Composing / Arranging / Songwriting

Using only the tools built into your DAW, you can turn your arpeggiations into complex, engaging sequences.

These audio files accompany the Power Up Your MIDI Arpeggiators article in SOS December 2023 edition.

These audio files accompany the Faking A String Section In Your DAW workshop in SOS July 2023 issue.

We explain how to create MIDI string arrangements that don’t sound like MIDI string arrangements!

Adding a horn section to your productions can bring everything from mellow melancholy to verve and excitement.

We’re used to playing and sequencing synth parts in our productions, but why not sing them as well?

Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould’s unique vision of Albuquerque required a unique approach to the score...

We all know you can score a movie or compose a symphony from the comfort of your DAW, but what can orchestral sample libraries do for other genres of music?

Writing lyrics is often said to be the hardest aspect of songwriting. Berklee College of Music Professor Pat Pattison has been teaching people to do it better for decades. Read his advice...

The epic soundtrack to the Guardians Of The Galaxy video game is one of the biggest projects ever undertaken by a single composer. In our exclusive feature, Richard Jacques describes how he created nearly six hours of high-impact orchestral music

Successful songwriters and producers explain how to adapt your skills to the massive Far Eastern market.

Gaming is a huge industry, and the thriving indie sector provides plenty of opportunities for new composers.

Across 17 years and eight albums, Field Music have become one of Britain’s best-loved guitar bands. They’ve also evolved a...

We look at the history, the theory and the practice of making electronic music without a computer.

What does it take to transform a composer's sample-based demo into a form that real musicians can read and play?

Dubai welcomed in 2019 with one of the biggest spectacles ever staged. Dom Jones created the epic soundtrack.

To mark its 50th anniversary, two bands have taken to the stage to pay homage to Wendy Carlos’s classic crossover album Switched-On Bach.

One of the defining features of the Family Guy TV show is its use of lush musical arrangements and a musical number. While the show’s writers pen the lyrics, it's down to Walter Murphy to turn these into musical pieces that work. In this video, Walter walks us through two musical cues, from turning a script into a song, to creating demos, right through to recording a live, 60-piece swing band on one of the most famous scoring stages in the world.

How does a platinum-selling producer make music on a mobile device? We sit down with MeLo‑X, who found commercial success co-writing tracks on Beyoncé’s Lemonade, as he talks about the real-world advantages of making music on a phone or tablet.

With arbitrary tempo restrictions to contend with and Olympic glory riding on every cut, adapting music for ice dance represents a unique editing challenge.

In this final part of the series, we show how well-chosen instrument combinations and effects will bring your orchestral arrangements to life.