Creative Development

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This is a video of myself, Keith and James listening to the track we are working on together. We are talking about some of the good and bad points of the track and giving ideas on some improvements that could be made.

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Justification & Evaluation of my Portfolio

Justification

Over the year I have been in college and started producing music again I feel my skills have advanced dramatically. At the beginning of the year I used very little automation or effects on my instruments, I also didn't use plugins such as compressors, equalizers, reverb or delay. The reason I think I didn't use such things is mainly because I didn't experiment with using them and I generally didn't know what they done.

Now at the end of the year I use all of the above and have great knowledge of what they are and do to sounds. I have been experimenting with the plugins such as equalizers to high pass filter channel to clear up the low end so the tracks don't sound too muddy. I have also grew confident in using other plugins such as compressors, delays, gates and reverb.

Evaluation

I personally feel I have learnt a lot throughout the year and I am starting to get more confident in my own tracks instead of thinking everything I make just sounds rubbish. Some of my latest tracks has also had recognition and some featured on YouTube promotional channels which has given me a great boost in confidence in my tracks. I have learnt a lot about mixing and trying to separate sounds such as oppositional panning, I have also learnt how to get a balanced mix by writing a list of the instruments in order of priority. Also this year I have started to look into the mastering side of production such as making sure pre-mastering track is peaking at -6dB. Overall I am very happy with my progress and wanting to carry on this hobby as well as learning more in the Mixing & Mastering side of production.

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Here is an image of the chords idea I had for the demonstration. I may not use these exact chord variations but I will be using the E minor, G major, B minor and A major chords.

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Tempo: 140

I was wanting to create a chillstep track and knew that chillstep/dubstep usually work around 140bpm thats why I chose this bpm.

Chords / Key: F, G, E

The idea for the track was to keep it basic mainly just having 2 chords but I decided to add some extra in to give it a more harmonic feel.

Song Idea:

The idea for the track was to create a very chilling track (chillstep) and add some crunchy bass on the last verse/chorus to give it a bigger feel but still have that chilled feeling. 

Mixing / Mastering:

I used Jacks balanced mixing method for this track I wrote down all the instruments in order of preference and started to lift each 1 up to mix the whole track. After looking back at my project file I realised I actually didn't do any mastering on this track whatsoever.

Evaluation:

I am very happy with this outcome, I couldn't believe something basic and simply could turn into a big track which I feel I have done with this track by using basic chords. This track has had a lot of appraise on soundcloud from listeners and it has also had attention from a couple of YouTube promoters which uploaded and promoted my track. This track was originally started for my EP which I'm working on and if I keep with my productions like I have with this then I feel I will be very happy with the outcome. After listening back to the track I feel I would of reduced the volume of the pads as I feel they can be overpowering at times.

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Tempo: 132

When I first started this track it was originally 134 bpm but I reduced it to 132 so I can get a sample I was using to fit well within Cubase. The reason I chose around this area was because I was aiming for a Progressive Trance track.

Chords / Key: F, Db, Bb, F

I didn't create the chords for this track I wasn't sure where to start so I thought I decided to get some free chords from a Free MIDI website and went from there.

Song Idea:

I got the initial idea or inspiration to make this track after I heard a demo that James sent me of a Trance track he made. I really enjoyed the feel he had and it gave me the urge to create 1 myself. After getting the MIDI Chords the idea was to just work around that. I also wanted it to be a progressive track so I wanted aspects of progression in the track.

Mixing / Mastering:

For the mastering on this track I used a Limiter, Maximizer, Multiband Compression and a Stereo Enhancer. I didn't specifically do a lot of work mastering as I set it to -6db and on each plugin I used a Cubase Preset. I also added some EQ to boost the lows a touch and boost the highs quite a bit.

Evaluation:

I am pleased with the outcome even though I didn't create the chords myself I feel I done well to add a nice sound to the MIDI and to work around it to create a track I was aiming for. I feel I have achieved what I was aiming for and feel this is one of my best projects. The track has had praise on soundcloud as well as YouTube which an online promoter uploaded and promoted on their channel. If I was to change anything within the track it would be to create my own chord progression and do my own mastering instead of using presets.

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Tempo: 128

We chose this tempo as we were looking to create a melodic dance track.

Chords / Key: Ab, F, C

These chords were chosen by James he started the track after we agreed on doing a collaboration.

Song Idea:

The idea for the song was to have a melodic dance track.

Mixing / Mastering:

As this track isn't complete and this is just a demo we hadn't actually got to the mastering stage as of yet.

