THE OPENING REMARKS: CREATING YOUR CREATIVE SPACE IN SPACE.

So, you want to be a synthesist.  

Good.  Welcome to one of the greatest journeys on which you will ever embark.

What inspired you to get to this point?

It could be any aspect of music or art––or life as a whole, for that matter––that inspired you to look deeper into producing and performing your own work.  

To get started, you will certainly need space, define what that space looks like, and determine how it will serve you and your creative process.  Prior to opening The Midium® with my wife Erin and daughter Melody Nightingale Wednesday, I was all about making my own music, too, and I learned through trial-and-error how to prepare a room for my creative process: to create my creative space in space, and how to keep it organized.  Next to spending time with Erin and Wednesday, writing and performing my own music is still at the top of the list of things that I absolutely love to do... when I have the time. :-)

Before you start buying equipment and instruments, consider your space and how much space you want.

So... where do you begin?  If you want to make your own music at home, what is the very first step?

 

THE HEART OF THE MATTER.

One of the first things to consider is your creative space itself.  Ask yourself:

"Where will I make music?"

The answer to this question is foundational, because you need to feel comfortable enough to have access to your instruments and tools, while also maintaining order so you always know what you have and where it is, while enjoying enough space to achieve the moods you need to both feel within and evoke in others.  Your room––and the room you have in that room––will influence your workflow and even what synths, effects, and instruments you bring in.  It could even affect the end result of what you produce.  Preparation is key.

This "preparation" process could involve making some changes to how you live; designating a room just for music; or it could simply call for clearing out a little area in a space used for other things.  Understanding where you will begin your musical journey can help you plan out which synths you want, which drum machines you'll get, how many external effects units you can get, and so on.  Knowing your bounds will help you come to grips with what it is that you should and should not get, and how much gear you should realistically own.  Remember: It's the Artist, not the instrument, that makes the music.  You, your comfort, your access to your tools, your spiritual and mental health, and your state of mind... these variables come first because they are the most important things to understand while making art of any kind.  Ultimately, the space in which you create––and how you interpret it––as you build your own studio will define all that follows on your musical journey.  Proceed patiently, deliberately, confidently, and strategically.

For instance, legendary electronic ambient music pioneer Steve Roach kept his small apartment nearly empty when he was getting started in the early 80s, and set his synthesizers and drum machines up in his kitchen and dining room.  In such a tight studio, he literally had his back against the wall!  It worked for him, as history shows us, though it's not hard to imagine that it must've been a bit inconvenient, to say the least.  

Look at the picture of Roach above, and see how he fit what he needed in his space.  His certainly was not a maximal setup; rather, it looks focused and organized with a purpose.  If you see yourself producing on your kitchen table or another tight space, let that help guide your synth selection process.  Feel your space and let it communicate with you, since your space / room / studio is the first instrument you will work with.  On the other hand, if you have a room where you can dedicate more space to music production, that will have a hand in which instruments you go with in the future, how you arrange your setup, and help you create that unique workflow that you need to create your art and music.

 

PATIENCE AND CONFIDENCE, GRASSHOPPER.

Once you have your answer and have chosen your actual creative space––whether you chose it because you had little choice, because it resonates with your inner genius, or both––it is time to ask yourself the next big question:

"What will I be putting up in here?"

Here's where the biggest challenge begins.  What do I get first?

Decide on your location and surface, first and foremost.  Choose a surface that gives you as much of the room you feel you need to work comfortably and confidently.  You can always upgrade later, but make sure that this part is taken care of first.  Let it be something that makes you feel good as you approach it.  There's no need for overthought here; rather, look into your budget and see which desk that you like works best.  Of course, if you prefer to make music on the floor, on a little pier, or outside somewhere, then a desk might not be suitable.  Still, if something like that is where you want to create, then plan for something relatively mobile and minimal as you explore your style.

As for instruments...

Are you a keyboardist?  Maybe a synth with keys that welcomes you to produce is the first step.

Are keys not your thing?  Are you more interested in unusual triggers, media, and surfaces?  Unusual, unconventional, and non-traditional ways to input musical notes or create beats could be a good place to start.  Some instruments even help you create through probability and generative functions.

Do you intend on playing mostly synths and drum machines that depend more on smaller sequencers than keyboards?  Desktop synths and drum machines could be just the thing.

Do you like more compact, mobile, and minimal synth setups, or would you prefer to be surrounded by every sampler, sequencer and synthesizer you could possibly imagine?   Is there a computer involved?  Then, grooveboxes and self-contained production environments are your ticket, and for recording into a computer, choose an audio interface with built-in MIDI that allows you to record your work into your computer and to sync your instruments with each other.

