Learn How To Produce Your Own Album With 2024‘s Top 11 Best Online Ableton Live Courses
If you are looking to learn Ableton Live, but not sure where to start, then this guide is for you!
Below, you will find some of the best online Ableton Live courses in 2024 from some of the top music producers in the industry.
So whether you are a complete beginner or already have some experience under your belt, there is likely a course below to help you further your skills. Let’s begin!
Top 11 Free Best Online Ableton Live Courses, Classes & Certifications 2024
1. Ultimate Ableton Live: Part 1 – The Interface & The Basics (Skillshare)
Up first on my list is a fantastic course hosted on SkillShare that is taught by Jason Allen, Ph.D., an Ableton Certified Trainer. Jason is also a composer, producer, songwriter, engineer, and performer who has worked in film, TV, and radio. So for real-world experience in using Ableton, this is the course for you!
As this is an introductory course into Ableton, it covers the basics of navigating the program and its tools, recording, editing, looping, tempo, and MIDI. There is also a bonus lesson where students can deconstruct a song to see how it was composed also.
In total, the course is 2 ½ hours of on-demand video which includes class projects and extra downloadable resources. For further learning, students can also take part 2-5 which follow this class and go into more detail and advanced setting.
Being hosted on Skillshare, new users can take this class, plus all others mentioned in this list when using the 1-month free trial. Overall, this is an easy to follow and beginner-friendly Ableton Live course!
- Beginner level
- Part of a larger 6 part training
- 2 ½ hours on-demand video
- Taught by a music professor and performer
- Deconstruct existing pieces
- Comprehensive training
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2. Ableton Live I: The First Steps of Digital Music Production (Skillshare)
Next on my list is another beginner level Ableton Live course that goes into great depth of this music production software. This class is also part 1 of 3, so for those looking to get a comprehensive view of Ableton, this is a great resource.
Your instructor for this course is Brian Jackson, who is an Ableton Certified Trainer, music producer, and audio engineer who has worked with Grammy Award-winning musical artists. So you’ll be in great hands.
Some of the many lessons included in this course cover preferences, organizing clips, organizing your files, warping, tempo, MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface), and how to create your own beats/ melodies.
Again, being hosted on Skillshare, users can take this course and 29,000+ others using their 1-month free trial! Overall, this is a great class that would be ideal for complete beginners.
- Beginner level
- 1 hour 9 minutes on-demand video
- Professional musician trainer
- Discusses warping
- Downloadable clips and other resources
- Class project
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3. Ableton Live 10 Essential Training (LinkedIn Learning)
Moving on to my next pick is a comprehensive 14-hour course taught by a professor of music technology Rick Schmunk and is designed for beginner level students.
In this Ableton Live class, Rick Schmunk teaches you how to compose, record, edit, and improvise while using the software. You will also learn how to overdub MIDI tracks, edit pitch, velocity, and duration, work with live sets, and automate recording and editing tasks.
Being hosted on LinkedIn Learning (previously Lynda), users can take this course for free on their 1-month free trial. Once complete, students will also receive a downloadable or printable certificate of completion!
Overall, one of the best online Ableton Live courses available in 2024!
- Beginner level
- 13 hours 42 minutes on-demand video
- Taught by a music professor
- Downloadable files
- Shows how to automate and how to edit MIDI
- Certificate of completion
4. Mixing Electronic Music In Ableton Live (CreativeLive)
Up next on my list is a fantastic CreativeLive course taught by professional musician and Ableton Certified Trainer, Isaac Cotec.
In total, this is a 5-hour course that covers the basics of Ableton Live while also teaching you how to produce your very own electronic song. There are also included quizzes and workbooks that students can use while following along with this class.
As for the course content, you will learn about setting up your studio, what dynamic range is, how to add reverb, delay, audio effects, and how to create a master. There are also additional course modules that cover equalization, high pass and low pass, specialization, and acoustic panning.
Overall, this is a great beginner resource for those who have no experience with Ableton Live. To learn more about CreativeLive, you can see my full review of them here
- Beginner level
- 4 hours 55 minutes on-demand video
- Loads of extra resources to download
- Taught by a professional musician
- Discusses lots of deep features
- Lifetime access
5. Ableton Live – Tech House Tutorial (Udemy)
Moving onto my next pick is an outstanding 9-hour course taught by Studio Slave on Udemy. During this course, you will learn how to produce a modern tech house track driven by bass and rhythms.
While this course is quite in-depth and primarily targeted towards intermediate/ advanced users, it will be a great challenge for someone just starting out on Ableton Live.
As percussion and bass are a big part of the tech-house scene, this training gives you skills in mastering those instrument voices and adding the acoustic effects that make this music style unique.
So if you too want to become a master of Ableton, you can join 1,500 other students who have completed this course! There’s also a certificate of completion for those who finish the entire course!
- Intermediate to advanced level
- 9 hours on-demand training
- Includes 3rd party plugins
- Specific training for tech house music
- Taught by established professionals
- Certificate of completion
6. Ableton Live 9 Essential Training (LinkedIn Learning)
After this course, you will be able to create music on stage in real-time while performing. You will also have mad skills in studio production techniques. These same techniques can also be applied to being a DJ or a songwriter.
