why we improve (music production advice for beginners)
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- Опубліковано 20 січ 2021
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WHO ELSE get DEPRESSED when you finish a track that you dedicated too much time on and in the end you feel exausted you don't wanna touch music for month
Months? 2 years for me
I always feel like it wasnt worth it then and im like this is garbage why did i even waste so much time on it. Then that makes me more depressed lmfao
meeeee
"for a month". That's way too much accurately relatable.
That's how I feel about video games these days.
But my mom said it's fantastic!?
...and this years Granny Award goes to...
I've been there.. xDD
my moms just honest 😂 she likes metal and i do trap beats what did i expect 😅🤣
at least she supports you
@@shaastraumesh695 its + and -
My problem lately has been coming up with the idea for a song, being proud of myself of how good it sounds, then replaying it endlessly while tinkering with small details and trying to add ear candy. Eventually, I get tired from hearing it so much that I end up scrapping the whole idea altogether thinking it wasn't that good to begin with.
As long as you finish it to the best of your abilities its time well spent!
During mixing parts that don't require it, try turning off your lead or catchy melody. It helps not have to hear it so many times
Adding to the coments, one thing that works for me, is doing most of the song un that one day you catch a good melody, then leave the track for 1 o 2 days, come back with reset ears and the answer appears eventualy
Ear Fatigue is real. Come back to it later.
Was struggling with the exact same thing for months until recently. I'm learning now how important it is to work quickly and not listen to the track too much outside of working on it.
Also it's tempting to add a lot of elements in a track to make it sound interesting and to showcase your abilities but it's a lot more rewarding getting a few good tracks done in the same time that I would have spent trying to make one track "perfect" and then getting sick of it in the process.
Gotta love those late 4:00AM nights where you just gave up on a project because you're so burnt out, and you look back on everything you've made for the past 2 years just to realize it's pure unadulterated garbage.
:)
I know how you feel.
I don't know what your goals are as a music producer but my best tip for you is that try not putting so high expectations for your music. No matter how "garbage" you think your stuff is you need to remind yourself that it's still important and it's art. The most important thing with music is to have fun.
My own goal is to make producing my job but the biggest moment in my producing career so far was that I realized I didn't have to make music for others and to become famous from it. First you need to make music for yourself and the rest comes later.
Thank you for listening to my ted talk lol
@@teadat I completely agree with you, I recently had a similar epiphany. I used to put so much pressure on myself to make good music that others will enjoy, I used to get so disheartened that I wasn't making good music and thought I would never be good. Until one day I started making music for me and stopped caring about what other people would think. I realized I should make music because I enjoy it and its fun. I live for those moments where I make something that I think sounds sick, and it hypes me up, thats where I get the enjoyment, yeah it might not be as good as stuff on the radio but fuck what anyone else thinks. Besides even if its shit Im still improving every day without even realising it. Ive stopped thinking about the future and just enjoy what Im doing now. Gotta enjoy the journey.
@@JakePhobix Well said! Nowadays the music business is so intertwined with politics and other non-music-related stuff that the most popular song rarely is the most well-made song, so really nobody should care about competing with the "mainstream" stuff anyway.
And yeah, lets enjoy the journey 😎
Ay hotline miami pfp
Lol. I've been producing almost 3 years now. I gotta say that my mixing and sound design has improved while my ability to complete anything is miniscule.
This man speaks the truth.......I've been doing this for 25 years and it still applies - the more music I make, the better I get
🙏
definitely! it's really just like a muscle that needs to be trained everyday haha
i just wanted to post how i started noticing this after my first 2 years... nice to see how things don´t really change
I had a teacher in university who said composing is just like any other instrument - you need to practice like hell if you want to stay in your best compositional shape. It's good advice.
Where can i find your music ?
making music is literally magic idk how we do it
Finishing tunes is the single best way to improve the entirety of your craft. The journey from start to finish has so many variables & processes so it takes time, dedication & patience to develop the ear. I'm still trying to improve after 20 years. I may never get there but I love it.
You will get there! Never say never ohana.
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I’ve been producing for about 15 years and there’s some things I disagree with in this video - and that may be due to me getting into music production with more experimental music where there aren’t many rules. This coupled with being younger and new to all this made for some very creative output where I wasn’t as self conscious. Sure my music wasn’t as polished as it is today but it definitively had a lot of soul and energy - and that’s difficult to replicate no matter how great one’s productions skills are.