Contribution:

From what I remember of creating this track, I remember changing the piano rhythms as well as changing a few aspects of the drums. I also gave ideas on what sort of instruments we should add within the track such as guitars. I also added in some FX like white noise falls and reverse crashes. Another thing I contributed to this track was the song structure arrangement, James had the initial idea of the structure and I done my changes and he liked it.

Evaluation:

I really like this song as it is something different to what I usually go for. I must admit for this track James did take the lead and done a lot of the initial ideas but we sent the project file back and forth and done our own edits. What I would of changed was to get involved more with contributing ideas.

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Tempo: 130

The reason I chose this tempo was because I wanted to make a summer track and the initial idea was to produce a house track which is usually 125 - 130bpm.

Chords / Key: D major, E minor, C major, G major

I had no specific keys in mind when I first started this track I just played around on my keyboard until I got keys that sounded well together as well as having a happy / summer vibe.

Song Idea:

This track initially started on FL Studio where I got the idea I was playing around on my keyboard to get the chord progression I was looking for. Even though FL Studio was the main D.A.W I use when I first started I felt I needed to transfer this track to Ableton Live as I felt I grew more confident in using this D.A.W. The whole song idea was to have a summer feeling track and produce a house like song.

Mixing / Mastering:

On this track I use a Maximizer to boost the overall track using Izotope Ozone I had the character set to 4, Transient Recovery set to 29.7 and the stereo link set to 80%. I also have the Dithering on set to high at 24bit. I also added a little bit of stereo imaging on each band gradually rising up the bands so the high end had a more stereo feel. I used the basic harmonic exciter preset I saved awhile back when I first started mixing and mastering. I also used an equalizer to boost up the lows around 100hz and boost the highs between 5 - 10khz.

Evaluation:

Overall I am really happy with this track, I feel maybe here and there could be tweaked but I'm happy with the outcome. I feel I achieved what I aimed to produce it has that summer vibe.

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This is the reggae remix we done with the stems that we got off jack.

We got split into 3 groups during our session; reggae, ambient and drum and bass. Me and Keith we're chosen to do the Reggae remix.

The idea of the session was to take the samples we we're given and come up with a demo within the assigned genre.

I worked on the perc loop and the boing sound.

Keith worked on 1 of the vocals and added some claps to the track.

We both came up with the idea for the bass and worked on some of the vocals together.

During the lesson jack was playing the group a bunch of samples (vocals, FX, basses etc.) we were given the choice to decide which genre that the samples were more appropriate for e.g. Reggae, Ambient or the Drum and Bass group. We chose the samples that we used in this track as we thought the vocals had the reggae sound such as rasta vocals etc. The bass we used we're quite funky and could possibly have been used in Drum and Bass also but it sounded slower than what Drum and Bass would usually contain.

Listening back to the track again I actually really like it compared to when me and Keith produced it in the lesson. The main thing I really like about this collaboration is the intro with the vocals, I feel that the arrangement works well. I also really like the boing sound as it gives the track some funk to it. If I was to change anything in the track I would say it will be the bass as I feel it needs more work. Overall I am happy with the result me and Keith came up with.

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Here is a couple of pictures of us during a production stage in the college studio’s. At this stage in the production the track had it’s main structure and chords created. We were talking through the creation of second lead which we used one of our favourite presets in cubase (Simplicity).

We had scheduled to come in on a Wednesday before lessons our session was from 10am - 1pm. We actually started early and got to the studios about 9:30am and finished roughly 12:45pm.

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This is a picture of me playing some chords on the piano for the collaboration track that myself, Keith and James are working on. All 3 of us decided to improvise and put our ideas together.

We decided to put our track in the key of A minor. The chord progression is A minor, E minor, F major, G major

Grant chose; E minor James chose; A minor Keith chose; F major

For the ending of the progression we just copied over the F major on the 4th bar and started moving it up and down keys until we all agreed on a key that we all liked. The key we agreed on was G major.

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Demonstration Preperation

Introduction

I have been playing around with chords to prepare for my demonstration this thursday, I have decided that the chords I will be using will be E Minor, G Major, B Minor, A Major.

The actual idea for the track is to have a happy feeling whether it being a dance or trance track with experimental aspects.

During the demonstration I will be improvising on everything that will be created and I will talk through the process of what I am doing.

What I will have prepared for the Demonstration:

- Chords (E Minor, G Major, B Minor, A Major)

- Drum One Shot Samples such as Kicks, Snare/claps, Hihats, Rides, Crash etc.

- I will also pre-select Sylenth1 / Massive Sound Presets to use during the demonstration so I won't waste time searching for sounds I want or like.

- I will also prepare some FX Samples such as Risers, Impacts etc.

- Kick Roll MIDI.

Demonstration Aims

- I am looking to create mainly a happy feeling track, i'll accept a slight sad feeling track which still contains some sort of happiness.

