obvious, but the number of times where I have seen people programming drum tracks that are totally unplayable by a drummer is quite surprising. When writing drum tracks on a computer, you might think it’s unnecessary to write a playable drum track. But the important point here is that a playable drum track sounds much more.
Drum tracks. Among these, the most important group by far is the percussion instruments. Of course, every drum is feasibly a percussion instrument, so this term needs to be qualified. By the term percussion, I mean any drum kit sample of a non-electronic origin that is not an essential part of a standard acoustic drum kit, for example, a conga. There are literally thousands of samples that belong to this category, and the inclusion of at least some of these samples as a part of various MIDI drum.
Selection of different styles. Speedcore Within the faster, harder styles of dance music, such as speedcore, the tempo alone obviates the use of any really fancy percussion. So often all that is required is a hardpounding kick on the main beats of the measure, the harder the better. For people I know who write in these styles, their motto tends to be “harder, faster, darker,” and this motto is applied to all areas of the music. To obtain the right kind of dense quality to the kick, several kick.
Thirty-seconds, and so on. Like the famous snare-drum roll of trance music on the thirty-seconds, these are often used prior to a breakdown, where more melodic material tends to receive the focus. Figure 5.5 shows the three main functional elements. Over this core you can lay various other percussive sounds that fulfill the function of adding color, atmosphere, variety, and interest. These can include anything from conventional tambourines, shakers, and functional percussion instruments to vocal.
Limited because it does not allow MIDI or audio recording. This limitation can be easily overcome using ReWire technology, which enables the DAW to control the devices used in Reason through a master/slave relationship. In effect, this means that the Reason devices are completely controlled and operated through the DAW. I know of numerous computer musicians who productively use this type of setup. They write a lot of their material in Reason and then use ReWire 4 Composition for Computer.