This also aligns with many of my favorite musicians who’s early work are often the best. I think Aphex Twin’s best albums were the ones he made almost 30 years ago despite his more recent work having superb production. I could name many.
Be careful that you don’t tame (or kill) the artist part of you too much as you try to attain “perfection”. You just might attain it but now your music sounds like everyone else’s. The skills show through but the personality doesn’t.
The best piece of advice in this is.... finish tracks. Sometimes even when you know it is not the best work the process of completing the track helps to teach you something even if it is just about completing something so you can pick it apart and do it again better.
this also a chance to experiment or improvise
@@totallambproduction4675 yep, without the improvisation I don't believe there is any growth.
A lot of people say this, but I'm walking a different path. I've worked out how to finish a track - adding all the club functionality and arranging is fairly routine compared to where the real magic lies - in the composition / core musical ideas. Listen to a top producer's tunes, like Yotto or someone; the melodies, chord progressions and how they're presented (sound design, processing, mixing) are deceptively simple, but incredibly emotive. I want this magic in my music, and it's hard to emulate, so that's where I'm focussed...once these skills are honed, I'll resume finishing tracks.
I see where your coming from but I highly disagree. If your demo sucks and you can't find a way to make it better, than it is best to just drop it. Now whether you choose to pick it back up again sometime in the future is your choice but unless you like that demo, completing it for the sake of completing it is not what you should do. You should be excited or at the very least looking forward about finishing that song you really like. The more years that go by, the more demos your gonna make and if you complete every single one of those demos your gonna burn out in no time. So besides wasting time finishing all those demos that just aren't good, you could just spend that time starting on a completely new demo that may actually go somewhere.
@@bionicprime3952 I'd say it depends on the type of person you are. If you're someone who never finishes any track, then forcing yourself to do it more often might be what you need. But if you have the opposite problem of never letting go of anything and being unable to move on to the next project, then you should work on that.
There is no "one solution fits them all"
Also, don’t put yourself under pressure and have too high expectations... I‘ve gotten frustrated when the project wasn‘t perfect or I couldn‘t translate the ideas and melodies in my head into the song. This lead to me not producing at all and thus never improving - a true vicous circle. So much time was wasted and my DJ/sound technician background didn’t help, haha. Practice is key!
I‘ve decided to start again with a clean slate at the end of last year, bought the PML Premium Pack to educate myself and to create a workflow with hopefully works best for me. I’ve started at music theory and now doing some of the genre specific courses to get a nice idea. I’ve noticed that rhythm (in melody) is my biggest weakness and I‘ll work on that. Here‘s some tips I‘d like to share, so you don’t make the same mistakes as me:
- Don‘t get hung up in details when starting out. Tweaking every little sound doesn‘t result in a nice song if there is no foundation for them to shine.
- There‘s no shame in using presets as refrence points. While you should make your own sound, presets give you something to work with. So you can set the foundation of the song quickly. You don‘t see people picking on people for not building their own instruments, right?
- Less is more. Don‘t overload your track which can lead to muddyness - especially in the techno genres.
- Automation is gold. Even with 16bar chord progressions, melodies or arps the track can appear static.
- Humanize your tracks and don‘t stick to the 4/4 grid only.
- While GAS (Gear Aquisition Syndrome) and improving your set up can be nice, it‘s a good practice to pick your tools and master them first.
- When mixing, give your elements space and low cut about anything. ;) (Sidenote: When watching the courses, I was surprised how many elements got sidechained.)
- Practice, practice, practice and finish your tracks. Don‘t get stuck. (Here‘s the point I finally am again :D)
Thx!
True man, the trouble with translating the melody from your head to a actual song is a frustrating goddem shit ;P
I feel I have been watching too many anime. Reading your paragraph feels like those parts of an anime scene where kids with super powers are given instruction and rules of a game by an instructor with a voice that sounds like pixis from attack on titans..
🤿
Thank you so much I'm so hard on myself because college expects me to make this music out of my ass and then I get frustrated at myself for never being as good as my friends and never good enough for my teachers.
Wow this is a cool way to think about it, love how your brain works.
