This is an exciting time for music creators--the technological advancements in computers and computer audio over the last 10-20 years have revolutionized music production. The tools that beginning composers have at their fingertips today would be the envy of A-list pro composers 15 years ago, and would be hard to imagine existing 30 years ago.  This technology opens up amazing music creation opportunities. With good tools and a solid application of craft, a kid can create great orchestral music from his bedroom. 

 

While I do not yet consider myself a master of the craft, I do know that I am a few steps (any many mistakes) ahead of a lot of you who are just beginning, and perhaps I can help you navigate the (at times overwhelming ) world of beginning computer-based music creation. A lot of the content is based around  giving the sort of answers and direction I wish I had had when I was starting out. 

 

 

Once your DAW and instruments are set up, I will teach you how to compose a piece of music from start to finish and step by step, walk you though the ENTIRE process of composition, arrangement, orchestration, performance, mixing, mastering, and file export.

 

But since I believe that one of the best ways to learn is to learn by DOING, we will apply the principles we learn in REAL TIME and each compose a piece of music, side-by-side, step by step, throughout the course. I think that this is a systematic, practical and results-oriented way to teach the process.   

 

Here's how this will work: in one lesson I will teach some basics about composing a melody, and then I will apply the principles myself and compose my own. That lesson's assignment for YOU will be to create your own melody following the principles taught in the lesson. And then in the following lesson we will go through the next step of the process together, and so on until, by the end of the course, we each have a completed piece of music. 

 

When you have completed the course and have your finished masterpiece (wink) I'd love to hear what you come up with! Send it to me for complimentary feedback and critique (if I have any). Listening to your music will also tell me some about you and where you are in your musical journey, and based on what I learn from hearing your music, I would also love to share any personalized recommendations to you for further learning or resources that I think will be helpful to you.

 

You will also have access to some MIDI files of mine to load into your own system and study in depth. 

 

 

 

 

While there are, I believe, more diverse opportunities to make money with music now than ever before, This is not a course about business or how to "make it" as musician. 
 This is not a course about creating music for film or media--if that is your interest then check out my course "Film Scoring for Beginners"
 This is not a course about microphones, acoustic treatment, or audio recording.

This is not a course about using notation software like Finale or Sibelius. 

 

With all that said, let's discuss some of the basics concepts behind computer-based composition and what you need to get set up.

 
UPDATE NOTE: This course was originally released in the spring of 2019. I have updated some of the videos in spring 2022 where the info was getting a little outdated (as hardware and software do). 2022 Ben has pandemic-era long hair.