I usually begin by setting the tempo of the track. On your software program, adjust the Tempo (most programs simply have up and down arrows to increase or decrease the tempo) and turn the metronome (click) feature to On. Use the metronome ticks to get a feel for how you envision the beat sounding. Begin nodding your head to the clicks, and increase or decrease the tempo accodingly to suit the tempo you desire.

The next step is one that is entirely up to you: Adding the first element of the beat. Dr. Dre said he always likes to start with the drums. Other producers like to start with the hook melody. I myself don’t have any finite way of beginning a beat. Sometimes I’ll start with the drums, and other times I’ll begin by adding an instrument (piano, guitar, etc.).

If you have a killer melody in your head, I suggest that you lay that down right away so you don’t forget it. Set the metronome to the desired tempo and record the melody with the instrument you had in mind. Have a beautiful piano melody in your head? Record it first and build the rest of the track around it. Odds are, that melody is going to be one of the most important elements in the entire track, so use it as the driving force and add the drums and accompanying instruments around it. Try it!

This same concept works for drums. Some tracks, especially hip-hop tracks, can be almost exclusively driven by the drums. So if you have a solid drum idea in mind, by all means get it recorded into your sofware before you start adding the instruments. This method will enable you to establish a “groove” by which you can begin to lay some new ideas in the form of instrumentation.

When laying the drums first, I usually like to begin with the hi-hats. Next, I pick a snare or clap and add that in. With these 2 elements playing I can establish a nice rhythm to groove to while adding in the kick. Finally I may opt to add in some percussive sounds (bongos or congas for example). Again, this is just how I personally add drums – the order is entirely up to you.

Now that you have the beat started, you can begin adding the rest of the instrumentation, work on arrangement, add your transitions, and mix the beat. I will cover all of this in future articles, but hopefully this one has given you some good ideas to get started making beats!

I’m outta here for now.

-Tim Adamek, Open Minds Entertainment LLP