Music Production Podcast

Tim Webb has gone to great lengths to bring us the latest and greatest in iOS music making news. His site Discchord.com covers all the latest releases, updates, and relevant YouTube walkthroughs, jams, and reviews of music making software for iPhone and iPad. In a refreshing blast of honesty, Tim is not afraid to tell you what apps suck and are not worth your time. He has been a faithful supporter of developers and app users worldwide for the better part of the last decade. Tim was kind enough to sit down with me for a in-depth discussion about his work, developing apps, and creating and maintaining a one person business. He offers important lessons on discipline and sincerity that are applicable to all kinds of pursuits. Tim has been extremely supportive of my own work and the work of many creatives who put themselves and their art on the web. It was a pleasure to finally speak with him and learn some important lessons and viewpoints on running a successful music-based business. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: Discchord - Tim's website, dedicated to covering all things iOS music making. Buy your apps through his affiliate links to help support Tim's work, at no cost to you. YouTube - Check out Tim's videos on iOS apps and music production tutorials. Twitter - Follow Tim's work on Twitter. Patreon - Support Tim on Patreon. Everyone Can Play Music - A great video series, and the one that helped me learn my Korg MS-20. Thanks Tim! Let's Play with Apps - Tim explores a variety of iOS music apps. API Hack - Tim's own app for doing things I don't understand! Cassini - One of Tim's favorite synth apps. Foodman - We spoke about this article on Ableton.com about Foodman's unique approach to music making. Expanding Sound - Music production tutorials, sound packs, and music from my good friend, Mike Longo. Thanks for listening! Be sure to head over to AfroDJMac.com to follow my work. If you’ve enjoyed the show, please consider leaving a review where you get your podcasts! Thanks, Brian

Christopher Postill runs the web site Sounds Like an Earful, where he offers music for podcasters, video makers, and anyone that needs professional quality music for their creative projects. Christopher runs a podcast editing business and works as a graphic and web designer. Christopher's work interests me because he is taking his passion for music making and sound editing and turned it into a successful business. In this episode, Christopher discusses his work and balancing it with a day job. He talks about staying focused and disciplined, while avoiding burn out. I especially enjoyed his perspective on setting clear and attainable goals, which he can use as personal landmarks for his success. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: Sounds Like An Earful - Christopher's site where he licenses his music for creative projects. The Community Roadmap - Christopher is very open and clear about his goals for his work, and he shares those parameters here. Twitter - Connect with Christopher on Twitter. Sleep With Me Podcast - Bedtime stories to help adults fall asleep. Thanks for listening! Please visit AfroDJMac.com for more podcasts, music production tutorials, sound packs etc…

Matthew Fecher is a music software developer and part of the AudioKit Pro team. AudioKit Pro provides free and open-source audio software for developers to use in their apps and software. He and an enormous team of developers and collaborators just released Synth One, a free and open-source iOS synthesizer. I had a chance to talk with Matthew about the release of Synth One and the entire AudioKit Pro project. Matthew discussed working on a long term project and dealing with difficult setbacks. He explains how sharing ideas and working with others can lead to tremendous growth for an entire community of people. Matthew's enthusiasm and ability to think big is truly contagious, and the lessons he has learned can be applied to all types of projects. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: AudioKit Pro - Free and open-source audio development toolkit, powering millions of app installs. Synth One - The powerful and beautiful sounding Free and open-source iOS synthesizer app. FM Player - Free and open-source iOS sample player, featuring sounds of classic DX FM synthesizers. Matthew's Website - follow Matthew's work here. AutoPad - iOS for playing background pads, made with AudioKit Pro. AudioBus Forum - A great community for developers of music apps. Ego is the Enemy - Ryan Holiday's book about the enemy within.

