Sound Production Solutions
Unlocking Creativity Through Education
About Sound
Production
Solutions
Learn to make, mix and master your own musical creations with Sound Production Solutions.
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- SPS caters to young people who want to make music on their own terms by using technology as well as traditional instrumentation.
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- SPS offers comprehensive courses on how use modern digital audio workstations, that cuts through the confusing labyrinth of sound production information housed on Youtube and the web.
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- SPS provides a range of specific genre templates for students to choose from, so they can begin working with sounds that inspire, from the moment they start creating.
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- SPS is student led and caters to and modifies lessons in real time to each student's wants and needs.
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- SPS gives students the skills to mix and master original compositions, enabling them to construct release ready packages.
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- SPS offers students a selection of free samples, digital musical instruments and effects to help them continue their music making journey while and long after they have finished taking lessons.
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- SPS provides detailed notes on course content to help learners consolidate their knowledge in their own time.
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- SPS offers entry level lessons for piano, music theory and synthesis to help student understanding and accelerate their ability to work quickly and achieve success.
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- SPS allows for "school can't students" to gently re-integrate working with an educational professional prepared to operate according to their demands. ​​​
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My name is Steve Ford and I am the founder of Sound Production Solutions.
I have worked as a teacher (B.Ed) for over 21 years and have taught across a range of key learning areas. However, my passion is teaching in the area of music and sound.
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I have worked as a club DJ and live electronic musician, playing at venues, events and festivals across Australia, while releasing a number of EPs and albums along the way.
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Additionally, I have supported countless young people to develop an understanding of how to use technology to compose, arrange, mix and master their own musical creations, through pioneering the Music Making and Sound Production program, that was delivered via the Banyule Nillumbik Tech School in Greensborough.
Rather than forcing students to learn music that they consider outdated, or an instrument that they end up hating because the educational experience is too rigid, my approach seeks to foster a love for creating while still ensuring lessons are challenging and meaningful. Furthermore, I have a strong awareness of how to extend students who would be considered of high ability, while also being able to cater to students who are neuro diverse or who require information to be delivered in a scaffolded fashion.
Through leaning in to the music that young people want to make, using modern technology and giving them the skills to fulfil their artistic vision, I hope to instil in them a life long love of using technology to make music.
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Please feel free to get in contact and find out if Sound Production Solutions is right for the young person in your life: soundproductionsolutions@protonmail.com
Services
Composition and Arrangement
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Students undertake a self paced course, where they learn how to use Ableton (a digital audio workstation - sometimes described a music studio inside a computer) to compose musical ideas and then turn those ideas into a completed song. Depending on the student's needs and capabilities, the course content can be covered in 10 weeks. However, many participants often find that through experimenting and finding their artistic voice, they need additional time in the studio to complete their original compositions.
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Most students benefit from covering course content and having time to write and be hands on with the technology. In light of this, 2 hour sessions are recommended to get the most out of this service, but flexible arrangements can be made to allow for time constraints. ​​
Mixing and Mastering
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This program is designed to build on students knowledge of using Ableton in the Composition and Arrangement course and turn their songs into release ready packages. Students who are already making music on their own with technology may feel comfortable jumping right in with this course's content, however most will benefit from completing the Composition and Arrangement first.
Students do not need to make or use their own songs in order to complete this course. There are ready made projects across a wide range of genres that they can choose to work with instead, should they wish to.
This course allows for an 8 week time frame, but it is not unusual for students to need more time as they sharpen their ears and skills, while refining the quality of their music.
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Entry level piano lessons, music theory and/or synthesis
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Students wishing to push their understanding further may be inclined to strengthen their skill set by developing their knowledge of some important musical concepts.
If your young person feels like they can't get their ideas from their head into their digital audio workstation as fast as they would like, then establishing an understanding of piano playing technique and music theory could help them to implement their ideas at a quicker pace.
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Likewise, the are a host of genres that call on the use of synthesisers to construct their compositions and if your young person is interested in writing music for many modern styles of music or gaming, then a grasp on synthesis could just be the ticket to help them delve into the world of sound design. Using a mixture of hardware synthesisers and digital soft synths, this course seeks to demystify some of the core concepts around synthesis and gives students the confidence to engage in the process of making their very own synth sounds.
Rates: ​
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$50 an hour.
