Technology has made it possible for every musician (from newbies to seasoned pros) to fully realize the songs, ideas, and arrangements that are in our imagination, and produce professional-level recordings right from our own computers. The problem that I\u2019ve experienced and helped others overcome is the <\/span>how-to-get-started<\/span><\/i> phase followed by the <\/span>how-to-sound-good<\/span><\/i> phase. Especially for technophobes.<\/span><\/p>\n Some years ago I was contracted by one of the national chains to conduct weekly production clinics for beginners. There was a team of us and we divided our duties: the Reason and Ableton guru, the Pro Tools specilist, the DJ whiz and I was the Logic, GarageBand and Cubase guy. Every week we would pick a topic and offer a free workshop based on that concept. The participants covered every demographic that you could think of:<\/span><\/p>\n They all had mixed levels of experience, different hopes and aspirations, varying comfort levels with computers and technology, etc. The workshops lasted one hour and, after the awkward <\/span>getting-to-know-each-other<\/span><\/i> introductions, I would speak briefly and demonstrate the topic at hand. It was an uncomfortable setting for 20 or so individuals huddled around a 27-inch monitor. The session would close with a brief Q and A.<\/span><\/p>\n It was during this Q and A period that the magic happened\u2014and what I learned that I\u2019d like to share with you. People became more engaged and forthcoming with their concerns, needs, and expectations. And, with all of their differences\u2014we didn\u2019t even discuss their preferences in music styles\u2014they all had the same problem: I want to record my music but…<\/span><\/p>\n We need to take a few things into account before we begin, you have:<\/span><\/p>\n The focus of this and future articles is to maintain that oh-so-elusive creative zone while learning and solving technical issues that arise in the recording, editing and mastering process. In addition, whether you play an instrument, sing, or write songs (or all of the above), I\u2019ll be addressing you as creative musicians.<\/span><\/p>\n I come from a music teaching background and have used this philosophy to teach almost anything. For example, while traveling abroad, I taught English to make some extra money and meet people. I\u2019m not a master of grammar and syntax but I began with simple conversation. Their needs were to simply communicate\u2014much in the same way that not every student wants to play Bach Inventions. I\u2019ve also had music students that, after learning a few chords, just wanted to write and sing their own songs.<\/span><\/p>\n This is the approach that I\u2019d like to share with you. Some of you may go on to become master engineers and producers, while others simply want to \u201clearn a few chords and sing your own songs\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n Learning an instrument takes time and practice. It\u2019s part of the journey and it\u2019s the enjoyment of this process that makes it fun. So, make it part of your routine: Practice a few minutes each day. Before you know it, things that were difficult become second nature.<\/span><\/p>\n Those of you that have taken lessons remember the once-a-week lesson at the music store or teacher\u2019s home. Then, along came the internet, Skype and YouTube lessons, subscription sites, et al.\u00a0The information is out there; however, it\u2019s all over the place and many lessons assume that you have an intermediate level of recording and producing chops. These articles\/lessons\/tips are for those:<\/span><\/p>\n Let\u2019s jump in and get familiar with Logic. The trickiest part is finding your way around.<\/span><\/p>\n Again, we\u2019re taking into account that the software (the Logic program) is installed. Then, this may be your first window. \u201cWhat do you want do?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The last project that I worked on, \u201cRevo-Blues Chords\u201d, is automatically selected. I have it setup this way and you can change it in the \u201cPreferences\u201d but we\u2019ll get to that in a future article. For now, we\u2019ll check the <\/span>Create a new project from template\u2026<\/span><\/i> checkbox.<\/span><\/p>\n That will launch the <\/span>Template Window<\/span><\/i>:<\/span><\/p>\n Let\u2019s select \u201cSongwriter\u201d and note that at the bottom it has a description, \u201cAn ideal writing studio with drums, bass and premium amps together with vocal tracks\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n That will open the <\/span>Main Window<\/span><\/i> of a <\/span>Songwriter Project<\/span><\/i>:<\/span><\/p>\n The main window is broken up into a few different areas. The first is the <\/span>Library<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n The next is the <\/span>Dual Channel Strip<\/span><\/i>:<\/span><\/p>\n Followed by the <\/span>Arrange Area<\/span><\/i>:<\/span><\/p>\n And, finally, the <\/span>Editing<\/span><\/i> section:<\/span><\/p>\n This first lesson is simple. <\/span>Launch Logic<\/span><\/i> and begin by <\/span>checking out each of the templates<\/span><\/i>. Chances are, one of the templates will speak to you more than the others. Get familiar with the layout and don\u2019t be afraid to poke around. Soon we\u2019ll begin delving deeper into each area and learning how to use it. Some functions will be lifesavers and become immediate favorites, while others are \u201cgood to know\u201d but not immediately necessary, and still others that will fall into the \u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019ll ever do that\u201d category.<\/span><\/p>\n In the next installment, we\u2019ll take a closer look at these areas. Thanks for checking out this article and I\u2019ll see you next time.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Logic Pro X Tips and Tricks for Beginners Technology has made it possible for every musician (from newbies to seasoned pros) to fully realize the songs, ideas, and arrangements that are in our imagination, and produce professional-level recordings right from our own computers. The…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":15794,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[433,434],"class_list":["post-15785","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-how-to-use-logic","tag-logic-for-beginners"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15785","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15785"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15785\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15785"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15785"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edu.garnishmusicproduction.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
How do I get started?<\/span><\/h3>\n
\n
Learn Your Instrument<\/span><\/h3>\n
Tip 1: Treat Logic as you would learning a musical instrument <\/span><\/h3>\n
Tip 2: Look at these articles as lessons<\/span><\/h3>\n
\n
Lesson: Launch the Program<\/span><\/h3>\n