Track 1
In the first track the environment the song is being performed at is very big and very wide. The instrumentation is perfect for this environment because it doesn't have a lot of reverberation and the reverberation does not last a long period of time. I'd say the reverberation lasts for less than a second due to the place where the performance is taking place. There isn't many hard surfaces for the sound to bounce of. When it comes to performing a song you want an environment that's just right. You don't want to have a lot of reverberation in the background or delay. Most importantly you don't want to have a venue that will have high volume levels.
As the camera and mic move around some of the instruments become more louder and clearer. When the camera is further away it sounds less louder and less ambient. As the camera and mic start to move around the arena the volume slowly builds up and starts to become much louder and clearer. Maybe the reason for this is because the mic is picking up more high frequency levels, plus the mic could be dynamic, so it can pick very loud volume levels without getting damaged. However, as the camera and mic start moving around some more some instruments sound a bit muffled and quieter in the background. This is because the mic is being moved around in different directions and maybe the mic' polar pattern is uni directional, so it will pick up sounds in one direction.
Track 2
The 3 textures I can hear in this song are monophonic, polyphonic and homophonic. The homophonic and polyphonic textures play can be hard in the first 54 seconds of the track, then the monophonic part comes in. Polyphonic means that the same melody is being played but not being played in unison. Homophonic means playing or singing the some melodies in unison and finally monophonic means playing or singing without any harmonies, it's the same melody being repeated.
The place the song is being performed at is a church. In churches you will hear a lot of reverberation, a little bit of delay and ambience because churches are very big buildings, also the material of the churches can vary the amount of sound it can absorb. The song that is being performed at the church is a perfect environment because it fits the style of music, has perfect ambience so it can sound very atmospheric and clear for the people at the church and finally that is where church singers/choirs perform at.
Track 3
The texture of this piece of music is homophonic. Homophonic is a texture that is has one melodic line. Only one melody is being played but the singer can add different variations to the same melody. In this track the instrumentation defines what a melodic line is and what it sounds like. In this song the melody is not that repetitive, there are some changes in the song but the main melody is repetitive. Also you can notice the singer adding different variations to the song such as singing high and low.
The environment the song is being played looks like a small gig. There is the band and a small audience. The venue the song is being performed is a perfect environment because I can hear only a little bit of reverberation plus it's not very ambient. In my opinion songs that are being performed to a small audience should be in environments like this because everyone that is watching whoever perform can hear the performers clearly, plus the song delivers a brilliant atmosphere without using too much reverberation, delay or ambience.
Friday 4 April 2014
Thursday 3 April 2014
Band Recording Evaluation
On Tuesday 1st April me, Shai, Juan and Yinka were going to do a multitrack band recording. Yinka didn't show up so it was only Shai and Juan helping me out. We needed to record bass, electric guitar, drums, synth and 2 female vocals. Firstly we had to set the equipment. We used:
XLR cables
2x Rode NT5s
1x Audix D6
2/3x SM57s
2x SM58s
1x DI box
Mic Stands
Headphones
Headphone mixer
Me, Shai and Juan had to rig all the equipment and plug it into the main box that leads into the main control room in the recording studio. This took a long time because it required a lot of team work and concentration. If we made one mistake then everything will go wrong in the recording. So it was important to us to keep track of what we were doing.
Once everything was rigged up and ready to go, we went back into the main control room in the recording studio to set up the audio channels in logic. I communicated with Juan about what mics were plugged in to which numbered channels. I then had to change the input and output settings, I then had to turn the phantom power on to the condenser mics only. For the dynamic microphones I left the phantom power off because the phantom power will damage the microphone.
Once I set all the audio channels, input settings and phantom power I needed to get some levels on all the channels. The I did this is I communicated with Juan and told him to talk into the mics and play the instruments, secondly I used the gain knobs on the mixing desk to get some levels and finally when I got levels on all the channels I told Juan we are good to go.
