Record Label and Electronic Music Academy
Your first loop in 5 lessons.
Kickstart is the free mini course from OHXALA RECORDS. You make drums, bass, chords and a melody in your browser, in the genre you pick, and at the end you submit the loop. A trainer listens and writes back to you.
- Free
- About 2 hours
- Nothing to install
- Opens November 26
Listen like a producer
Before you make anything, you listen. Four clips in four genres and one question: what makes each one sound like that? You pick yours and the Studio opens at its tempo, from 118 BPM for organic house to 130 for techno.
The beat
Your genre's file opens with the kick and clap in place. You write the hats and percussion, and that is where the genre shows up. Switch genres on the sequencer and listen to what changes.
Bass and sound
Bass and kick fight over the same low end. You write a bassline that lands between the kicks, never on them, and shape the sound with cutoff and release until it fits your genre.
Chords and melody
Two chords per bar in A minor, white keys only, and a short phrase on top. Stay on those notes and nothing clashes, no theory needed to get there.
The loop and the submission
You stretch the loop to two bars, make the second one different from the first, set the final level on the master and submit the project and the .wav. Then it is our turn to listen and reply.
The people teaching it release music.
OHXALA RECORDS is an independent label with more than 200 artists in its catalogue, from organic house to afro house. The course genres come from there, and so does the ear of whoever replies to your submission.
See the catalogue
Two badges, earned by doing.
Questions
Do I need to install anything?
No. The Studio runs in your browser. For lesson 1 a phone and headphones are enough. From lesson 2 on, use a computer, because the piano roll needs the room.
How much does it cost?
Nothing. You need a free Academy account, which you create with your email on the day you join.
I already produce. Is it worth it?
If you have finished tracks before, probably not. Kickstart is for people who have never got to the end of a loop.
When does it start?
On November 26. Everyone on the list gets the link that day by email and takes the lessons at their own pace.
Is there a Portuguese version?
Yes. Kickstart runs in English and in Portuguese, as separate courses.
Save your spot.
Leave your email and on November 26 you get the link to join. Nothing else until then.