Each session typically runs for 2 hours, but accommodations can be made to allow for time constraints.
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Lessons should be booked in either groups of 4 or 10.
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4x2 hour sessions: $400.
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10x2 hour sessions. $950, with the final hour being free.​​​​
Please note:
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In order to make sure my teaching style and content is a good fit for your young person, the first two lessons of any course can be paid for individually at the normal rate.
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Depending on student needs or desires, the composition and arrangement section of the course can run concurrently with learning piano, music theory and synthesis basics.​
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Testimonials
I am very happy with the mixing and mastering course led by Steve Ford. Through his teachings I am very comfortable with the utility of compressors, equalizers, limiters, various effect plug-ins including reverb as well as side chaining and parallel processing. He was also able to answer all of my questions very effectively, such as allowing me to truly understand what an equalizer is used for in the mixing process, as well as how you can use reverb to control space in the mix. The equipment provided was very useful, more so in the arrangement and composition section; allowing instruments to be directly recorded onto the provided laptops through an audio interface and programmed using a midi keyboard. As I already had a base understanding of arrangement and composition, that part wasn’t as helpful for me but still great information regardless. Overall, this is an outstanding...course that I recommend to anyone interested in music production to participate in.
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Liam T, Year 12
[Learning with] Steve Ford was a great experience. From learning methods for music such as the using the funk formula to hook people into your song to fully mixing and mastering music joining this program was one of the best opportunities I have ever taken part of. Now every time I listen to the song I look for parts that use these methods and really expanding my understanding of music. My overall favourite part of this course is the mixing and mastering part being given clean and clear tracks to slightly tweak and make your own with things such as EQ, Compression and Reverb [which were] all things I learned to do in the weeks of doing this.
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Enzo A, Year 8​​​
I enjoyed how (Steve) modified the information to meet everyone’s needs as some people have never done anything in terms of music making and some had done a lot. I liked how if you’ve never done anything in terms of music making the teacher explained everything in detail so everyone would understand.
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Lisa T, Year 9
I liked how the program is useful to most people, rather than one level. I also found most of the things we learned how to do useful and interesting.
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Bronwyn B, Year 10
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I really enjoyed the ability to make the music style that I wanted and lean into metal music as opposed to everyone learning with the exact same templates and sounds. I also enjoyed the creative freedom while also learning specific tools and tactics on Ableton.
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Sinead C, Year 9
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I enjoyed the course because it broadened my understanding of the music industry and how modern music is composed and produced. Even if I never do anything with the new skills I acquired, it was an insightful experience.
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Julia B, Year 10
The composition and arrangement part of the course established my confidence within the Ableton Live application as well as an audio interface and midi keyboard. This portion of the course was extremely valuable to my music production journey as it cemented my knowledge within a Digital Audio Workspace. In the mixing portion of the course, I extremely enjoyed the thorough and excellent teaching that covered gain staging, compression, eq, and reverb; and, through the completion of this section of this course, I have immediately felt an immense shift in my confidence with these tools. Additionally, this course has left me with an efficient and effective music production workflow to begin with recording a song and move on to mix and master it. Overall, my experience...was incredible and left me extremely fulfilled with the knowledge I received.
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Elijah F, Year 12
With an engaging teacher and well laid out study design, the course was very enjoyable. I substantially grew my knowledge of Ableton, and now fill comfortable going home and expanding my experience. If you’re interested in making music as a career, or even just becoming an hobbyist producer, I would highly recommend this course!
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Logan E, Year 12
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The...program has taught me so much about the mixing and mastering side of music production and has boosted the quality of my own projects outside of the classroom. I now feel confident using tools such as EQ, compression and reverb which are now crucial components that allow me to create my beats.
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Daniel J, Year 10
I liked that learning the basics was easy, learning effects was easy with practice, and that making music isn't as hard as some people might think. Other students should 100% enrol, because it gives a great learning opportunity to anyone who enrols. not only is it fun, but it is also a career choice if you really want it to be.
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Blake T, Year 9​
I enjoyed this as course I learnt how producers make songs and albums and how much effort so put into making a song. Also using new technology was fun and interesting as well.
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Senesa M, Year 10
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If you think you have a young person in your life that would like to have the same enriching and fulfilling experience as these young people, please feel free to get in touch at:
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soundproductionsolutions@protonmail.com
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