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The Secrets of Dance Music Production
The world's leading electronic music production magazine delivers the definitive guide to making cutting-edge dance music. Featuring 312 color pages packed with technique, tips, illustrations and hands-on walkthroughs, The Secrets of Dance Music Production pulls together everything you need to take a mix from concept to club-ready master – whether you make house or techno, 2-step or D&B, EDM or trance. Topics include studio fundamentals, the golden rules of mixing, essential techniques, improving writing chops, bigger beats, learning from the masters and more.
- GenresMusicNonfiction
312 pages, Paperback
Published December 1, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 5, 2022
I started making electronic music in the nineties. It's the only reason I bought a computer, which I suppose changed the rest of my life. But I can remember staring at a black DOS screen and not having a clue how to even turn it on, never mind connecting all the music machines. It was a very slow learning curve. There were magazines and basic books, and very basic info on the internet. But really, you just had to get stuck in and learn everything yourself, badly. I think there's a certain charm that comes with anything self-taught. But also lots of frustration and some really bad choices. I'm very proud of my first EP but the mastering was awful. It was in fact, non existent. Because I never heard of mastering.
I've learnt a lot since then but there were still a lot of holes in my knowledge. And also a big gap between when I stopped producing and then started again. And this book filled a lot of those holes, particularly in areas I was always weak in; mixing, mastering and generally anything that makes for a better sounding production.
It's also fantastically put together; the design layout and structure is done so well, alongside some great content. I don't think a book like this can ever be pitched perfectly at anyone. There will always be info that's too basic or too advanced for different people. But overall it's a really great resource.
It's a book that I'll keep in the studio and occasionally dip in and out of.
I've learnt a lot since then but there were still a lot of holes in my knowledge. And also a big gap between when I stopped producing and then started again. And this book filled a lot of those holes, particularly in areas I was always weak in; mixing, mastering and generally anything that makes for a better sounding production.
It's also fantastically put together; the design layout and structure is done so well, alongside some great content. I don't think a book like this can ever be pitched perfectly at anyone. There will always be info that's too basic or too advanced for different people. But overall it's a really great resource.
It's a book that I'll keep in the studio and occasionally dip in and out of.
April 6, 2020
An absolute must read for music production newbies. Electronic music broken down into pieces and scrutinized under magnifying glass. An enjoyable read as well with lots of examples and practical walkthroughs. Having started from scratch (and having discarded a few other books as they failed to explain concepts in detail) I now feel I have a solid understanding of the subject, but will definitely revert to this book later as it has lots of handy information.
January 2, 2017
This book is amazing. I wish it had been released a few years ago when I started producing as I feel it would have helped me progress massively faster.
The value of this book is incredible considering you will learn as much as if you had spent hundreds of €£$ on some dubspot or point blank courses.
The only negative I would put is that the graphic design work on this book is fairly poor when compared to the high quality of the content.
Overall though this book is an absolute must have for any electronic music producer. Even much more helpful than the book Ableton released last year and which was already quite good (especially on the design side).
The value of this book is incredible considering you will learn as much as if you had spent hundreds of €£$ on some dubspot or point blank courses.
The only negative I would put is that the graphic design work on this book is fairly poor when compared to the high quality of the content.
Overall though this book is an absolute must have for any electronic music producer. Even much more helpful than the book Ableton released last year and which was already quite good (especially on the design side).
November 29, 2020
Best electronic music production book I read. It's comprehensive and covers everything! From music theory and kick drums to vocals, lyrics, mixing and sampling. It is a step by step guide as well as an inspirational book that you can always refer to whenever you feel stuck. I recommend it for beginners.
March 17, 2019
I have mixed, but mostly positive thoughts about this book.
While the advice is sound, I found myself unable to focus more often than usual. This is partially personal - I'm not interested in producing EDM or dance music overall, I'm more interested in ambient, orchestral/sountrack and IDM, so part of the problem was that I'm not exactly the target audience.
Most of the book is very good. Short paragraphs get right to the point without sounding like they were written by someone overcaffeinated. The book is doing its best to not be dogmatic, and yet give advice as specific as possible. The authors are kind enough to keep reminding readers by using phrases like "almost always", "practically never", etc. This is a small thing, but I think it is important because, after all, most of current music started in experimentation and breaking the rules.
The reason why I found the book great to read before sleep is that I couldn't relate to a lot of step-by-step guides, which were mostly focused on Ableton, Logic & Pro Tools. Obviously these are easy to transpose to whatever DAW you're using, but my problem was that I never had a chance to apply the knowledge learned immediately. I can imagine I would benefit from the book much more if I immediately tried out every lesson learned.
I will keep this book around and will definitely go back to individual parts over time as needed - as with any art/craft, you cannot properly learn everything just by reading about it. The book was clear enough to be read sequentially, but I think it will be better as a reference guide and workbook.
A clear con: I found several typos in FOURTH EDITION (2018-05), including a dozen uses of my pet peeve phrase "x comprises of y". Take your book, replace "comprise[s]" with "contains[s]" and if it sounds wrong, you're using it wrong. *drops pet peeve mic*
tl;dr: Great if you produce EDM and have time to try the material right away. Useful if you're relatively new to digital music production. Slightly useful if you're starting work elsewhere in the industry (mix/mastering engineers, DJs, singers, etc).
