Advanced Audio Edit re-cut.
Creating music by cutting up audio recordings into small pieces then re-assembling them has had a long history in electronic music. Famous works include Gesang Der Junglinge by Karlheinz Stockhausen. There are even entire approaches to music involving cutting audio recordings, for example music concète. These examples come from a classical or high-art aesthetic […]
CMA credit for concert attendance
Skin Deep is a three-day 2015 Colorado NeXt Music Fest event that will run from September 11-13 at the Broomfield Auditorium. Presentations will involve an innovative approach to the programming of interconnected disciplines and styles while focusing on a unique theme: how we can transcend the myriad stereotypes in our culture today. With nationally-renowned jazz violinist Christian Howes, […]
Short Fight scene
For this project you will download and cut a 30 second fight or action sequence. Please work in pairs during this lab. Acquire your video media. Remove all sound. Create an edit decision list noting where each sound will be in time and what the sound needs to be. Add said sounds to a timeline, […]
Advanced Mixing (re-synthesis)
For those of you who already know the basic functionality of mixing, lets try something to challenge your ears. Find a musical tone online or in any synth you can find on the computer. The tone must be steady (no vibrato, modulation, filter sweeps). Think of the steady portion of a clarinet sustaining […]
Samplers and building a Sample library
Building a library of sounds that you can have figuratively at your finger tips is key to composing with sounds and testing musical ideas quickly. Additionally, with a library of loops, short sound effects, long textures and such, you can perform your compositions live. Worksheet 1
Mixing Gates
Using side chaining and gates are powerful tools for music production, performance and remixing. The examples below can be easily employed to make space in a mix for a new sounds or create a rhythmic figure from a continuous sound or noise. These tricks have been used to help rhythm sections […]
Advanced Mapping
MIDI mapping in your DAW can turn your music production tools into music performance tools. At times the automatic mapping features of programs like live can be very helpful. Occasionally you may find that they do not work to your satisfaction. For example, if you map a MIDI key press (using the […]
Live Looping
A really quick way to explore some musical ideas live, whether using instruments or synthesizers is live looping. Most any DAW can be used to create a live looping instrument if you can find a delay with 100% feedback and simultaneously reduce the input to that delay to -infinity or mute. Download an Ableton […]
Sound Design via Automation
This lab provides some example strategies to produce exciting sounds, noises and samples using parameter automation. Worksheet here .
Audio to MIDI
This lab will focus on using the Audio to MIDI conversion functions available in Ableton Live (v9) and likely many other DAWs moving forward. These tools can be used to help quickly create new productions as well as assist in the analysis of existing works. Lab worksheet.
Re-sampling workflow
To make music creation more efficient we will use one of the re-sampling workflows that has become popular with electronic producer/mentors such as ill.Gates and training organizations such as dubSpot. Sound library build worksheet.
Simple Synthesis
This workshop will get you into the basics of synthesis using the Simpler Instrument in Ableton Live. This can be done with the basic, standard or suite versions of Live. Please download these synthesis source files. Simpler Synthesis worksheet Reminder: As you create sounds you like, record them as samples to be used in your […]
Lab 5 Stacking and Sequencing
Stacking There are at least a few ways to add richness and depth to your music productions. One quick and easy method is to add tracks of instruments playing parallel or doubled parts. Back when we could only record instruments, we would have to replay the same parts several times. There were some […]
