I'm currently in the middle of trying to learn music theory and making computer house music. I'm loosing a lot of motivation and I can't seem to focus on one project or tutorial.
I smoke mary jane and that helps but I have a high tolerance. Stimulants help me get into the music but also produce ADD symptoms, so I can't focus.
So far I've found that adderall works well when trying to focus. I draw inspiration from psychedelics and the like, but they make you useless when trying to learn new techniques.
:arrow: Are there any substances or entheogens you guys think could help me focus, relax, and maybe enjoy music a bit more

10x caapi with no or minimal spice. It shouldn't give you any symptoms and should help you focus.

Kava Kava.. I couldn't personally learn music theory on any real psychedelic. But I have been making kava drinks out of the pure ground up root powder for years. and if there is any plant out there that encourages conversation, focus, peace, and relaxation, it would in my opinion be Kava Kava..

Best prep in my experience is blending 2 to 6 tbsp of root powder in a blender for 5 to ten minutes with some milk. strain and gulp down in one or two seconds, it is not a drink that was meant to be sipped and enjoyed, it was meant to be shot back to feel the effects.. try it out, it couldnt hurt, and its cheap.

The best kava comes from Kona Kava Farm in Hawaii.



Much peace and love!

I was actually thinking of kava when I posted that. I've personally never tried it, but it sounds like it may be just what I need. The sense of peace is probably what I'm after. Ever since I took a bender on an RC stimulant, about a month ago, I've been feeling more tired and less focused. I think it bumped my productiveness down a peg.

I would try it with no substances. Then when you learn a bit and are able to begin making coherent sounds and play or compose a little, then involve cannabis. Music is like a drug in itself and it requires no other substances other than dopamine, serotonin and all those guys.

That being said, if you have a good line on real lsd, I'd try an experiment with daily low dosing to see if that helps you learn, although I think that would probably work better later, during the creative process.

Personally the only thing that helps me learn music theory is a good night sleep and not taking anything for awhile.

I do also learn stone sober but this kind of music is basically fueled by altered consciousness. With a low weed tolerance, I can think of a sick beat very easily. It comes to me without trying at all. But, that also sacrifices the focus and patience of being sober.
I like to make beats but I'm at a very beginner level. I need more foundation which means watching boring 9 minute videos on how specific things operate. I need to be able to sit in a chair for 30 minutes at a time and watch the equivalent of a lecture. I have a tendency to jump in and start with the fun stuff.

I highly recommend the sober route. Actually I insist upon it

What you really have to do is ban any censors in your head, then get used to what comes out of it. Then when you have something down, get wrecked and party to it. That's when the appreciation for your work will really kick in.

Just remember that what you are doing sounds better than you'll ever know.

As for the theory side I'd recommend not trying to cram it all in and just learn what you need to use until you're comfortable with it. I think of learning music theory as being able to speak a language but not being able to write it. Everyone knows what good music sounds like on some level, so it's best not to limit yourself in code.

Yeah, sober for the first 10,000 hours of practice and study. There really is no other way to learn and no shortcuts.

As for enjoyment, I find that enough LSD and/or cannabinoids can make even the vacuum cleaner sound good.

yes i can safely say that a clear focussed mind is your best option . No drug is going to make learning music easier or better. there are no shortcuts to it.

Daily practice in small increments don't take too much on at once . Repetition is the key . keep at it slow and steady wins the race .

Stimulants are probably best but then again, there's a come down and you'll risk becoming addicted.
Maybe coffee is strong enough without fucking you up. What kind of music theory are you trying to learn?
Many drugs (like cannabis) affects memory so if your trying to learn advanced things like how to read notes and how to color
chords i would probably stay sober.
If you really want to be stoned while "learning" try and get a hold of some hash (afghan,charas etc) or weed with high CBD content.
It's way easier to concentrate then on "skunk" weed.
Dont know where you live but it can be tricky to find weed with high CBD in some places (up in northern europe more or less impossible!) but the black hashes are more then often a hit.

Well, I still have to listen to the world of a vacuum cleaner, but the clacking of escalators in the underground, and especially the sound of concrete mixers as they mix cement, gravel and water into concrete provided some extraordinary minutes of astonishment.

