The 7 Finest Music Manufacturing Books in 2024
Music manufacturing books are such an underrated studying software.
Certain, you may be taught lots from on-line boards and Reddit. However who can you actually belief?
Then again, music manufacturing books are written by {industry} professionals, with many years of expertise. So that you will be positive they know what they’re speaking about.
In the present day, I’ll share with you 7 music manufacturing books I’ve learn that may turbocharge your music manufacturing journey. Let’s get began 👇
The Mixings Engineer’s Handbook (Bobby Owsinski)
Primary on the record is a guide I actually can’t suggest sufficient. It’s known as the Mixing Engineer’s Handbook:
It’s an awesome overarching reference guide for all issues mixing-related. It’s focused principally in the direction of inexperienced persons and has a really goal, factual method.
This music manufacturing guide additionally options numerous visible aids and photos.
You possibly can learn it entrance to again, however you may also simply flick to no matter web page or no matter matter you need to study. A few of the matters it covers embody EQ, compressors, saturation, and extra.
This guide provides you with all of the instruments you could get began in your mixing journey.
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Zen and the Artwork of Mixing (Mixerman)
Zen and The Artwork of Mixing offers you a very good perception into the world of a mixing engineer:
This guide is unquestionably extra of a private, opinionated perspective on mixing somewhat than a factual handbook. Nevertheless, this isn’t a knock on the guide. I truly need to listen to the opinion of knowledgeable who has been within the {industry} for many years.
The writer has a powerful writing voice, which makes it a very easy learn.
This music manufacturing guide goes way more into the mindset and the “conceptual” facet of blending. Personally, it taught me lots about how I am going about mixing, and my mixing workflow.
In comparison with the primary guide on this record, it’s positively extra of a front-to-back learn. It’s additionally a much less visible guide, and extra conceptual and maybe extra for intermediate producers.
The Secrets and techniques of Dance Music Manufacturing (David Felton)
The following guide I need to share with you is The Secrets and techniques of Dance Music Manufacturing:
I extremely suggest this guide and for excellent purpose. Firstly, in contrast to the opposite books this one is particular to bop music manufacturing.
However extra importantly, it offers you an overarching perspective of music manufacturing.
Particularly, it offers you insights into sound design, drum programming, mixing, mastering, and much more. It’s additionally an excellent visible guide, it’s fairly up-to-date and it’s designed completely for inexperienced persons who’re simply getting their ft moist. Extremely really useful.
74 Artistic Methods for Digital Music Producers (Dennis DeSantis)
The following guide known as “74 Artistic Methods for Digital Music Manufacturing”:
This music manufacturing is unquestionably not successful any design awards. However what counts is what’s inside. It’s offered from the Ableton website, which partly explains the minimalist design.
This guide is a bit totally different from the others on this record as a result of it’s specified by a problem-solution framework.
This implies it’s positively much less of a front-to-back learn and extra one thing you may simply have round you on a regular basis. You possibly can simply decide it up, flick by it, take a look, and get impressed.
I might positively suggest this guide to extra intermediate producers who’re struggling to search out the following step of their music manufacturing journey. Nevertheless, even in case you’re nonetheless a newbie, there’s lots you may be taught and take away from it.
The guide is cut up into 3 several types of issues you may run into as a music producer:
- issues of “starting”;
- issues of “progressing”;
- issues of “ending”.
Right here’s a concrete instance of what the guide talks about:
Drawback: DAWs normally align issues into grids and blocks, and it might probably really feel laborious to get a fluid musical construction. All the things feels very inflexible and sharp.
Answer: the guide offers you concepts on how you can create anticipation in your tracks, how you can use drum fills, and different examples to boost your preparations.
This guide is unquestionably not making an attempt to put out all the pieces within the music manufacturing world. It’s extra of a kind of inspirational guide that you could decide when dealing with author’s block.
Music Principle for Laptop Musicians (Michael Hewitt)
Subsequent up is “Music Principle for Laptop Musicians”:
This one is a really elementary, theory-focused guide however utilized to a DAW setting.
This one is unquestionably focused extra at inexperienced persons desirous to be taught extra about idea and the way they’ll apply it to music manufacturing.
It covers primary ideas comparable to intervals and chords. The one factor is that it’s just a little bit temporary. Additionally, it didn’t get any replace since 2008, so some folks would possibly discover it just a little outdated.
Music Principle for Digital Music Producers (J Anthony Allen)
An alternate music manufacturing guide about music idea I like to recommend is that this one:
That is fairly an intensive guide that goes over loads of totally different music idea ideas. It’s truly written by an Ableton-certified coach and it has an entire bunch of screenshots from straight inside Ableton. So in case you’re an Ableton Stay person, that’s positively a bonus.
The primary 30 pages are literally free to preview on-line so you may examine if this guide is your vibe.
Over the course of the guide, you cowl primary ideas comparable to chords to way more superior music idea content material. I personally extremely suggest this one.
Rockenomics (Alan Krueger)
Final on this record is Rockenomics:
The final advice I’ve is a unique type of guide than all of the others on this record.
This one is extra of a music industry-related guide that talks concerning the psychology of how folks eat music, how music is shared, the tendencies behind music charting, and much more.
This guide even has an entire part that talks about luck within the music {industry}, how a lot success is because of luck and many others. If in case you have an analytical thoughts like me, then I believe you’ll actually like this guide. It additionally covers the enterprise facet of being an artist in 2024.
That’s a Wrap on the Finest Music Manufacturing Books!
That’s it for this information! Hopefully, you discovered some good suggestions on this record on your subsequent Christmas current. Did we miss out on any essential music manufacturing books? What’s your favourite music manufacturing guide? Tell us over at [email protected]