Music Production for Songwriters: Level 1

Who knows better than the writer how their song should be produced? Gain the conceptual understanding of what makes for a powerful production and then begin to develop the skills to take matters into your own hands. You will learn to envision the entire production before you record a note--and then to create pre-production tracks for your project, or to take your tracks all the way toward a finished record. This course covers essential production skills for dialing in your sound and meets each class meeting in a professional recording studio, on-campus. 

Develop confidence and understanding to create work you can believe in from either side of the glass AND learn to get what's in your head to come through your speakers. Get feedback on your own productions from an in-demand pro.

Who better to lead you on this journey than an accomplished songwriter/artist/producer? 

Some of the many topics to be covered in this class:

• understanding production and arrangement concepts and elements
• developing critical listening skills to perceive and imagine productions
• the concept of PROSODY, in songwriting and in production
• understanding the essential and unique relationship between the SONG and the PRODUCTION and learning the kinds of questions to ask in order to have the production honor the song and the artist
• the concept of sonic windows and the melodic center of a song
• the concept of arrangement density
• the dimensions of the sonic canvas -- the stereo field, front to back, and top to bottom
• timbre and emotion
• production as interpretation and genre
• Drum Tracks Creation
• The Guide Track
• Dynamics and Arrangement
• Rhythm Guitar and keyboard parts
• Lead Instruments
• Background Vocals
• The Lead Vocal
• EQ Concepts and Techniques for Instruments and Vocals
• Effects: Reverbs Delays Chorus Etc.
• Using Compressors on Instruments and Vocals
• Mixing approaches

The instructor will be using Pro Tools, but the class is designed to apply to any platform (Garageband, Logic, Ableton, Cubase, etc..). Users of all digital audio workstation platforms are welcome, including beginners.

Pre-requisites: some experience on a DAW (digital audio workstation, a recording platform like Garageband, Logic, Pro Tools, etc.) recommended but not required. This class is designed to be your ENTRY to the world of music production--both understanding what is happening in productions you admire and to be able to make thoughtful choices for productions you are participating in.

Class Setting: Each class will meet in a professional recording studio environment to both better familiarize you with how a real studio works and how you might do your work both at home and in a pro studio.

Format: After learning essential concepts of production and arranging and developing an understanding through critical listening exercises, the class will create a track from scratch in the class, from week to week applying the production techniques covered, with an emphasis on hands-on experience in the studio. All students will have the opportunity to participate in the production of our class project recording, regardless of your level of previous studio experience. The out-of-class homework will be to do the same thing for your own track, putting the concepts to use in your own music as well, and at your depth and experience level. Again, even basic Garageband understanding will be enough to work on the basics.

Bonus Materials: Students will have access to class videos to review the concepts of class on your own time.

Added Benefits: Graduates of this course will be, after an additional orientation class, be eligible to RENT OUT the RECORDING STUDIO at rates well below the regular rates. This will allow you to do your own projects or to produce other projects in a professional setting at a significantly more affordable rate.