As the title says, I've been looking for the best plugins for the beginner. So, I would like to ask your opinion.
Name your option for etc. Only PLUGINS but nothing else.

 

Last edited: Sep 4, 2019

A book on music/harmony theory? Then maybe a book on basic songwriting. None of those plugins above will help you with anything if you don't know at least the basics.

 

Talent? Hard work? Musicality?

 

You unplug.

Edit: No but seriously, this method works best for me. With software (mentioned below) it becomes more like a crutch. Sure, it can be a helpful tool. With actual playing an instrument your mind drifts off into flow state, which is one helluva feeling. And you end up with something that you alone created, from heart.

I've used Synleor Improvisator, Cthulhu and Scaler to make tracks, but they are more like suggestions for chords. A little trick if you ever get stuck. With an instrument it's harder to get stuck.

 

Last edited: Sep 5, 2019

Your brain.



Once you plug into its creative side and unlock its limitless potential, the sky is the limit.

 

I don't understand why people go off-topic. I am aware of what you guys are talking about. It's a good joke, but I am asking about PLUGINS now, people.

 

Personally i prefer tools that exist within the DAW, like how Cubase and Studio One 4 operate. Other than that, i think Scaler is very immediate and holds it together on a theory basis quite well, which should help educate/introduce music theory basics to beginners.

Isn't Band in a box a plugin also? That's quite powerful i believe? (Never used it).

 

It is not a joke bro. There is no such athing as a best plugin for a beginner or seasoned songwriter. First, the question is purely subjective. Just like asking what is the best DAW. Second, it is not what a particular software can do but what you can do with the software. Finally, even if off-topic none of the suggestions are taking you in the wrong path. We are telling you for a good reason based on you being a beginner. You are trying to put the cart before the horse.

 

Great. I will check the Band in a box. Thanks!

 

As I said, none of these Plugins will help you to write a song, they are helpful to people who have the aforementioned skills. Since music clearly isn't something you're very interested in, you're probably only interested in becoming famous, I'd rather suggest getting a new hobby.

 

They are massive in helping people write songs, chord progressions are the core aspect in structuring a song.

There's such a huge amount of EDM producers who know a good song when they hear it but they lack the knowledge to come up with progressions, OR even know how to play basic progressions - But with such software they don't need to learn as they're producing a song, not performing. What's important is they know what they want and know how to make it pop.

These tools (in my mind) are akin to bringing in session musicians/writers into a studio, and the user is taking role of producer - adding to the mix any elements they like, or wish to tweak. We've had decades of music being produced in this way, right back to the Beatles are a prime example. Mixing engineers and the producer were a massive part of their success and it directly impacted the writing of legendary songs.

I think it's a big part of Ableton Push's success in that you can set the pads to a scale and hit triads to compose without any chord progression knowledge. Many people are just bringing in ready performed MIDI loops and then transposing/chopping them up - this is just an advancement on 90s sample culture.

Composition is vastly different nowadays, and that's reflected in the popular songs of today where the textures, and vibe of a song takes precedent over traditional theory concepts.

Tell me this, would you rather listen to the music of someone who's sat in a room for 5 years learning an instrument, or someone who has travelled and lived a life and are able to put that excitement into their songs?

 

Last edited: Sep 4, 2019

Today's popular songs are not popular because of textures or vibes, but how popular/weird the person, who has his name attached to it, is. The "music" clearly lost it's spotlight position.

A chord progression is a compositional choice not a structural one.
It's pretty obvious that you have little to no clue on how songs are actually written. You don't need to learn how to play instruments but you need to learn the basics of how music works, that takes maybe 1 - 2 days.

 

No, it is absolutely nothing like working with musicians in a studio as a producer. There are no suggestions on what to play or not play to further the composition, no happy accidents and definately no sense of shared creativity or completion which can fuel the muse. What it is is working with a predetermined set of samples, not the Beatles and Geoff Emerick experimenting while breaking the established rules at the time to make incredible art that has sustained the test of decades and generations of listeners. And yes, I would rather listen to someone who has put in the effort into learning an instrument for 5 years express themselves if done creatively with or without excitement and full of their life experiences as they traveled their creative musical, emotional and spiritual paths. Piecing together snippits of others work cannot possibly express one's own story. It might say something impersonal, but then again, I have no idea what of value concerning personal experience. Could you give me an example how using Garage Band one could express the inner termoil of teenage angst, loosing a child or finding love in the strangest of places?

 

So you're not disputing the dumb comment of "none of these Plugins will help you to write a song", then? - Despite that being their focus?

Thanks for the personal insult, by the way, really mature that.

I'll just have to walk away with the presumption that you know better than all the developers of these products, all the positive critical reviews they receive, and of course the mass of commercial songs and producers that use them as part of their composition arsenal. Makes you wonder why each DAW manufacturer is trying to install such tools into their suites doesn't it.

 

Wow, what does it matter what tools you use? You really put THAT much leverage on it? An acoustic singer/songwriter could bring someone to tears using a cassette recorder, let alone two audio tracks in Garage Band. And what does it matter if those chords were provided to them via a plugin? Does it negate the final performance for you?

Just as a really great EDM producer (Who doesn't know chord progressions/theory and how to play instrument) knows what a good tune is could use any available software to create great songs - cause they're living life in the clubs and experiencing life in other ways, and not shut away worshipping theory.

Think of it this way - classically and overly trained musicians tend to go far the other way (I know, i spent 4 years training at the request of my father who was a conductor) purely on the technical aspects of performing and song writing. I ended up getting shit faced and got into rave music, everyone around me were so bland it was unreal - very good, but bland.

That's why the likes of the Beatles were so popular/succesful, they didn't have such prior knowledge and made it up as they went along fully open to any new ideas - From a technical viewpoint, Harrison couldn't even play his guitar solos without them halfing the speed for recording (I suppose that's wrong too?), and even then he failed after hours of takes, and McCartney had to take over on some records.

They were blessed with how everything unfolded in regards music and the advancement of recording, but within that storm was a lot of help externally - What have you against people seeking help in such ways in a digital domain for modern music genres? Life is far more insular now.

Remember that Geoff Emerick was a young lad trying not to upset in EMI, but he would experiment with the tools available to him as an interest, and as things progressed (George Martin being off sick in fact) he was able to put more and more into the Beatles sound which is where from Revolver ground breaking steps were made.

He was also hated on for trying different things - just as you're hating on new ideas and concepts to song writing, so please don't be such a rock in the ground for others creativity on the basis that you don't understand or 'get it'. These are tools to be used, just as those did back in each decade.

Early synths were designed to mimic real instruments, and look how they were used. Look how sampling transformed music. These are all just tools, to be picked up and used.

People writing away from the technicalities of music, free of all boundaries, are the ones to push it as a whole - To place such limitations on a person goes against the very principles of creativity and art.

"YOU MUST DO IT THIS WAY!".. "YOU CANT DO THAT!" .. "GARAGE BAND CAN'T DO EMOTION!".. etc. Pathetic mate.

 

Last edited: Sep 4, 2019

I use Chordpulse for prototyping chord progressions, as all the chord variations are easily accessible. I then export it as midi, and use it as a guide track in the DAW. I don't use any of the style options, just plain chords.

 

Last edited: Sep 4, 2019

Oh that looks interesting, you can drop out the elements too, for practising solos or playing real instruments/guitar etc. over the top - thanks from me for that suggestion.
Don't suppose you use either Cubase or Studio One and can comment on how well the chords are reflected there once you import that MIDI data?

 

If this would be truely needed, none of our forefathers/-mothers would have invented music at all.
I didn't give you a disagree, but I disagree.