Chances are you have at least one friend who’s putting out their tracks on SoundCloud. If not, this is the unique opportunity for you to become that friend. In the course of a week, we will cover the basics of producing a song, all the way from having the idea through composing, recording, editing, re-recording, mixing and mastering. Expect to get a lot of music recommendations from me and your coursemates, as well as a good chunk of hands-on experience with industry-standard software and easily accessible and affordable hardware. After all, we want to see you to go on and continue producing from your bedroom.
There is absolutely no requirement of any musical knowledge prior to the course, but if you play any instruments, you are encouraged to bring them along. An affinity for music in general is a plus.
Here’s roughly what you can expect.
Session 1: Harnessing Inspiration
To get the creative juices flowing, we will first talk about our musical influences and the ever more complicated issue of genre. This will, of course, be accompanied by playing many example tunes, notable for their sound design or their effect on the audience. Some time will be also dedicated to discussing ownership rights and creative freedom.
Session 2: Hunting for Sound
In the second session, the three main sources of obtaining a digital audio clip will be outlined: recording an intentionally produced sound, recording sounds in the wild and sound synthesis. We will explore these in detail with practical exercises and then expand our understanding by trying to overstep the boundaries between each two of them.
Session 3: Composing Bootcamp
Without further ado, we will jump right into making our ideas come true. Depending on where the interests of the group shall lie, we will focus either on the basics of making an electronic beat or on writing lyrics while pitching ideas for a melody.
Session 4: Recording from your Bedroom
Using everyday items and a few specialized pieces of equipment, we will set up a recording studio. I will emphasise the important aspects in its construction and design so that everyone is able to replicate this in their own home. The rest of the day, we will dedicate to recording whatever came up the day before.
Session 5: Post-production (the boring bit?)
On the fifth day, we will finally sit behind the screen to tie it all together using a digital audio workstation, which is a type of software designed for editing sound. We will pick out the best sounding clips, adjust them for pitch and add any number of effects your heart will desire. Then we will work on syncing them together and catching up on any missing layers in the recording studio.
Session 6: Soundcloud Famous
In the last session, we will learn about the different formats in which an audio track can be saved on your computer and how these affect quality of the sound. Drawing on that, we will figure out the best way to upload these online, with a focus on SoundCloud. For contrast, we will also explore the possibilities of spreading your sound in analog form such as on a vinyl record or an audio cassette.