Friday 21 June 2019

CP: Final Product

CP Evaluation


  • Compare your work to professional work in the same area. Are you satisfied with your work in comparison?[[a

Overall, I feel our work does follow the same standards of quality shown in similar music. In terms of creative production, we have made good use of the techniques and methods commonly found in similar trap music. 



  • How does your work fit into the music industry? Provide professional examples

Our work definitely fits around the modern hip-hop/trap industry standard. The Sounds we used are very stereotypical within the Trap genre and sound very similar to songs found in Trap and hip-hop playlists.


  • What areas have you still struggled with?

I have struggled with time management, I spent too long researching areas around things like Ambience and Ambient Production while neglecting writing aspects such as progress reports. I also found trying to juggle the workload with personal matters difficult, as my assistance at home is needed extensively.

  • With hindsight, what would you do differently?
Prepare outline plans for when to do the written work and prepare more detailed notes when preparing to write progress updates. Better timetabling.

  • How will you improve in the future?
I will attempt to prepare plans as stated, I will also need to make sure I am able to make the time out of my busy schedule for doing the work. This may also mean making use of the college's library, as well as local resources.

  • What were your key areas of research?

Ambient music and trap production techniques.

  • What research methods did you apply?
My main method of research was using the internet, which involved sources such as articles, interviews and scholarly studies. I also used a small collection of books as well as 'YouTube videos.'
  • Have you been able to synthesise your research into your work?
Yes, Using the research I have done I have been able to source the content for my case study and my progress reports. In terms of practical research, I have been able to display good use of the techniques and methods I was researching within my practical work.

  • Do you feel that you completed sufficient research?
I feel I have completed a good amount of research, however, I would be more satisfied with further research as my topics chosen were broad enough for the research to be endless. I feel I could've done more research into recording techniques, however, my issues with time management left me feeling I could've done more.

  • In hindsight, are there other topics you should have researched?
I believe my chosen topics were the right ones in terms of relevance and improvement of my skills, however, research into promotion and the industry side of making an EP would've been helpful.

  • Are there other areas you would have liked to research, but did not have time?
As stated above, topics regarding the music industry rather than research into practical music would have been useful. In terms of time, there was enough for me to expand on these topics but I did not choose to do so when starting my research points within the proposal.

  • What have you learnt that you can apply to your future projects?
I have learned the ways of working in a collaborative environment and the problems
that can occur when doing so. This will help me evaluate who I decide to work
with collaboratively in the future.

  • How has your research informed your practical work?

In terms of practical research, I have learnt a lot of production techniques and methods within Trap and Hip-hop music. This research has all been displayed within the EP and the production process to get these songs would have been difficult without this research.
I have also researched into the Ambient genre and the origins and values of it's music. This has helped me incorporate the Ambient themes into my work

  • What skills (new and existing) have you developed in order to complete your project?
I have developed a massive skill set regarding production techniques and am now confident in producing Trap songs such as the ones on the EP.
I have also massively advanced in my mixing and mastering skills, improving and evaluating the many mistakes I have made previously in this area. This has specifically been developed from my collaboration with D'Angelo, where he has helped me to become more confident in my mixing.

  • Do you feel your practical skills have developed sufficiently during the course of the project?
My Practical skills have developed massively. Research made during the project has helped me in advancing as a producer as well as a mix engineer.

  • What problems did you encounter during the CP? How did you overcome these problems?

I encountered some problems regarding time management and workload management, especially when working collaboratively with people encountering the same issues. It is clear now that plans should've been created in order to complete the written work, not just the practical work.

  • Have you completed all of the work you intended to create for this project?
In terms of practical work, I feel we completed the work we intended to create. In terms of the written work, I feel although there is a satisfactory amount to be shown, there was always room for more research and updates regarding my progress and the themes of the project.

  • Did you discover that you had tried to do too much over the course of 1 term? How did this affect your project, did you reduce the scale of your work?

I knew a 4 track EP was always going to be realistic and accomplishable with the recourses available. I do not feel I tried to cram in too much but I also feel that I did not expand on too little regarding updates and practice.

  • How did you make use of the access time that is available to you?
I made use of this time by holding collaborative meetings with my peers during college hours in the classrooms provided. 2 of the 4 tracks were also completed in the production rooms available to book via the college.