The band we were recording came into the rehearsal room, the drummer needed to wear headphones because the drummer is the time keeper, he needed to let the band know that we are ready to record and that he was going to count them in after 1 bar. We told the drummer that we are ready to record, I pressed the record button, the drummer counted after 1 bar and they started playing the song they were meant to be playing. Half way throughout the recording they made a few minor errors and they requested that we record them again. So we stopped the recording, deleted all the audio recordings, put the marker back to it's original position, told the drummer that we are ready to record again and pressed the record button and the drummer counted in after 1 bar and started playing again.
Once the full song was recorded we stopped the recording and thanked the band for their good work. Me, Juan and Shai saved the audio project on our memory sticks ready for mixing down. Once we saved the projects on our memory sticks we saved the project onto the audio drive desktop and labelled it 'Juan Shai Gerald assessment'. Once that was done I closed logic and put the mixing desk back to it's original setting.
The only thing that was left was put all the equipment back to where it belongs. Juan and Shai were the only people putting the equipment away. I had a bit of trouble getting in because the door was locked, eventually Grant opened the door and I went in the rehearsal room to give Shai and Juan a helping hand. They were half way finished, so I didn't need to do a lot. I looped up all the XLR cables and put them back on the pegs, then I put the Rode NT5s back in their box and finally I put the synth keyboard back to where it was before which was near the P.A systems. When everything neat and tidy, Grant told me, Juan and Shai that we are free to go.
XLR cables
2x Rode NT5s
1x Audix D6
2/3x SM57s
2x SM58s
1x DI box
Mic Stands
Headphones
Headphone mixer
Me, Shai and Juan had to rig all the equipment and plug it into the main box that leads into the main control room in the recording studio. This took a long time because it required a lot of team work and concentration. If we made one mistake then everything will go wrong in the recording. So it was important to us to keep track of what we were doing.
Once everything was rigged up and ready to go, we went back into the main control room in the recording studio to set up the audio channels in logic. I communicated with Juan about what mics were plugged in to which numbered channels. I then had to change the input and output settings, I then had to turn the phantom power on to the condenser mics only. For the dynamic microphones I left the phantom power off because the phantom power will damage the microphone.
Once I set all the audio channels, input settings and phantom power I needed to get some levels on all the channels. The I did this is I communicated with Juan and told him to talk into the mics and play the instruments, secondly I used the gain knobs on the mixing desk to get some levels and finally when I got levels on all the channels I told Juan we are good to go.
The band we were recording came into the rehearsal room, the drummer needed to wear headphones because the drummer is the time keeper, he needed to let the band know that we are ready to record and that he was going to count them in after 1 bar. We told the drummer that we are ready to record, I pressed the record button, the drummer counted after 1 bar and they started playing the song they were meant to be playing. Half way throughout the recording they made a few minor errors and they requested that we record them again. So we stopped the recording, deleted all the audio recordings, put the marker back to it's original position, told the drummer that we are ready to record again and pressed the record button and the drummer counted in after 1 bar and started playing again.
Once the full song was recorded we stopped the recording and thanked the band for their good work. Me, Juan and Shai saved the audio project on our memory sticks ready for mixing down. Once we saved the projects on our memory sticks we saved the project onto the audio drive desktop and labelled it 'Juan Shai Gerald assessment'. Once that was done I closed logic and put the mixing desk back to it's original setting.
The only thing that was left was put all the equipment back to where it belongs. Juan and Shai were the only people putting the equipment away. I had a bit of trouble getting in because the door was locked, eventually Grant opened the door and I went in the rehearsal room to give Shai and Juan a helping hand. They were half way finished, so I didn't need to do a lot. I looped up all the XLR cables and put them back on the pegs, then I put the Rode NT5s back in their box and finally I put the synth keyboard back to where it was before which was near the P.A systems. When everything neat and tidy, Grant told me, Juan and Shai that we are free to go.
Wednesday 2 April 2014
Band Recording Plan
In this recording assignment I need to record drums, bass guitar, synth and 4x female vox. Here are some snapshots of my plan for doing it.
These pictures show my list of equipment I will need and my diagram of how it's all going to be linked to the main control room. If there are mics that are not available to use then I will have to figure which mic will best be suited for what instrument.
