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Composing / Arranging / Songwriting

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    Power Up Your MIDI Arpeggiators

    Arp Attack!

    Using only the tools built into your DAW, you can turn your arpeggiations into complex, engaging sequences.

    Techniques . Dec 2023
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    Power Up Your MIDI Arpeggiators | Audio Examples

    Hear For Yourself

    These audio files accompany the Power Up Your MIDI Arpeggiators article in SOS December 2023 edition.

    Techniques Dec 2023
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    Faking A String Section In Your DAW | Audio Examples

    Hear For Yourself

    These audio files accompany the Faking A String Section In Your DAW workshop in SOS July 2023 issue.

    Techniques Jul 2023
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    Faking A String Section In Your DAW

    Realistic Strings

    We explain how to create MIDI string arrangements that don’t sound like MIDI string arrangements!

    Techniques Jul 2023
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    A Beginner’s Guide To Brass

    Adding A Horn Section To Your Arrangements

    Adding a horn section to your productions can bring everything from mellow melancholy to verve and excitement.

    Techniques Feb 2023
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    Controlling Synths With Your Voice

    Opening Up Your Creative Potential

    We’re used to playing and sequencing synth parts in our productions, but why not sing them as well?

    Techniques Sep 2022
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    Dave Porter: Scoring Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul

    Sonic Palettes

    Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould’s unique vision of Albuquerque required a unique approach to the score...

    Techniques Aug 2022
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    Orchestral Sounds - For Non-orchestral Music Genres

    Alternative Approaches, Techniques & Products

    We all know you can score a movie or compose a symphony from the comfort of your DAW, but what can orchestral sample libraries do for other genres of music?

    Techniques Mar 2022
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    Pat Pattison: Writing Better Lyrics

    Guide To Powerful Songwriting

    Writing lyrics is often said to be the hardest aspect of songwriting. Berklee College of Music Professor Pat Pattison has been teaching people to do it better for decades. Read his advice...

    Techniques Mar 2022
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    Marvel's Guardians Of The Galaxy

    VIDEO | Richard Jacques: Scoring The Video Game

    The epic soundtrack to the Guardians Of The Galaxy video game is one of the biggest projects ever undertaken by a single composer. In our exclusive feature, Richard Jacques describes how he created nearly six hours of high-impact orchestral music

    Techniques Dec 2021
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    How To Make It In K-Pop

    The Asian Music Market

    Successful songwriters and producers explain how to adapt your skills to the massive Far Eastern market.

    Techniques Oct 2021
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    Getting Started In Music For Video Games

    Game On!

    Gaming is a huge industry, and the thriving indie sector provides plenty of opportunities for new composers.

    Techniques Sep 2021
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    Field Music: Building A Track In The Studio

    VIDEO FEATURE

    Across 17 years and eight albums, Field Music have become one of Britain’s best-loved guitar bands. They’ve also evolved a...

    Techniques Jul 2021
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    DAWless Jamming

    Making Electronic Music Without A Computer

    We look at the history, the theory and the practice of making electronic music without a computer.

    Techniques Nov 2020
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    From DAW To Score

    Modern Orchestration For Film, TV & Games

    What does it take to transform a composer's sample-based demo into a form that real musicians can read and play?

    Techniques Aug 2019
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    Dom Jones: Composing For Dubai's New Year Spectacular

    Wall Of Sound

    Dubai welcomed in 2019 with one of the biggest spectacles ever staged. Dom Jones created the epic soundtrack.

    Techniques Mar 2019
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    Art Of Moog

    Arranging Bach For A Synth Ensemble Performance

    To mark its 50th anniversary, two bands have taken to the stage to pay homage to Wendy Carlos’s classic crossover album Switched-On Bach.

    Techniques Nov 2018
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    Scoring Family Guy

    Video Feature

    One of the defining features of the Family Guy TV show is its use of lush musical arrangements and a musical number. While the show’s writers pen the lyrics, it's down to Walter Murphy to turn these into musical pieces that work. In this video, Walter walks us through two musical cues, from turning a script into a song, to creating demos, right through to recording a live, 60-piece swing band on one of the most famous scoring stages in the world.

    Techniques May 2018
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    MeLo-X: Mobile Music Making

    Video Feature

    How does a platinum-selling producer make music on a mobile device? We sit down with MeLo‑X, who found commercial success co-writing tracks on Beyoncé’s Lemonade, as he talks about the real-world advantages of making music on a phone or tablet.

    Techniques Apr 2018
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    Creating A Music Programme For Ice Dancing

    Rob Colling

    With arbitrary tempo restrictions to contend with and Olympic glory riding on every cut, adapting music for ice dance represents a unique editing challenge.

    Techniques Mar 2018
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    The Sampled Orchestra: Part 9

    Tutti & Effects

    In this final part of the series, we show how well-chosen instrument combinations and effects will bring your orchestral arrangements to life.

    Techniques Mar 2018

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