Yeah - it’s a great way to go. Unfortunately, as a person running a small business and father to a young boy, not much of that is achievable… but I do try and Aldo something like that in my spare room (where my stuff is) a few nights a week…
Maybe when the lad has left home I can have I’m his room. Only 13 years to go! 
64 steps keeps me. Motivated. As long as I can squeeze a short track out of mutes/unmutes with the digi or MD. I call it a track and be done.
It’s supposed to be fun & rewarding.
Not feeling it some days? Then don’t even acknowledge your gear.
Wanna make music but not getting anything good out that day?
Study a new key, new chords, or a new drum pattern. Practice a chord progression, program a new arp, find some new samples.
I, like many others on here, have been working from home for a year basically, and turned our condo den into an office-space of sorts. I bought an L-shaped desk, allowing me to have my work laptop and keyboard on one side, and my A4/AR/OT/AH set-up on the other, longer side. During a slow workday (rare these days) I’ll flip on the Dark Trinity and mess around for 10-15 minutes. Sometimes it leads to some good ideas I can explore later, and others total junk (the latter more often than the former).
Particularly with a young child to attend to after work, it’s rare to find uninterrupted time unless we have a sitter. But especially with learning the OT, I just try to get a little better every day, and usually read threads on here in between.
I try to be always learning something, and trying new things. I record a lot. I’m not critical enough of my own output, so I share just about everything and see what sticks. It’s really fun, I like making sounds, I like machines, and I like these recordings as a history. I also don’t consider myself a musician, that helps take some weight off of it.
As far as genre goes, there are things I like and that inspire me, but I don’t often consciously sit down and decide to make a certain flavor much these days. When I was just getting into it I would, and it was fun, it helps focus. But moreso I prefer when the process decides.
Also sometimes I just take a month or two off. Eventually the machines start calling out again.
Give up, I say. If it gives you sorrow, find something else that gives you joy.
I’ve boxed my stuff up in the past before, just get it out of sight and mind. Get into swimming, or whatever else you’re into. Follow your nose on whatever brings you a spark.
For me, creative tools are like an appendage of my body. Like your main limbs, your senses. I couldn’t stand imagining life without my eyes, ears, legs and feet, hands. To me they are all essential in the creative process.
And for me there is a minimal amount of gear I need, a kind’ve gear equilibrium - anything else above this is GAS, but anything below it will only see me trawing online for the next thing to buy.
I don’t force myself to make music. But what I constantly try and do is create the conditions to make creativity as friction free and as enjoyable as possible.
Often, what starts as doodling ends in a full blown creative session. It’s important to make your space open to this - just easy access ways for play and exploration.
Try not to beat yourself up about the results and instead enjoy the process and journey, this is what matters most to me - finished tracks are a bonus. And try not to compare yourself to others - everyone is on their own path.
it’s always better than eating chip while watching netflix! It’s important to have fun and not to question too much. I feel in the same bath as you, and I kind of keep the idea of playing music like playing video game. It might not have a goal but if it’s fun then keep going.
I started jamming with other friend a few month ago and it really help get me to continue explore more about my music. Last year I also took an online class with a friend who is teaching music. He has been trained in the classical method but he has been composing electronic music and sampling for a while (he is not anymore) so he can help me on many layer. Doing my homework is really good and helps me also play more music.
I’ve also started making small video / music clip, which made it kind of simpler to finish a product. As far as finalizing track, what I see is that I have to just accept where I am at with my composition. I am not a great musician, so my track is not going to be pro material. But the idea of finishing a track is a really good feeling, even if it’s not great! For me it’s to accept where I am at and just making it happen.
Anyway - thanks for posting! I’m in the same process of reflection.
I once heard a tip to keep being motivated on an exercise routine, like go running #times a week, instead of lazying on the couch feeling guilty about it : get some nice shoes, create an alarm clock for the routine, and even if you’re not up to it put at least your clothes and your nice shoes on and the motivation comes by itself. I find it applies for everything, French have a saying that says, “l’appetit vient en mangeant” : the appetite comes with the eating.
