Handbook
From the first click to pro tricks. Choose your level — the handbook adapts: beginners get every term explained, pros get the details and shortcuts.
Your level
Your learning path
0/10 chapters · continue with Welcome
Getting started
Install, find your way around, your first track.
3 minWelcomeWhat artnorama studio is, who it is for and how this handbook works.4 minInstallation and licenceSystem requirements, installing on macOS, Windows and Linux, activating your licence.5 minThe interfaceSidebar, single-key navigation, command palette, beginner and expert mode, help.4 minExport to your DAWMIDI and WAV via drag and drop, the library with index, file names and why nothing is ever overwritten.8 minYour first track in 20 minutesA complete run-through: pick a genre, build a loop, chords and bass, arrangement, export and mix check.
Learn to build tracks
The Track School: ten lessons from anatomy to your own story.
6 minLesson 1 · Anatomy of a trackPhases, phrases and the 8-bar grid: what an electronic track is made of.6 minLesson 2 · Energy and tensionTwo curves that carry every track — and why they are not the same.5 minLesson 3 · Intro and outroHow a track starts and ends — and why DJs will love you for it.6 minLesson 4 · The build-upRisers, snare rolls, filters, silence: the tools of anticipation.5 minLesson 5 · The dropThe peak lives on contrast: what goes in, what goes out.5 minLesson 6 · Breakdown and emotionWhen the kick leaves, people listen: chords, melody, space.5 minLesson 7 · TransitionsFill, riser, filter sweep, cut, impact: how phases connect.5 minLesson 8 · Variation over timeChange something every 8 or 16 bars — so nothing gets boring.7 minLesson 9 · Telling storiesStory templates: from slow burn to rollercoaster — and how to build your own.6 minLesson 10 · Mapping reference tracksListen to your favourite tracks pen in hand — and turn their structure into your template.
The devices
Every device explained — from the first click to pro tricks.
AN-017 minLoop GeneratorFive parts from genre, tempo and key: roll, lock, refine, jam, export.AN-027 minChord LabThe seven degrees of a key as pads, mood templates, borrowed chords, voice leading and Camelot.AN-036 minRhythm LabEuclidean rhythms, independent cycle lengths, rotation, accents and humanize — visible as rings.AN-045 minSound FactoryDrums and FX from pure synthesis: tempo-synced, tuned to the key, exportable as a kit.AN-055 minHum to MIDIHum, sing, whistle — the device detects the pitch and writes notes onto grid and scale.AN-065 minSample ChopperCut audio into slices — by transients, grid or hand —, play them on 16 pads, rearrange.AN-076 minArrangement PlannerGenre-typical structures in 8-bar phrases, energy curve, track matrix — into the DAW as MIDI with markers.AN-087 minAnalyserLUFS, true peak, crest, correlation, spectrum, BPM and key — against genre targets and a reference.AN-094 minGenre Atlas45 styles from 60 to 220 BPM: tempo, drums, harmony, arrangement, loudness and references.AN-107 minBass LabBasslines in seven styles that follow your chords — with accent, slide and glide.AN-117 minMelody LabHooks from motifs: contour, form, freeze the motif, roll the answer — and arpeggios.AN-126 minGroove WorkshopQuantize with strength, swing, groove templates and humanize for any MIDI file — with before and after.AN-136 minMix CoachReadings against the genre target and a reference — as a prioritised to-do list with concrete steps.AN-148 minTrack ManagerPlan the whole track as a story: story templates, phases, tension arc, transitions — and every device straight from each phase.AN-157 minFilter LabDraw filter moves, play them on the XY pad and place them in the Track Manager’s filter lane.AN-169 minFX LabGenerate effects, isolate sounds from your own recordings and refine them — with sound DNA, variations and a workspace without leftover junk.
Workflows
Combine devices: how they work together.
5 minWorking harmonically with CamelotKeys that fit together: for layers, samples, remixes and DJ transitions.5 minYour own sounds and kitsSound Factory, chopper and resampling: a kit that is yours alone.4 minCollaborating in the portalInvitation, personal project storage, shared library, device booking, two-factor sign-in.
Reference
Shortcuts, glossary, troubleshooting.
Handout
The quick reference for your desk
Every device, shortcut, loudness target and Camelot rule on two A4 pages — to print or save as PDF.
Open quick reference →0/37 chapters read