Enter the Studio

Hello Everyone,

Thanks for watching the video, I hope it was helpful. It was definitely very different presenting to the green dot on top of the computer rather than to real people.

As the video is long, you may want to learn about specific topics rather than watching it in its entirety. Use the following timecodes to navigate to specific parts of the video that interest you.

Things to consider before starting the course 3:25

Software 5:00

Recording Spaces 13:55

Equipment 17:35

Thoughts for Course Planning - General Ideas 26:15

My course structure 31:40

Collaborative and Culminating Projects 41:45

Technical Concepts 43:15

DAW Prices

One thing I also forgot to mention is the price of various DAWs. Really, it comes down to what you want to do. Many people have different opinions on what works and doesn’t work with their own students, and what suits their individual tastes and needs. The competition between companies is stronger than ever. Each will offer different features as well, so sometimes the choice can be difficult. I have tried all of them, yet I don’t know everything about all the functionality of each (even the ones I use the most). As there is competition between companies, many times new features pop up in a software I stopped using. This is where music educators can have great discussions about what works the best, what features work the best and how to maximize the creativity and musicality in their courses.

Here are some pricings for various DAWs.

Logic Pro $279 (board pricing is often half the price/seat)

Garageband Free

Studio One (version 3,4,5) There are 3 levels of the software, a completely FREE version, and then the Artist version comes with Acorn Masterkey keyboards or Presonus interfaces. The latest version of the software comes with standard notation (similar to Garageband).

Studio One 5 Prime - Free (no time limit) Studio One 5 Artist - $135 Studio One 5 Professional - $540

Cubase Elements - $101 Artist - $304 Pro - $545

Audacity Free

Reaper Donation Suggested

Ableton Live Intro - $119 Standard - $539 Suite - $899

Reason $510

FL Studio (Fruity Loops) Fruity Edition - $129 Signature Edition - $260 Signature Bundle - $390 Full Version (All Plugins) - $1183

Soundtrap Free Soundtrap for Education - $299/year for 50 Seats (The more seats, it gets cheaper/seat)

Bandlab Free

Online Resources

I mentioned a number of resources in the powerpoint, and as a result of not being at school during the filming, I missed a few things.

The Shed Music - Music Technology course https://shedthemusic.com/

This resource is very helpful in getting students making music, it isn’t heavy on traditional theory, and notation comes in later. However, what I have done is similar to this, as it follows a logical progression using the elements of music to generate “units.” “The Shed” builds the course from drums, to bass, then chords, and finally melody. I work the opposite way, making sure students get some standard notation while they learn melodies. Developing harmonies and bass lines come by listening to melodies and figuring out which notes work the best.

Another Project After the video was made, I had another idea for a project that could be done by students in a music creation class. Composing soundtracks for escape rooms would be an excellent project as students would have to compose based on the short “blurb” introducing the escape room. Escape rooms can also have different themes, thus allowing students to experiment composing different styles.