Garage Band
1.
Getting
Started: Click on the Guitar
icon on your dock.
The following start up page
should appear:
Click on ÒCreate a New ProjectÓ
*if you have already saved a project click Òopen existing projectÓ find your project name and click on it.
The following page should appear:
Give
your song a title (can be changed when saving)
Choose
where you want to save it, most often your house but there may be times when
you will need to save someplace else.
Click the black arrows after it says ÒWhere:Ó and choose the place where
you want to save it.
All
other information can be left as you can change this when you are creating your
song.
Click
ÒCreateÓ and the following screen appears:
2. The
Compositon:
For your first project we will delete the keyboard and
the ÒGrand PianoÓ track.
Click on the red ÒxÓ in the right hand corner and the
keyboard will disappear. You can
bring it back by clicking on Òview in the menu bar and selecting keyboard.
To delete the Grand piano track, go to ÒTrackÓ in the
menu bar. Highlight Òdelete trackÓ
in the drop-down menu.
3.
Adding Tracks: Add a ÒNew Basic TrackÓ from the drop
down menu.
A new track will appear:
4.
Opening Instruments: Click the ÒeyeÓ and track choices will appear.
5.
Selecting
instruments: Choose an
instrument such as Òpiano.Ó
Several little songs called ÒloopsÓ will become available in the right
hand column
When you click on one of these ÒloopsÓ it will play
for you. If you really like
it click on the ÒfavÓ box.
This will help you remember your favorite loops.
6.
Placing Loops: When you
have found a loop you want to use, click and drag it to you track. If you want to use it again, you may
copy the loop. Go to ÒeditÓ in the
menu bar and select ÒcopyÓ from the drop-down menu. Move the Òplay headÓ to the spot where you want the
loop. Go back to ÒeditÓ in the
menu bar and select ÒpasteÓ from the drop-down menu.
*(the apple key + ÒcÓ key is a short-cut for copy)
*(the apple key +ÒVÓ key is a short-cut for paste)
7. Adding new tracks.
Add new tracks in the same way you added the
New basic track to start the project.
ÒTrackÓ from the menu bar selecting ÒNew Basic TrackÓ
from the drop-down menu.
*(or you may click the + sign)
Choose a new instrument and loops to add to the new
track.
7.
Changing
Counter: To keep track of how long your ÒsongÓ is you will need to change
the counter to Òreal time.Ó Click
the music note in the counter section.
The counter will then look like the picture below.
8. More
Tracks: Continue to add tracks
and instrument loops until you have the song you imagined. An example song may look like this:
9. Play
your song. Click the far left
arrow in the ÒplayÓ section to take the Òplay headÓ back to the beginning. Click the single right arrow to play.
10.
Adjusting track volume.
Open the track volume by clicking on the arrow key in the
track. A volume line will
appear. Open the volume for each
track in the same manner.
Click on the line where you want to change the
volume. Pull the line up or down.
11. Deleting
and moving loops.
You may delete any loop by clicking on it so it is
highlighted and press the delete key.
To move a loop you click on it and drag it to where you want to put
it. You can even move it to a
different track.
12.
Recording.
You may record your voice or other instruments. Place the play head where you want to
add the sound. Click on the red
record button and begin, speaking, singing, or playing. Press the record button again when you
are finished.
13. Saving.
Go to ÒFileÓ in the menu bar click on Òsave asÓ in the
drop-down menu. Here you may
change the title and the location where you save your song.
14.
Tips
for troubles.
The possibilities for Garage Band are endless. Experiment. There are more things that can be ÒtinkeredÓ with that are not described in this short lesson. Be creative and take some risks. But, remember to save what you do like just incase something happens while you are experimenting.
You can add tracks that are not the basic track. You can choose from various software
and real instruments. Software
instruments take more memory than real instruments. Use with caution.
If you get an error message you may have too much going
on at the same time. Move the
loops around or delete some loops so they are not all playing at the same time.
Watch the color of your loops and tracks. You can put both blue and green loops
in a blue track but you may put only a green loop in a green track.
Watch your key signatures. If the loops do not sound good together it may be because
they do not have the same key signature. All loops should have the same letter
name under the ÒkeyÓ column.
HAVE FUN!