You finish a track.
You’ve done everything you can think of to improve it.
But when you compare it to the music released by your favourite artists, it still doesn’t sound as professional.
It isn’t as loud, clean, warm, powerful, or polished.
No matter what you try, you can’t quite achieve the professional quality you’re aiming for.
The solution isn’t another plugin.
It’s the hundreds of small production decisions that experienced producers have learned to make instinctively.
That’s exactly what this course is designed to teach you.
Today, I’ve released music on over 40 labels, had my music played by artists including Guy J, Lane 8, Hernan Cattaneo, and Armin van Buuren, and toured internationally as a professional DJ.
But reaching this level required more than simply learning the fundamentals.
There was a point when I could finish tracks.
I knew how to write and arrange music, use EQ and compression, and turn an initial idea into a complete song.
But when I compared my music to professional releases, I could still hear the difference.
My tracks were finished, but they still didn’t sound like the records I wanted to compete with.
The mixes weren’t as loud, clear, wide, warm, or powerful.
I was releasing on smaller labels, but the labels I’d dreamed of signing with kept rejecting my music
I kept searching for the one technique, plugin, or piece of advice that would finally close the gap.
But there wasn’t one.
What really changed my music was learning how professional producers make hundreds of small, intentional decisions throughout the entire production process.
How to create intentional movement and groove without overcrowding the arrangement.
How to properly layer sounds for full mixes without losing clarity.
How to control dynamics, width, frequency balance, and loudness.
How to recognize problems that less experienced producers often don’t know to listen for.
Once I understood these, I stopped guessing.
My workflow became faster, my mixes became more consistent, and my music began reaching the labels and artists I had spent years working toward.
That’s why I created the Advanced Course.
To help you bridge the gap between knowing how to produce music and knowing exactly what your track needs to reach a professional standard. You’ll learn the advanced techniques, critical listening skills, and production decisions that transform a finished track into a professional release.
Dowden is an electronic music producer, touring DJ, and content creator based in Berlin, Germany (originally from Toronto, Canada). He has releases on over 50 labels including Mango Alley, The Soundgarden, Meanwhile, JOOF, Solis, Hoomidaas, and more.
His music has earned support from some of the world’s leading DJs: Guy J, Lane 8, Eelke Kleijn, Hernan Cattaneo, Nick Warren, Armin Van Buuren, Guy Manztur, Cid Inc., Markus Schulz, and many more.
He continues to rise in the progressive house scene with an active release schedule and a touring calendar that spans clubs and festivals worldwide.
No, you don’t need a specific DAW or plugins.
The practical sections of the course are taught in Ableton Live 10, but all the information you will learn will be universal across any platform.
The course uses a combination of stock plugins, free to download plugins (I’ve included in the course), and some paid plugins used for demonstration and visual purposes.
The Beginner Course is built for producers who are early in their journey or who have some experience but feel stuck.
If you’re completely new to music production, get familiar with your DAW first; even a free trial of Ableton or FL Studio will do. Then this course will fill in everything else.
No. Though there is a focus on progressive house, the course revolves around dance music, and it’s most common 4/4 time and phrasing.
The examples are intentionally vague so students aren’t stuck learning from genre-specific material.
The information you’ll learn will work across any genre.
If you struggle to finish tracks, don’t fully understand mixing fundamentals, or can’t yet build sounds from scratch, start here.
If you’re already producing finished tracks but can’t get them signed, look at the Advanced Course instead.
If you enroll in the Beginner Course, you can add the Advanced Course for 50% off at checkout!
Enroll with full confidence. If you’re not completely satisfied within 14 days of purchase, contact us, and you’ll receive a full refund, no questions asked.
Upon completion of the Advanced Course you’ll have an in-depth understanding of sound design and mixing, song structure and writing, and you’ll be on your way to professional sounding mixes.
You’ll have louder, cleaner, stronger mixes, full of new sounds and layers to your songwriting arsenal.
My last several tracks sound cleaner, brighter, and more professional because of this course. I highly recommend this to all producers who want to level up!
-Zaria
Melodic House & Techno Producer
You are fairly new but have a bit of experience in producing music, but still early on and you may run into these issues:
If you find yourself in this category, than the Beginner Course is for you!
Unlike some other courses, this course is heavily focused on education and information.
The course has more focus on teaching the pillars and valuable knowledge of successful writing and mixing.
I’ll be teaching fundamental steps on how to create your own dance music more efficiently, instead of having you follow a step by step process of writing a song together.
