Free Downloads Composing Digital Music For Dummies
Yes, you can turn those great melodies and smokin’ grooves in your head into stunning digital music! And you don’t have to be a musical genius or a computer geek to do it! Composing Digital Music For Dummies shows you everything you need to know to compose great tunes using the hottest digital tools. This friendly, plain-English guide explains all of the digital music basics, including how to work with the latest hardware and software, use templates from the companion CD-ROM to make a quick start, build your first tune, and save it in different formats. You’ll also find out how to add instruments to your score, set tempos and keys, create chord symbols and show fretboards, add lyrics to your tune, and much more. Discover how to: Write and arrange digital music Determine what — if any — equipment you need Create your own ringtones and mp3s Compose with a MIDI controller, or a mouse Work with notation software Use keyboard shortcuts Publish your creations on the Internet Build your own tune from scratch Extract parts from your score for each instrument The companion CD-Rom also includes a demo of Sebelius 5, the most popular music notation software, as well as audio files for all music examples in the book. With this step-by-step guide and your computer, you’ll have everything you need to start writing, arranging, and publishing your own digital music — immediately! Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.
Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (March 3, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0470170956
ISBN-13: 978-0470170953
Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.8 x 9.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #910,429 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #51 in Books > Computers & Technology > Digital Audio, Video & Photography > Speech & Audio Processing #176 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > MIDI, Mixers, etc. #504 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > Composition
If you intend to buy this book to learn how to use Sibelius software as an aid to composing any kind of music, this is your book. The use of Sibelius software is what 90 percent of the book is devoted to. Sibelius software is expensive and its manuals are superior to Composing Digital Music For Dummies but the Dummies book does simplify the use of Sibelius software.If your intention is to learn how to use digital instruments or software programs to lay down a drum track, to get a bedrock of bass accompaniment, to layer background music, to use your digital instrument to generate arpeggios, to learn which timbres work together, and finally how to compose melody and harmony, this is the wrong book for you. I can't point you to an alternative but Backbeat and Berklee songwriting titles cover some of this turf.
This book was really not what I expected at all after reading the description. I was expecting it to be a book about creating digital music. You know... starting from scratch or with loops or samples or whatnot and creating something that your friends and family can appreciate. Something along those lines. But that's not what this book is at all. I guess "composing" should be taken in the classical sense, since the book focuses mainly on using a particular piece of software to produce sheet music. There are sections on understanding and writing sheet music, and then a lot of discussion on using that particular piece of software to accomplish it.Quite frankly, it seems a little unlikely to me that someone would be a novice to music and want to pick up a book like this to suddenly learn how to compose sheet music (without being able to play it), but whatever floats your boat. If that's what you are looking for, this might be a good book for ya. But if you are looking for more of a hands-on guide to actually creating digital music (composing, as in creating or putting together the actual music) then this is sure to disappoint.
I bought this thinking it was going to provide some shortcuts for my DAW and software. I own a lot of the software recommended in this book, but more than half of it is dedicated to Sibelius, a music notation software, mainly for orchestra or large bands, or vocal ensembles. I read this book in one sitting. I'm wondering how much in kickbacks the author receives for sucking up to Sibelius...
I am finding this book extremely helpful. In the beginning there are explanations on basic musical terms and then it goes into digital program. Very helpful book and I would definately recommend it for anyone.
A fine introduction to digital composing. Straight forward and fun to read. Not too technical, but will also keep techies happy. Lots of helpful resources beyond the book. Vines lets you know what you need to start out so you don't spend a fortune on fancy equipment. The book also talks about the business of music, putting your music out there and getting in touch with other musicians. The accompanying CD has templates for composing for various instruments in a variety of musical styles. Don't forget to check out Vines' bio. It's funny. He's a real musician. The guy's been around, and he knows what he's talking about.
I found this book very helpful -- from explaining the background of the digital music revolution, to getting started from scratch, to advanced tricks and techniques. The samples, templates, and demo version of Sibelius 5 on the CD got me up and running quick.
I got this book thinking it would help me compose digital music. The problem is that it is based mainly off of the software that comes with the book, which isn't very good or up to date. I did recieve some useful information about electronic (made with computer) music and the history of it, but I'm officially still a dummy when it comes to composing it myself, therefore I would say the book did not achieve it's objective, or maybe it did depending on how you argue. Either way, I ended up ordering Dance Music Manual 2nd edition after reading this book because from what research I've done, it seems to be the most comprehensive book on actually producing something. I would also suggest buying a book for the specific software that you plan on using because the software that comes with "For Dummies" is shite and you won't use it anyways.
If you are a product agnostic newcomer this book is for you. If however you are already locked into a product other than Sibelius the book is not of much use.
Composing Digital Music For Dummies Crafting Digital Writing: Composing Texts Across Media and Genres Composing for the Red Screen: Prokofiev and Soviet Film (Oxford Music / Media) The Elemental Journal: Composing Artful Expressions from Items Cast Aside Grammar for Middle School: A Sentence-Composing Approach--A Student Worktext Sentence Composing for High School: A Worktext on Sentence Variety and Maturity Pie Tree Press: Memories from the Composing Room Floor From Beethoven To Shostakovich - The Psychology Of The Composing Process Sentence Composing for Middle School: A Worktext on Sentence Variety and Maturity Measuring the Digital World: Using Digital Analytics to Drive Better Digital Experiences (FT Press Analytics) Fotografia Submarina / Underwater Photography: Tecnicas Fotograficas / Digital and Traditional Techniques (Ocio Digital / Leisure Digital) (Spanish Edition) Mushrooms: A New Ultimate Guide to Growing Mushrooms at Home For Dummies: (Mushroom Farming, How to Grow Oyster Mushrooms, Edible Mushrooms) (Farming For Dummies, Gardening For Dummies Book 2) Windows XP Digital Music For Dummies iPad Music School: A Hands-On Introduction to Making Music on iOS (Apptronica Music App Series Book 2) Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks in Full Score (Dover Music Scores) Digital Publishing with Adobe InDesign CC: Moving Beyond Print to Digital Principles of Digital Audio, Sixth Edition (Digital Video/Audio) Quick Snap Guide to Digital Photography: An Instant Start-Up Manual for New Digital Camera Owners LabVIEW Digital Signal Processing: and Digital Communications Digital Forensics for Legal Professionals: Understanding Digital Evidence from the Warrant to the Courtroom
