Creating Music Projects

Software for creating music has been around for decades and there is no shortage of great options. Most software is not free, but there is a wide range of prices and pricing structures (some are subscription-based, for example). In this guide, we will cover two free options and a few options that are free to you as a Humboldt student. If you are just getting started, we recommend using the free options first and then moving on to more fully-featured software once you have a better idea of what you want.

DAWs

Digital Audio Workstations, or DAWs, are what most people think of when they talk about music creating software. A DAW allows you to connect electronic instruments with MIDI controls (which digitally map notes) as well as analog instruments (which are usually recorded as sound files only) and they also allow you to play and record music completely within the software. Other audio editing software may offer some of these features but may be quite helpful. Most artists use multiple programs to do all of the things they want to do. For example, it may be a lot easier to record an interview using Audacity (which is not a fully featured DAW) but after recording and doing some basic edits in Audacity, you may want to import the audio file from that interview into BandLab so that you can incorporate background music and even compose music to fit the topic or feel of the interview.

You have a variety of options for editing audio. This is not an exhaustive list and you are welcome to use any program that you prefer, but the following are all programs that are free for you to use for your next project.

Recommendations

• Audacity is available on all campus computers and is completely free for you to download. Great for podcasts and editing audio recordings.
• BandLab is a free online audio editor that works on any device and syncs to cloud for collaboration and allows you to start a project in the computer lab, continue it on your phone on your bus ride home and then finish it up on your laptop at home. Great for composing music, with MIDI capability, but also works quite well for podcasts and other audio.

On Chromebooks

• BandLab works in Chrome browsers.

On Phones and Tablets

• BandLab has a free phone and tablet apps.
• GarageBand has a free iOS app.
• Podcasting
  • Spreaker is free (for one podcast) and helps you get your podcast up on the platforms.
  • Spotify for Podcasters (formerly Anchor) is also free and also helps you get your podcast up. After being purchased by Spotify, we will have to see what changes are in store.

BandLab is an online music recording and composing editor. It's also great for podcasts! BandLab is free, available on any computer, iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. You can record directly to BandLab or import your files and edit them. You can also work on projects collaboratively! You can get started with BandLab now using your Humboldt Google account.

BandLab for Music

Audacity is a free and open source program that has many helpful features. This is the best open source audio editor and there is no shortage of tutorials on YouTube.

Available in the Makerspace Lab (Library 122) on all computers.

Though it is only available on iPhones (iOS), GarageBand is a fairly robust app that will allow you to do almost anything you need to create an audio project, from simple voice recordings for podcasts, to multi-track music recordings.

Adobe Audition is a useful audio editor and recorder that is free to all HSU students, staff and faculty. As part of the Adobe Creative Cloud, Audition is installed on most campus computers, including all Library Windows and Macs (including our Windows laptops). You can also access Audition using the VLab.

Available in the Makerspace Lab (Library 122) on all computers.