Ok, let’s start at the beginning. A Digital Audio Workstation, also known by its abbreviated name “DAW,” is simply a fancy term for software that allows you to produce or create music. It will allow you to record music, playback music, use midi functions to create music, use audio effects and more. A DAW will basically facilitate all the functions that you can think of to get your song from the idea stage to something that people can listen to.

What your Digital Audio Workstation can do will, of course, depend on which one you choose to use, but the most basic ones will allow you to record a guitar, vocals, and a few other instruments, for example, and perform basic edits of the recorded audio files. With the more complicated ones, the world is your oyster! You can record an orchestra, program electronic music elements, create your own instruments and do a number of things that you may not even have realized were possible yet! Exploring the possibilities is a huge amount of fun.

We won’t go into a full comparison of the many options out there as that would be another article, but we will talk about the most popular DAWs. If you’ve considered starting to produce music, then I’m fairly certain you would have heard of Garageband. It is definitely a great option to start with and has audio recording facilities, the ability to use midi to create music and also a number of options to choose from for audio effects and software instruments. Although it is associated with hobby musicians, it is also seen to be a great introduction to start with and a useful training tool if you were looking to scale up to the full functionalities of the paid DAW, Logic Pro. Other free DAWs such as Waveform Free and Pro Tools First also provide as good options to start with on a Mac.

The most popular DAW for a PC for a long time has been Audacity. It allows audio recording on an unlimited number of tracks and great editing features. Its main drawback, unlike Garageband, is that it doesn’t allow music creation through MIDI. If you’re looking to be recording live vocals and instruments, this is a great choice. However, if you are looking to program instruments and create electronic music, this is likely not the right option for you.

As an alternative, if you are looking to use MIDI, Waveform Free and Cakewalk by Bandlab (only available on PC) are both great options to consider. The interface in these is also more appealing on the eyes!