Thread: Make music online

We'll be using soundjunction to create music over the following pages.

Before we begin, however, it's worth mentioning that the site offers far more than this. The Explorer tool, for example, breaks down different types of music and helps you prepare your own sounds.

Although it's notrequired, we recommend that you register with Soundjunction, Doing so will allow you to save, upload and share your work, Click the Register link at the top of the screen, enter details such as your name, username and password, then log in once you've finished.

Next, click 'Create music yourself'. This page provides an introduction to the website itself and the various tools that it offers. On the right-hand side are links to Soundjunction's two main applications: Composer and Note Canvas. We'll be concentrating on the use of Note Canvas.



Both Composer and Note Canvas require the Adobe Shockwave iii 11.0 plug-in. If this isn't already installed on your computer, allow the browser to install it and any additional missing plug-ins. Once Shockwave is installed, Note Canvas will load in the main window of your browser.

The default setup for Note Canvas has three toolbars. At the top is a list of tools you use to add and edit notes; on the left there are options to select different instruments. At the bottom of the screen is a navigation toolbar for moving through your composition and zooming in to view more detail.

Upon launching the tool, a basic screen with a few sample notes will load, Clicking 'Go to rhythm view' at the bottom of the screen will display repeating blocks of sound. This feature is particularly useful if you want to repeat those sounds to create a bass line for your audio track.