On the other hand, maybe you want to have one or two synths that you can just play whenever you want, without the desire for other drum machines, sequencers, effects.  If that's the case, or if you want to play keys, a larger keyboard or two could be the first you introduce to your studio.  Then, put on some headphones or plug into monitors and get lost in long washes of synth pads, hammer out some rhythms, or play a melody or two that can move you through the moment.  

Those things, though, all come after setting up your creative space and studio for the arrival of your instruments and music machines.

Now, here's a word of advice: always, always, always have a tape measure handy!  You wouldn't want to buy a big analog synth or a bunch of digital gear just to find that you have no space to put it in!  By making judicious use of what space you do have, you avoid the pitfalls of having too much stuff and instruments in your studio, and you could avoid feeling cramped and like everything is everywhere, which more often than not could inhibit your creative workflow.  

Take your time to consider these questions, and call or write to Erin and me, anytime!  Spend some time on your own, then decide with confidence on what you are going to do.  

For me, the drum machine is essential, as it is my studio's heartbeat.  If creating beats is your goal, a drum machine and sequencer with sampling capabilities (which can also serve a the center of your production environment) can be a great place to start, such as the Elektron Digitakt II, the Polyend Tracker+, or the smaller and more portable teenage engineering PO-133.  I have a few drum machines that help set me on a course towards different styles of music, or that inspire a different feel.  I always begin with drums.

After learning about what the synthesizer or drum machine you want to get first can do and cannot do, you are ready to make the best decision.  After that, take a month or two exploring its depths and capabilities.  Then, after getting in some quality time with it, you will come away with a better understanding of what resonates with your style and creative space.  Owning a synth-based studio takes some trial-and-error, so you might end up buying and selling a few things here and there.  Pretty much everyone who produces electronic music, techno, IDM, EDM, etc. goes through this process, and it can be quite enlightening.  Do the buy-sell thing too much, and it could get frustrating.  So, do your research before buying anything, and ask us any questions you might have!  Part of the benefits of carefully curating our collection––instead of haphazardly stocking hundreds and thousands of instruments––is that you get to shop in an uncluttered and easy-to-navigate environment while knowing that we will actually know the synths, drum machines, samplers, effects units, and interfaces that we show and sell.  So, please ask questions, anytime! :-)

So, start with your work surface(s), and use the available space to help you begin planning what comes first, based on the parts of your favorite songs and works that resonate with you the most as a listener.  Consider how you would like to play your instruments, or if you prefer to mostly use sequencers, and decide on the note input method that seems the most appealing to you, be it keys, pads, touch-sensitive surfaces, thin air, and other such media.  Give your choice time to try to connect with your vision and creative space, and get creative!

 

HOME SWEET HOME.

Next, ask yourself, "What do I need to do to make this space feel good?"

Sanctuary.  One's studio should be one's musical and creative sanctuary.  It's not always about how big or spacious it is; rather, it's about how it makes you feel.  If it's a separate room, then you can set up some plants, posters, memorabilia, soundproofing, and other random stuff that makes you happy and evokes the feelings you need to channel when you're in there.  Get a cat.  They love synths.

For me, lighting is essential.  The colors, the intensity, the placement... all of it.  Lighting is key.  Warm tones and dimly lit spaces where darkness comes in and out always work, in my case, and help me compose.  Lighting can even make a synth sound warmer or colder (not true LOL).  But seriously, some nice lighting can give you an easy and inexpensive way to make your creative space––large or small, shared or your own––look and feel more welcoming, while highlighting things you like and hiding things you don't.

All in all, my own creative space is my sanctuary.  There must be an element of coziness that goes along with nostalgia, reminders of what inspires me, and a sense of quietness in terms of light that allows the sounds and the music to be at the fore, rather than the visual aspects of my surroundings hijacking my attention.  If there are any synths, drum machines, sequencers, effects pedals, or controllers that I don't use, they get sold.  When I enter my cozy studio, I see only things I love.  This is good.  Every day, there just seems to be too much that sometimes pulls me away from my music and the people and things I love.  I find all I need, want, and love in Erin and Wednesday.  When I find the time, though, I go to my studio and find another peace.  

When I find the time...

 

THE CONCLUSION.

So, as it pertains to beginning your musical journey and setting up your studio, we have discussed:

• Where you will make music
• What you will be putting in your creative space
• What to think about as you consider your first instruments
• What needs to be done in order to feel comfortable there
• Examples of things that have worked for me

Please join us next time for the next installment in this series, titled, The Synth Space-Time Continuum (Part 2: From Dusk 'Till DAWn)