| |
| |
|
|
Music Information |
|
|
|
How to Create Backing Tracks If You Dont Play All the Instruments... or Any
Congratulations! Your singing has become amazing, and it's time the world knew. You've also written some songs that are just kick you-know-what. They need to be recorded, MP3ed and put on the net ASAP. But you've got two problems. First, you can't afford a studio, let alone a band for all this stuff. Second, you don't play all, or any, of the instruments. Well there is good news. With a deft combination of the internet and today's software, you can do wonders. While it's never going to be the same as a true band in a real studio, which you had better hire for that big record company showcase, you can still create great backing tracks. First, repeat after me. "I love MIDI." Thank you. MIDI, to refresh your memory, is like sheet music for a pianist. The paper itself makes no noises, but the pianist gets all the information he needs from it to let us hear Beethoven (especially if the music is also Beethoven!). In your computer set up, the MIDI file is the sheet music, the MIDI sequencer or playback program is the pianist, and your computer's sound card and synthesizer are the piano. That's all you need! Before we get started, I'll mention the ultimate cover song shortcut - the Internet! There are tons of great MIDI files of almost every piece of popular music out there. All you have to do is find them. If you can't, or you've got your own material, read on. Be legal, though! If You Play Keyboard or Guitar Well First, thank your parents for the lessons. Then, get your hands on a sequencer program and record your tracks. Using MIDI, you can choose the instrument sound for everything - all you need to do is input the notes. For drums, you can either record them from your keyboard or use a plug-in drum machine. If you choose to record them, a quick way to do it is to record a couple of measures and then copy/paste to fill out the song. But don't forget to put in some drum fills! If Your Playing Is Limited to Little or Not at All For you there are wonderful programs, like Band in a Box and Jammer, to create backing tracks. They are very stylish, meaning, they function in styles. You must, at the very least, know the chords for your song. You simply enter the chords, choose the appropriate musical style, and click a button called "compose" (or some reasonable facsimile). Before you can say "Holy guacamole, Batman," your music is playing. The drawback here is that your band will sound canned. And well it should, for it is! But, have no fear, there are ways to mitigate that quite well. Making it Human Best thing? Play what you can, at least the melody. That, in and of itself, will help tremendously, as it's no longer just a band style playing chord progressions. Next up, record a counterpoint. Counterpoints make ordinary songs exciting. They are secondary melodies that complement the main melody. They usually have a slightly different rhythm, and fill in where the melody has breaks. A great example is in the song "The Winner Takes It All," by Abba. Listen to the theme that is always playing underneath the melody - it really drives the song. Another thing you can do to put life into your tracks is to customize the style. Depending on how good you are with your software and its capabilities, you can create your own riffs and mix them into the song. Also, vary similar styles throughout the song to break the monotony. And, again, don't underestimate drum fills! Creative use of layering is a very effective technique. When all the tracks play all the time, it can be very boring. Wait to bring in some instruments till later in the song. That creates a "building" feel. Then, at some point towards the end, take them out again briefly to create a "break" or "bridge". When you bring them back, it is very powerful. Finally, don't allow any perfection. Yes, you read that correctly. If your music is perfectly aligned rhythmically, it will sound artificial. Live musicians are never precisely on the beat. Almost all programs have a "humanize" function which corrects this automatically. Otherwise, take the time and slide some notes in the piano roll editor window. If you need quantize (rhythm correction) on the recorded tracks, set it to less than 100%. When you've got your MIDI file, there are two ways to convert it to audio (wav, mp3) for CD burning. The quicker way is with a dedicated program that renders wave files from MIDI files directly. Most software synthesizer programs that have a stand-alone playback feature can do this. Otherwise, open an audio recording program, play the MIDI file, and simultaneously record the output. Make sure your audio recorder is set to receive from the correct input. If You Play Nothing, and Don't Know Chords or Theory or Anything Guess what? You are the one who should hire a musician. Yes, I know that some programs will offer both a chord progression composer and even a melody composer. All you would need to do is choose the style. If you are considering going this route, I have one request for you. PLEASE DON'T! Sorry to yell, but think about this. The melody is composed by a computer, the chords are composed by a computer, the band is composed by a computer. It is music that is completely composed by a computer. Oh my gosh! How revolting is that? No, my friend, hire a qualified musician. You sing the song to them, they create the magic. Do not sell yourself short. Your song is important -- it's part of you! Show it the greatest respect and make it as beautiful as you can. Seth Lutnick is a singer, songwriter and arranger. Visit his website, http://www.getitdone.biz for more on creating and using a home recording studio, and personal action planning.
