Seattle musician Jeff Tolbert’s step-by-step instructions guide beginning and intermediate users through using GarageBand’s built-in loops to create three songs, explaining not only how to use GarageBand’s editing and mixing features but also how to be playful and creative while composing tunes that please the ear. You’ll learn how to plan a song, get the most out of Magic GarageBand, edit loops using both graphical and notation view, create exciting mixes, and export your masterpieces.
The book also covers how to change track volume, tempo, and panning dynamically, and how to work with GarageBand’s effects. Plus, it includes seven suggestions for solving performance problems.
Bonus! Linked-in audio lets you listen to examples while you read about them, and a five-page glossary helps you quickly learn about music-related terms.
Questions you’ll find answers to include:
- How do I use the new Visual EQ effect?
- How can I make a ringtone for my iPhone?
- What’s the new arrange track used for?
- How do I easily change the tempo in different sections of my tune?
- How can I customize a Magic GarageBand song so it doesn’t sound like everyone else’s?
"I had a tough time getting started with GarageBand until I bought Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand."
-Lyle H.
This book is a new edition of Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand, which I first wrote for GarageBand 1.0. I’ve updated the book for each major new version of GarageBand so far. For this edition, I updated the book to cover new features in Apple’s latest upgrade to the program, version 4, as follows:
- An extensive tutorial, Transform a Magic GarageBand Song, takes you through using the new Magic GarageBand feature and customizing the resulting songs so that they don’t sound like everyone else’s.
- GarageBand 4 adds a new track called an arrange track to help you organize sections of your song. You’ll learn how to create and work with arrange regions in this track in Map out the arrangement as well as in the Magic GarageBand section under Duplicate arrangement sections.
- GarageBand 4 allows you to automate tempo, which is covered in the Magic GarageBand section under Add a ritard.
- Adjust equalization now includes tips on using the new Visual EQ effect.
- GarageBand 4 offers multiple choices for exporting your projects, as described in Export Your Song. If you have an iPhone, especially check out Create a ringtone.
Finally, I’ve updated many of the screenshots to reflect the interface changes in GarageBand 4.
Note: You’ll see under GarageBand > About GarageBand that this program is called GarageBand ’08 in general, and that the latest version number (as of this writing) is 4.1.2. For the sake of brevity, I refer to it as GarageBand 4 when I’m talking about this version and call it simply GarageBand the rest of the time.
Is there a newer edition that covers GarageBand '09?
Thanks to a burst of hard work from author Jeff Tolbert in early 2009, yes, there is a new edition—Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand '09.
Do you have any ebooks that cover older versions of GarageBand?
If you're still using GarageBand 3 (part of iLife '06), see Take Control of Making Music with GarageBand 3 and Take Control of Recording with GarageBand 3.
If you're still using GarageBand 1 or 2, buy one of the above-mentioned ebooks about GarageBand 3, and then look on page 2 of the ebook for download instructions for a free copy of the earlier edition that you need.
We do not plan to update this edition to expand its coverage of GarageBand '08. However, a current edition is available.
