Making music with other artists is one of the greatest joys as a creative. It’s never been easier to create music from afar, though some remote workflows may work better for some than others, depending on your individual needs.

Below, we’ll outline a couple of ways to work remotely with other artists so that you can keep your collaboration going from just about anywhere.

4 Ways to Collaborate Remotely as a Musician

Here are four tried and true ways to help you collaborate remotely with other musicians: 

1. File Share

Perhaps the most common method and fairly cost-prohibitive strategy is to opt for file sharing. In this method, you and your collaborators send project files and stems back and forth, uploading to a shared workspace like Google Drive or Dropbox. 

This method works particularly well with those using the same DAW since you can pick up where you left off by sharing the same project files. Certain DAWs like Avid’s Pro Tools even offer their own cloud-based collaboration platforms, letting you sync updates to a project without using a third-party file-sharing service. However, note that in the case of Pro Tools, this cloud-based service does not come with each plan: cloud-based support comes at an additional cost. 

Using services like Google Drive, WeTransfer, or Dropbox is fairly straightforward (you and your collaborators update files and download accordingly from the same file location), but, you might need to pair them with other services to collect and leave feedback. You can consider alternatives like Filepass, which allows you to share audio files with timestamped feedback for a fee. 

2. Use Specialized Plugins

If you’ve ever tried to livestream your DAW over consumer-grade video conferencing tools, you might notice that the stream can become laggy or over-compressed. Instead of overloading your conferencing suite, try using a service like Audiomover’s ListenTo suite. I’ve personally used these plugins to share audio over the web, which they do so effortlessly without weighing down my computer’s processing power. 

To use these plugins, simply place an Audiomover’s plugin on your master track or any track in your DAW that you’d like to share with your collaborator. Upon clicking share, your collaborator can access the HD stream of that audio via a web link in real-time. Pair this service with a phone call or video conferencing tool, and you’ll have an in-studio experience from just about anywhere. 

3. Opt for a Web-Based DAW

Should you just want to sketch out ideas with collaborators, you can definitely get away with building together in real-time using a web-based DAW. BandLab allows you and other musicians to collaborate in the same session simultaneously, making it easy to share ideas. However, note that these DAWs are fairly primitive in comparison to the likes of ProTools, Ableton, Logic, etc., so this might be limiting for the latter stages of collaboration. 

4. Use Video Conferencing for Live Practice 

Want to host band practice but don’t have the space to fit the whole band? Fortunately, there are several video conferencing platforms available designed specifically for musicians. While you can use consumer-grade software like Zoom or Google Meet, these services often compress audio or video by default, so it can take some finessing with settings to create a sonically accurate rehearsal environment. 

Consider platforms like JackTrip which provides low-latency audio and video streaming as well as direct livestreaming and recording features to review your sessions. JackTrip also serves as a social platform, where you can invite other musicians or join open sessions to jam with musicians from all over the world from the comfort of your home. 

Hopefully, these tools enable you to make music with your favorite collaborators, regardless of the distance. Some strategies might work better than others depending on your stage in the process, so be sure to test and tweak based on your needs as an artist. Have fun building long-distance beats! 

About the Writer

Kate Brunotts is an audio engineer and music producer from New York City. When she’s not writing about music, producing music, or singing and songwriting, Kate helps others realize their unique sound, whether through a fresh mix, new instrumental approach, or total rework of a particular sound.