About this course: Producing music is an incredibly creative process, and knowing the tools of the trade is essential in order to transmit the musical ideas in your head into the DAW in a creative and uninhibited way. Whether you have used a computer to create music before, or you have been curious about production for years, this 4-week course will give you an introductory look into the world of Avid Pro Tools and Pro Tools First.

Created by: Berklee

Taught by: Chrissy Tignor-Fisher, Assistant Professor
Contemporary Writing and Production

Basic Info	Course 3 of 4 in the Music Production Specialization
Language	English
How To Pass	Pass all graded assignments to complete the course.
User Ratings	4.7 stars Average User Rating 4.7See what learners said

Syllabus

WEEK 1

Welcome to Pro Tools Basics!

Welcome to your Berklee MOOC! Before you begin the course, we will cover all the details about the course and what you'll need to know to get the most out of your experience.

1 video, 9 readings, 1 practice quiz

Reading: A Note From Chrissy
Reading: Connect on Facebook and Twitter
Reading: Tell Time
Reading: Artist Bio: Amy Allen
Reading: Meet Your Teaching Assistant!
Practice Quiz: What Are Your Goals?
Video: What You'll Need For This Course
Reading: Download Pro Tools First or the FREE Demo Version
Reading: Learner Support
Reading: Course Certificates
Reading: Peer Review Assignments

WEEK 2

Diving In

In this first lesson, we will roll up our sleeves and dive into the Pro Tools interface. We'll learn how to set up a session and how to add instrument and audio tracks. We'll also learn how to save and bounce our work while keeping everything organized.

9 videos

Video: The Pro Tools Interface
Video: MIDI and Software Instrument Tracks
Video: Audio Tracks
Video: Working From Templates
Video: Organizing Your Session
Video: Bouncing Your Session
Video: Saving Your Session
Video: Working with The Basics
Video: Giving and Receiving Feedback
LTI Item: Peer Learning Exercise: Working with The Basics

Graded: The Basics

WEEK 3

Exploring MIDI and Software Instruments

In this lesson, we'll focus on MIDI and software instruments. We'll start by learning about the different kinds of sound waves. Next, we'll learn the difference between samplers and synthesizers and how to use them in music production. We'll also learn how to manipulate and automate MIDI.

7 videos, 4 readings

Video: Introduction to On-Board Software Instruments
Video: Wave Basics
Reading: Wave Basics
Reading: Simple Automation in Pro Tools
Discussion Prompt: Even MORE About Waves
Reading: More About Waves
Video: Synthesizers
Video: Samplers
Video: MIDI Manipulation
Video: Automation
Video: Working with MIDI and Software Instruments
Reading: Beatport

Graded: MIDI and Software Instruments

Graded: Peer Learning Exercise: Working with MIDI and Software Instruments

WEEK 4

Recording and Manipulating Audio

This week we'll dive into the world of audio. We'll learn how to properly import and manage audio in Pro Tools. We'll learn how to record into Pro Tools, and we'll also learn how to use AudioSuite to manipulate audio regions.

6 videos, 1 reading

Video: Importing and Managing Audio
Video: Audio Suite (Reverse)
Video: Tempo Operations
Reading: Audio Samples
Video: Recording In
Video: Playlists
Video: Working with Audio
LTI Item: Peer Learning Exercise: Working with Audio

Graded: Recording and Manipulating Audio

WEEK 5

Mixing and Mastering

In this final lesson we will be discussing mixing and mastering. You'll learn how to make a radio-quality production by adding reverb, EQ, compression, and limiters.

7 videos, 4 readings

Video: Overview of Plugin Effects and Creating a Rough Mix
Video: EQ
Reading: Frequency Graph
Video: Compression
Reading: Compression Recap
Video: Reverb, Buses, and Aux Tracks
Reading: More About Reverb
Video: Limiters
Video: Practice Mixing and Mastering
Video: Course Wrap-Up
Reading: Credits

Graded: Mixing and Mastering

Graded: Peer Learning Exercise: Practice Mixing and Mastering

FAQs

How It Works

Coursework

Each course is like an interactive textbook, featuring pre-recorded videos, quizzes and projects.

Help from Your Peers

Connect with thousands of other learners and debate ideas, discuss course material, and get help mastering concepts.

Certificates

Earn official recognition for your work, and share your success with friends, colleagues, and employers.

Creators

Berklee

Berklee College of Music was founded on the revolutionary principle that the best way to prepare students for careers in music is through the study and practice of contemporary music. For more than half a century, the college has evolved to reflect the state of the art of music and the music business. Berklee serves distance learners worldwide through its award-winning online extension school, Berklee Online.

Pricing

	Audit	Purchase Course
Access to course materials	Available	Available
Access to graded materials	Not available	Available
Receive a final grade	Not available	Available
Earn a shareable Course Certificate	Not available	Available

Ratings and Reviews

Rated 4.7 out of 5 of 179 ratings

I really enjoyed this course. Its everything I wanted to do and learn. Thank you so much.

Excelente

I found very limiting when the course proposes for us to have to use synth and samplers.

Some people produces different sound and need to get adopt really quickly to do something reasonable.

I believe that configuration and path could be inserted in a PDF as instruction .

Good class. In fact, I think this class should have been done before the Technology class as it covered a few things that were included in the Technology class in a much simpler fashion. I don't use ProTools, so I suffered through this class with ProTools First, which created a lot of limitations on what I could do (i.e. no sampler), but I did learn a lot more from this class than I expected that could be applied outside of ProTools.

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