New producers may find the initial stages of electronic music production to be daunting. There are a variety of techniques that can assist them and build a foundation for their productions.
Electronic Dance Music (EDM) is a genre of electronic music composed using digital and analogue electronics to produce sounds and beats, usually designed for dancing to with an emphasis on producing big climactic drops or choruses.
Stage 1: Finding Inspiration
Electronic music is an adaptable genre that can be found across modern pop and rock genres. Known for its use of synthesized sounds and beats, electronic music has quickly become an indispensable element of dance clubs and movie soundtracks alike, while its integration into more traditional genres opens up an entirely new realm of musical possibilities. At Stages Music Arts we provide many ways to experience this magic through private lessons, our 4-level 15-week course or weeklong summer camps – come experience it for yourself today!
Electronic music producers need a source of constant creativity and inspiration in their lives if they hope to keep creating great tracks. Producers might turn to figures from history for musical influences, but it’s equally important that producers explore other art forms and creative avenues such as visual art, literature, film or even nature for potential new tracks.
Composition involves exploring ideas to form fundamental elements that work musically together. Avoid getting bogged down in technical aspects like sound design and arranging that could slow workflow; focus instead on writing the intro, verses, bridge, chorus breakdown outro as well as variations to chord progression melody countermelody bassline and motif variations of your song.
Many producers begin their production process with a strong drum beat, as this sets the energy for their track and provides an important foundation. Drum beats can be created using samples or by crafting custom beats using various drum plugins and effect racks.
Stage 2: Exponential Learning
Production of electronic music requires both skill and practice to succeed at. To start producing your own tunes, try using a purpose drum sampler like BATTERY to audition different kits until you find ones that suit your track perfectly. In addition, listening to some reference tracks and keeping an ear open for how the beats sync up together create the overall sound is also helpful in finding inspiration for tracks of your own.
Learning how to add interest to your beats is another essential step. Producers frequently rely on “breakbeats”, rhythmic snippets lifted and flipped from existing songs, to add color, texture, and swing into their productions. Furthermore, using services such as Splice will provide access to thousands of free samples and loops that will spark your creativity.
Once you’ve mastered the fundamental techniques of your DAW, it’s time to advance your game. One effective strategy for doing so is “deep work”, which involves working without interruptions from external factors or distractions such as social media accounts or gear. Producers who struggle with finishing their music often spend too much time worrying about gear or social media instead of concentrating on creating it properly.
At this stage, you’ll learn to produce your own sounds and more complex arrangements on your own. Building up skills in this way will give you a sense of purpose while fast-tracking your progress as a producer; perhaps deciding to recreate three melodies from popular songs every day for 30 days in order to develop sound design abilities?
Stage 3: Creativity
Electronic music production is an intricate and multifaceted endeavor that necessitates both technical skill and creative expression. New production techniques, technologies, genres and forms of musical expression continually emerge; thanks to digital software platforms it has never been simpler for an aspiring electronic music producer to learn their craft and become one.
Creativity has long been a controversial subject, with various theories as to its source. Some attribute its creation to divine or spiritual inspiration while others point out cognitive processes, personality traits, social environments and even serendipity as contributing elements. Whatever its source may be, creativity remains an integral component of music production that should be taken into consideration throughout every project from concept through completion.
Creativity often feels like a flash of insight; whether driving somewhere when an inspirational melody strikes or enjoying dinner with friends when a solution to an ongoing project appears unexpectedly – these moments do exist, yet to reach full realization they require hard work and persistence to develop into fruition.
Producers’ work often entails brainstorming ideas and concepts, experimenting with various combinations of sounds, and refining the final product through trial-and-error tinkering. Furthermore, this requires improvisation and experimentation with software tools which offer tremendous flexibility and scope for creativity – for instance synthesizers can create electronic sounds; drum machines provide drum patterns; while samplers enable producers to manipulate existing sounds.
Stage 4: Arranging
Arranging stage in electronic music involves selecting which instruments carry melody and chords, as well as layering those instruments together. Whether this process occurs early in conception or at the very end of production, arranging is key in producing tracks with distinctive and professional sounds.
An arrangement involves selecting and placing tracks and elements within your mix. For instance, tracks that rely heavily on claps may need multiple layers while more minimalist tracks might use only one or two. When it comes to arrangement, less is often more; allow your layers of claps shine instead of trying to cover them up with unneeded sounds.
Electronic music arrangement often includes creating transitional sections to ensure your song flows seamlessly. A traditional pop song may feature an intro and outro to introduce listeners to their track, while dance music often uses an intro and drop section as a means of building energy before its chorus begins. This can be accomplished by shifting loops around and adding or subtracting elements from different parts of your track to produce dynamic transitions between different parts.
Stage 5: Deep Experimentation
Once a song idea is settled upon, its producer can then experiment with sounds. This may involve creating custom sounds, sampling existing ones in creative ways or employing audio effects for shaping and molding sound – creating something truly original in the process.
Once a track has been created, it can be edited for timing and pitch issues. This step provides an opportunity to adjust parts that don’t sync, adjust pitches that don’t sound quite right and polish tracks by fading beginnings and endings so each part flows seamlessly into its next one. Finally, preparation for mixing may involve deleting unnecessary tracks, making final arrangement tweaks, converting MIDI tracks to audio formats or otherwise adapting MIDI tracks accordingly.
At its inception during the 1970s and 80s, electronic music began its infiltration of mainstream music through artists like Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer who helped pioneer disco with their signature basslines and shimmering synths. Since then, computer technology and musical software has allowed for further evolution in this genre; from techno to dubstep modern electronic music has grown even stronger as an engaging force connecting listeners across genres and tempos; from listening in their earbuds at home or dancing at festivals – people are responding positively and uniquely.
Stage 6: Mastery
Mastering is the final stage, which involves balancing levels and frequencies within each sound of your track to create harmony and unity in its production. This may be done by yourself or another professional.
Producing music is a highly creative process, yet it is essential to remember there are also technical considerations when creating it. These include song structure, tempo/time-signature/sound design/arrangement.
Planning is key when writing songs; planning includes selecting key, tempo, time-signature and basic instruments and sound presets as well as planning an arrangement’s introduction verse bridge chorus breakdown sequences.
Producers should also keep the end of a song in mind when producing. They can achieve this by harnessing tension over its entirety to deliver an impactful and rewarding payoff via hooks or drops at its conclusion.
Sound design is an integral component of production, and can involve anything from synthesizer-generated sounds or sampling existing ones, to editing sounds in creative ways like reversing, stretching, chopping or pitching them backwards or forwards. Furthermore, creative audio effects such as automation may be added and used for mixing.