Wtf you here, didn't know you produce
this is wild
This is such an obvious piece of advice but really needs to be to be talked about and never is. While it really sucks when you feel bad for not making music that you think is good enough it’s also an incredibly important thing to feel. It’s important to listen to that voice in your head because it’s wanting you to improve and become a better musician. I think that feeling of dissatisfaction is a crucial aspect towards becoming a great musician. Most successful musicians that I’ve listened to in interviews talk about having that feeling about their own music and how it never truly goes away regardless of how successful they get.
Yes such a good point. That desire rises from your TASTE, and it is still good. Your SKILL might not be there yet but its okay. Your taste is what got you into making art and you should follow it. Its a great guide, not a judge.
I have OCD so when songs get stuck in my head, it's pathologically maddening for me. The saddest thing is when a song I'm working on becomes an earworm for me and I get so sick of it, I don't love it anymore and I don't want to finish.
I would love to listen some of your music, do you have them up somewhere I can listen to them?
For me. As an adhd person. For me it's the patience to stick with something. I mainly make dubstep and crap like that. So i end up making a drop in like 3 hours and then i have no idea how to continue. And i always go drop first cuz if i start with an intro i have no idea how im supposed to string a drop onto it. Im a mess. XD
If you finish the song, it will no longer become ear worm.
@@kimyona9746 why are you me? I also have ADHD lol
Ive always heard that from people "just keep writing and youll get better" but i never heard it from the perspective of "you get less satisfied which forces you to come up with something new and something better". Great video
I’m reaching close to 2.5 years producing, Its becoming almost impossible to satisfy my ear. All of my old tricks and ways of composing and mixing have become boring to the ear. While I am bothered by it. I know it means I am on the verge of a metamorphosis into a much better producer.
Exactly what I was about to tell you. It's the "bump" you have to get over.
Relatable.. I've been stuck with my first project for 6 years now
@@internetexplorer7880 well, you've always been slow...
@@dxcember227 better late than never, unlike your dad
@@internetexplorer7880 I’ve always hated internet explorer... now even more 😂
22 years in and I'm still learning and growing. Music is a crazy addiction lol
Lately I have felt my my music is getting worse. Maybe it's actually getting better but my perception is improving faster than my performance.
LOL. I feel ya. But for me. I end up just inable to finish a track because I have no ideas. No matter how much music theory and crap I've learned. It doesnt help with the fact that my mind is so cloudy that I can't go past the crazy drops i make and then the project is scrapped because I can't make an intro or a build up. Or a breakdown. Or a second build up. Or a conclusion for it. Despite knowing how to do those things. I just keep trying to make it stick with the theme. Making my ability to finish anything really hard. No matter how much effort i put into it. My ability to finish something has gone down from when i started XD
I think it's the case, your judgment toward music is progressing better than your skill at music, but fear not you can improve faster with that better judgement.
i started making little songs last year as a joke, but it’s just so much fun. i’m so glad that i’m still making them bc even though they’re mediocre, i enjoy doing it and i love listening to my improvement
It's the exact same process as a visual artist. As someone currently in college for visual art, art, in general, is training your sense to understand and internalize the patterns and compositions that create satisfying art. Every time I do a drawing I am able to learn a little bit more about what is wrong and what is right. You can't break the rules until you understand them.
I was experiencing everything you said in this video during these couple of months since i started producing. Everything you said in this video are golden. Cant agree with you more. You are earning my respect more and more everysingle day man. Keep them wise words coming, thank you from my heart!
Thank you 🙏
I have been producing for 10 years and yeah, you're totally right. Nowadays its so hard for me to be happy with my new productions
I'm still new to music. I'm afraid that I will end up like that especially now that im already committed to this career.
@@asd-wn7bb enjoy!
i was so much satisfied with my first song that i directly sent it to a label
OMG no that's one of the biggest mistake you can do. Don't send music out untill you've atleast made music for 2-5 years
@@patrickdadon5794 😅 that's the first thing I learnt after that
This is actually really true. I just recently went back and listened to my music 10 years ago. My god it's so bad. My mixes now and finished songs are much more solid and have sections. I take my time and if I'm not finished I wont export it. I'll keep working on it for more than a few days if I have to.
Absolutely spot on - I relate to every word of this. I’m at the 100 16 bar loop point and need to move towards the whole song. Thanks for the pep talk.