How do we take an 8 bar loop and turn it into a finished song? It's probably the question people ask me most. As my students at Berklee are putting the finishing touches on their final project, it has been a major point of discussion. Then I received an email from a listener named Ed, who was seeking some advice on how to finish tracks. In this episode, I discuss the issues we all face in finishing songs. This is definitely not an end all be all - there's certainly room for a part 2 and 3 and 53 - but this episode answers attempts to answer the particular problems that have come up in the last few days. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: DREAM KEYS Ableton Live Pack - a collection of bedtime, mellow synth-keys instruments for Ableton Live. Check out the free DREAM KEYS Lite Pack. Making Music - Dennis DeSantis's absolute must-read book of 74 creative strategies for electronic music producers. A Simple Mistake That Will Ruin Your Mixdown - A 2 minute Ableton Live Tip that shows how to end your tracks smoothly. How to Make Music Like Marshmello - Using one song as a guide can be a powerful education experience.

Do you really need that new piece of gear? The truth is, probably not. Our modern day smart phones have more music making power than state of the art studios from just a few decades ago. In this episode, we talk about gear lust and how it gets in the way of our creative process. Plus I offer a few challenges you can give yourself to overcome the urge to buy new gear, accomplish goals, and perhaps reward yourself with a new toy when appropriate. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: AfroDJMac Music Production Club - My monthly subscription service that gets you a download every month, as well as LOTS of other cool stuff when you join. You Already Have Everything You Need to Make Music - My article for Berklee Online's Take Note Blog. Peaceful Synths - Ableton Live Pack of softer, mellow synth sounds. Use this link (or input the code: podcast) to get it for half price. SUBS - A collection of sub bass synthesizers or Ableton Live. Take Note - Berklee Online's Blog. Lots of great information, tutorials, and interviews about making music. Take Note Podcast - Berklee's podcast. This is the episode with Marlon Williams. Waterfalls - My 150th Free Ableton Live Pack, made from samples of the waterfalls of Norway's Fjords.

Vincent Musolino is a physicist and the author of How Audio Works. In the book, Vincent gives important information about how sound originates from the instrument, is recorded by the microphone, converted to digital in the DAW, and then back to analog when it leaves the speakers. It's a very musician friendly guide to a very technical subject. It's a great book for anyone interested in understanding the physics behind sound. In this episode, Vincent gives a detailed explanation of the journey sound takes and the nearly miraculous result that is music. We discuss the odd juxtaposition of the mathematical and emotional, the creative and the technical, that makes sound music. Enjoy this episode as there are powerful lessons that can dramatically enhance our musical productions. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: How Audio Works - Vincent's book about the journey sound takes from the instrument to the computer and out the speaker. Official Website Fletcher-Munson Curve - How humans hear different frequencies. Jon Hopkins on Song Exploder - Listen to Jon Hopkins break down a track from his new album. Adam Neely at Loop - Adam Neely shows how everything is a rhythm.

Dan Carr runs the site ReverbMachine, which is one my favorite new discoveries. On the site, Dan dissects and recreates the synthesizer patches used on popular songs by artists such as Tame Impala, Kanye West, Beach House, Nine Inch Nails, and more. At the end of each post you can download the presets and project files he creates. It's a powerful tool for learning how to program synthesizers and apply effects to achieve popular sounds. Like me, Dan also began his journey into music by playing guitar. I find his approach to sound design reflects the mentality of guitar players with their pedals and amplifiers. Those techniques translate to synthesizer sound design in exciting ways. I sat down for a conversation with Dan about his work and music production in general. Dan shared his process for dissecting the sounds from his favorite artists. It was a really fun conversation with a person doing some really exciting work for the music production community. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: ReverbMachine - Dan's Site where he dissects songs, recreates synth patches, and explores how artists make their music. Recreating Frank Ocean Tracks - Dan's piece for Reverb.com all about the sounds of Frank Ocean. Recreating Gone Girl - Another Reverb.com piece where Dan rebuilds Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' soundtrack for the film Gone Girl. Synth Patches - Dan's collections of presets for popular synth plugins. Ableton Sessions - Take a look under the hood as Dan recreates tracks by a wide range of artists. ReverbMachine on Facebook ReverbMachine on Twitter ReverbMachine on Instagram Moog Prodigy - Vintage Synth Explorer review of a classic synth. Soundtoys - We spoke a bit about their great plugins. Tame Impala - A favorite artist for both me and Dan. Tal Juno Chorus Plugin - It's free and sounds awesome.

