Roughly three years ago (give or take a few months), I made the decision that I wanted to and needed to become a full time software developer.
Not only that – I wanted to develop audio software.
So I brought a few people together in a (now closed) Slack channel who shared that interest. I quickly learned that I had no idea what I was doing. I also learned the field was more broad than I thought, and than most people give the discipline credit for.
But mostly, I had no idea what I was doing.
With some things, that hasn’t changed. I’m still not fantastic at DSP and the math related to it. But, I’ve gotten my start.
That start came from the Slack channel, which is where I first learned about ChucK thanks to a good friend of mine.
What’s funny is that even months after being introduced to ChucK (and other “audio programming languages”) – I completely ignored it.
I tried to dive head first into projects that were way beyond my skills and capabilities instead. Trying instead to develop my own plugins, low-level DAW software extensions, etc. I went a little crazy, because I wanted to do something really cool.
But, I was also putting the cart before the horse – and I wasn’t going to get anywhere.
And one day, because I gave myself a moment to rest and do something for fun – I picked up ChucK. I then realized that I’d been doing things backwards. Yes, I needed to learn good development skills in C++ and DSP math – but that doesn’t come from a single Udemy course, YouTube series, or anything else readily available.
Instead, it comes from years of work and experience. Perhaps that’s a formal education.
Perhaps you’re just like me – starting out, but with the energy to climb a huge mountain and learn a little bit about programming audio in a fun way.
I think some of you are, and that’s why I’ve written an introductory guide to ChucK called Like Magic. It’s available right now.
Why a Guide?
Interactive audio is becoming more and more open to technically-minded people over time. Some creative artists like yourself are also interested in how the machines they work with actually work.
But, it’s complicated. For years it’s taken something like an Electrical Engineering degree and Computer Science skill to even get close to understanding the low-level workings of digital audio.
That gap has been recognized by some of the leading minds in the field, and things are changing.
But we’re not quite to the point where it’s super easy to go from limited or zero knowledge – to building whatever audio applications you want within weeks.
We’ll be there soon though, and getting some knowledge under your belt will prep you.
I think, while you’re learning, the learning should be fun. You should be able to build things that make noise, that bring your sounds to life, and make you feel like a freaking magician in the process.
You know – where one minute you think you’re entirely uncapable because you’ve never been skilled at programming things in your life, and the next minute you’re making a “procedural” drum machine.
Yes, that’s real. Yes, that’s something I teach you.
Like Magic also hits:
- How to synthesize sound waves with ChucK
- How to use randomization to procedurally create sound
- How to play and manipulate .wav files with ChucK
- How to create your own custom drum machine from a single .wav file drum loop
- How to control and manipulate time in a programmatic environment
- How to utilize ChucK’s existing virtual instruments, effects, and filters and customize them
- How to utilize multi-threaded programs
- How to use modulation to customize and affect your sounds even further
- How to record ChucK’s output to your DAW
- How to control ChucK with MIDI input devices
- How to send and receive OSC messages with ChucK
Among a bunch of other things. At the end of the guide, there’s even a pile of resources that will take you far beyond what you learn with what I’ve written.
You know when you go to YouTube and then you see another interesting video and then 45 minutes later you wonder what happened? There’s enough neat stuff that it will be a little like that.
So, if you’re interested – you can get your hands on it today at the link below:
Like Magic – A Guide to Programming Your Own Sound with ChucK
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