About This Course

DJ and Producer Shadowstar shares his approach to finding and programming the right sounds for your track in Ableton Live. In this tutorial he covers the fundamentals of creating a kick and bassline, using a 909 and 808 as an example.

He teaches you to train your ear by relying on how a sound ‘feels’ within the mix, in turn allowing you to problem solve and figure out what your track is missing. He also answers your questions from the Facebook Community Inquiry.

You will learn how to:

• Choose the right kick for your track.
• Mix your kick and bass.
• Select sounds and samples. 
• Problem solve in figuring out what your track needs.
• Program punchy basslines in the style of Michael Bibi. 
• Build syncopated rhythms. 
• Write a bassline using a 909 kick. 
• Layer sounds to create impact. 
• Use post-processing and ADSR to shape a sound. 
• Use vinyl distortion as ‘glue’. 
• Test different samples out in your track. 
• Kick and Bass sound design.
  
  

Lessons: 

1. Introduction

Dylan goes over what he will be covering in this webinar. He takes a more philosophical angle in explaining how to connect with your sound and overcome any fears or anxieties you might have when starting off.  He discusses using a technique of active listening, where you focus on one sound and how to study it. Once you understand the characteristics of the sound and how to achieve them, you’ll be able to adapt it for use in your own music.

2. Finding the Right Kick

The kick is the driving force that provides a dictatorship towards your bassline. When deciding on what kick to use, Shadowstar covers using the ‘feeling’ vs. technical approach of choosing the right sound for your mix. He guides us through using a 909 sample as both the bass and the kick, as well as how to use transient shaping to get the sound you want and make sure the kick is cutting through your mix.

3. How to Programme Basslines in the style of Michael Bibi

Dylan goes through his 3 rules when it comes to creating a bassline: MIDI programming, sound selection and post-processing. He starts off with building a simple rhythm using 16th notes and a 909 kick to create a punchy bass sound. Finally, he talks about how you can layer sounds to create impact, as well as how to use additional elements in your track to create syncopation.

4. Sound Selection & Post Processing

Dylan helps you answer the question: What does my mix need? He goes through a variation of the first track, using an 808 kick this time. He discusses how sample selection plays an important role in the style of your track, going through an exercise where he tests different samples on his track to see which ones fit within the mix. He explains his process of sound selection which begins with: deciding what characteristics you’re looking for, testing out different samples, then using tools such as envelope shaping and filtering to achieve the sound you want.

5. Recap & Live Q&A

To recap and finish off, Dylan goes over the 3 main questions he answered in this lesson: Choosing the right kick -  why, when and how: how are we going to use the kick, why are we going to use that kick and when will it be played? How do we program music like Michael Bibi? And how do we choose the right sound that does the right job?

Q&A

• Why, when and how  are we going to use the kick?
• Why are we going to use that kick and when will it be played?
• How do we program music like Michael Bibi?
• How do we choose the right sound that does the right job?