- I don't feel I will have enough time to "complete" or get a full structured track lined down as I personally feel I'm a slow producer but my aim is to structure at least the intro, build and first verse/chorus.

- The BPM I'm wanting to work at is between 128 and 140 i'll most likely use either 128 or 130.

- I am wanting to experiment with this demonstration so I'm not going to label a genre but if I was to label it I would say it will be a mix between dance, trance, chillstep and dubstep.

Song Intro:

For the song intro I'm wanting to have a dance / trance feeling using the chords I planned building up to the drop, I think I will have the drop come in on the 25th bar but i'll be improvising during the demonstration so it might be different. The intro will most likely contain 4 on the floor kicks as well and I will get a MIDI file save ready for the Kick Roll building to the drop.

The Drop or First Verse / Chorus:

For the song drop I am wanting a chillstep / dubstep feeling drum wise I wanting it to change from the kick roll / 4 on the floor to a dubstep / chillstep drum pattern (slowed down). I am also wanting to keep some sort of chords within the section as well as adding in some subtle crunchy dubstepy sounds which will be pre-selected before the demonstration.

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Tempo: 128

When I started this track I just went for the basic house tempo of 128bpm.

Chords / Key: F, G, A, C

I didn't have a specific chords / key idea for this track I started with a plucked inverted chord and just went up as the track progresses.

Song Idea:

The initial idea for the song was to have a progressive house track that had a similar sound to deadmau5. After creating the intro I lost all ideas and couldn't think of how to create a drop that sounded slightly different to the intro. This track is still unfinished.

Mixing / Mastering:

As this track hasn't been completed I haven't done any mixing or mastering to it, I just used my ears to mix and pan certain instruments to start with.

Evaluation:

I really like how I created this intro even though I would change a couple of things. 

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Tempo: 174

When I made this track I was going through a stage of just messing around with different projects using the same tempo which in this case was 174bpm.

Chords / Key: C, Eb, Ab, Bb.

I didn't use any chords in this track I mainly worked in the key of C and just made a melody based around it. For most part of the melody C is just jumping octaves.

Song Idea:

I was wanting to start a drum and bass track for awhile but every time I tried to produce 1 I just kept losing the feel and scrapped em. So I tried something different I came across a sample melody which I liked and decided to try and recreate that by using my ears to write down the notes what I thought they we're and came up with the melody in this track.

Mixing / Mastering:

On this track I have still been using just my ears to mix the channels / instruments together. I have also been using delay and auto filters within this track. As always I have still been using my method of Hi / Low passing everything (suited for each instrument / sound of course). Mastering wise I started using a tip which Jack taught me to always export my track at the -6 peak before mastering and then master the audio file and not the project itself. I have also been experimenting with harmonic exciters and stereo imaging within this track and also using another tip from Jack to put a margin of -0.3 on my maximizer.

Evaluation:

After hearing the track again after awhile I'm not 100% happy with the finished version but I really like the synth bass I created out of the melody and how I used panning on each C note as it jumped up or down an octave. I also like how I layered the leads but what I would definitely change on them frequency balancing them so they fit together better.

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Tempo: 138

I got the initial idea to remix this track by accident, I was making a basic tutorial video to show my friends how I use MIDI files from construction kits to into my own sounding track and really liked what I came up with. The MIDI I used was 138 bpm and I just decided to keep it at that.

Chords / Key: F, Db, F, Eb

This is the chord progression that was already created for the construction kit I didn't do any changes to it just shortening and lengthening for different parts of the structure.

Song Idea:

The initial idea of this track was to just post a quick tutorial video for my friends to show how I work with construction kits. I ended up really liking what I came up with and decided to remix it with my own twist. I had the idea of adding aspects of dubstep in by adding a crunchy bass / slower beat on the second chorus that jumps back into the 4 on the floor beat while keeping the crunchy bass.

Mixing / Mastering:

At this stage of my production development I was still using just my ears to mix the channels and also still Hi / Low passing everything. I did however start to experiment with other effects such as reverb and saturation which I used on the pads and synths. Mastering side I have stopped using the same preset for all my tracks and started to use different settings for each track I produce even if its only little changes e.g. 1 of the changes I done on this mastering was instead of using the "Smooth" setting in the maximizer (which I had saved on the preset) I changed it to "Fast and Loud".

Evaluation:

I like the outcome of this track what I really like about it is how it just suddenly changes from a trance track into a dubstep feel. I do however hear what I think is the bass dropping out now and then during the first chorus/verse, I have looked into the project file and still not sure exactly what this is. What I like about the issue within this track is now that I have noticed it I can do research to find out what it is and how I can solve the issue which will be very helpful if it happens in any of my future productions.

