Music composition?

well, i’ve been working a bit with logic express, i realy realy liked it, worked with reason 3 before, but logic, wow, it’s realy easy to use, but most important of all, the software instruments sound realy great, my tip would be to just go to your local apple dealer and ask if they have a version for you to try in the store

Logic pro! My school has a beautiful recording studio and 25 macs with Logic pro installed. The only negative is that, correct me if im wrong, the program cost around $1000. I love the program! I agree with Iwamoto completely on the quality of the software instruments. Macs are certainly the best choice for making music.

I have a cheap $60 program, Magix Music Maker 12, and it works good for me. However, I have a Digital Recorder too. Money is a key factor, so I make due with what I can get.

If you want cheap, this is the best one I have used on the cheap.

Just remember that composing is a skill that requires formal training; != mastery of software. Software and hardware are tools for you to apply your composition skills, and are no substitute for solid musicianship, theory, and writing skills.

My recommendation for a first-timer would be to seek instruction at a community college or other educational resource, where you can receive face-to-face instruction, under the tutelage of a trained musician and/or professional composer to learn fundamentals of music-theory, musicianship, and composition/songwriting.

Of course, in the popular vein of “songwriting,” one doesn’t necessarily need formal training to write and arrange songs, but to address your question of composing music, I believe there is a distinction.

As for software and hardware tools, admittedly I am mac-centric, and will echo the above recommendations.

@Eambos: Logic Pro Studio retails for $499. Apple will honor a $50 discount to faculty, staff and students of K-12 and higher ed. institutions (with proof of enrollment).

As for hardware recommendations, setting up your own project studio / Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) requires thorough research and $$. You should be aware that a professional-strength DAW that is outfitted for composing has the following components:

Computer (Fast, lots of RAM, large display(s), plenty of fast storage (7200rpm or faster hard drives);

Accessories and peripherals for the Computer and DAW: Power Conditioning (line conditioner to suppress EMI/RFI interference and voltage spikes), UPS backup battery capable of supplying power to all components tied to the computer in case of power loss; external hard drives for removable, fast storage (at least FW800 bus recommended);

Electronic Music/MIDI: Some sort of MIDI controller (preferably with an integrated USB interface), foot pedal, Digital Audio Interface (to get analog sound in/out of the system, e.g. when recording with mics, and when monitoring on external loudspeakers);

Audio input and monitoring: Microphone$ (can be costly), Powered monitor loudspeakers (or power amp plus passive monitor loudspeakers), cabling, speaker stands/mounts, studio-quality headphones; if you plan on recording with more mics than there are inputs on the audio interface, then you’ll also need an multi-channel analog mixer;

Accessories: Room treatment (acoustic paneling), Mic Stand, Mic Cable, Pop filter, headphone amplifier (if more than one person needs to monitor on headphones), furniture, Blank removable media (CD-R, DVD-R, etc.), printer, paper, etc.

Software: Make sure that whatever software you use, you have a computer system that matches the minimum system requirements for that program; in addition, there are third-party plug-in software apps that are designed to enhance sound and instrument options to your DAW; many of the DAW apps (Logic Studio for example) include virtual instrument and mixing plug-ins, but some don’t. If on Mac OS X, make sure the 3rd party plug-ins are AU, VST, or RTAS compliant.

Lastly, there are great textbooks available that discuss this very subject; might I recommend taking a look at a publisher I use for my audio curriculum, Focal Press (Elsevier); also you can look up the Apple Pro Training Series for Logic from Peachpit Press; they will provide you with ample background information that will inform your purchase and research.

Snd, my school has the most exspensive logic pro(I don’t know if that’s studio) and they bought a volume lisence of 500 copies. They also bought 500 copies of photoshop cs3. They are like an advertising agency for apple.

@Eambos: Whatever would they do with that many copies of Logic? I’m assuming that’s a private school/conservatory you’re attending, right? It’s one thing to have uniformity, another to support full-scale production (which requires all of the above listed equipment and tech)...at my school, we just eeked out 75 seats of Logic Studio, and keep in mind, the educational institution volume pricing is a fraction of the cost of the full retail price, for both Logic and Adobe CS. And IMO and in fact, it is ‘free’ advertising for Apple and Adobe!

Actually, I go to public school, but they have millions in government grants for all thatthey have done. Bay shore High school of New York is where I am attending. The music theory lab actually has apple representatives touring other school district superintendents through it. I just feel so privileged to have so much.

Indeed!

Thanks! Great responses guys!

Don’t forget FL Studio. It’s cheaper than these other programs and can do a lot of the same stuff. FL Studio is great for making beat-oriented songs, like hip-hop or trance. Music with tempo changes (think “Bohemian Rhapsody”) is much, much harder, as is anything that’s supposed to sound like it DIDN’T come from a computer. Still, it’s a great starter program for this sort of thing, IMHO.

Tempo changes are extremely easy in logic!

I have FL for loops, but I can’t record live, as in instruments. I really like FL though.

Yes, Fruity Loops Studio is analagous to GarageBand in the loop editing area, and may be a good start for nom-classical types who just want to arrange and “edit” this way into songwriting…which for pop genres is fine and pretty much the norm.

Another good entry-level app is Sony Acid Pro, which functions along those lines-arranging versus actual MIDI note sequencing. It may behoove you to check some industry magazines and ezines such as Keyboard and Electronic Musician, just to name a couple. They give good product reviews and sometimes offer in-depth tutorial-based articles.

FL Studio is great for banging stuff out quick, v8 is nice. Depends on what OS you use and how much money you want to invest. I would reccomend learning to use a traditional sequencer like Logic / Cubase / Sonar first, they are a little more difficult that something like FL, but it will teach you how to get around in a way that wil make it easier for you to work on different sequencers if need be.

If you want to create scores, get into actual music theory, the only way to go is Finale.

I love Sibelius for actually writing scores. Its the best annotating program out there.

Depends on what you’re writing. Before getting all the software, I spent a few years without a computer to rely on, and wrote my first string quartet by hand, so don’t just go and buy something. Trying out handwriting is beneficial at first, and it’ll be a while before software becomes a pressing issue.
Sibelius is great though: with the latest version, there is no bothersome extraction of parts, because Sibelius 6 does that. It also has magnetic layout, which means it makes you score look as nice as possible.

I like writing on paper, but only when I have a finished score because I tend to change many things that would be a pain on paper.
Sibelius is good. I also use noteflight, which is really easy and somewhat advanced (even though you have to cut corners sometimes due to a lack of really advanced musical dynamics or time, etc.). Best thing about Noteflight is that it is free.