Top 8 audio production blogs for aspiring producers

Guest post by Dre DiMura. This article originally appeared on Soundfly’s Flypaper

The internet is ripe with resources (free and paid) for amateur producers, mixers, beat makers and songwriters alike. In fact, there’s no end to the ways you can improve your skills with content and recommendations that address your every need. But in all that vastness, where do you begin?

Sorting through hundreds if not thousands of blogs is exhausting, and can even be detrimental to your process, as you try to delineate between different methods, techniques, and opinions for achieving the same sonic ends. The good news is, we’ve done the research for you!

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Getting back out there & More

• MusicThinkTank | Baby steps: Artist’s guide to getting back out there
• Jennifer Spencer | How to find a producer who won’t break your heart
• Jure Rejec | Pop, Hip Hop and Latin Music are the most successful genres online
• Yael Penn | Hit Songs Deconstructed releases its Q1 2021 hit song trend report

Baby steps: Artist’s guide to getting back out there

As the world slowly reopens, artists are pulling the tarps off their touring vans, changing their strings, and getting ready to once again hit the road, but while the light at the end of the tunnel has unquestionably gotten brighter, with more and more shots in arms, anything resembling “normal” touring remains a ways off. Here, we look at a few tips for how to ease your band (and your audience) back into live music.

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Hobbyist to Professional & More

• Sam Bowman | Making the transition from hobbyist to professional
• Lida Van | Sonid: a new app to learn and practice music theory
• Leonard Patterson | 10 ideas for behind-the-scenes livestreams
• Caleb J. Murphy | Crucial Music review: How NBC got ahold of my song

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Music for film • More

• John Hull | Mixing cinematic, orchestral music for film 
• Brooke Chaplan | Choosing the right speakers
• John Hull | What Super Mario Brothers can teach us about music
• Ellie Singh  | What are the App Creating Mistakes to Avoid in 2021?

Tips on mixing cinematic, orchestral music for film with Brian Losch

Guest post by John Hull. This article originally appeared on Soundfly’s Flypaper

Mixing Tips for Cinematic Orchestral Music with Brian Losch [Video]

When it comes to mixing cinematic, orchestral pieces — whether written to score film, TV, and other media or just for the sake of writing ambitious, epic ensemble music — there’s no doubt that each piece comes with its own set of idiomatic peculiarities. Certainly there are norms and expectations when it comes to prepping a mix in this style, but as always, exciting things can happen when you break the rules too.

That said, one thing you’re always shooting to achieve in cinema music and audio is a sense of immersive bigness. And that can come in many forms. So we talked to Brian Losch, a pro engineer with a Grammy Award to his name and a heck of a lot more accolades than that, about how he typically sets up his mixes, what he listens for, and how he tempers the storm of a (typically) enormous amount of stems.

Click to read more ...

What Super Mario Brothers can teach us about music education

Guest post by Alper Tuzcu. This article originally appeared on Soundfly’s Flypaper

Learning music is difficult. It takes time, patience and perspective. Learning an instrument at an advanced level takes years. Skills like critical listening or ear training take a long time to develop. In other words, being a good musician is tied to perseverance and trying again and again until you get to perfection.

In the world of education, there are different perspectives for styles of teaching. One of these perspectives argues that humans should be penalized for every mistake they make. This is where the concept of exams come from (of course) — the fear of “failure” is supposed to stimulate us to do better.

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank Weekly Recap: Music promotion • NFTs • Concert Films • More

• Mark Knight | An honest assessment of music promotion 
• Jure Rejec | What does a live gig NFT mean for the music industry?
• Rachelle Wilber | Watching Concert films? Enjoy them in style
• M Banks | Why do so many musicians have Substance abuse issues

MusicThinkTank weekly recap: Performing at a concert & more

• M Banks | How to Cultivate Your Stage Persona: 10 Tips
• Owen Davie | How to execute a COVID-safe live event
• Rachelle Wilber | Music photography: The perfect shot
• Mark Knight | In search of meaningful engagement

Dipping a toe back in the water: How to execute a COVID-safe live event

While it’s important to remember that we are still deep in the throws of a global pandemic, there is something resembling a glimmer at the end of the tunnel, enough that artists, venues, and fans alike are salivating for live events to return. 

While anything resembling a normal show remains a ways off, as of yet, live music is once again entering the realm of possibility. In the following piece we offer some pointers on how to ease back into live shows, and certain precautions that should be taken, whether you’re an artist or a venue operator.

Click to read more ...

MusicThinkTank weekly recap: Vocal tip for sync placements & more

• Your Online Singing Coach | 4 Vocal Tips For Getting Sync Placements
• Jennifer Spencer | How Soulful, Storytelling Songwriters get on Spotify
• Rachelle Wilber | How to Make Playing the Guitar a More Personal Experience
• Juri Kobayashi  | Playlisting your music in China

MusicThinkTank: Call for contributions!

Thank you to the Music Think Tank community for your committed readership and the insightful content that many of you have shared!

Without your contributions, this website would not exist. If you have something to say about the music industry, we strongly encourage you to consider contributing a post to MTT. Please remember to review the submission guidelines posted on the MTT open page before posting.

Thank you, and happy posting!

MusicThinkTank weekly recap: Replenish your creative juice & more

• Sam Bowman | Rejuvenate, replenish your creative music juice 
• Caleb J. Murphy | 5 things to help you keep going as a musician
• Mark Knight  | Let’s talk about ethics and music promotion
• Jonathon Blake  | Missing! Women in the music industry!

MusicThinkTank weekly recap: Word of mouth advertising & more

M Banks  | How to leverage word-of-mouth advertising for your music

Alex L | Tips to make the most of your piano practice time 

M Banks  | How to get an expensive car for your music video

Jure Rejec | Streaming won’t make up for the revenue lost by the lack of live gigs.