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Soundtrack Kitchen

Cheesy String end here

Get the most out of your orchestral sounds. The fact is that the best orchestral production doesn’t start with great sounds. Great sounds won’t help poor programming. We are here to teach you the skills you need to make your brass sections splat, your percussion thunder, and your strings produce goosebumps.

Key Topics

Articulation
Arrangement
Sections
Mixing Considerations
Analysis

Prerequisites: DAW Core Skills or equivalent proficiency in your platform.

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What students say

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I’ve been a student at Nathan’s audio engineering school - Beat Kitchen, for seven months, and the experience has been invaluable. Coming back to music after years focused on family and business, I wanted a learning environment that was

—Lotus, Bali

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Nathan is Very knowledgeable and passionate about music. he has a ton of experience as an engineer and producer he plays piano and understands all the notes logic pro that is what i will be doing next. .looking forward to the classes

—Don, Vancouver, BC

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Great resource! Super friendly! I’ll continue to check out Beat Kitchen offerings.

—Sam, Los Angeles, CA

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One of a kind. Precious and deeply conscious teaching and learning exchange. Recommended to all who wonder about the mysteries of the universe <3

—Alix, Berlin, Germany

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Nathan was extremely helpful in helping better understand the basics of harmony and music theory. The instruction style is small group and having the ability to communicate and not just listen to a lecture makes the learning process more

—Ira, Los Angeles, CA

Explore Classes

Office Hours Weekly. Ask questions, get help, and connect. Included with residency. Production Gym Weekly. Production breakdown of your favorite songs. Included with residency. Theory Gym Weekly. Morning music theory workout. Included with residency. Ear Training Weekly. Test your ears and discuss — music, mixing, and more. Included with residency. Instrument Gym Weekly. Practice and workout on instruments. Included with residency. Weekly Beat Review Weekly. Listen to Beat Challenge song ideas together. Included with residency.

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Music Theory Learn fundamental musician skills including music theory, performance basics, and foundational concepts essential for … Mixing and Synthesis Tools Live course covering EQ, compression, reverb, delay, subtractive synthesis, gain staging, signal chain, and mastering — … Hardware & Recording Live recording course: microphones, audio interfaces, studio acoustics, stereo technique, and session workflow — …

Logic Pro 1-Day Intensive Full-day Logic Pro workshop for producers. Master navigation, recording workflow, editing, signal flow, and session … Ableton 1-Day Intensive THE TEN CHORDS WORKSHOP Master chord function and write instantly better music in one day. Unlock advanced harmony using the 10-Chord Toolkit … Orchestral 1-Day Intensive

Electronic Music Kitchen Master electronic music production fundamentals. Learn trance, bass music, EDM composition techniques, MIDI programming, … Hip Hop Kitchen Learn to create unique hip hop beats with professional structure, sound design, and mixing techniques. Master looping, … Orchestral Kitchen Master orchestral production techniques including articulation, arrangement, and realistic programming for brass, … Session Player Kitchen Learn professional session player techniques and realistic instrument programming. Master drums, guitars, bass …

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Vocal Kitchen Learn professional vocal recording, production, and processing techniques. Master microphone placement, vocal chains, …

Beat Building Jam Workshop ideas into songs. Peer feedback. Instructor support. Prep for production Mix & Production Incubator Workshop ideas into songs. Peer feedback. Instructor support. Prep for production Recording Incubator Songwriting Incubator Workshop ideas into songs. Peer feedback. Instructor support. Prep for production

Mixing & Mixcraft Advanced live mixing course: parallel compression, sidechain, vocal chains, drum mixing, stereo imaging, automation, and … Recording Studio Masterclass Hands-on recording studio masterclass with professional equipment. Learn large format consoles, studio etiquette, and … Songwriter Masterclass Master songwriting techniques with professional composers. Learn melody writing, chord progressions, song structure, … Synthesist Masterclass Advanced synthesis masterclass covering wavetable, granular, FM synthesis, and sound design. Learn professional …