Isaac Cotec is a musician, producer, and Ableton Certified Trainer. He makes music as Subaqueous and runs a website and YouTube channel about all things music production and Ableton Live. This summer he will run his 3rd Audio Grove Music Retreat. I first met Isaac in 2013 when we were going for our Ableton certification. Since then, I've followed his work closely and collaborated with him on a few Ableton Live Packs.  This conversation with Isaac covers a lot of topics, including his Audio Grove Music Retreats, how he likes to batch his work together to be more productive, and his own workflow for the album writing process. It was a lot of fun catching up with Isaac and learning some of his tips and tricks to stay productive and inspired. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: Official Site - Subaqueousmusic.com is where you will find all of Isaac's tutorials, music, and downloads. Music - Check out Isaac's music on SoundCloud. YouTube - Learn from Isaac and get some free downloads. Silk Drop - Isaac's collaboration with Heather Christie. Audio Grove Music Retreat - A peaceful getaway for music making. Ableton - Isaac's bio on Ableton's web site. Wavetable Course - Isaac created an in-depth course for Ableton's Wavetable Synthesizer. The Round Wavetable - 32 free Wavetable Instruments that Isaac contributed to. Wavetable Preset Tutorials - Learn to make Wavetable presets with Isaac. Ice Caves Free Ableton Live Pack #99 - This is a really cool collection of Casio SK-1 instruments I made, combined with Ice Cave samples Isaac made. Free Dubstep Beat Builder - Isaac is kind enough to offer his Dubstep Beat Builder for free to all AfroDJMac Music Production Club members!

You might not think that telling people they suck at producing is a good way to win over fans, but Underbelly has managed to take that approach and build a community of eager producers around it. His YouTube channel, You Suck at Producing, is growing at a hyper pace thanks to his powerful lessons and hilarious sense of humor. Underbelly packages important lessons in concise videos laced with a lighthearted attitude and dry humor. As a fan of his work, I had a great time talking with Underbelly. He's a classically trained pianist and an adept producer. During our conversation, Underbelly discusses his approach to his work as a teacher and a musician. He highlights the importance of not taking ourselves so seriously as artists, but being serious about discipline and producing quality music. I found him especially nice to talk to because he has a balance of deep knowledge and skill, but is open and honest about his own struggles as a musician. Enjoy! Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: You Suck at Producing - Underbelly's official page. Underbelly's Youtube - A seriously hilarious and helpful channel for music production. Music - Check out Underbelly's music on Soundcloud. Private Lessons - Get some one-on-one time with Underbelly. Live Looping Tutorial - A nice live looping tutorial Underbelly did for DJ TechTools. Pyramind - Learn in the classroom with Underbelly. Discord - Join in the conversation and perhaps your song will be roasted on Underbelly's live stream. Endtroducing by DJ Shadow FKJ - Live looping guitarist. StickK - Punish yourself for not accomplishing your goals by helping causes you don't like.

Recently, Dan from pATCHES asked me write a musical manifesto for his site. I was just finishing Samuel Adoquei's Origin of Inspiration: Seven Short Essays for Creative People. The book had struck me in a powerful way, so I wrote my manifesto based on 3 lessons I took from the book. This episode is my reading of that manifesto over some ambient music made from my Wind Chimes instruments and Isotonik Studios' Arcade Series Returns. Listen on iTunes or Stitcher or Google Play Show Notes: Origin of Inspiration - Samuel Adoquei's amazing book of "Seven Short Essays for Creative People." My Manifesto on pATCHES - This is the original post on pATCHES of my essay on Origin of Inspiration. Manifestos on pATCHES - Words of wisdom from some great minds in the music world. pATCHES on the Music Production Podcast - A great talk with the men behind pATCHES.zone. Ethan Hein on the Music Production Podcast - Ethan Hein drops some powerful knowledge. Free Flutes for Ableton Live - Rozalind MacPhail supplied me with some great flute samples, which I turned into 7 free Ableton Live instruments. Rozalind MacPhail on the Music Production Podcast - Rozalind speaks about her work. Wind Chimes Ableton Live Pack - I used two of the instruments from this collection for the background music. Isotonik Studios Arcade Series Returns - I used the Arkanoid to sequence the notes in the background music. Mark Towers on the Music Production Podcast - Mark Towers is the creator of the Arcade Series.