Unit 9 Task 2

For the EP I have produced a chill, ambient/jazz-like composition in Logic Pro X using MIDI instruments, mostly provided by the program: https://soundcloud.com/lloy2-908796191/powder

This is a style I am drawn to and usually alright at making. The piece is made in a way so that it could be a backing track for a song, which is why there is no principal instrument or melody. In mixing it I took into account factors including levels, range, the stereo field, dynamics, and effects/automation to get the best mix possible.

Levels were generally organised according to relevance in the mix; for instance, the 'Jittery Pulses' synth is the quietest sound as its parts are more of a background element than something to be paid attention to. This lets the listener know what to pay attention to more and less. This rule doesn't strictly apply when mixing though; the second Wide Suitcase Electric Piano is turned up fairly loud, to accommodate for the way it quickly pans around the stereo field (which would otherwise leave it hard to hear properly). In a similar way, I wanted the drums to be played quite softly but still be very present in the mix, so their volume is high too because otherwise the soft playing might not be heard so well. They are placed to the far right of the stereo mix so as to avoid potential masking produced by this decision, maintaining clarity.

As you can see, there are a range of EQ settings in order to keep the song sonically interesting as it progresses. The Lost Reverse synth has its mid and treble frequencies deemphasised so as to submerge it in mystery. Meanwhile the first wide suitcase electric piano has its treble emphasised to lend it a level of focus as the primary voice of the piece's chord progression. Treble is more immediately apparent to someone. This allows the piece to stay headed in a specific direction. There's a range of pitch too, from the bass guitars and cellos in a lower register underpinning the piece right up to the synthesisers ringing out little high-pitched jingles to decorate it throughout. This again keeps things interesting, this time musically speaking.

Nothing in the stereo mix is right in the centre; this was to avoid making any one instrument too prevalent as I wanted to keep the potential for vocals, and overall maintain an ambient mood without a focal point. Everything therefore is panned left or right to some extent. The bass and treble are generally on the left and right of the stereo mix, a tried-and-tested technique for separating your sounds so as to avoid masking and let everything be appreciated in clarity. Using this technqiue was a shortcut to attaining a solid stereo mix, saving time. The drum machine is on the left whilst the acoustic kit is on the right, enveloping the listener between two juxtaposing forms of percussion which I thought could be an interesting idea as these forms are usually kept separate.

The song starts with a loud intro using Logic's Reverse function. This draws attention to the song initially. These are snippets of the rest of the song that I thought sounded good in reverse because of the chord order and how being reversed affected the textures. The rest of the song is a crescendo from very quiet beginnings to a climax near the end with cellos. This crescendo is achieved mostly through a buildup of instruments. A crescendo gives the song a sense of direction whilst keeping it ambiguous enough to still feel fairly ambient. There is a bridge after this in a different key featuring some rather jazzy chords (eg. F6/11 and some flat 13ths), and finally an again reversed outro that fades in, creating bookends for the piece since it starts in a similar way. Putting a bridge near the end keeps the piece from being overly monotonous. This has the effect of enclosing the song as a whole and giving it a sense of structure; the beginning asks a question which the ending answers. From all this, you can see that varying dynamics are weaved into the piece's structure.

Effects:

- A spreader on the classic and wide suitcase electric pianos allows them to fill the space a little more and compensates for what was a slightly empty feeling left by the lack of a focal instrument in the stereo mix.
- The wide suitcase piano also has a delay designer employing a modified 2-bar squeeze pattern which lends the instrument some character. Touches like this keep the song from sounding too serious or dark, maintaining an element of innocence.
- A more simple delay is applied to the Elevation Wurlie pianos as those instruments have a more decorative function.
- There are three different bass guitars in the piece, and they all have different effects on them too. For instance, the muted bass has a flanger on it whilst the stinger has a chorus effect. This helps to set them apart and keep things interesting.

- The cellos I found in an online sound library have an EnVerb insert I put on them which gives a presence that I felt was lacking in the original file by implying an acoustic environment in which they (and the piece as a whole) could exist. This limits the potential for the song to sound overly artificial, being a MIDI project. I wanted them to have a looming sound and the relatively high reverb helped with that by making the section somewhat murky, purposefully masking sounds a little (though not too much as they are panned far to the left). In this way the song's ongoing crescendo is not just one from low to high volume but also low to high emotional intensity.
- Most of the instruments are on a bus containing a space designer that puts them in the confines of a snare chamber. This achieves a level of consistency across the piece and is subtle. I tried different spaces and thought the snare chamber worked decently for that reason.
- There is a plate reverb on the wurlie pianos.

The cellos, as well as the ending, are automated to fade in by making their volumes increase. The effect this achieves for the former section is one of a darkness creeping into the piece, likely unexpected as the rest of it makes use of quite modern instruments. Meanwhile the ending fading in makes the transition to the distinctive sound of reversed music much smoother. Furthermore, the drums start out as quiet cymbals before increasing to full volume to highlight a fill-- finally they then come down to their proper volume. This essentially introduces them fully into the mix, letting the listener notice them, before letting them step back into a background role. Meanwhile the second suitcase electric piano is swiftly panned about the stereo field whenever it plays, emphasising the bouncing nature of its octave trills.