[Mysteek]

 
I was wondering if any head-fi'ers had any advice for me.
 
I want to produce music.  Electronic music.  I have a passion for progressive trance, but my knowledge is non existent.  I've wanted to do this for over two years now, so I feel that my motivation won't fade anytime soon.
 
Where should I start?  Areas that I have in mind are:
 
What type of midi keyboard/interface should I be looking at?  Should I skip cheap beginner-esque ones and go straight for good sound?  My budget is $1,000 for the keyboard/interface/etc alone.  Brands?  Models?  
 
Do I absolutely need knowledge of how to read notes on a piano?  Should I get lessons to accelerate my learning?
 
What software would be good?  I hear FL Studio and Reason are nice, I can use my mac or my pc, so I'm not limited to operating systems really.
 
Thanks for your time, I appreciate any advice you may have to offer.  

 

[Thommohawk]

Cubase is a great one for software too, but not free. I can't use programs like that myself, haven't taken the time to learn it properly but I have dabbled with them. Cubase looks complicated but good.
 
The easiest to use that I've experienced by a long way is Sony SoundForge 9.0.

 

[RonaldDumsfeld]

Why not download the free evaluation copy of Ableton Live.
 
http://www.ableton.com/downloads
 
When I first installed a copy my g/f elbowed me out from in front of the terminal and in 30 minutes had something that resembled a tune with supporting bass line and drums. She doesn't play a musical instrument or read music.
 
Give it a try. It's fun, easy and creative.

 

[BobSaysHi]

Quote:

Why not download the free evaluation copy of Ableton Live.

Awesome. I didn't know I wanted to do this 'till right now. looks like fun.

 

[anomalouscode]

ableton is a good place to start as its based around a clip system where by you have your drum loop and then you have your synth loop and it'll more or less sync them up for you.
 
if you want to get into recording your own playing then Reaper from Cockos is a good program to try before buying anything,... they have a very liberal demo system.
 
if you want to craft your own drum loops out of single hits, you can do that in ableton too,... but since you're a noob and your mind will be fresh, take a look at Renoise, its a tracker and alot of the users make trance with it. its a bit different but its well worth it if you learn it,... i can bang out a drum loop in seconds, literally.
 
you dont have to take music lessons, but they do help. they'll help you understand how small phrases can evolve into larger more complex phrases which something alot of people who dont take music lessons will struggle with. you might be natrually gifted, but music lessons still wont hurt.
 
as for gear,... if you dont play piano, you dont have to get a keyboard right away. some programs like renoise will let you use your keyboard to enter notes and play VST plugin instruments. then later if you feel you need to be more expressive then you can think of a keyboard.
 
if i was starting out now, i would tell myself to get the ableton and renoise demo's,... play around, and see what i like, what workflow is best for me, and then think about getting serious later if its something i really do enjoy doing.
 
happy trails on yet another hobby that will suck your wallet dry

 

[leeperry]

indeed, trance is so repetitive that there isn't much point in mastering Cubase...which will make you waste more time trying to figure out how it works than actually make music. there's many solutions available for electronic music, I just think that Reason sounds really ugly.
 
I believe you do need a keyboard, playing music w/o one is rather empiric. Also make sure to get one w/ knobs, it's hell fun to assign them to resonant filters. Ableton Live might be worth looking into indeed.

 

[Mysteek]

thanks for all your advice =]
 
I think you've made up my mind--I'll start from ground up and slowly invest as I've done with my headphones.  Ableton live looks promising!