In this Ableton Tips video tutorial our instructor Julian from Bound to Divide is showing you how to make a really nice lush evolving pad using Ableton’s native synth - Wavetable. The whole point of this was just to make really big chords with lots of voices being used. They’re really nice and spread out across the octaves. In this video you’ll learn how to create professional-sounding pad sounds in Ableton Wavetable and in any other VST synthesizer. Let’s get started! If you want to take a deeper dive into music production in Ableton Live, check out our PML Academy -...

In this video our instructor Boris is going to show you very simple techniques to get you started with making melodies in Ableton Live. He starts with showing you some concepts for writing melodies easily. After this video you'll be able to write melodies yourself. In 3 levels we'll go from making very basic melodies to making something you can hear in our track “Sun Vibes”. Don't get discouraged by any terminology - it's all very basic stuff. Even though some music theory words may sound a little bit strange at first, the concepts i'll show you are all very...

  In this Ableton Tips video tutorial our instructor Julian from “Bound to Divide” is making 3 common types of bass lines you would hear in Melodic House. The first one is going to be this plucky, groovy bass line similar to the one that you'll hear in “Lost in You” by Marsh. The second one is this sustained perfect fifth bassline that you'd hear in “Ruby” by Enamour - especially in the final section of the track. The last one's the rolling kind of bass line that you'd hear in Tinlicker’s “Children” remix - it's also in a ton...

  In this video our instructor Julian goes over 3 basslines from Afterlife artists: “Walking” by Anyma, “Obnoxious Desire” by Colyn & Innellea, and ”Magic Order” by Argy. Julian uses Ableton’s native Wavetable synthesizer as well as Analog. In this tutorial you’ll learn how to layer synthesizer basslines the right way. They’re simple but sound really effective. A lot of what the sound does has to do with automating certain parameters. So let’s get started with this tutorial on how to make basslines in Ableton Live. If you want to take a deeper dive into sound design and music production...

Delays are a fantastic mixing effect, and there are tons of incredible delay plugins that can help you. But mixing delays can be hard – especially since producers tend to throw it on almost any sound they can find. This article unveils five common delay mistakes producers make. Let’s start with the first one, never automating your delays. 1. Never Automating Delays A great way to make your mixes more interesting is automating your delays effects. Many producers slap delays on instruments without ever automating their parameters throughout a track. Doing this can make your mix stale and repetitive. By...

Many times, you have great chord progressions and great sounding pad sounds. But for some reason, they don’t sound interesting. They’re just there, sounding the same all through your track. How can you change that? This article will show you four ways to make your synth pad sound way more interesting. And don’t worry, the tips are super easy to apply, even if you’re a beginner. Ready? Let’s dive in. 1. Automate Your Filter The first tip on how to make your synth pads more interesting is automating your filters. Now, this approach can take on many forms. You can...

Chords are the foundation of music. And naturally, your melodies should fit your chords. But let’s say you have your chords or chord progressions completed; how can you make a melody that fits? This article will give you three easy ways to make a melody from chords. Let's dive in with the first tip without further ado – using an arpeggiator. 1. Use an arpeggiator Using an arpeggiator is probably the easiest way to make great-sounding melodies from chords. When you add an arpeggiator MIDI effect to your chords, it cycles through the chosen notes in your chord and creates...

“Pfft, who needs music theory?” That’s what many music producers tell themselves for years – until they realize its importance and the massive impact learning music theory has on their music. >> Click here to learn everything about music production and theory. Learning music theory has tremendous benefits for your time in the studio. It allows you to make music with a stronger emotional impact, better hooks, and mixes. But there are even more benefits that make learning it super worthwhile. This article will go through the five great benefits of learning music theory today. Let’s dive in with the first benefit, stronger emotional impact....

There’s a huge difference in mindset and execution for beginner versus professional mixes. Professional mixing engineers work with vision, a goal to enhance what's there and drive the story with the help of purposeful audio tools. But if you're a beginner or intermediate producer, how can you think if you want to make better mixes? >> Click here to learn everything about music production. This article has gathered three key considerations for more professional sounding mixes. Start practicing today, and you will see great results. Let’s start with the first one, your acoustics and reference audio sources. 1. Acoustics & Reference Audio Sources If you...

What’s the best way to market your music? It's a great question because you truly have to market yourself to stand out in today's competitive musical landscape. But luckily, marketing yourself doesn’t have to be that hard. >> Click here to learn everything about music production. Follow these seven ways to market your music, and you have a solid foundation of getting new fans, listeners, and delighted followers that will listen and share your music with their friends, mom — and everyone in between. Let’s dive in. 1. Get Your Music Out There The first and perhaps most obvious way to market your music is getting...