I think music it's not about "damn what a great track, very professional", but It's about putting your feelings into it and if you want to release it somewhere just do it, no Matter how crappy it is, don't even mix it if you don't want to, you don't need to do what everyone else does or tells you to do when it comes to putting your feelings into the art you're creating. People just don't care about that and tell you that you have to make professional stuff, yes of course it sounds better but it doesn't mean it's actually better
Amen
You're putting words on what is hard to describe, thank you!
This is the best on point advice on youtube i have heard and i have seen thousands!
"Yeah, It's nice, and they are lying to you."That was so relatable man 😄
This is probably one of the best and the simplest yet precise way to explain how you actually grow in your craft. !!
this is very true. i always grasped this intuitively but i never spent much time thinking enough about it for it to inspire me. i was always bummed out when i became unsatisfied because i'd think that i just sucked, but what it really meant was that my sensibility was strengthening and i just needed to practice in order to develop a new sense of satisfaction. now that this little vague sensation has been put into words i can actually have a more positive approach. thank you!
very very true words of wisdom right there brother man!!! I have gone through all of this xx amazing how you echoed everything ive been through and experienced!
Thanks for this video. After years of studying music and music production, I start feeling more and more that something lacks inside of me and maybe it's just a lack of talent.
Looking at my processes from a learning perspective has always helped me to keep going, and your analysis just sent me back there for a while at least. Thanks!
Simple words but the message they convey is so important. Thank you. I needed to hear this.
one of the most insightful music production videos ever, thank you for it!
"Practice makes Better" is simple to say but to explain it like you did, is incredible. Thanks for pointing out these common and significant mistakes. I had been trying to finish my tracks but find myself stuck. I now realize that i have my strengths and weaknesses to work upon. I'm taking away a lot more than i thought i would from this video. Thanks again!
This seemingly abstract process you explained so simply and clearly. Well done.
you speaking the untolds man really appreciate what youre doing!
Great perspective. I think your spot on with your explanation and it applies to many other things we do as well.
It is difficult when you have many challenges in life and the time to make music is limited :((( But thank you for the advice, you opened my eyes! I've been producing 1 year now, and I realized that I was making crappy tracks :c It is time to wake up!
I love these videos. Really helpful for motivation ❤
This actually helped a lot, I had been wondering why I had been feeling so unsatisfied with my work recently, but it's just natural and even encouraged so that I can improve and be better overall! :)
You hit the nail on the head. Such a useful and exact insight!
So true Jules! Thanks for this video. Wise words
As an amateur that just started producing, your words are really hard to hear, but I know they are necessary in order for me to improve and keep going forward, so thank you
Thanks! I needed to hear this!
This is the advice i needed to hear today, thanks man
Great video bro. I needed this. Thanks
This hits home real hard, excellent piece of advice!
This is so reassuring brother. Love you & your work!
this definitely applies to every aspect for creatives.
there's just a level of satisfaction of completion and when you're a beginner the thing to complete is simple until you hone on your craft more and the thing that will satisfy is a little more than just the 16 bar loop. In the example of a video editor or director eventually they'll want to do something that's a little longer than a minute.
This was a nice topic! been producing for 3 years now almost 4 years and i still got a lot to learn
Pretty much the exact advice I needed to hear, wasn't exactly what I was expecting when I clicked,
turned out to be much better. A lot of what you said reminded me of when I started out with digital design
in a more commercial direction and hadn't yet thought about what I was doing and how I was doing things
more in-depth. Thank you man, was very helpful. Think this'll be a video I come back to possibly numerous
times and re-digest the advice.
This is the perfect way to understand this. Thank you
Exactly what I needed to hear, thank you!
this is great... straight to the point, music is like learning a foreign language you need to speak that language everyday to improve, basically you need to practice, practice makes perfect
a gold mine, thnx dude
Beautifully put together
I needed to hear this, it took me 3 years to be able ton make 8 bars loop and now that i don't get satisfied with those 8 bars loop i was questionning myselft on why i keep try making music.
So thank to you! You made me realise that is part of how i learn and that i should look further to get satisfied
Thanks so much for putting this out there, this is really good for a beginner/ammeter like me to hear and I really appreciate it.