While the advice is sound, I found myself unable to focus more often than usual. This is partially personal - I'm not interested in producing EDM or dance music overall, I'm more interested in ambient, orchestral/sountrack and IDM, so part of the problem was that I'm not exactly the target audience.
Most of the book is very good. Short paragraphs get right to the point without sounding like they were written by someone overcaffeinated. The book is doing its best to not be dogmatic, and yet give advice as specific as possible. The authors are kind enough to keep reminding readers by using phrases like "almost always", "practically never", etc. This is a small thing, but I think it is important because, after all, most of current music started in experimentation and breaking the rules.
The reason why I found the book great to read before sleep is that I couldn't relate to a lot of step-by-step guides, which were mostly focused on Ableton, Logic & Pro Tools. Obviously these are easy to transpose to whatever DAW you're using, but my problem was that I never had a chance to apply the knowledge learned immediately. I can imagine I would benefit from the book much more if I immediately tried out every lesson learned.
I will keep this book around and will definitely go back to individual parts over time as needed - as with any art/craft, you cannot properly learn everything just by reading about it. The book was clear enough to be read sequentially, but I think it will be better as a reference guide and workbook.
A clear con: I found several typos in FOURTH EDITION (2018-05), including a dozen uses of my pet peeve phrase "x comprises of y". Take your book, replace "comprise[s]" with "contains[s]" and if it sounds wrong, you're using it wrong. *drops pet peeve mic*
tl;dr: Great if you produce EDM and have time to try the material right away. Useful if you're relatively new to digital music production. Slightly useful if you're starting work elsewhere in the industry (mix/mastering engineers, DJs, singers, etc).
December 4, 2018
I've learned a lot from this book.
Beginning electronic music producers (dance or ambient) often have to learn on music theory and production books and articles meant for rock, pop or classical music, the manuals of their tools, and a huge amount of trial and error.
A book like this that speaks the modern language of the DAW with piano roll examples, drum sequencer beat patterns, VST synth envelopes, EQ spectrum bracketing, ... cuts right to the point, saves a lot of time and needless mental clutter.
I don't know if it's used in any academic institution, or if they're all stuck in the past, but as a good textbook, this is one to read through each chapter from start to finish the first time, and later return to specific sections when looking up tips on how to do something working on your own projects.
The only improvement I see right now would be if they'd include Reaper examples, the (semi-free) cheap DAW is used by a lot of beginners.
Beginning electronic music producers (dance or ambient) often have to learn on music theory and production books and articles meant for rock, pop or classical music, the manuals of their tools, and a huge amount of trial and error.
A book like this that speaks the modern language of the DAW with piano roll examples, drum sequencer beat patterns, VST synth envelopes, EQ spectrum bracketing, ... cuts right to the point, saves a lot of time and needless mental clutter.
I don't know if it's used in any academic institution, or if they're all stuck in the past, but as a good textbook, this is one to read through each chapter from start to finish the first time, and later return to specific sections when looking up tips on how to do something working on your own projects.
The only improvement I see right now would be if they'd include Reaper examples, the (semi-free) cheap DAW is used by a lot of beginners.
December 12, 2023
It’s really a music production bible and 95% of the content applies to all music genres that are recorded and produced digitally.
It notably doesn’t cover recording your own drum set really, but everything downstream of that is covered. And vocal recording is discussed even!
There’s a couple of small issues such as the inaccurate discussion around bit depth but this book also fills in every possible blank you need to know to produce music on your own, regardless of genre.
It notably doesn’t cover recording your own drum set really, but everything downstream of that is covered. And vocal recording is discussed even!
There’s a couple of small issues such as the inaccurate discussion around bit depth but this book also fills in every possible blank you need to know to produce music on your own, regardless of genre.
May 14, 2020
Must read for producers however if you're not super new to producing I don't think you need to read it front to back. There were lots of parts I most likely could have skipped, some parts I did skip, but overall definitely worth it.
November 26, 2018
Really useful and informative. This is one of the best overall books on production that I've read
March 26, 2020
great fo everybody producing music
January 5, 2023
Outstanding book!!!
April 6, 2023
Brilliant!
October 14, 2024
everything you need to know about edm production, very well explained. 5 stars
December 25, 2024
insightful but only in tandem with pushing the buttons
June 15, 2021
Fantastic, learnt so much, instant impact on my music production and audio engineering. Must read for people deeply passionate about electronic music production and want to learn more.
July 5, 2020
Great starting point for anybody ready to dive into the world of Electronic Music Production. It's been written pretty recently so it is very up-to-date. I found the chapters to be to the point and concise - all in all covering pretty much all the fundamentals ( Synthesis, Drum Programming, Mixing, etc )
Visually the book has an unacademic, frilly feel to it - which is awesome - with plenty of illustrations and examples. I'd recommend this book to all user levels. I think there is something that everybody can take from this book - as a reference for intermediate users, casual reading for experts, or as an introductory book for noobs.
Visually the book has an unacademic, frilly feel to it - which is awesome - with plenty of illustrations and examples. I'd recommend this book to all user levels. I think there is something that everybody can take from this book - as a reference for intermediate users, casual reading for experts, or as an introductory book for noobs.
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September 26, 2018good book
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews