Module 4 | Music Production for

Module 4: Finding your Samples

Continue the creative process by diving in to what instruments fit a particular genre of music, finding samples that work well together, and beginning the first steps of organizing a song structure.

Lesson Plan and Materials (Module 4)

Lesson Setup

Lesson 4

Your students have their Final Project set up as a Personal Project. Your setup for this lesson is really easy! All you have to do is:

Check Student work from the previous lesson to make sure they have their Drums and Bass tracks filled with one clip each, looped to measure 21.
Create a new assignment titled "Assignment 4: Finding your Samples" using the lesson template below.

BandLab Assignment Template

Assignment 4: Finding your Samples

Use BandLab Studio to do the following 4 things in order:

Listen to the beat you created for your song last class, read through the words you wrote in the "Lyrics/Notes" Tab.
Decide what 2 other instruments you want to add to your song and Change the name of your "Other instrument 1" and "Other instrument 2" to show what instruments you chose.
Find Samples that fit your song for each of these instruments, place them starting at measure 5, and loop them to measure 21.
Move your playhead to measure 21, find new sounds for all 4 instruments (DRUMS, BASS, OTHER INSTRUMENT 1, OTHER INSTRUMENT 2) that sound similar to what you already have, but are different. Place them at measure 21 and loop them to stop RIGHT AT MEASURE 29.

Then save your work with the button on the top right.

See This On BandLab

Lesson Plan Sequence

Introduction - What sounds do you hear?

Briefly go over what you did last class, show the class the Album cover you are writing a song for, and then go through a couple of the students' submissions to see what kinds of beats their classmates made for their songs.
Go over the different styles of music and instruments you might expect in them. Then talk about the picture and have kids decide what style they are emulating with their samples.
- Pop - drums, bass, and keyboards or synthesizers
- Rap - drum machines (like the classic Roland TR-808), samplers, synthesizers, and turntables
- Country - acoustic and electric guitar, the weeping pedal steel guitar, the rhythmic banjo, and the melodic fiddle
- EDM - synthesizers, drum machines, and samplers

Deciding Instruments and Style

Now that students have decided the style of their song, have them list the style, and the instruments they will use in the "lyrics and notes" section
Teach the students how to rename tracks.
- Click on the 3 dots next to the Solo and mute buttons, then click the top option "Rename.
Have the students rename the tracks "Other instrument 1" and "Other instrument 2" to match the two instruments they chose.

Inserting new Clips

Have students work on their own, finding samples they like for each of their 2 new instruments.
Choose 1 clip for each instrument and start those at measure 5.
- Make sure students put the clip perfectly at the beginning of the measure. A lot of kids will have it slightly off beat on accident.
Loop those clips to stop at measure 21 with the drums and bass from last week.

Verse and Chorus Explained, Finding even more sounds!

The next step will be having students find new sample clips for all 4 instruments they already used. Drums, Bass, OI 1 and OI 2.
The reason is to create a contrast in this song between the verse and the chorus. I use this small computer break to introduce the concept to them.
- You can share an example, and even use the provided sound from my Final Project found on the Music Tech for Kids edu.bandlab classroom.
- Have students raise their hands when they hear the change, explain that every song has sections, and they will use different samples starting at measure 21 to create the next section in their song, called the chorus.

Creating their First Chorus

Send them off to work again, this time finding 4 new samples, 1 for each instrument track.
Place those new samples at measure 21.
- Be careful that students do not put the new clips over old clips or it will delete whatever they place it on.
Loop the new samples to measure 29, creating an 8 measure chorus.

Print This Plan

Lesson 4 Objectives