Once you’ve completed the course, you will have a better understanding of how to write dance music that will be appropriate for dance floors, DJ’s, and the radio.
Dowden is an Electronic Music Producer from Toronto, Canada. He has spent the past few years gaining international notice with his music.
Gaining support from some of the worlds biggest DJ’s, including Aly & Fila, Soul Button, Armin Van Buuren, Cosmic Gate, Cid Inc., Markus Schulz Hernan Cataneo, and many more.
He continues to grow in the music scene with releases on over 40 labels, and playing clubs and festivals all over the world.
With music production training, you are able to greatly reduce the time it takes to become an established artist. You will be on your way to higher quality music, playing gigs, and gaining fans MUCH sooner than if you teach yourself everything.
I wish I knew this when I started.
If you are hoping for a secret sauce that you can pour on your music to become successful – there is only one.
One secret sauce.
The ingredients are hard work & perseverance, knowledge & understanding, experience & mentality, and you.
These courses can provide you with the knowledge & understanding, as well as through my personal experience & mentality the course can teach you what I’ve learned over the years of my career.
The other two ingredients are up to you.
The courses teach you the necessary information for you to progress quickly into an informed, better producer with knowledge that spans across any genre, and any DAW, for any producer.
Every producer works differently, so instead of simply writing a track together or showing you how I would personally do something in my productions, I explain important fundamental processes and techniques from the ground up.
You’ll understand when, how, and why to use the techniques that every producer uses to make professional music.
I don’t just show you what the tools are, I show you how and when to use them.
“I gotta say I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the courses on the Dowden Production Academy. As someone with some experience with music production and how to use a DAW, I have opted for the intermediate course to solidify my current knowledge and learn useful techniques to step up my game.
I was not only able to do just that, but was also able to gain valuable insider information on the music industry and very useful tips on how to speed up my workflow. The courses were fun, clear and interesting, so I would definitely recommend them to any early-mid level producer looking to improve their skill set in the world of electronic music production.”
– Niles Baxter
Trance / Progressive House producer, Montreal, Canada
“When I found Dowden Production Academy, I was an intermediate-level producer who needed something to take my tracks to the next level, but I just didn’t know what. I was struggling to balance the sounds in my mixdowns, and something always felt out of place. My goal was to fill in the gaps between what makes a good and a great track. I wanted to take the course because I felt like it would help me learn mixing and sound design in more elaborate detail, while simultaneously helping me solidify my understanding of the basics.
So far, this is exactly what has happened. I have experienced several “a-ha moments” that have, in this short time, helped me upgrade my skills, and already signed an EP to an exciting larger label. My last several tracks sound cleaner, brighter, and more professional because of this course. I highly recommend this to all producers who want to level up!”
– Zaria
Melodic House & Techno producer, San Francisco, United States
The Beginner Course is around 7 hours of video content, (which doesn’t even include the other content offered along with the course!)
As soon as you enroll, you’ll have lifetime access to the course so you can take as long as you like and come back and review as much as you want.
How does lifetime access sound? After enrolling, you have unlimited access to this course for as long as you like – across any and all devices you own.
No, you don’t need a specific DAW or plugins. All the information you will learn will be universal across any platform.
The practical sections of this course are taught in Ableton Live 10, but the information can be applied to any DAW or plugin!
The course uses a combination of stock plugins, free to download plugins (I’ve included in the course), and some paid plugins used for demonstration and visual purposes.
We would never want you to be unhappy! If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us in the first 30 days and we will give you a full refund.
It’s not just taught in one!
Although the course revolves around dance music, and it’s most common 4/4 time and phrasing, the examples are intentionally not very genre specific so that students aren’t stuck learning from specific genre based material. The information you’ll learn will work across any genre.
Not a problem! I’m happy to answer any questions you may have via email.
All you need to enroll in the course is Digital Audio Workspace (DAW).
Don’t have a DAW?
You can get an Unlimited Free Trial here for FL Studio here.
Alternatively you can get a 30-Day Free Trial with Ableton here.
It does not matter which Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) you will be using for the course, as the information and lessons will be cross-platform education.
I will be using standard Stock Plugins. They will be easy to follow and learn from, no matter which DAW you are using. The education will not be DAW specific (even if the Plugin is).
I will also be using Free to Use Plugins that I will be providing access links to before the course for you to download, if you would like to follow along.
If you don’t have access to the same plugins or DAW, the principles and education are not DAW or Plugin Specific. You will be able to use them across all platforms, synths, and hardware.
Enroll with full confidence! If you aren’t completely satisfied with your purchase, you can contact us for a full refund within 30 days.