I have chosen the NT5 condenser microphone for recording the overheads of the drum kit and I have chosen the Audix D6 microphone for the kick drum. The reason why I have chosen these microphones for the drum kit is because they are both condenser microphone and they can pick up a higher frequency level. In the first year festival I noticed that the rode NT5s were on the overheads and the Audix D6 was inside the kick drum. So I thought these microphones will be the best for recording the drums.
I have chosen the NT1000 mic for recording vocals because I have used the microphone before and I like the clear sound it creates when someone is singing/rapping through it. When I play the vocals back it sounds clear, not muffled and bright. The NT1000 is also a condenser mic, so it will pick up a higher frequency level. If this mic is not available to use then I will use the SM58 dynamic microphone which is also good for recording vocals and doesn't require phantom power. Condenser microphones need phantom power because they can't provide their own power whereas a dynamic mic can provide it's own power and no matter how much you yell into the mic it won't get damaged, whereas if you yell into a condenser mic it will get damaged.
I have chosen the SM57 mic to record the synth. I have chosen this mic because I can rig it up and put it next to the amp where the sounds from the synth will come out of. Also it is a condenser mic, so it will pick up more frequency levels and that is what I want. The SM57 will fit in well with recording the synth because when I listen back to it, it will sound very clear and and not very distorted. If it sounds distorted I will need to put the mic further away from the amp, then that way it will sound less distorted and much more efficient. The SM57 will definitely work for recording the synth via the amp.
For the bass guitar I have chosen to use a DI box. The reason why I have chosen this piece of equipment is because it's very easy to connect and rig up to the main control room, plus the sounds from the bass will be recorded directly into the main control room. If a mic is needed to record the bass then I will use the SM57 because I can put it next to the bass amp and the bass will sound clean, bright and not distorted. The SM57 mic is the best mic to use near an amp because it is a dynamic mic, so it will pick up a higher frequency rate.
These pictures show my list of equipment I will need and my diagram of how it's all going to be linked to the main control room. If there are mics that are not available to use then I will have to figure which mic will best be suited for what instrument.
I have chosen the NT5 condenser microphone for recording the overheads of the drum kit and I have chosen the Audix D6 microphone for the kick drum. The reason why I have chosen these microphones for the drum kit is because they are both condenser microphone and they can pick up a higher frequency level. In the first year festival I noticed that the rode NT5s were on the overheads and the Audix D6 was inside the kick drum. So I thought these microphones will be the best for recording the drums.
I have chosen the NT1000 mic for recording vocals because I have used the microphone before and I like the clear sound it creates when someone is singing/rapping through it. When I play the vocals back it sounds clear, not muffled and bright. The NT1000 is also a condenser mic, so it will pick up a higher frequency level. If this mic is not available to use then I will use the SM58 dynamic microphone which is also good for recording vocals and doesn't require phantom power. Condenser microphones need phantom power because they can't provide their own power whereas a dynamic mic can provide it's own power and no matter how much you yell into the mic it won't get damaged, whereas if you yell into a condenser mic it will get damaged.
I have chosen the SM57 mic to record the synth. I have chosen this mic because I can rig it up and put it next to the amp where the sounds from the synth will come out of. Also it is a condenser mic, so it will pick up more frequency levels and that is what I want. The SM57 will fit in well with recording the synth because when I listen back to it, it will sound very clear and and not very distorted. If it sounds distorted I will need to put the mic further away from the amp, then that way it will sound less distorted and much more efficient. The SM57 will definitely work for recording the synth via the amp.
For the bass guitar I have chosen to use a DI box. The reason why I have chosen this piece of equipment is because it's very easy to connect and rig up to the main control room, plus the sounds from the bass will be recorded directly into the main control room. If a mic is needed to record the bass then I will use the SM57 because I can put it next to the bass amp and the bass will sound clean, bright and not distorted. The SM57 mic is the best mic to use near an amp because it is a dynamic mic, so it will pick up a higher frequency rate.
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