How do you make music?

Hi to all! Hope to not sound too ignorant I would really love to make music, like synth but also mix other instruments as well but i really don't know where to start. I am on linux. I studied music theory when i was in sixth - seventh grade but i still remember some stuff What's the software and hardware you use? Is there a good guide on the wired you can link me? Any tips?

>>10732 Install MilkyTracker >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRDlix-KT1E&list=PLur95ujyAigtzAa6Rw_VcIgdP4n45JvZh&index=1

Making music is a long and hard process my friend. Having some music theory in your head does help a bit, but it ain't really necessary. Have in mind that music, as all art, is a way to express yourself, just using a different language. We humans learn our native languages via imitation, and if you really like music, you've probably been listening to music your whole life. Try and analyze what music you love: what sections does it have, what instruments or sounds it uses to express what, how the beat goes or lack thereof. Once you understand it a bit, just use any DAW and go to town- try to recreate the feel, the instruments, the beat. Experiment away. This is, frankly, the best way to get a deep understanding of what makes good music imo. That said, what I'd recommend: >Learn an instrument Just pick an instrument and learn to make noise with it. I feel like the physical feel of doing something with your hands and a noise coming out gives you a better connection with the music you create. Be it a guitar, a piano, or even a software synth: learn it. >Software Pick a popular DAW and learn it. Personally I use FL Studio cause back in the day it was the easier one to pirate. Ableton is another popular choice. Every DAW has its pros and cons, and you'll find a thousand websites everywhere with lists that'll help you. >Hardware I'd advice you to just ignore it for as long as you can. Getting a midi controller helps if you plan on using software synths. A beefy computer with a good CPU for exporting and a good amount of RAM for stacking plugins will help. Maybe get a good external sound card too, but I think you ought to first learn the craft before investing in the proper hardware. I'll be lurking the thread if you have any questions. Good luck and remember- if you started a project is because you have something you want to get out of your head and put it in front of the world. Don't ever lose track of your objective.

>>10732 >I don't know where to start Anywhere. It's such a vast world, there is no single best place to start aside from your favorite. Think about what you want to make, try your best to figure out what you need to make that happen and you'll soon find a footing. It's not unlike programming, in that regard. Just fuarrrk around, have fun, do what you want. Art is freedom. >What software and hardware? DX7, Volca Keys, Polyend Tracker, TD-3 into a mixing console (And eachother for MIDI), plugged into a computer running Bitwig Studio. I'm slowly building up the gear to go DAWless.

>>10735 >Learn an instrument oh yeah i already know how to play classical guitar, i'd like to play piano next but damn it's expensive. by the way thanks really, I hope you can make good music too >>10736 thanks for the sw suggestions I'll check those!

>>10738 Bitwig is the only software I listed, but if you're fishing for software advice: >FL Studio Quirky, nice UI, pattern based workflow takes some getting used to. >Ableton My first DAW. Producer oriented, but also unfortunately mac oriented. It's one of the big ones for a reason. The only real reason I moved on from it was because of the way it handled samples. >Logic If you have a mac it's good I think? >Reaper The fact that a DAW as good as Reaper exists for fifty bucks puts every other daw out there to absolute fuarrrking shame. Reaper is a Christmas miracle. It's a little rough around the edges, though, so expect a little more of a learning curve. >Pro Tools Remind the guitarist in the room that he's 50 years old and continue not ever considering this. >Cubase It's super clean, workflow oriented more towards orchestral scoring, but absolutely usable for anything else. Chord Keyboard is a really fun feature. >Reason Bit of a walled garden. The rack system is seriously cool. I don't know a lot about it. >Renoise Jungle is massive >Bitwig Studio A lot like Ableton, with less legacy to deal with. This is what I've been using. I like it a lot. Very nice UI. My advice would be to demo all of them until one of them strikes you as something you're comfortable working on. The biggest difference between all of these as a beginner will be UI and workflow, they'll all have a very, very similar set of tools.

I mostly play guitar and various other instruments, but I'm getting into electronic music, slowly. I pirated ableton and (of course on an offline pc) am slowly learning it. It is pretty intuitive, if a bit tedious, but I've made some cool stuff in aphex-twin fashion. You could also play around with drum machines like Hydrogen. Getting a good keyboard really helps, the one I had before had like no touch sensitivity so you'd have to change the velocity of every single note. But, I still think it is easier and better to play an actual instrument.

>>10732 The important thing is to avoid getting immediately discouraged when the first thing you make doesn't sound like exactly what you want to make. I remember on Day One I was getting frustrated that my first attempt using a tracker to make chiptune music didn't sound at all like the artist I was listening to at the time.....who was a master-level music programmer who had been practicing for well over a decade at that point. So start small and go easy on yourself. To really LEARN music, you should play a piano with fully-weighted keys. Genre isn't important, but laying out the entire structure of western music theory for your fingertips has been the way people learn for centuries for a reason.

>>10732 YouSuckAtProducing/Underbelly has some good synth and electronic mixing tips on his YouTube. His album Mental Kill has some of the best mixing I've heard. The great thing about synths is that you can spend hours fuarrrking around with settings and just call it a sound design session and it counts as being productive. What genres are you going to make? Mixing strategies are more relevant in some genres than others