September 29, 2004: Apple debuts Logic Pro 7, its pro-grade music creation and audio production software. The update boasts a host of new tools and a streamlined interface that brings it more in line with other Apple software.

Coming off the success of the iPod and iTunes Music Store, Logic Pro 7 — and its stripped-down sibling, Logic Express 7 — serves a reminder of Apple’s dominance in the music tech arena, for consumers and professionals alike.

“From beginners to pros, Apple is broadening the market with a complete line of music creation and production tools,” Rob Schoeben, Apple’s vice president of applications marketing, said in the Logic Pro 7 press release. “With Logic Pro 7, we’re taking professional music creation to the next level with the industry’s most advanced feature set for pro audio.”

Logic Pro 7: An audio tool for creatives

Logic Pro 7 was the first time I used music creation tools on a Mac. I was an Apple fan already. But around this time, a number of my musician friends (hey, I was at a liberal arts college — don’t hold it against me!) first considered jumping over to the Apple platform. Successful products like the iBook and iMac G3 helped lure them to Apple.

And just like the gentrification of a neighborhood, making products to attract the artists made Macs seem cool for the rest of us, too.

In terms of software, Logic Pro 7 featured various tools for both complete music creation and for mixing existing tracks. This included the likes of component-modeling-based synthesizer Sculpture, a powerful drum machine called UltraBeat, plugins for guitar amp simulator Guitar Amp Pro, and Apple Loops.

Cupertino’s designers modified the Logic Pro 7 interface to make it more obviously resemble an Apple product. There was good reason for this: The company behind Logic Pro, Emagic, had been developing its MIDI sequencer software since the early 1990s. Apple acquired the business in 2002 and set about bringing Emagic’s software into line with its other products.

Keeping sight of Apple power users

Logic Pro 7 is significant because it was part of an appeal to show that Apple still cared about pro-level customers. A lot of Steve Jobs’ early innovations as CEO at Apple involved making devices that were accessible to the average user, which sometimes meant upsetting the more niche, big-spending pros who helped keep Apple afloat during its 1990s dark days.

Tools like Logic Pro 7, Final Cut Pro HD, Motion, DVD Studio Pro and Shake showed that the company hadn’t lost sight of these users.

What was the first creative software you ever used on a Mac? Do you think Apple is still doing its best to support creatives? Leave your comments below.