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Tempo: 140

I got the initial idea from a construction kit which came with MIDI files and I just used the tempo that the MIDI was set to.

Chords / Key: E, D, A, C, D

I didn’t create this chord progression its what was created within the construction kit which I decided to use for a remix. The only thing I changed for this chord progression was the sound of it.

Song Idea:

When I first started this song I had the initial idea of making a remix but I didn’t know what of at the time. I came across this chord progression in a construction kit and the idea of making a chillstep remix came to mind. I started the track but just simply structuring the pads of the full track as I knew I wanted a lengthy intro to the chorus which leads to the outro. I also had the idea of adding in a distorted bass synth sound which changed in LFO ratio. I also added my own productions such as the additional piano chords / melody and drums (which I reversed some of the snares) etc.

Mixing / Mastering:

When I first started this track, it had very little change to it I didn’t do much EQ and I didn’t do much to the mastering side I just used my ears to get a level balance and that’s it. I then however decided to change a few things and re-release the track which then had Hi / Low Passes, a few EQ boosts but not many and I added my clean preset on Ozone to master the track.

Evaluation:

I really like this song I feel its one of my best productions / remixes just everything about it me is really nice. However, one of the changes I did do was change the Sub Bass which now to me sounds too high, I got some advice off someone which they said the track was missing some low-mids maybe change the sub, which I done. I felt the track was better with the lower sub bass I had originally went with but unfortunately I can’t find the sub bass I used.

Lesson Learnt: additional note for this track I did however learn my lesson to not just please what other people advise on as I don’t know exactly what device they are listening to my track on or what they personally know about frequency balance. So i have learnt no matter what always got with my instinct.

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Tempo: 128

When I started this track I was currently listening to a few samples in a sample pack I have and getting a feel for what I was looking for. These sample we’re 128bpm and that’s where I got my tempo idea.

Chords / Key: C maj, A min, E min, G maj

I created this track roughly the same time as “Away” as I wanted it to be similar I used the same keys but in a different progression. For this track my progress goes from C maj, A min, E min back to C maj, A min, E Min then to G maj. I also decided to add additional notes (same as away) up an octave and down an octave in each key. e.g. C2, C3, E3, G3, C4 was my first chord.

Song Idea:

I started this track roughly the same time as “Away”. I have been attempting dubstep-like tracks for awhile but I have never really been able to finish one and that’s where the inspiration came from for this track. As I produced I wanted to keep it unique as well as adding in different sounds “out and loud”. The mainly lead I have chosen is quite crunchy and has the dubstep feel which is why I chose it for this track.

Mixing / Mastering:

This track had the same idea as away but I didn’t just Hi / Low pass everything I boosted frequencies on more instruments on this track. I also had the same mastering process using the preset I created from a tutorial.

Evlauation:

Even though this is one of the least tracks I like that I have produced I do like some aspects of it such as the melody I created. This track has also caught the attention of a YouTube music promoter “ZoupicMusic” which he uploaded and promoted my track which I was very suprised with but very appreciative.

Additional, I find this track a very good example of how my production is developing as everytime I hear it now there is a lot of things I would of changed such as frequency balancing the 2 layered melodies.

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Tempo: 128

When I had the initial idea for this track I was looking to create a chillstep track but I also wanted to add vocals and based the tempo around the bpm of the vocal samples I was going to use.

Chords / Key: C maj, E min, G maj, A min

I had a rough idea what sort of key I wanted this track in but I didn’t know which type of chords I wanted until after creating the intro and changed the progression from all major keys to a progression of major to minor. I also decided to add additional notes up an octave and down an octave in each key. e.g. C2, C3, E3, G3, C4 was my first chord.

Song Idea:

I created this track roughly the same time I created my other track “Better Days”. I wanted this track to be similar to “Better Days” but I wanted a more calm feel to the track (chillstep not dubstep) and wanted to add in some acapellas to practice producing with vocals.

Mixing / Mastering;

By the time I started producing this track I was comfortable with using my own technique of pretty much Hi-Passing and Low-Passing everything which to me I felt had a cleaner sound to my tracks. I obviously didn’t keep each Hi / Low Pass on each channel the same I changed each 1 to suit the instrument. Other than the Hi / Low passes I EQ’d the sub bass, Hi-Hats and Claps. For Mastering I used my preset from Ozone. Also at the stage of my productions I learnt to make sure my track was peaking at -6 or a little lower before mastering.

Evaluation:

Once again I feel this track is very basic and now after a couple of months after producing this track I don’t particularly like the vocals on  the song. I do however really like the piano chords I have added into the track and I really like how I created my drum beat by using nothing but one shots.