Returning to the DAW After a Long Pause

While my studio has been under development, I’ve only been able to use bits and pieces of it. I haven’t set everything up in a DAW template yet, largely because some of the synths I ordered back in 2025 have only just arrived at the store and are still waiting to be picked up. Because of that, I’ve been caught in a familiar in-between space: do I finish acquiring the last pieces of gear I planned for, or do I start setting everything up now and fine-tune it later?

I know there’s at least one more piece of kit I’d like to have in place before I commit to setting up MIDI across the studio. That makes the decision a little complicated, because once I start building my DAW template, I want it to reflect the studio as it will actually function day to day.

What makes this moment feel bigger than just wiring and templates is the fact that I haven’t really been composing or recording in a DAW since 2022, when this studio redesign began. Before that, recording and composing were regular parts of my routine. Since then, most of my creative work has happened at the piano—writing, sketching ideas, and teaching—rather than inside a DAW. Aside from the occasional production lesson, I honestly haven’t fired one up in a very long time.

Because of that, while I know I’ll feel a bit of sadness when the studio build is finally complete, I’m genuinely excited about returning to that workflow. Sitting down, opening a DAW, and seeing the entire studio mapped out and ready to go is something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time.

Pausing and Picking Back Up

This got me thinking about creative pauses more broadly. Has there ever been a time in your own music-making—whether as a professional or a hobbyist—when you had to step away for a while? If so, how long was that pause?

In my case, the pause from recording and DAW-based composition has been long enough that I don’t quite know what to expect when I return. Will ideas come as easily as they once did? Will programming feel familiar, or awkward? I’m hoping it’s like the old saying—you never forget how to ride a bike—but I suppose I won’t really know until I sit down and start.

Not everyone approaches music through recording, either. Many people use their studios primarily for jamming, improvising, or exploring sound in the moment. If that’s more your style, I wonder how time away affects you. If you step back from your gear—by choice or by circumstance—does it change how things feel when you come back to it?

One thing I’ve already noticed, even in my limited experience with a more hardware-focused setup, is that the more complex a studio becomes, the more there is to remember. Signal flow, MIDI routing, quirks of individual instruments—it all adds up. That makes returning after a long pause both exciting and a little daunting.

Still, that first session back is something I’m really looking forward to.

Wherever you are in your own creative cycle—building, pausing, returning, or diving in headfirst—I wish you all the best as you continue making music.