New to NG. Advice for a newbie?

[dcbernman]

Hi everyone. After leaving college for a while to conduct some soul searching I've resolved to explore music composition in the hopes of finding something to return to school for. Composing is something I haven't done since I was a kid. A friend of mine sometimes sends me samples of pieces people upload onto Newgrounds, so I thought to give this site a try and perhaps find some help to get me started. Oh, and if this is in the wrong section of the forums, I apologize. I just signed up, glossed over the forum regulations, but since I've never participated in one before, I'm still a bit hazy on the workings here.

For the past few months I've been using Musescore, which I've found to be a decent (free thank god) music notation program with midi quality playback, but after hearing some of the stuff on NG, the sounds I have access to in Musecore seem incredibly limited in comparison. I'm looking to compose music and put instruments together (I'm interested in ensemble and orchestral works as opposed to beats, techno, etc, though I would appreciate recommendations for that sort of thing all the same : )) than churn through annoying music notation software. is that an unreasonable desire or are there actually good options out there?

I have been conducting some searches online, but I'm unfamiliar with exactly what I'm looking for so I haven't had much success yet. Synthesizers? Sequencers? VTI? Sound libraries?

I have a macbook pro, which I'd rather use as my primary tool for music making. I'd appreciate if your advice is tailored for mac use, but I have an old pc desktop as well if you believe I would benefit most using that instead.

Finally, my finances are limited in the extreme. After leaving college I am on my own, and while I've managed to hold things together these past few months, I've barely been scraping by so I really can't afford anything other than free software (I'm sure that rules out a lot of the best choices out there).

In summary:
I'm looking for music composition software that isn't primarily for music notation, is free, works on mac or pc, has better than midi/good quality sounds based on real instruments (plugins and downloadable addons are cool, I guess. I'm sure I can figure that stuff out), and I'm new to all this so I turn to the denizens of the internet for aid (gods protect me)

I've grown up playing music, I have tons of ideas I want to share, and I think it's time I take things to the next level and do something about it.
Thanks everyone, and I look forward to getting to know the community and uploading some of my creations!

[MetalRenard]

Hey there, welcome to Newgrounds!
If it wasn't the early hours of the morning I'd write more, but as it is, here are a few tips:
For music, you could follow my tutorials if you like:
Become A Composer
An Introduction To Digital Music

And on the forum side of things...
Be nice and helpful when you can be, you'll have the favour returned. For example, participate in the community, leave people feedback/comments on their work and contribute to conversations.
Be regular. Don't just disappear for long periods over and over or you won't leave your mark here.

Hope this helps.

[etherealwinds]

First of all, welcome to Newgrounds!

I was in your position a few months ago as I only joined in June, but you've come to a great place. Some of the advice people can give you in reviews can help you grow so much.

Tip #1: Participate in competitions!!

- As a newbie, I was told to participate in something called the NGADM (Newgrounds Audio Deathmatch). I didn't really know anybody and nobody knew me, but somehow I managed to get to third place. More importantly, the competition helped me grow a hell of a lot. The judge's reviews each round... well, you just couldn't put a price on that. It also gives you more exposure and exposes you to some other talented people.

Tip #2: Collaborate.

- Newgrounds has been blessed with the 'Collabinate' page you can find by clicking Audio > Team Up! It's a great opportunity to meet people that want to make, not just music projects, but other weird and wacky collaborations that you might not have thought of in the past. The best way to learn is through experience and you might also make a few good friends! We all share a passion for the arts on this website, whether it be drawing/painting/design, musical art, animation, even the more technical side. Take advantage of that!

Tip #3: Review.

- I'm sure that everyone on this site has valuable opinions to offer and that includes you. When you listen to peoples' tracks or watch some peoples' animations, you'll surely pick up on aspects that other people may not have. Share some knowledge and people will in turn be more than likely interested in checking you out. Through reviewing, you'll also get more of a critical mindset. This helps so much in your own work too. You'll start to hear all the things that you noticed in others' tracks, for example. Levels, instrument quality, atmosphere, structure, that kinda thing.

