PREMIUM COURSE

Catching a Rhythm: A Beat Making Demo

Watch producer & drummer Ian Chang make an original beat inspired by the rhythmic phrasing of a Björk melody.

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How can you make your beats sound interesting and human, full of variation and interest? Well, according to producer & drummer Ian Chang, one great way to do it is to take inspiration from the vocal phrasing and rhythms of singers.

In this short course, Ian shows us how he produces a beat using a rhythm inspired by the phrasing of a classic Björk melody. It's a quirky approach — but one that shows how much there is to learn when we expand our frames of reference and look for inspiration in surprising places. And we get to see lots of cool production tricks along the way, from sound design to sampling and effects.

This is a partner course for Warped Rhythms & Abstract Beats, Ian's other course about drumming and rhythm. This one is for producers specifically, particularly those with an interest in something more experimental and organic-sounding. Watch Ian create a demo from scratch, showing both how he thinks about rhythm and a variety of other production tricks along the way.

Ian Chang

Drummer, producer, beat maker

Ian Chang is a Hong Kong-born, U.S.-raised journeyman drummer/producer/composer. He makes forward-looking experimental electronic music using technology that allows him to control samples directly from his drum kit. He’s a full-time member of Academy Award® and BAFTA-nominated band Son Lux, and has contributed live drums and recorded tracks to a wide range of artists, including Matthew Dear, Moses Sumney, Landlady, Body Language, Chvrches, Rubblebucket, Woodkid and Kazu Makino.

Course Outline

  1. Preview
Section 1

Finding a Rhythm

  • The Rhythmic Magic of Vocalists

  • Analyzing a Vocal Phrase

  • Finding Other Vocal Rhythms

  1. Section 2

Kick & Snare

  • Finding the Rhythm

  • Adding a Snare

  • Adding Hash

  1. Section 3

Hi-Hats

  • A Sample-Based Hi-Hat

  • Roles & Sounds

  • Tracking the Hi-Hats

  • Expression Controls

  1. Section 4

Final Pieces

  • Adding a Reverb Send

  • The Crash

  • Your Beat Making Challenge

Who is this course for?

This course is primarily for producers, especially those with an interest in making beats full of variation and interest. If you're a drummer looking to learn from Ian about rhythm, check out his other course on rhythm and drumming.

What will I learn in this course?

You'll learn topics such as:

  • How to listen to and transcribe a vocal phrase for the rhythm,
  • How to think about the different roles of the drum kit,
  • How to use non-traditional samples and sounds to bring your beat to life,
  • Different production techniques such as sidechaining, using sends, using gates,

And much more.

Are there any pre-reqs?

You'll get the most from this course if you have a DAW. Ian uses Ableton Live, but it's not necessary to the core ideas and everything he shows us can be done in a different DAW too.

How long does this course take?

This course was designed for you to go through at your own pace, but it's one of the shorter ones in our library. Ideally, you could complete this course in a single sitting — about one hour.

Is there a specific start date?

You can start the course anytime.

How many lessons are there?

This course includes 13 lessons, including videos, graphics, text, activities, creative prompts, and much more.

What do I get if I enroll as a subscriber?

As a subscriber, you'll get unlimited access to all courses on Soundfly.com, including this and all our other premium courses, to go through at your own pace. This includes all the videos, tutorials, demos, quizzes, activities, downloads, and other materials within our full suite of courses.

You're also entitled to a 25% discount on our custom mentorship program, you will be invited to join our exclusive community Discord group, you'll be able join subscriber-only Study Groups, artist Q&As and workshops, annual contests and giveaways, and you'll have access to a growing list of exclusive discount perks courtesy of our partner brands. Cancel anytime.

What is your refund policy?

Our mission is to support musicians, not to rip anyone off. If you realize after subscribing that it's not what you wanted, email us as soon as you can with your reason for cancelling. Our policy is to issue refunds within two weeks of a purchase, for either a monthly or annual subscription, if the courses didn't meet your expectations.

Note that we cannot offer refunds on monthly subscription payments beyond a single month of payment because of the residuals we pay out to our instructors and artists.