All of this is true, I’ve only been doing this for about a year or two, and looking back on the first tracks I made there’s tons of improvement, but tons of things I still need to improve upon. And like you said, with each track you finish, the more it resembles a professional song. All it takes is time and practice.
Very unique insights. You're the only channel so far that deeply thinks about learning strategies and efficiency.
Excellent advice❤️❤️❤️
thank you, I def being struggling with this, thanks for the advice.
Fantastic video. This sums up everything for me perfectly. I thought me being less satisfied with my music was a bad thing, but now I understand that it is a really good thing for me. Thank you for taking the time and thought to make this.
facts. what a helpful outlook
I really needed to hear this, and read these comments. Appreciate the video and the discussions and statements you've created here.
This is 100% true. I'v started making my own music in march and if i now listen to a song from even 2 or 3 months ago i feel bad for my GF because she had to listen to it. The same will probably be true for the songs i make now.
Right there with ya! lol
Some tracks that I made in my first year seem to be keepers...don't sell yourself short ;)
How many songs have you created already?
@@K0xm4N about 20 to 30 i'd so. Many of them not completely finished of course.
@@hermann95 that's quite good! In did my first steps in music production at the begining of 2019 and I wanted to create 10 tunes from start to the end. Ended up with 12 in the end of 2019.
I even meet one guy and we've made two colab tracks. Creating music with somebody is also great experience!
Thank you. You just made me understand a little bit about myself.
This is an amazingly eye-opening video. I didn’t even realize I was doing this. Chasing this high that is getting harder and harder to reach. Good stuff! This is the best argument for quantity over quality.
nice video!! that's a gem!
No matter how much creative the track is, the mix always drags my confidence down🙂
this is spot on man great video
You're voice makes me happy, thank you. Very well explained ❤️
Switching between your song and professionally made songs is very good every now and then when i get sick of the loop i stick on some yt and then come back with some new ideas breaking away doing something else that takes the mind of the song while the brain subconsciously works out whats needed in the song is very good for the process
he explains that with the decreasing satisfaction very well!
This is my 3rd year of the music production journey. I agree with everything you said. In the first year of my music production, I did not even know there is a mastering process but I still finished many tracks. Now after learning the basic mastering process, I went back to those songs and tried whatever I learned on them, tracks improved significantly.
Really good advice
Finish the track🛠
The thoughts you shared here are fundamental to improvement in any musical endeavors. Thanks for sharing
You explained this brilliantly.
This helped a lot 🥺
This is a great lesson for understanding improvement in general and I think I understood it before but I've never heard it articulated so well. As someone (hopefully) at the beginning of a journey on music production it massively helps so thank you.
Great video, thanks!
Well said - helpls me a lot - cheers from Scotland!
Watch all your videos. I have been producing for 2 years and have had to teach myself so your videos have been so useful. I’m definatly going to be buying the courses that you do very soon. I tend to watch you and listen to other artists to grab ideas:). Keep up the good work;)
I am very grateful for your wise words. Helped me a lot.
This is some of the best advice you can offer and ironically I was thinking the same thing this morning. I have this theory in my head that 1,000 complete songs will make you a "decent" producer as long as you can look at the work subjectively and your heart is in it. Beyond that you will get to the "intermediate" level haha. Your ears will always want to improve, it is human nature to evolve and progress. Thank you for making this video!
really nice and true words man!
sage advice. thank you.
Thank you Bound To Divide
This whole explanation is applicable to any self development, 100% to all of it - well said
Facts man idk how you explained this so well
The idea is simple, but the way it was said really got me thinking. Thx, nice video!
Im currently in the A C E phase. Thanks for pointing that out. Thats actually super helpful. keep progressing is what i took away from this.
yoo thank you so much for this video bro we need more videos like this!
Thank you very much for this vedio man❤️
Thanks for this. This was needed
Wow! Simple and true
Great video. I think every time you do something creative subconsciously your expectations grow a little. Something I talk to my students a lot about - During the early stages of making music (or any art really) and working with DAWs, everything is explorative and exciting. Even the act of putting a compressor on a channel doesn't feel mundane yet. As your expectations increase, what stimulates you decreases and you need more complexity, more efficiency to feel excited again. As you learn and realize patterns you start to think more in the macro and less in the micro.
Needed to hear this, more vids like this
that was an intelligent take. thanks man!
this is much helpful sir, thanks a lot