Need help creating own Trance compositions!

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-- Need help creating own Trance compositions!

Posted by nandaiyo on Apr-26-2001 00:33:

Here's my problem. I want to produce original Trance music on my own on my computer but I don't know if my process is the best way to do it and would like some help from people who know!

I have a library of trance music, I have cakewalk pro audio and a somewhat decent sound card (SBLive). I have been creating MIDI works for several years now, but would like to move to audio mixing/trance beats and riffs. This is how I currently do it:

I look in my music for a pure sample, like a drum/bass beat or a string sample. I record it to a WAV file and transform it into a Soundfont file for my soundcard so it can be used as a MIDI instrument (that's the only way I know how to adjust pitch and bend for the sound melodically). Using cakewalk I give that sound a layer and draw out events, layering sounds on top of each other until I have a measure or two of music. I go from there, weaving the layers one by one. That's tedious, but it works somewhat.

SO, I'd like to know how you computer DJs do your magic, what your process is like, what equipment you use and general steps to creating your OWN trance music. no matter how simple or small your response, I'd appreciate your help. Thanks!

Posted by Joel Fielder on Apr-26-2001 13:11:

Well, I program all my gear in Logic to write the stuff and then transfer it to within Logic once I'm happy with a part. Then I can mess with the sound in the Logic environment.

I tend to do it in small bits, ie work out one part, then transfer it and then write more parts so I can mixdown as I write.

I wanna get Emagic's soft sampler cos that can be routed through Logic's audio tracks and it'll be a bit easier to reprogram stuff once it's on the arrange window.

Here's what I use: PC running Logic with Audiowerk8 card, spirit mixer, Roland JP-8080, Roland JV-1080, Jomox Airbase99, Digitech Effects and controller keyboard. And shitloads of cables.

Posted by nandaiyo on Apr-26-2001 20:39:

Need gear

That's quite a set up you have there. Sweet.

I think one of my first steps will be to pick up a keyboard/workstation. I don't know about you other composers/arrangers out there, but it's tedious to have to use a mouse to draw out your values, etc. when you can simply use the MIDI/keyboard interface.

Anyone have any experiences with Kurzweil Sampling Stations? Specifially the 2500XS or the 2600XS?

Posted by Peter Campbell on May-03-2001 12:32:

How are you going Nandaiyo nice to see some els producing Trance , I will give you the full steps that work for me

First off I think about what type or feal of a song that I want to make , sad , uplifting , energy and so on , I may think about it for weeks and weeks planing the song how i want it to be .

Next step is to get into charoctor or the right mod this can take weeks also as I am waiting for a spontanis melody to come from this emotion , and this may come about , In a dream , Listening to music or some sort of other trigger , than I will grab or wake up If I was dreaming and hum as munch of the song into a small tape recorder

Next I take my iders and melodies and put bits and picers together on Fruityloops or on the Sony playstion { music 2000 } Just because it quick and easy in these toy programs

Then the real work begins with my Micowave XT and Cubase VST 5.0 , I construct the sounds for the song in the synth and the bring them through Cubase with MIDI . I slowly build up the tracks one after the other until the song is compleat .

Mastering is than done in Wavelab 3.3 Compression EQ reverb and so on until it sounds sweet , the I burn it to CD then I test it out on every Stero that I can get my hands on to see if the mix was right , if not back to Cubase for so more editing until it right

My set up is CPU pen 3 733 256 RAM , Cubase 5.0 Microwave XT , GRM tools 1 and 2 , TC/ Native Bundle , Wavelab 3 Rebirth 2.0 , Orange Vocodar , T-Racks , Tassman , FX Pansion plugins , Sonic foundry FX 1-3 Maxxbass , Dynosone , midi controller keyboard , Sony MRD-7509 headphones and lots more software .

Posted by Joel Fielder on May-03-2001 13:06:

Re: Need gear

quote:
Originally posted by nandaiyo
...it's tedious to have to use a mouse to draw out your values, etc. when you can simply use the MIDI/keyboard interface.

Yeah, it is but if you're programming drums, it has to be tight as fuck so what I do is work in 4 bar loops of MIDI and then just copy/paste.