Deadmau5 MasterClass and Nexus 2

Wow it's been a while since I blogged.

However I have gotten a lot done.

1. Deadmau5's MasterClass.

I learned about how much this guy does not have a music theory background. Does not really know how to play piano.

He really just puts things together.

However he really knows his shit. All the really important stuff he knows. Filters, Reverb, Synthesizing.

Really awesome how he did that.

During his masterclass, he was shitting on this software called Nexus. Where there's a fuckton of presets as well as sequences.


Which is funny because that's exactly what I wanted.


Right now I was to skip over sound design, I'll get to it later.

2. Nexus 2

Nexus is really awesome. Right now I just want to get into composition.

I really lack knowledge of how to execute transitions, build-ups, drops, etc.

Right now I'm going through some Sonic Academy tutorials.




I did finally end up producing a song.

https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/clarity

It's horribly mixed. I actually didn't realize until later. Also the drop is just horrible.



I'm realizing that I'm not as good as I thought I was. Which is okay because I know I'll get there. I just need more work on it.

Getting better at using White noise for buildups and breakdowns.

Got a new track up: https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/glide

Supposed to be more like a Trance feel type of music.

It's weird.

Every time I make a house track, I want to make a Trance Track.

Then now that I made a trance track, I want to make a more pop sounding song.


I feel like for pop songs, the vocal track is the most important element.

Whenever I hear songs these days by artists like the Chainsmokers, I feel like their instruments are pretty damn simple. I personally think they fell off a little bit after "Roses". Maybe it's the pressure to produce faster?


Anyways, I want to give a shot at a more poppy song.

Playing with vocal samples

So I just recently discovered vocal samples through splice.com and I decided it was time to do something basic with a vocal sample.

https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/girl

Another song down! I feel like I'm getting better. This tune may seem like a downgrade from my last track but I feel more comfortable with vocal samples now.

New Tropical House

Well I haven't written in here for a while mostly because I haven't really produced music for a while.

My excuse is that I recently just got a puppy. I've had him for about 3 months now and he is over 5 months old as of today.


Anyways I've made great strides in production.

1. I learned how to use the automation tool so my tracks can automatically change volume, pitch as time goes by in the song. My first couple songs were all the same volume throughout so it was really difficult to make the chorus sound loud and important.

2. I found a site called Splice.com which had a fuck ton of samples on it. It's really great when you need some inspiration. When I flip through the samples, sometimes there is one that just pops out and you can hear an awesome song with that sample incorporated.


Anyways this is not meant to be such a lengthy blog as my music is supposed to really do the talking.


Rivet is my Progressive House/Big Room track. It's super basic. Basic like Pumpkin Spice lattes.

And also very unrefined. But hey it's my first track after learning automation.


https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/rivet


Elation is my first Tropical House song. I love it. I really do. One day I hope to get some vocals on it.

https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/elation-instrumental

Second song out. Sounds like crap.

Honestly my first song being that awesome was beginners luck or some sort of luck that I pulled off.


Although I'm not a big fan of my second song, I just put it out there to keep it going. Quantity is a good thing.


https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/tinker

Learning more about synths

So with every instrument there is a multitude of different effect add-ons each with their own crazy stuff going on.

I've been working a lot (well not a "lot") with the ES2 effect thing.


I'm gonna try really hard and will definitely be getting a song out this weekend.

I think it's important to keep cranking out songs.


I should really be making more progress on the book.

It's not going to really help me that much in creating new songs (the online tutorials will), but it's going to really teach me the DAW.


Keep on keeping on!

Created my first track.

After going to more of the book and getting annoyed at all the technicalities, I decided to make a song.

The key to learning in my opinion is to make sure that you always have fun in the process.

Having fun is vital to keeping your sanity as well as maximizing learning speed.


I'm just enjoying putting hours into this craft!

-Ted

https://soundcloud.com/ted-whang/ponder