Choosing the right gear for your studio or performance venue is taught and also how to use the built-in instruments and features in the program. It’s 9 hours of beginner-level instruction.
Rick Schmunk is the instructor for this class. He is a professor of music technology and one of the foremost Ableton instructors. He has years of experience in teaching music and music production.
There are 18 chapter quizzes, downloadable resources, and the course has been taken by 26,000 students. There is a class project and a certificate of completion is provided.
- Beginner level
- Music professor instructor
- 9 hours on-demand video
- 18 quizzes
- Class projects
- Certificate of completion
7. Mixing in Ableton Live: A Creative Approach (Skillshare)
Next on my list is a short course specifically focused on mixing. Ideally, you should already have a working knowledge of how to use the basic tools of the program to get the most from this class.
Though designed for Ableton, the concepts taught in this class will be useful information for using any digital audio workstation.
Karel Psota, the instructor, is a music producer and a composer who has worked on feature films and other big productions. Accurate and efficient mixing is a vital tool to learn.
You will be using downloadable files to use during the class and will put into practice information about importing files, editing them, and using compression techniques. This is easily one of the best online Ableton Live courses!
- Beginner to intermediate
- Prerequisite of being familiar with the basics of the program
- Downloadable files to practice on
- Specific training for mixing
- 1 hour long
- Class projects
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8. Ableton Tips and Tricks (Creative Live)
An electronic music composer and professional DJ for over 10 years, instructor Andrew Luck leads you in this comprehensive course tailored for beginners to intermediate level. It is 8 1/2 hours of instruction complemented by extra resources.
Class subjects consider beginner tips, the different instruments built into Ableton Live, the physics of electronic music production, arranging, sampling, and remixing.
Through the course, you will master the tools of Sampler and Simpler, Clip Launching, and Slice to MIDI. The course includes class projects and lifetime access. Over 1,400 students have completed the training.
- Beginner to intermediate level
- 8 hour 23 minutes on-demand instruction
- Professional composer trainer
- Designed for all musical styles
- Lifetime access
- Class projects
9. BEGINNER ABLETON COURSE – ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ABLETON (Udemy)
Everything you need to know to get started using Ableton Live and then mastering it like a pro. Every plugin, even the more difficult ones to use, are taught, as are advanced techniques for music production, but explained in a way that is accessible for new users.
While it teaches fundamentals, it is also useful information for more advanced users of the software. The course covers limiters, sidechain compression, return tracks, and synthesis.
Taught by music producer Phillip Harris, it is 7 hours of on-demand training with many extra resources.
You get full lifetime access and a certificate of completion.
- All levels
- 7 hours on demand video
- Extra resources
- Professional producer trainer
- Class projects
- Certificate of completion
10. Fast Songwriting In Ableton Live (Creative Live)
Songwriting is developed in this class, as are all the tools and features built into the program. Producer/songwriter Isaac Cotec is the teacher, leading you down the road to successfully making beautiful music.
In the 5 ½ hours of instruction, you will learn how to write a foundation, the core elements that go into a production, melodic and rhythmic devices, and final production tips. Many bonus resources are included.
Over 6,800 students have taken the course and it has 100% positive reviews. There are 18 lessons and you receive lifetime access to the course.
- All levels
- 5 ½ hours on-demand video instruction
- A professional composer as a trainer
- Bonus resources
- Focused on the songwriting aspects of music production
- Lifetime access
11. Creating with Ableton Live Plugins and Instruments (LinkedIn Learning)
Ableton Live has a huge set of included plugins and instruments built into the software. This 3 ¾ hours class will show you what they are and how to best them for your own productions or live performances.
It is a beginner level course taught by music technology professor Rick Schmunk, one of the more revered instructors for Ableton software and music tech in general.
The class discusses the samplers, multi-channel dynamics, vinyl distortion effects, vocoder tools, presets, and resonator.
There are downloadable files, class projects and a certificate of completion is provided.
- Beginner level
- 3 hours 44 minutes of on-demand video for self-paced instruction
- Taught by a renowned music professor
- Resources provided
- Specifically focused on tools and instruments in the program
- Certificate of completion
Final Thoughts
Ableton Live is a combination of music sequencer and digital audio workstation that can be used on Mac or Windows computers. It has built-in instruments that can be played live and also has recording and playback capability for other digital sound files as well as the ability to edit the files. The best online Ableton Live courses give you the skills to use it well.
Ableton Live is a very useful program for digital music performers, remote DJs, podcasters, YouTubers, and anyone creating or editing audio files for inclusion in other creative works such as digital videos. It has an easy to use interface but there are many tools with multiple levels that can be accessed by users.
The live instruments available include drums, strings, keyboards, horns, synthesizers, and mixes of the various built-in instruments. Recording and playback options are in audio and Midi formats. It can do almost anything most people would want it to do, as long as they know how to access and use the many features.
This is why taking one of the best online Ableton Live courses is a good idea. Whether you are just starting out in digital music or are an established musician, DJ, or audio mixer, the instruction found online is a valuable resource.