I’m starting to see that making music, or any other creative endeavour is not separate from life itself, there are ebbs and there are flows, but all is good, and nothing ultimately is going wrong.
This is what lead me to Elektron gear. It can take a while to just get started with a computer running a DAW, but with a DT or DN or M:C (or even RYTM etc) you can be right back were you left off in seconds, meaning if you have 15 minutes, you can enjoy/make progress in 15 minutes.
And another thing : I think we, as users of can-be-expensive electronic music hardware devices, are conditionned to think we should release something, create a product, like even our friends can ask : “do you have something on [insert streaming platform] ?”
But, if we were learning accoustic guitar nobody would ask, as it seems a more standard learning-hobby to pass time, as ours seems to demand we have to be professional.
for me it’s pretty easy.
gigs / parties are the answer.
there’s no point in making music that is not in demanded.
no new music, no rehearsals means no gigs. what can be worse than no gigs?
(well, i know, it’s lockdown, but i still believe this is not forever)
That’s how
I just do it when I feel like it. Over the years I found that I can go months without doing any music, then have a bit of a flurry, I’m ok with that. In dry periods I just do housekeeping tasks, like making sounds, moving my gear around, changing things, etc. Soon enough the inspiration/ideas come back.
I main thing that has helped me deal with this, is try to record as much and as early as possible. Set yourself a review date, for me it’s when i fill up a DAT, then try to enjoy what you created.
It feels more like a quantity game than a quality one, which sounds backwards but this is music, I believe it works differently.
Also you start building up finished tracks really quickly which I found redefines what finished can mean. Listening back and enjoying can also help with motivation to do more but Ive found the process itself becomes more habitual, to a point it seems less about being motivated and more just a thing that is done, like eating, brushing your teeth or getting dressed in the morning.
As mentioned above:
I am making electronic music for a couple of years now. Many started patterns were rotting on my machines, never being touched for years.
I do not try to arrange any “songs” - for me any project is a jam (one to three 64 step pattern), living from the interplay of different four tracks (Digitone / Analog A4) + a DrumMachine (MD/ AR or DT).
I try to structure the synths tracks to:
Last week I started to film my jams and loaded them to Youtube - just for me.
(And you have the option to scroll through you former work).
After uploading a song, I start something new
So my motivation seems to be collecting jams!
I always keep at least on of my machines around in my living room. This doesn’t always sit well with certain other members of the household, but it keeps me engaged.
That was my motivation to get the digitakt actually. I bought one of the charging cars and already had a power pack.
I’ve struggled with motivation as well and my way of dealing with it has been to give in to it and don’t force things when the motivation isn’t there. That means that I’ve had periods of months to a year in which I didn’t touch any of my instruments and didn’t work on any music. Back then music was purely a hobby and I feel like if doing a hobby isn’t fun I’m gonna do something else that is.
Over the last few years the music thing has become more serious and turned into a bit of a side hustle as well so I do feel it’s turned into someting I need to have more discipline in, even if the motivation might be low sometimes. Still could be I don’t do any music for a week or two, but not much longer than that.
A few things that help me keeping the motivation up:
In a way motivation is a useless buzz word anyway, since if you only depend on motivation you’ll never get things done. Sometimes you just need to sit down and do the work, despite low or no motivation. You can and should learn to motivate yourself, set a goal and work towards it. If you don’t feel like composing or playing, just find new sounds from your synth. If you get frustrated with not finding the sound you have in your head, make some drum beats or chop some samples.
When motivation is cold, I find useful to warm it reading about no-musical arts. Painting, architecture, sculpture… all the artistic stuff gives me a lot of motivation.
Currently I’m reading Georges Braque’s “Cahier”: it’s full of motivating thoughts!!
Three examples from the book:
“Limited means in art generate new forms, stimulate creation, create style”
“Each acquisition corresponds to an equivalent loss. Is the law of compensation”
“The vase gives a shape to the void and the music to silence”
All this stuff inspires me and gives me motivation.