MORE RESOURCES:
Music - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Piano Music - How to Begin and End a Piece How do you begin a piece of music? That's a question I'm often asked. The answer I usually give is that you begin as soon as you start playing - that is, if you're trying to "compose" something, the piece begins the moment it has energy and is something you want to capture. Guitar Players...Get a Balanced Guitar Practice Diet Do you have a wide variety of things that you practice. Or do you like to binge? (You know. The Death-Defying Warehouse Party Life: An Interview by William of Orange About an entire local music industry that's rarely heard from, briefly navigated by a remote being that coalesces, rarely, around music scenes and their absurd atrocities; published by "The Stranger" weekly newspaper of Seattle, WA.Sonny Chelf is the orneriest house party producer I know who hails from Tacoma. Who's Playing What? A Guide To The Guitars Of The Pros Eric Clapton performs his slow-handed magic on his. Even with just nine fingers, Jerry Garcia kept countless Deadheads dancing as he played with his. Canadian Stars: The Marble Index and the Waking Eyes Canadian Indie bands are dominating the music scene and it just so happened that three of them took over the Rivoli on Queen St. for a night of true entertainment. A Guitar Lesson to Help You Develop Your Vision Have you ever done any of the following?1. Made excuses for not practicing because you "didn't have time"? 2. How Much of Your Potential Will You Release? Do you ever feel there is an inner voice speaking to you, telling you that you're not very good, or you can't do it, or there's just not enough confidence and repertoire with you? This is the voice that calls itself "I" right? Let's refer to this as Self 1, and Self 2 as the normal you, the real you that has the masses of potential.Self 1 is our interference and concepts such as our judgements, associations, how things should be and uses words such as "should" and "shouldn't". You Cant Force Play A student once asked me; "How come sometimes the music comes freely while other times, I feel blocked and can't play?"A perfectly valid question and one that many students of improvisation ask. You see, the problem is that many think they should be able to just sit down at the piano and play anytime anywhere. Music to Echo Your Mood In what way do the kinds of music (rock, rap, classical, instrumental, etc.) change or alter our mood and in what way do our moods effect what music we listen to?Music has been present throughout the history of man. "Who Else Wants to Get Screwed When Signing a Recording or Songwriting Deal?!?!" You've got your recording (or songwriting) contract in hand and everything's coming up roses, right? You get your check, finally, but it's not quite what you expected. If you sign not knowing what's owed you then you might be shorted some well-deserved income. How to Get Past Creative Blocks When I first began playing the piano and improvising, there were times when the music just wouldn't flow. No matter what I did, I couldn't make it go any further. If Setting The Gain Correctly is So Important, Why Dont Mic Preamplifiers Have Meters? When you first learn how to use a mixing console, you will be shown how to set the gain. Your instructor - either in audio school or in the workplace - will emphasize the importance of this and kick your ass every time you get it wrong, until you can't do anything other than get it right. Visualization Techniques for the Pianist Controlling the images of the mind through image projection has proven valuable not only for psychotherapy, but also as a learning aid. Visualization can have as much impact on the subconscious, memory, and entire body as a "real" experience. The Joy of Spontaneous Expression Do you remember finger-painting as a child? How fun it was. How exciting to be able to dip your fingers into a color that called out to you and put it on paper. Dont Censor the Music and Artistic Expression Ann Powers said: "Don't censor the music and artistic expression. Eminem's music, in particular the songs "Kim" and "Stan," is a continuation of a tradition in music and American art in general: the Gothic murder ballad, which has been with us ever since the blues or Appalachian folk music. The Acoustic Guitar The steel-stringed acoustic guitar is usually credited with being developed by C.F. Green Day: Punk Rock Masters Taming Mainstream Radio Their Way Before they got together as Green Day, Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tre Cool were merely three extraordinary hopefuls hoping and looking for their big break. The trio has no formal training and got their 'practice' from playing for free at punk clubs on Gilman Street in Berkeley, California. The Case Against Traditional Piano Lessons How would you like to spend 4 years in a University learning how to play other peoples music? If you think this is ridiculous, you're right! Because that's what thousands of piano music students do each day.They sit in front of their piano or keyboard with sheet music of a dead composer in front of them. To Record or Not To Record - At Home, That Is I will be honest. I am addicted to music recording. Downloading MP3s Made Easy The MP3 movement started out with a huge audience of music enthusiasts on the internet. The MP3 digital music format has had, and will continue to have, a huge impart on how people, gather, listen to and share music.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
