About

You may be wondering why I’m writing these posts and what my assumptions are going to be for you, the reader. Here is a quick rundown of the “Why” and what you need to know before delving into these tutorials and projects.

First, let’s start with the “Why?” The main reason I decided to put together this Blog was to provide the Reason and Record user community with some tutorials and sound files and to get some feedback from you as to alternate methods and ways in which both Reason and Record can be used creatively. I was not finding very many answers when looking online at YouTube or at other Reason forums. Don’t get me wrong, there are some excellent resources out there for us musicians, and hopefully I’ll be able to highlight a few along the way. But I wanted to create a place where I could pass along some of the things I’ve learned along the way using Reason and Record.

The second reason why I’m writing these tutorials is because a few friends of mine have asked me to provide them with some pointers on using Reason. Usually they would get stuck somewhere in the program and I would help them out by providing some answers. So it stuck in the back of my mind: this email I just wrote to so-and-so is a great method to achieve “x” and can be used to creatively achieve “y” and “z” — why not get it down on a blog somewhere so that everyone can a) try it out for themselves and b) see if I’m on the right track or lost my mind entirely. Hopefully you’ll find more of the former and less of the latter in the postings to come.

So before I start working on adding these Creative Reason/Record projects and Tutorials, let me outline some of the premises on which I’m writing, so that you are prepared:

1. I’m going to assume you own a licenced copy of Reason and/or Record (preferrably both) and you know what these products are. A trial version is ok too. There’s a link you’ll find to your right which is always there called “Propellerhead” which will take you to the main page of their site. There you can find all kinds of resources and information on the software product I mainly use to create all my music recordings.
2. Next, I’m going to assume that you’ve read their entire User Guide or Help File at least once. I know in our ADD world nobody likes to read those huge tomes and everyone would rather just open up the software and run, rabbit, run! But if you haven’t yet read the resources that were provided, I strongly urge you to do so, and even if you read it 4 or 5 years ago, I strongly urge you to read it again as a refresher. A lot of work went into their documentation, and it will shed a lot of light on the basics of the software.
3. Because you’ve now been diligent and read through the docs, it should come as no surprise that I’m not going to cover the basics which can be found in those documents. I write user documentation and manuals for a living, and I’ve done the “click start and go here to click this button” to death. Where appropriate I’m going to tell you what sliders to move and such. But I won’t be covering all the ins and outs of the program in any great detail. These projects and tutorials ARE NOT INTENDED TO BE BASIC.
4. With that in mind, I also won’t be covering the super-advanced ultra-jacked up uses for Reason and Record. Your CV cables will not get piled up into a christmas tree light ball that looks like it came from the Griswold house (see “Christmas Vacation” if you don’t get that reference). For some, these project posts may come across as very advanced, and for others this may be old hat. But I’m going to try my best to avoid tutorials that read like doctrorate theses by MIT and NASA students locked in a basement for 4 years with nothing but a blackboard. These projects and tutorials ARE NOT INTENDED TO BE ADVANCED.
5. These projects and tutorials are intended to be middle of the road. They are — hopefully — written for goldilocks (just right). It’s my intention to provide the average Reason/Record user some new insight into what can creatively be accomplished with a little effort in Reason and Record.
6. Since most of the music I create on my main site at http://www.phisequence.com is Ambient Glitch, I’ll tell you right now that the slant of the samples, music, and projects is going to be in this genre. However, that’s not to say you can’t take these projects and apply them to the genre of your choice. Please do! That’s the point. If you enjoy Ambient Glitch, then great. You’ll probably enjoy listening while you read the articles. If you don’t enjoy Ambient Glitch, then please keep an open mind and always remember you can still take a lot away from these projects.
7. I have a full time job outside of the world of music, and so everything I do here is done in my free time. As such, postings may be sporadic and erratic, sometimes coming in spurts, and other times taking a while to see anything new. I apologize in advance. I’ll do my best to keep providing new content for you.
8. Last but not least, I still have no clue what I’m doing. Seriously. I learned everything on my own through trial and error, and plenty of experimentation. I’ve been working with Propellerhead software for about 5 years now (since Reason version 2.5). I never took any music classes (high school choir and 2 years of music that I promptly forgot 5 years later doesn’t count), and I never had a great grasp of music theory. I do think, however, that my lack of formal training can at times provide a unique way of looking at the software. I just want you to be aware that I don’t profess to know everything and there are plenty of people out there that know more than I do. I hope you speak up and tell me if I’m wrong or provide some alternate opinions and suggestions. Constructive criticism is key for us all. What I DO have is a great grasp of software.

So that’s it really. I hope you have fun, I hope you enjoy reading, and please comment, comment, comment! I learn just as much as you do, but only if you respond and provide the feedback.

Unless otherwise stated, all works, files, and site contents are available under the Creative Commons 3.0 License: Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike. This means:

1. You can freely use anything on this site as long as you provide an attribution to http://www.reason101.net or www.reason101.net or reason101.net. I would also appreciate it if you would include my name (Robert Anselmi or Phi Sequence) if you are using any written site content in part or in full.
2. You cannot use any site content for commercial use. Yes, you can use the Reason files (combinator or thor patches, for example) in your songs, even if your songs are sold commercially. You CANNOT resell any of those patches as part of a commercial refill you develop. You can, however, include them in a free refill you develop, so long as you provide the above attribution and redistribute your refill under the same Creative Commons License.
3. Anything you create with my work or as a derivative of my work must be shared in the same way and under the same Creative Commons License.

All my best.
Robert Anselmi

http://www.reason101.net

Email: webmaster@reason101.net