Music Technology

Music Technology for beginners

Music technology gives you the wherewithal to make music using computers in the comfort of your own home.

It’s a relatively new thing. The subject is taught in schools these days. But anyone over the age of 30 may not have had much exposure to the wonderful software that can be used in so many ways to make music.

Virtual Instruments

Virtual instruments make it possible for you to have strings, brass, any guitar, drums and percussion, synthesisers and so on. And you don’t need to be able to play an instrument to use it in your music. Notes can be entered with one finger – chords, timing, arpeggios can all be added later using software.

Virtual Instruments in Kontakt
Kontakt – a collection of virtual instruments


Of course, if you want to record yourself singing or playing an instrument, that can be done within a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). You can also choose from a vast range of effects such as reverb and compression which can enhance the music you make.

There is no limit to what you can do with a little imagination. And there’s a lot of free stuff available on the internet so you can experiment before investing in software.

If all this sounds like gobbledegook to you but you are nonetheless fascinated by the prospect of being able to provide all the instruments of a band or even an orchestra – without the need for other musicians – read on!

Lots of Software is Free!

There’s a great deal of free software which can enable you to produce anything from a single instrument or vocal recording to a whole album with backing band or orchestra. Long gone are the times when you’d need to spend £500 per day at a recording studio to have access to the equipment needed.

Music Technology uses DAWs such as Cakewalk Sonar X3 for recording
Sonar X3 – an example of a Digital Audio Workstation

It doesn’t stop there either – cinematic scores, gaming music, electronic dance music, advertising jingles and so on – can all be produced by just one person and a laptop. Music production has changed so much over the past few years and now anyone can have a go at home – and within a very modest budget.

For those interested in music technology, I can help to get you to get started using computers for music production. Current software I’m using includes Cakewalk Sonar, Presonus Studio One, Ableton Live, and Reaper.

One-to-one tuition is available, but I am also hoping to run some group workshops in Hailsham, East Sussex. Please get in touch via the contact page if you’re interested.