Understanding and Crafting the Mix: The Art of Recording

by Moylan; William

• ISBN13: 9780240807553
• ISBN10: 0240807553
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2006-11-27
• Publisher: Focal Press

Summary

Understanding and Crafting the Mix gives clarity to aesthetics of recording and mixing, helping you to develop the skills to think critically about sound and its characteristics. William Moylan demonstrates how aspects of sound and music are shaped in the recording process, and examines these in recordings by The Beatles. Understanding and Crafting the Mix presents clear and systematic methods for identifying, evaluating, and shaping the artistic elements in your recordings, Each chapter contains exercises encouraging you to think deeply about the creative, artistic and technical processes involved in planning, executing and evaluating a music recording. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Dr. William Moylan is Professor of Music and Coordinator of Sound Recording Technology at the University of Massachusetts Lowell

Table of Contents

Listing of Exercises	ix
Foreword	xii
Preface	xvi
Acknowledgments	xxi
Introduction	xxii
Overview of Organization and Materials	xxiii
Establishing an Accurate Playback of Recordings	xxvii
Part One Defining the Art of Recording: The Sound Characteristics and Aesthetic Qualities of Audio Recordings
The Elements of Sound and Audio Recording	3	(33)
The States of Sound	3	(2)
Physical Dimensions of Sound	5	(10)
Perceived Parameters of Sound	15	(19)
Summary	34	(1)
Exercises	35	(1)
The Aesthetic and Artistic Elements of Sound in Audio Recordings	36	(25)
The States of Sound and the Aesthetic/Artistic Elements	37	(1)
Pitch Levels and Relationships	38	(4)
Dynamic Levels and Relationships	42	(3)
Rhythmic Patterns and Rates of Activities	45	(1)
Sound Sources and Sound Quality	46	(2)
Spatial Properties: Stereo and Surround Sound	48	(11)
Conclusion	59	(1)
Exercises	60	(1)
The Musical Message and the Listener	61	(24)
The Musical Message	61	(2)
Musical Form and Structure	63	(2)
Musical Materials	65	(1)
The Relationships of Artistic Elements and Musical Materials	66	(2)
Equivalence and the Expression of Musical Ideas	68	(2)
Text as Song Lyrics	70	(3)
The Listener	73	(7)
Conclusion	80	(1)
Exercises	81	(4)
Part Two Understanding the Mix: Developing Listening and Sound Evaluation Skills
Listening and Evaluating Sound for the Audio Professional	85	(15)
Why Audio Professionals Need to Evaluate Sound	86	(1)
Talking About Sound	87	(2)
The Listening Process	89	(6)
Personal Development for Listening and Sound Evaluation	95	(3)
Summary	98	(1)
Exercises	99	(1)
A System for Evaluating Sound	100	(18)
System Overview	100	(3)
Sound Evaluation Sequence	103	(3)
Graphing the States and Activity of Sound Components	106	(6)
Plotting Sources Against a Time Line	112	(2)
Summary	114	(1)
Exercises	115	(3)
Evaluating Pitch in Audio and Music Recordings	118	(20)
Analytical Systems	119	(1)
Realizing a Sense of Pitch	120	(1)
Recognizing Pitch Levels	121	(3)
Pitch Area and Frequency Band Recognition	124	(7)
Melodic Contour	131	(3)
Exercises	134	(4)
Evaluating Loudness in Audio and Music Recordings	138	(19)
Reference Levels and the Hierarchy of Dynamics	139	(7)
Program Dynamic Contour	146	(3)
Musical Balance	149	(2)
Performance Intensity versus Musical Balance	151	(2)
Exercises	153	(4)
Evaluating Sound Quality	157	(19)
Sound Quality in Critical Listening Contexts	158	(1)
Sound Quality in Analytical Listening Contexts	159	(1)
Sound Quality and Perspective	160	(1)
Evaluating the Characteristics of Sound Quality and Timbre	161	(12)
Summary	173	(1)
Exercises	174	(2)
Evaluating the Spatial Elements of Reproduced Sound	176	(48)
Understanding Space as an Artistic Element	177	(7)
Stereo Sound Location	184	(4)
Distance Location	188	(7)
Environmental Characteristics	195	(8)
Space within Space	203	(4)
Surround Sound	207	(8)
Exercises	215	(9)
Complete Evaluations and Understanding Observations	224	(31)
Pitch Density and Timbral Balance	225	(5)
The Overall Texture	230	(3)
Relationships of the Individual Sound Sources and the Overall Texture	233	(6)
The Complete Evaluation	239	(8)
Using Graphs for Making Evaluations and in Production Work	247	(1)
Summary	247	(2)
Exercises	249	(6)
Part Three Crafting the Mix: Shaping Music and Sound, and Controlling the Recording Process
Bringing Artistic Judgment to the Recording Process	255	(6)
Part Three Overview	255	(1)
The Signal Chain	256	(3)
Guiding the Creation of Music	259	(1)
Summary	260	(1)
The Aesthetics of Recording Production	261	(14)
The Artistic Roles of the Recordist	262	(1)
The Recording and Reality: Shaping the Recording Aesthetic	263	(3)
The Recording Aesthetic in Relation to the Performance Event	266	(5)
Altered Realities of Music Performance	271	(3)
Summary	274	(1)
Preliminary Stages: Defining the Materials of the Project	275	(35)
Sound Sources as Artistic Resources, and the Choice of Timbres	277	(3)
Microphones: The Aesthetic Decisions of Capturing Timbres	280	(15)
Equipment Selection: Application of Inherent Sound Quality	295	(3)
Monitoring: The Sound Quality of Playback	298	(8)
Summary	306	(1)
Exercises	307	(3)
Capturing, Shaping and Creating the Performance	310	(29)
Recording and Tracking Sessions: Shifting of Focus and Perspectives	311	(6)
Signal Processing: Shifting of Perspective to Reshape Sounds and Music	317	(2)
The Mix: Composing and Performing the Recording	319	(16)
Summary	335	(1)
Exercises	335	(4)
The Final Artistic Processes and an Overview of Music Production Sequences	339	(20)
An Overview of Two Sequences for Creating a Music Recording	340	(4)
Editing: Rearranging and Suspending Time	344	(5)
Mastering: The Final Artistic Decisions	349	(5)
The Listener's Alterations to the Recording	354	(1)
Concluding Remarks	355	(1)
Exercises	356	(3)
CD Contents and Track Descriptions	359	(10)
Glossary	369	(12)
Bibliography	381	(8)
Discography	389	(2)
Index	391