Dance Music Manual: Toys, Tools and Techniques

Rating:
Summary: A must-have for aspiring dance musicians
Review:
Did you ever wish you could train under a master producer? - I did!

I struggled to find the answers to my questions. Where does one go, I wondered, to learn the secrets of the trance masters? Who will teach me to program this beastly synth I have in front of me? And how the heck do I balance my instrument volumes?

Well, The Dance Music Manual is the answer to all those questions and more. And it was worth every penny I paid for it!

This book will answer so many questions you have. It covers everything from the basics (dance music theory) to the more advanced topics (sound programming theory). And the mixing and mastering chapters just blew my mind.

If you are an aspiring producer or already a professional, you will find this book to be a helpful guide or reference to the dance genre of your choice!

Rating:
Summary: Jam packed with great info.
Review: Wow! I am so impressed with the amount of information packed into one book! Snoman really knows his business. I particularly liked the sections on synthesis and mixing. I have been a recording engineer for some time now and found that I still had some things to learn when it came to dance music.

Rating:
Summary: Must Have!
Review: Do you want to learn the ins and outs of creating trance, techno, trip hop, hip hop, or house? If so, this is the book for you! You learn not only about music theory of dance genres, but Snoman introduces topics such as effects and how to apply them, mixing, mastering, synthesis/sound design, and self promotion. The book includes a CDRom with practical examples of the techniques found in the book.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely excellent!
Review: I have never written a review of a product on amazon.com before, but this book motivated me and deserves to be the first. It is the most comprehensive book on the process of creating electronic music that I have seen - indeed, it explains many things about music in general better than other texts. It takes the reader through all of the details, step by step, from the basics of music theory and setting up a workspace to explaning genres and what to do with your finished product. I am devouring the book - it fills in all the missing pieces that so many other references overlook. Thank you, Rick Snoman, this is quite an undertaking!

Rating:
Summary: An essential book for every modern musician!
Review: The Dance Music Manual is very well-written, with the right balance of technical and hands-on knowledge. Every chapter presents enough practical information for a person to try out things on his own.

Most people will find that the author's inside view of the industry is worth the price of the book alone. Furthermore, he has an impressive range of experience and understanding of music.

Although its title explains that it covers the modern music dance genres, it's actually a goldmine of information on other topics pertinent to all musicians, such as: a thorough-yet-concise explanation of mixing and mastering, how to record vocal tracks, practical synthesizer programming, the use of compression, processing and effects, how music may be tampered with by radio stations, why it may be a good idea to release different demos, the ins-and-outs of hardware and software--all things which every musician nowadays should know thoroughly.


Rating:
Summary: Would have put 6 stars if they were available!
Review: This book is a must have for all budding and professional musicians alike. It covers everything you need to know. This is absolutely the best book on my shelf for music production by far. If you're thinking about should I or shouldn't I part with the money for this book, don't worry, just do it as the infomation is well worth the investment. This book covers many genres of music from House to Techno to Trance and more. Furthermore, from this book I learnt how to build a basic website which I consider a bonus for those wishing to promote there music on the web. Nice one Rick, I look forward to purchasing Volume 2, this book is the best!

Rating:
Summary: The difference between being mediocre and great
Review: This book is nothing short of brilliant. It is incredibly well written touching on the details of MIDI, mechanics of sound and synthesis, sound design, mixing and history of electronic music.

Every page is full of obviously a lifetime of experience. Before reading this book, I was struggling with trying to understand how to make my music something more than mediocre. After reading this book, almost immediately the quality and creativity of my music jumped 1000 fold.

If you are serious about learning how to make music, or making your music great - BUY THIS BOOK NOW!