I was asked to do a basic tutorial on how to get started in Cubase.  I won't tell you that the way I work in Cubase is the best way, it’s just the way I do it.  But, if you are new to electronic music production and you are starting out in Cubase, then hopefully some of the things I will show will be beneficial to you.

For writing a dance tune (you pick the subgenre, its basically going to be the same no matter what your preference is), you need three basic things: samples, VSTs (or software instruments/instruments), and automation.  Now, the core of it is obviously going to be the samples and sounds you use to write your tune. However, automation comes in handy when you want the musical experience to take you to new heights.  For the purposes of this tutorial we will not focus on automation or instruments much.  So lets begin: open cubase (I'm using SX3 for this, will upgrade soon).

I hate talk radio.  Actually, I like radio news and interview shows.  What I hate are call-in shows where people get on the air and rant on subjects they don't really know about.  Sometimes it seems like all of AM radio exists to provide a public forum for the uninformed and their ill-considered opinions.

What does this have to do with sample loops?  I'm getting there.  Stick with me.

When I first heard KRS-One declare, "We need to bring sampling back!" in his cover of We Will Rock You I thought, “Back?  When was it gone?  Wouldn’t I have noticed?”

I don’t know exactly what KRS-One meant by “sampling” in this case.  Even just in the context of music the word has a range of meanings from the very specific and technical (the binary encoding performed immediately after A-D conversion) to the sweepingly broad (playing a digital recording).  Without trying to tackle them all I am going to discuss several of sampling’s uses in production.

Unless you’re primary musical gig is as a choral vocalist, and maybe even then, you are going to end up owning music equipment.  Even if you see it as a necessary evil, you need to wrap your head around a hardware setup, get comfortable using it, and get busy making music.  Between here and there, you have a number of decisions to make.

In this article gives a brief introduction to the use of filters and how to apply them to make your instruments a bit more interesting. In general, filters are applied to instruments in EDM music in around four different ways (although you can feel free to correct me if you can think of any I missed). These applications are generally as static, envelope, manual sweep, and LFO (low-frequency oscillator).

How do I get my tracks signed? That is probably one of the most asked questions EDM artists and producers have asked for years now. In fact, it’s pretty much been THE question anybody who wanted to make money at music has been asking since the first record was sold (if not earlier).

A piece of music is often only as good as its bass line. The most memorable part of a tune from classic songs by artists like Masters at Work, Michael Jackson, or more recently the Black Eyed Peas would be so much less without the groove that’s driven by a good beat and a great bass. In this article, we look at some common chord structures and methods of creating a good bass line that will help to create better bass in your music.

So what’s this dance music thing all about? It’s one thing to be able to put an ordered piece of music together, but is it actually something that works? Also, is it something that people can dance to or enjoy listening to? And if I decide to sit down and write a tune, where do I start? These things will be covered in the following article.

This is probably going to be the article most vital to us for the next few months. We are entering a time within the Christian EDM scene where we are making the biggest strides we have ever made. That in itself is awesome and in some cases, shocking after the past five years or so of pain and suffering. In order to keep moving forward, it is important that we constantly examine and reexamine the things we have done in the past for possible ways to improve them. The purpose of this article is three fold. First, it will explain what criticism really is. Second, it will talk about how to give it properly. Third, and actually most importantly, it will discuss how to receive it because how we receive criticism effects the effectiveness of it.