Get a roadmap of where we are going in the Songwriting section of this course!

The majority of songwriters never finish & release any of their music!  Why is that?  We'll take a look a one big reason in this video!  The rest of this course is dedicated to helping you overcome this specific roadblock so that you can become one of the few songwriters who finishes and 

Master the basic functions of GarageBand and be ready to start making music in just 5 minutes!

In this video, we start diving into one of GarageBand's most exciting songwriting+production tools- MIDI Instruments!  Watch this video to find out what MIDI Instruments are and why they are so powerful for your songwriting process! (... and how they are the building blocks for making pop & electronic music!)

MIDI instruments are one of the most powerful tools that GarageBand offers you for writing and filling out yours songs!  (You do NOT want to miss this unit!)

To finish our discussion on MIDI Instruments we'll talk briefly about two practicals:

1. How to download all the latest MIDI Instruments GarageBand currently offers

2. How to hook up your MIDI controller (+A recommendation on which MIDI controller I use!)

That's right, you read it correctly!  This song was created in my home studio using budget equipment and GarageBand!  

Are you a songwriter who doesn't play the drums?  Then you will be incredibly excited to discover the Session Drummer feature that GarageBand gives you for creating drum performances with ease!

Are you a songwriter who doesn't play the drums?!  No worries!  GarageBand offers you an incredible feature called the Session Drummer, which gives you a library of digital drummers (acoustic & electronic) that write drum performances to fit your song!  You can even adjust the Session Drummer's performance to make sure it matches your song!

Now that you have a solid drum performance from the Session Drummer, let's look at a few techniques to enhance that performance and make it exactly what you want!

When you talk about using GarageBand to make music some people ask, "Can you actually make high quality music in GarageBand?".  For the answer to that question, check out this video!

What in the world is the Arpeggiator?!  Great question!  Essentially, the Arpeggiator turns you into a piano player!  Check out this video to find out how the Arpeggiator allows you to take very simple piano lines and turn them into complex lead lines... by simply clicking a few buttons!

Now that we've looked at the different features of the Arpeggiator, let's make things easy by checking out the one click presets that the Arpeggiator offers.  Also, see how these easy to use, one click presets can be used for creative writing ideas!

An extra lesson on how to make your piano sound GIANT!

What if I told you that GarageBand offers you an immensely creative band member who plays every instrument imaginable and this band member allows you to use any of his ideas in your songs for free?!  Let me introduce you to Apple Loops!

Are you a guitarist (or bass player) who dreams of having endless amps, cabs, and effects pedals?!  Well there's good news for you!  GarageBand has something called Guitar Rig that you are going to love!  Check out this video to see what Guitar Rig is and how it works!

Collaboration is a powerful songwriting tool that helps you maximize your creative efforts by pulling on the strength of others around you.  What's that you said?  The person you want to write with doesn't have a schedule that matches up with yours and they don't live nearby?  Check out one way to collaborate with your writing partners digitally!

If track sharing wasn't awesome enough, check out how to share entire project files digitally!  Work on songs together with anyone, anywhere, anytime!  Schedules are not longer an issue, location is no longer an issue!  You're free to collaborate!

Let's catch our breath and do a quick review of what we learned in the Songwriting section!

The Production Process is where we clean and polish your song!  Let's lay out a road map for where we're headed in the Production Process!

3... 2... 1... Recording... WAIT!!  Before you hit the red button, let's talk about a few best practices for recording!  Recording is the first step in the production process so we want to start things off on the right foot!

Editing helps us eliminate sounds that we don't want to hear in our recordings.  (After all, it would be a shame for little, annoying noises to distract listeners from your great song!)  More than deleting unwanted sounds, editing also helps us tighten up our musical performances so that they sound more powerful and professional!

Now that we're familiar with basic editing techniques and how to use the quantize feature, let's get a bit more practice using these tools by editing the rest of our MIDI tracks!

Panning?  Is this a cooking show!?  No!  Find out how to use Panning to make your mixes sound wider and bigger!

What is cake without icing?!  In mixing, Track Effects work as the "icing" on the "cake" of your song adding subtle hints of warmth and color.  You may not know how to effect your tracks, but that's ok, because as usual, GarageBand makes it easy with one click presets!

Have you ever wanted to use AutoTune on your vocals to get that classic "T-Pain Effect"?!  Maybe you've just wanted to use gentle pitch correction to sharpen your vocal performance.  Check out this video on using GarageBand's Pitch Correction feature for subtle and dramatic pitch correction!

Before you send your song to be mastered you'll want to make sure your mix is tastefully balanced.  Check out this video for tips on Volume Balance!  (And test your skills with some ear training!)

Mastering allows us to raise the volume of our track and add subtle hints of warmth and color.  Sounds nice... but how in the world do I do that?!  What if I told you it was as easy as ONE click?!  Check out this video to see how to master your music in one click! (Well, maybe it will take a few clicks...)

Now that we've completed the Production Process, let's review what we've learned and enjoy the pay off of our hard work by comparing our song before and after the Production Process!

Check out this YouTube video where we look into several very usable, very practical keyboard shortcuts!

You've taken time to write an amazing song.  You've taken more time to polish that song by putting it through the production process.  It's just natural that now you would want to share that song with others!  Check out this video for 1 great resource for sharing and selling your music online!

Are you interested in building your own home studio?!  That's what this section of the course is all about!

Every home studio needs a few key items.  In this video we'll dive into 10 things that you'll want to have in your studio!

Looking to buy some home studio equipment but you have no idea where to start?!  I would LOVE to share some equipment with you that I have found to be high quality, user friendly, and easy on the wallet!  This video is my recommendations on gear for your home studio!

Here are 3 options for building your home studio that range from $0 to $500 (and my suggestions on which option might be best for you!)

I bought some studio gear!... It's really nice!... But it's been sitting on my desk for three months because I have no idea how to set it up and use it!  This video is a step-by-step guide on how to set up your studio equipment and use it with GarageBand!

The course is nearly over but there's one thing left... A CHALLENGE!  Are you up to the challenge?!