Beat Kitchen At-A-Glance

Beat Ktichen Calendar

See the full calendar
Recent Resident Gyms
- THEORY-GYM: We used "Strawberry Fields Forever" as a full analysis vehicle, working through its unusual pitch center, the opening line cliché, and the chord-by-chord breakdown of the intro progression. Concepts covered included passing tones versus functional harmony, borrowed chords, chromatic median motion, secondary dominants, and the historical context of the Mellotron as an early sampler. We also discussed songwriting process — specifically whether melody or chords tend to come first, and how the song's harmonic choices serve its lyrical theme.
- OFFICE HOURS: Covered streaming loudness targets and master fader signal chain in Pro Tools, walking through EQ, compression, hardware compressor, limiting, and metering in sequence. Discussed studio acoustic treatment — bass traps, early reflections, diffusion, and material choices — with reference to a specific room setup shared by a student. Also addressed the current state of commercial recording studios, the shift toward home-based production, and how that has affected mentorship pipelines in the industry.
- OFFICE HOURS: Covered bass line construction in the context of Afrobeat and Afrobeats production, including how to conform bass notes to chord roots and the relationship between bass lines and chord progressions. Introduced funklet.com as a resource for studying classic drum patterns and groove analysis. Also discussed Afrobeat vs. Afrobeats as distinct genres, with reference to key artists and historical context.
- OFFICE HOURS: general audio and time signature questions. Talked about signing up for upcoming classes as waitlist
- THEORY-GYM: We used "Hotel California" by the Eagles as a case study in harmonic minor usage, modal interchange, and cadential function. Covered the role of the raised seventh (G-sharp) in producing a dominant E chord over an A minor tonic, the distinction between functional and notational chord identity (e.g., the flat-six versus an inverted F chord), and how the song's chord progression generates a repeating sense of plagal motion. Also discussed the song's rhythmic feel and its relationship to reggae and the one-drop pattern.
- INSTRUMENT-GYM: non-sequential scale exercises on guitar, picking patterns, use of hybrid picking, switching positions when playing through more than one octave
- EAR-TRAINING-GYM: Covered the difference between saturation and distortion, with live demonstrations on kick drum, bass, and vocals using the Abbey Road Saturator and a virtual guitar amp. Worked through multi-stage compression on a vocal chain — three compressors in sequence for peak reduction and makeup gain — and explained why reverb belongs on an auxiliary bus rather than directly on a track, including how to EQ and automate the reverb tail independently. Also addressed gain staging, headroom management, microphone selection for noisy rooms, and tracking levels for vocals.
- PRODUCTION-GYM: PRODUCTION GYM — 862 words across 2 speakers (14 wpm). Insufficient instructional content for a summary.
- OFFICE HOURS: Worked through the phase rotation control on the custom additive synthesizer plugin — traced its origin in the commit history, diagnosed why it behaves differently on the left half of its bipolar range, and discussed whether to keep or remove it. Also covered automation and MIDI mapping of plugin parameters in Logic Pro, and talked through strategies for organizing a sync-licensing music website, including keyword taxonomy, slider-based filtering UIs, and using AI mastering for catalog preparation.
- OFFICE HOURS: Covered music distribution strategy, with a focus on artist-friendly and cooperative streaming platforms as alternatives to major streaming services. Discussed physical vs. digital releasing, Bandcamp Friday scheduling, and platforms including AmpWall and Resonate. Also touched on unconventional microphone techniques drawn from the book *Recording Unhinged* by Sylvia Massey.
Learn more about Residency
Upcoming Resident Events
- Theory Gym: Scott Hampton
  May. 20, 8am (PT) | 11am (ET) | 4pm (UK)
- Weekly Beat Challenge: Nathan
  May. 20, 6pm (PT) | 9pm (ET) | 2am (UK)
- Office Hours: Jon Mattox
  May. 20, 8pm (PT) | 11pm (ET) | 4am (UK)
- Production Gym: Kallie
  May. 21, 5am (PT) | 8am (ET) | 1pm (UK)
- Office Hours: Ben Krueger
  May. 21, 2pm (PT) | 5pm (ET) | 10pm (UK)
- Office Hours: Nathan
  May. 21, 5pm (PT) | 8pm (ET) | 1am (UK)
Learn more about Residency
Upcoming Courses
- Apr 19, 2026 Theory: Musician Basics
- Apr 22, 2026 Mixing: Effects, Synths & Tools
- Apr 27, 2026 DAW Core Skills
- Apr 27, 2026 FL Studio
- May 23, 2026 Logic Pro 1-Day Intensive
- Jun 10, 2026 Hardware & Recording Primer
- Jul 8, 2026 Hardware & Recording Primer
- Jul 12, 2026 DAW Core Skills
See All Courses
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