Tag: theory for producers

Articles about our Theory for Producers courses and on music theory for electronic musicians, generally.

  • How to Make an Instrumental Track Shine with Vocal Samples

    How to Make an Instrumental Track Shine with Vocal Samples

    + Bridge the worlds of theory, improvisation, and jazzy hip-hop, and improve your piano chops with Grammy-winner Kiefer in his course, Kiefer: Keys, Chords, & Beats. Tons of producers making instrumental electronic music today scour YouTube and other online forums to find “vocal samples” to add to their tracks. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve googled…

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  • Exploring the Major Scale with Queen and David Bowie’s ‘Under Pressure’

    Exploring the Major Scale with Queen and David Bowie’s ‘Under Pressure’

    + Welcome to Soundfly! We help curious musicians meet their goals with creative online courses. Whatever you want to learn, whenever you need to learn it. Subscribe now to start learning on the ’Fly. The Major Scale (also known as the Ionian Mode) is really common and often used as the scale all others are defined against. It’s the “Do, Re,…

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  • 6 More Rising Artists on Soundfly Right Now

    6 More Rising Artists on Soundfly Right Now

    It’s only May, but we’re already pretty sure that 2017 is going to be our favorite year ever! This year, Soundfly has nearly doubled our repertoire of available courses and partnered with some of the world’s best instructors. But best of all, we’ve been continually inspired and excited by the work that student artists have shared with us.…

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  • What Is the Saddest Chord Progression in the World?

    What Is the Saddest Chord Progression in the World?

    The next time you’re writing a heartbreaking, gut-wrenching tune, try using this handful of chords to drive your sadness home.

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  • How to Add Bittersweet Emotion to Your Chords with 7ths

    How to Add Bittersweet Emotion to Your Chords with 7ths

    You might understand the construction of a chord or triad, but here’s how to make your music express the heartbreaking lilt of a seventh chord.

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  • 6 Electronic Tracks That Kick Butt Without a Kick Drum

    6 Electronic Tracks That Kick Butt Without a Kick Drum

    There’s nothing quite like a four-on-the-floor beat to get your feet tappin’, heads bobbin’, and butts movin’. But as any truly clued-in musician knows, sometimes less truly is more. In fact, there are many creative ways to produce rhythmically forward-driving music without that dependable low-end kick pulse. So let’s look at six tracks broadly fitting…

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  • How Missy Elliott Works the Beat in ‘Lose Control’

    How Missy Elliott Works the Beat in ‘Lose Control’

    As someone becomes more and more familiar with rap, he or she realizes that — in a genre that encompasses the styles of everyone from riddlers like MF DOOM to philosophers like KRS-One — there’s no problem finding completely different artists to enjoy completely different styles. If you want good party music, it’s Drake. Try 50 Cent if…

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  • The Flurry of Harmonic Surprises in Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy’

    The Flurry of Harmonic Surprises in Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy’

    + The above video is taken from Soundfly’s course Unlocking the Emotional Power of Chords. Learn harmonic theory and maximize the emotional impact of your tracks. When “Crazy” hit in 2006, it seemingly came out of nowhere. CeeLo Green was known among hip-hop aficionados as a member of Goodie Mob. While the group had the heads’ respect, it didn’t always translate…

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  • Into the Wild: Making a Beat in Ableton Live With Found Sounds

    Into the Wild: Making a Beat in Ableton Live With Found Sounds

    + Master the tools and techniques of producing pro-level electronic music and audio in Ableton Live with Soundfly’s course, Intro to Music Production in Ableton Live. By Niall McCallum There’s never been a better time to get into beat making. Editing software and audio processing tools are better, cheaper, and more readily available than ever before. Not…

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  • 6 Powerful Arab Hip-Hop Artists You Need to Hear

    6 Powerful Arab Hip-Hop Artists You Need to Hear

    + Learn the nuances of producing beats, arranging tracks, and creative sampling, drawing on the rich history and influence of hip-hop in Soundfly’s acclaimed online course, The Art of Hip-Hop Production.  The Middle East is quite the hot topic of today’s dinner discussions regardless of whether they’re actually occurring at the dinner table, or on the…

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