Tip #4: Be kind.

- You'd think this goes without saying, however like anywhere, you might encounter users that aren't as accepting of reviews and opinions as others. I guess you could say that it's unlikely you'll not come across somebody with a bit of an ego/attitude problem. Don't be one of those people and similarly, don't let that put you off. Nobody is perfect and whether or not we can hear it in our own work, we all have a long way to go on the journey of improvement! ^ ^;

As far as the other things go, as well as real instruments, I like to use FL Studio 9. I'm not sure if it's usable on a mac because I suck with macs in all honesty! That's just my personal preference though. If you need anything, there's lots of people willing to point you in the right direction with just about anything. Many people here are very welcoming and we all have lots in common. It's the differences that make things interesting though, so please feel comfortable here! :)

[ZipZipper]

At 11/1/13 06:23 PM, dcbernman wrote:
In summary:
I'm looking for music composition software that isn't primarily for music notation, is free, works on mac or pc, has better than midi/good quality sounds based on real instruments (plugins and downloadable addons are cool, I guess. I'm sure I can figure that stuff out), and I'm new to all this so I turn to the denizens of the internet for aid (gods protect me)

You've got GarageBand on your Mac for free, and to me that's pretty good for as free as that is. I've been using GB my entire whatever. Sure, it's not the best of the best, but it's definitely a way better tool than what others say it is. You can download a free Kontakt player from Native Instruments and be able to use any of their instruments on GB. I remember someone on here posted a website that had a list of free .nki instruments for Kontakt that were very good quality, but unfortunately I don't remember what it was...I'm sure just searching "free .nki" will provide some good stuff. Of course, at the end of the day money is what's really going to get you some really good quality sounds and it sounds like that's what you're looking for. But definitely testing out GB will be an excellent start. If you've got questions with GB, you can ask me...

[8-bitheroes]

I know you said you cant afford to pay for software, but you could get garageband, if you dont already have it on your mac? If you dont its super cheap, like 10£. That will get you started with daws, and you can do a surprising amount of things with it aswell as a good collection of orchestral sounds included. Also can buy more instruments for it when you can later afford it.

[dcbernman]

Thanks so much for all the advice and the hearty welcome everyone! I'm definitely looking forward more to getting settled in here.

Some of you mentioned garageband as a decent DAW. I do have it on my mac, but I read that it wasn't good for simply composing. Almost all of the tracks are loops, and rather than drag and drop I want to make my own stuff from scratch (which is disappointing because the sounds in GB are actually rather nice). Did I take the wrong approach? Or do I have to upload appropriate VST's into garage band to be able to craft songs note by note?

For now I'm going to try out reaper, and am in the process of downloading a few free libraries and sound samples to get me started (thanks guys!). I'll send my questions your way when I encounter them : )

[MetalRenard]

Ah, my man, Reaper. Good choice. ^_^ > >Veteran right here<<

If you want free stuff there's a list on here plus another here: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/28025798/Free%20Gear%20From%20Ylmir.txt

Compiled by a friend and myself. I hope it helps.

[AeroMusic]

At 11/3/13 10:06 AM, dcbernman wrote: Thanks so much for all the advice and the hearty welcome everyone! I'm definitely looking forward more to getting settled in here.

Some of you mentioned garageband as a decent DAW. I do have it on my mac, but I read that it wasn't good for simply composing. Almost all of the tracks are loops, and rather than drag and drop I want to make my own stuff from scratch (which is disappointing because the sounds in GB are actually rather nice). Did I take the wrong approach? Or do I have to upload appropriate VST's into garage band to be able to craft songs note by note?

For now I'm going to try out reaper, and am in the process of downloading a few free libraries and sound samples to get me started (thanks guys!). I'll send my questions your way when I encounter them : )

I think reapers a good one, I heard logic is used alot aswell

but anyway - search Garageband MIDI roll or piano roll - that should enable you to add in your own notes instead of loops