Learning and Re-Learning
Nov 1, 2002 12:00 PM, George Petersen Editorial Director
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Recording Instruments:
Integrating Real Sounds
October 29th
Brought to you by Ex'pression College for Digital Arts and Remix
If you're a producer of hip-hop, electronic or other types of music and want tips on incorporating recorded acoustic instruments into mostly-electronic productions don't miss this webcast.
Read more and register here.
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Nashville Stories
Nashville is no doubt one of the hottest recording markets in the country, but we want to know how it got to be that way. Send your favorite account of recording in Nashville to mixeditorial@mixonline.com, and we´ll post it on the Mix Nashville Web Portal.
Remix Hotel News
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Remix Hotel Atlanta 2008: Sept. 18-20 |
he Remix Hotel juggernaut is heading back to SAE Atlanta„with Partners Rane, Serato, Pioneer, Roland, iStandard and others„for another technology-filled weekend of classes, panels and guest appearances. And this year, All Access registration gets you FREE entrance to the Atlantis Music Conference and Festival! That means double the panels, performances and more. Register today!.
This Month in Mix
Over the years, the TEC Awards has been host to many special moments, and the Hall of Fame award to Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick just a couple of weeks ago was certainly near the top. Having a trio of masters (Elliot Scheiner, Al Schmitt and George Massenburg) on hand to present the award made it even more special.
Joining George Martin to work on The Beatles' landmark Revolver album, and continuing with Sgt. Pepper's, the White Album and Abbey Road, Emerick's influence is unquestionable, as he, Martin and the lads explored the use of the studio as an instrument for creative expression. Tape loops, orchestral tracks, backward playback and creative panning were just a few of many techniques the team employed, breaking the mold and the constraints of traditional stereo mixing. Creators today too frequently search for a new preset, yet these innovators were establishing new precedents with works that are still held in the highest regard decades later.
A new approach need not always be earthshaking. If the industry norm is stereo instruments and center-panned vocals, a simple reversal such as “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La Da,” with divergent L/R voices and down-the-middle instruments immediately puts the listener into a new space. Not every song needs a gimmick; sometimes a clean, straight-ahead recording that captures the essence of the song and performance is best. Knowing when to push the envelope — or when to hold back — is the mark of a master who understands the importance of patience, simplicity and purity in the recording process. That is why certain individuals — Emerick, Massenburg, Scheiner, Schmitt, Swedien, Ramone, et al — stay on top.
Equally important is understanding the medium. Analog production has its own set of rules and limitations, whether the engineer is center-panning LF-heavy sources and dealing with RIAA curves with vinyl, or using a custom machine bias or overload saturation to advantage with tape. When digital arrived, many users didn't bother to learn the ropes of the new media: Digital overload was verboten, sending countless engineers to record at -4/-10/-15dB levels — often followed by normalization, which provided a safe haven from clipping, yet decimated (sometimes literally!) the record resolution, yielding lifeless 12- and 14-bit recordings from 16- and 20-bit systems. Meters don't always reflect the truth; trust your ears.
More recently, high-resolution systems (SACD, DVD-A) have appeared, offering many more choices in shaping the timbre of the final product, while LCRS, 5.1 and 6.1 mixes open new perspectives in placement. Not lost on the buying public is the reality that a DVD-Video soundtrack can sound very good — punchy, rich and full — despite the fact that this is a lossy, data-compressed medium. But by experimenting and learning a few nuances, such as the different requirements of DTS and Dolby Digital tracks, and keeping a close watch on the basics — gain structure, signal clarity, phase and the like, we can ensure that our productions deliver the best in any delivery medium.
The lesson may be simple, but the challenge is formidable.
Modern Recording and Mixing
This 2-DVD set will show you how the best in the music industry set up a studio to make world-class records. Regardless of what gear you are using, the information you'll find here will allow you to take advantage of decades of expert knowledge. Order now $39.95
Mastering Cubase 4
Electronic Musician magazine and Thomson Course Technology PTR have joined forces again to create the second volume in their Personal Studio Series, Mastering Steinberg's Cubase(tm). Edited and produced by the staff of Electronic Musician, this special issue is not only a must-read for users of Cubase(tm) software, but it also delivers essential information for anyone recording/producing music in a personal-studio. Order now $12.95
Delivered straight to your inbox every other week, MixLine takes you straight into the studio, with new product announcements, industry news, upcoming events, recent recording/post projects and much more. 