Introduction

GarageBand makes it easy for someone who isn't a professional musician to create music that sounds professional. It's inexpensive, and because it was developed by Apple, it's pretty to look at. The program does provide online Help, but this book goes beyond what you find in the Help and walks you step-by-step through a number of common (and not so common) procedures. Even if you have some familiarity with other music editing software, the tips and tricks in this book will help streamline how you work in GarageBand.

This book shows you how to create a song in GarageBand using the loops that ship with the product as well as using Magic GarageBand. You'll learn tricks for customizing the built-in loops and Magic GarageBand tunes, and ways to use mixing techniques and audio effects so that your songs will sound unique. Whether you're new to GarageBand or have already played around with it, plenty of audio-related goodies await you within. I won't, however, cover recording a guitar or vocals or setting up a MIDI keyboard; I cover those topics in my second book, Take Control of Recording with GarageBand '09.

I'm also passing along some of the musical knowledge I've amassed over the years, to help you create an interesting and effective composition. This information is oriented toward nonmusicians, so don't worry if all you know about music is that a grand piano is bigger than a ukulele; I've presented the concepts in plain English. You don't need to know what a diminished seventh chord is or how to sight-read an orchestral score to make a song that will impress your friends. If any of the terminology stumps you, you can look it up in the Glossary (or, if the term appears in blue in the text of the ebook, click it to move to where it's defined in the Glossary).

Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand '09 follows a step-by-step approach. I walk you through the creation of three songs: two using loops—one simple and one more complex—and one using Magic GarageBand. I point out exactly which loops, effects, and settings to use where. This specific, sequential approach keeps the book from being a dull and dry reference manual. I suggest that you follow the instructions as closely as you can.

---

Note:

At least skim: I recommend that you at least skim all three song tutorials, since I mention different techniques in each of them. Even if you don't plan on ever using Magic GarageBand, for example, note that I cover some more advanced GarageBand features in that section.

---

After you've worked through a song, it's yours to play with. Fly, be free, create! GarageBand is a tool to unleash your inner genius. I hope this book helps you to do just that.