Tech House Production Explained
Join electronic production guru Larry Holcombe for a comprehensive video course on creating and producing tech house music! In this series, you'll learn how to select and create the right instruments, work with samples and loops, add effects to build tension and add excitement, layer sounds for maximum impact, and much more. Larry even shows you how to mix and master the track at the end so that it's ready to share with the world. If you're a fan of Tech House, you don't want to miss this! These videos are designed for fans of tech house and other house music.
Videos
• Walkthrough (04:56) - In this first video, we introduce the series and play through the track so you can hear what you will be working on.
• Kick (05:06) - We begin by bringing in a kick drum sample and discuss what to look for in a good kick drum using an oscilloscope for reference.
• Claps (04:06) - We bring in a clap next to fill out the backbeat of our groove.
• Hats (08:44) - Next up, we add open hats, a closed hat, and a ride part. This is going to drive the groove in the top end of the beat.
• Filling Out the Groove (09:38) - In this video, we route sounds to separate outputs and also introduce some extra loops, which we chop up using the Cableguys ShaperBox 3 plugin. This again will help to fill out the groove.
• Adding Some Percussion (05:47) - Next up, we add some additional drum loops, chopping them up to fit the groove.
• Bass Line (14:49) - This video covers the bass line, which is going to dictate the rhythmic foundation of the track. The sound is designed from scratch using Xfer Record's Serum, and then a tech house-style bass line is added.
• Layering the Bass (14:28) - We cover layering the bass with a flanged percussive part for some extra ear candy next. We do this using Logic's Ultrabeat and Pedalboard plugins.
• Adding a Vocal (16:00) - In this video, we demonstrate a process using Splice Bridge to add in a key- and tempo-matched vocal part. This is a great resource for quickly getting ideas down.
• Doing a Basic Vocal Arrangement (07:00) - Next up, we work on arranging this vocal to make sure the track flows nicely.
• Basic Arrangement (15:36) - We continue to arrange the track so that it has the right energy for the dancefloor. This involves choosing the different lengths of the different sections of the song.
• Leads & Effects (13:41) - Next up, we add some additional sounds to flesh out the composition, accenting sections and building the energy in breakdowns and drops.
• Adding Extra Effects Pt. 1 (14:45) - We cover the addition of some essential tech house arrangement tools next, like snare rolls and risers, etc. Again, these are designed to build tension and excitement, which is at the heart of the genre.
• Adding Extra Effects Pt. 2 (16:52) - This video again focuses on the addition of tools to build excitement and punctuate sections of the arrangement. This is where the track really starts to come together.
• Extra Arrangement (18:39) - Next up, we arrange the newer elements we've introduced to keep the energy building and provide maximum impact to the drops.
• Mix & Master (16:01) - Finally, we perform a quick mix and master. This involves managing transients using clipping and employing various methods to generate clean, polished loudness without losing impact.