I'm really just learning, and don't know about the conventions of prog house, but here are my observations anyway. I usually do vary the volume/timbre of the kick in one way or another during the intro. So I would set the fader where it should be in the drop, and then use things like note velocity or a gain plugin, and HP and LP filtering to control and build up the kick during the intro. And I guess the goal is that, if anything, the kick should sound the most powerful in the chorus, so in the intro I could keep it slightly quieter, but not louder!

Quote from: Lydian on February 26, 2016, 04:08:46 am

The same question goes for the bass. Let's say that the kick and bass sound okay in the intro but during the chorus it sounds off when being played at the same volume. How would someone handle this in the mix? Volume automation? Duplicate the track and create a separate "chorus bass"?

What do you mean by "off"? If it's just the relative levels, then automating the volume (preferably a gain plugin, so that the mixer fader controls the overall level) sounds fine. I guess if the instrumentation changes a lot, then it might be easier to make a copy of the bass, which you can process independently.

As for switching samples, if there is a drastic stylistic change from section to section, it might be the most natural option; in fact, that's what I did in my latest WIP: https://soundcloud.com/arktopolis/trance1-newdrop2/s-P6HCR. I wanted a softer kick in the intro, and then a more hard-hitting one in the drop, so I just used two samples.

Madeon must be "old fashioned" then because he starts all his songs with a piano

I end up making piano music if i start my song with a piano.

For me, the most challenging part was actually creating the sounds to not make them sound so cheese. I spent quite a few years trying my hand at different techniques in sound. from growl basses to more analogue inspired, i kind of lost myself in that part of electronic music.

I've been circling back with my new chops and started to realize the music again.

If you know what you're bad at, work on that for a while until you realize "oh i am not making music any more" lol. it might take you some talking to with friends to realize that.

If you have the musical chops down, then the sounds might be getting in the way. Because, dance music doesn't haaaave to be that complicated.

but the sound from an instrument is, to me, just as important as the notes you choose to play with that sound.

My lead melodies usually start as a piano. Just because it's a "neutral" sound and if I don't like something about the melody on piano, I probably won't like it with some amazing synth noise.

After I like it, I pull up Synthmaster, Massive, or Hybrid and start flipping through presets. Once I find one that sounds half-decent, I modify it to fit the track better (remove effects, shorten the decay, add filtering, etc.)

always start with the piano and the melody because its the melody and composition that makes the track

then you need synths for the melody, layering, sidechainig, all that stuff

then the drums and effects,

arranging, mixdowns, mastering

easier said than done but thats how i go about it

nah.

You're being pretty specific, and i think for most the creation process isn't that specific.

I think you can be as specific or unspecific as you want to be, or what you knowledge allows you to be.

I will say that if you do have a range of frequency that your layers are being applied at, you have a better chance of placing them in the mix.

But how sound works is that, you're going to have little pieces of every thing that's more prominent during application. That's why you filter out any thing below or on top of other element's space.

I will say that, i did try to make sure to cut out any thing specifically that would be in the way of other things, but that didn't quit work out. It's like holding the door for every one else with out actually walking through the door.

When ever i do subtractive and additive eq, i really listen to what the sound needs in order to best benefit the mix. It's not how can i make room for others, but how can this be best projected in the mix. and what can i do to enhance the aural content.