Music production isn’t easy. It does however allow the music artist to extend his or her abilities and imagination. Now wouldn’t it be great if you could produce your own tracks? How? Here it is.

Let me make a note first — music production here refers to the collective sounds put together to form a song. Each track you hear on a CD or an AAC or MP3 audio file is the final product of the process of music production. We will first explain how this is done generally, then move on to the specifics.

Music Production

Wonder how your favourite artists put together some of the greatest songs you’ve heard? Most medium and large artists sing the songs and need to work with a production team to produce the actual song (the combination of drums, guitars, etc). Nowadays (within the last five years), most of the production work is done digitally for better sound quality and faster development.

Assuming you write your own music (either instrumental or vocal), here are three things to achieve the effects you wish to create.

• Individual sounds that you need for your tracks
• Software (and hardware if you want) to put those sounds together
• A mic to record vocals if needed (this would also require software support)

The Specifics

We’ll first talk about that software that does it all. There are many programs out there that emphasize on different aspects of music production. Not one of them is perfect for everything. These are a few popular ones.

Software: Production

• Sony Media Software — ACID Pro (299.96 USD)
• Ableton — Live ($499.00 USD)
• Image-Line Software — FL Studio ($149)
• Digidesign — Pro Tools LE
• Propellerhead Software — Reason ($499)
• Apple — Logic Pro Mac only ($999)

Note: These prices represent the cost of the most advanced version of the software. There maybe simpler editions for beginners, but the emphasis here is on the functionality.

These programs do almost the same thing. They contain mixers (putting sounds together), step-sequencers (enabling MIDI inputs), and all the other jazz that should get you ready for your first song. Of course, it’s a personal preference to which one you really like (and the list is not limited to those programs only). It takes time getting used to one program and creating a song.

Hardware: Production System

Like a computer, music production might require a central processing unit. A popular prefered choice is the Mbox. It allows you to connect all controllers, keyboards, guitars, and other (digital) instruments to one unit with pre-processing before transfering data to your computer.

Hardware: MIDI Keyboards

To make sure you have the right notes, a MIDI keyboard might be involved. This is not necessary as many production software now include step sequencers that you can put notes into; but it is always nice to have an actual keyboard to perform on. A good one would be the M-Audio Ozonic keyboard. Great for starters.

Hardware: Instrumental Mic

To record your own intruments if you are unhappy with the pre-recorded ones that come with your software, you might like the Shure KSM109 mic. Clarity is the key.

Hardware: Vocal Mic

If you want to sing, use Shure KSM27 mic. No matter how high or low your voice is, this will carry your singing into tune.

Hardware: Speakers

Lastly, speakers for testing your sounds are crucial. Headphones are usually better because they block outside sounds and isolate your music. The Sony Studio Monitors are always good.

And you are good to go! For starters, I recommand downloading the trials of the software and get the gist of what it’s like making music right off the bat. Technically, you can make anything you want with any software alone — it’s just hard. Some programs might be easier to make certain songs while others aren’t. The new Gorillaz CD was produced with ACID Pro 5 (and other hardware of course). So it’s really your choice which one to use.

This post was inspired by the thread over at Ultrashock.