I'm a spare time music producer as well. If I look at your post it seems that you have a inspiration block or something. Drugs can help you with forming ideas but they won't let you produce better. Practice and not giving up are the key. Switching tools can be very inspiring. I used to work with cubase until I discovered ableton live. With ableton you can just put down your ideas pattern based and later work it out in linear mode. For me the combination of ableton with vintage synths does it. Of course psychedelic compounds can give much inspiration but don't only seek it in that. Also study techniques to get the sound that you like (compression, limiting etc). My sound really got more professional when I purchased an UAD card with some plugs.

Mdma or alcohol or hash. A few beers and a few joints and I can sit all night, though I can sit all night straight messing with stuff. But alcohol and mdma can work wonders, ive sat and done loads then the next day when your sober it will sound amazing, or usually shite lol great fun but and can give you a good start with things, puts ideas out because I dunno your rushing and thinking loads at once. Mdma and guitar stuff is bloody amazing, you think your hendrix incarnate



Yes Im the same, best move I ever made its much better! Think Ill have to one day invest in the real deal, my mate just did hes got max for live and a lemur the lucky git! Will be great fun going to his playing with the lemur, the colours are amazing!

i used to mess around with computer music because i thought an instrument would be too hard for me to learn. Until i started playing guitar, you think MJ can spark a good beat, try being in the flow of music, able to play it as it comes to mind, you can come up with some really wild music you would never imagine writing on a music generator.

Not putting down music generators, just saying it takes a lot longer to come up with a complex beat thats constantly changing on a music generator.

I'm a semi-pro musician, I've released records and been in bands and stuff but nowadays I'm doing more home composition and production... I actually don't think most recreational drugs are good for music making because they're either too distracting or grossly alter your perception of whats good and bad.. lot of substances effect your hearing for example... the best substance I've ever used for music production is aniracetam, other racetams have similar effects but that one just makes me want to make music and the whole process becomes easier, for example, I find it easier to play two melodies at once and the overall grasp of music is much higher. Nootropics in general are better in this regard, it's that whole thing with the racetams incresing blood flow across the 2 hemispheres.

aye staying sober for the creative side of music is best in my experience. I like a couple doobs on the go if I'm just myself writing and stuff. Performing is a bit different IMO, I think I prefer a couple jars in the ole gullet beforehand.. just makes things a bit looser and more relaxed on stage.

I cant make music on any psychedelics other than this one time I sat myself and eat a bag of morning glories... that was a one off magical night though.

peace

IMO, take what encourages your mood, fuels the fire, if that's the kind of person you are. Some people enjoy their performances under the influence, some deceive themselves in their capability to produce decent result in such a state.

I'm not always sure about myself, sometimes alcohol increases the output, sometimes it drastically reduces it, same goes for uppers, downers, etc. I enjoy playing under influence of all sorts of things. As far as learning, best to practice sober, I'm sure, but that doesn't mean you can't get blitzed and enjoy ripping something up, trying to find it again later when you're sober. Do what you want and creative processes will flow.

For me, acid helps in concentration and when playing instruments, I have an easier time being able to replicate what I hear in my head because working with sound in that state seems so natural, intuitive and simple. The downside to using acid as a musical aid for learning music theory would be that a large part of it is being able to hear some particular sounds, perhaps a wave or a certain progression, and acid has the potential to distort sound enough so that the waves become potentially unrecognizable and notes that are in-tune can sound out of tune, and a handful of stuff like that. Thing about music theory is the connections. One of the most pivotal parts of it all is to see how the various concepts intertwine and how lots of concepts are actually really just saying the same thing in a different way.

What vintage synths do you use? I haven't gotten a sound card or anything but I'm working in Ableton. I was thinking of making a switch to Cubase for dubstep sounds but at the moment I'm using Live with Massive Synth. I have a lot of choices in programs so I'm not sure what the best would be for house/techno/dubstep. I have an mpd24 midi controller but so far I've only really used it with Traktor, just messing around.



I've never heard of these before, I'll look into it.