Do you ever get stuck in a creative rut? Feel like you're going over the same ideas with no new input? It happens to most people at some point - and although the idea of the solo genius knocking out amazing beats in his underground vault is a popular meme, the truth is that most of the biggest production outfits in the world - from Nero to the Swedish House Mafia - are groups. And even many artists that are presented as solo acts are not what they seem; there's often a "silent partner" back at the studio. So why not try getting into the collaborating scene? There are plenty of positive reasons to start up a collaboration. First and most obviously, you can create some great music. With the influence and musical knowledge of a fellow producer, your shared experience can add up to something really exciting. But on top of that, there are fringe benefits - learning someone else's way of working can show you new tricks with software you've had for years. You can swap samples and synth patches. And when you've finished a track, you can combine your contacts to get the thing signed!
Maybe that's getting ahead of ourselves though. How should we begin, and how can you get the best out of a collaboration? The best way to start up is to come with an idea or two beforehand. Find a few samples that you've been meaning to use, write a simple beat or bassline to use as a jumping off point. You don't have to keep them, but it will give you somewhere to start. Then you need to have a quick chat about where you see the track going - again, this doesn't need to be set in stone, as you should allow a track to take its own shape once you get moving - but at least it will stop you both pulling in different directions at the beginning.
Then, and this is always a tricky one, especially for the control freaks out there, you need to take a step back. Computers only have one mouse and one keyboard, so you can't both be writing that beat - and there's really nothing that cramps your production style more than someone looking over your shoulder and telling you how to program that hi-hat line. So give them some space and let them set down an idea - you can always change it later if it really doesn't work. And if you do have control-freak tendencies, this is a great way to learn how to get over that particular urge! Even if it does mean leaving the room and playing X-Box for half an hour...On the flipside, you also need to not be too precious about any of your own ideas. If you're the one who just spent half an hour writing a part, only to have the other guy come in and change it all around, the gut reaction is, of course, annoyance. But this won't help, as you'll find that when you look objectively, they might have actually improved the part with just a couple of changes! So you have to be flexible with your ideas and allow anything you've written to be altered - there will always need to be some kind of compromise going on.
If you have more than one keyboard then when you've got a simple groove going, it's often useful to have a 'jam session' where you both just play around with some ideas, presets, chords and so on. Whilst being great fun, it's also often a good way to come up with a couple of ideas that really gel.
All this talk of keyboards and mice fails to acknowledge that plenty of collaborations no longer take place in person, but over the internet. Fortunately, transfer speeds these days are sufficient that you can send hundreds of megabytes back and forth without too much hassle. It's important to make sure that you use only plugins that you both have, and include all related sampler instruments. In these cases, its even more important not to be over-protective of your ideas – since things move so slowly over days or weeks, its better to write more than you need, and then the other person can use, edit or delete as necessary.Collaborating can be hard work, of course - trying to fit two musical visions into a single five-minute track can be tricky. But when done right, it can result in something better than either of you would have written on your own; and it's certainly worth persevering! So instead of staring at that blank screen for another day, pick up the phone, and get started...