  • Who have you worked with to complete your project? What role did they fill in your project?
I worked with D'Angelo and Blaine. We all played an equal role in the production, D'Angelo specifically worked on the mixing and mastering and Blaine represented us with a performance aspect by doing a DJ set.

  • Describe the collaborative experience. Was it enjoyable, or did you encounter problems?
The experience was definitely enjoyable as I chose people with similar taste and interests and we were able to create a solid final product.
We encountered problems regarding communication between peers when organising dates to work together outside of college. This is due to our areas of residence being fairly far apart and the personal problems and issues at home that constrained our progress.

  • How did you overcome any problems with your collaborators?
We overcame this by focusing on the time we had in college hours and using this time to make collaborative decisions.

CP Progress Updates

UPDATE 1

This week we started our work with the collaborative project. Through working with my proposal, me and other co-producers in my group all spoke with one another in an early-stage meeting. The Main topic that was spoken about was the type of sound we are looking for, which was Ambience. We also agreed that we would like to fuse these sounds with aspects of Trap and Hip-Hop, using the same type of bass sounds and drum kits commonly found in Trap production.

Here's an example of the type of tracks we are looking to create: The track's main melodies and chords are ambient, and share the uplifting themes we are looking for. The drums are also a good example of the different types of techniques we would like to use.



https://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/10-tricks-every-trap-producer-should-know-638684



This article on Trap production techniques explains some of the same techniques my group will be using. The tips featured on 808s and drums are a good guideline to go by in order to fully incorporate the Trap aspect into our tracks

UPDATE 2

This week my main progress through my project involved some solo work outside and inside the college. I wanted to meddle around with trying to create some ambient sounds and loops using Logic Pro X's stock sounds.

The use of pad instruments in Ambience is very common and contain dynamics and timbre that can create a good ambient sound. I started to look at some of the pads available to use within Logic and trying out melodies and chords with them. I liked a lot of the airy textures to them and felt they were a good starter in order to get some basis ambience sounds.

While researching into reverb and the effect it has on Ambient Music, I came across a very useful method which can turn any regular sounding instrument into an airy atmospheric pad.



While experimenting with this method, I found it to be useful in giving me more freedom when creating the Ambient sounds I was trying to create. Instead of looking through stock pad instruments that I wasn't really liking, I could source a regular instrument that I did like and turn it my own pad like sound, adjusting the settings accordingly.

UPDATE 3

This week, I expanded my progress with Ambient production using some VSTs known for holding good the ability to create quality Ambient sounds. Omnisphere is a synth VST that has a very big selection of sounds and presets and is used commonly in both Ambient and Trap production

Here is a loop I created using Omnisphere, specifically the 'Airy Piano' preset. Using my music production knowledge and past experience in melody and chord production I was able to create an uplifting melodic sound. I have found this loop to be a good example of the vibe we are trying to create and will continue to create loops like this


Here is a video sharing some tips for creating Ambient melodies and some instruments and presets to use. The creator of the video is also using Omnisphere and shares some of the best Ambient presets within the VST.

  


UPDATE 4

This week, me along with the others in my group, got down to creating and finalising at least two loops we are going to use within the tracks. We are doing this in preparation for our final sessions where we will create and produce drums and 808s around these loops. This will even out the workload over time, so that we will not be trying to create every aspect of the tracks in only a couple sessions.



In these loops and all Ambient sounds, reverb is used heavily. This article explains how to use reverb when creating Ambience and the effect it has on the sound. To fully master the effect of reverb, I will need to

http://sound-museum.org/how-to-use-reverb-for-ambient-soundscapes/5

UPDATE 5

This week I wanted to create some drum kits for the tracks. As we have finalised the loops, they are gonna need some 808 sounds as well as drums. similar to the loops, my collaborators and I decided that the drums should be made beforehand in preparation for the session.

Using and creating drum kits is something I am already adept in, so the method and technique to doing so is not an issue but I wanted to get some extra info on sourcing these sounds.

PRODUCTION SESSION 1 

This week, my peers and I within the group got together to create a beat for the EP. We did this at my bedroom studio and used Logic Pro X to produce the instrumental. We started off by using a loop made by D'Angelo, who made the sample in preparation for the session using his sound-design skills with 'Nexus' plug-in. We liked this one for the airy, ambient vibe to it and the sound featured a good layering of melodies and chords.



After inserting the loop, we wanted to modify the sound and clean up some of the frequencies. We first started with some basic EQ adjustments, using a 'high pass' filter to cut out unnecessary sub/low frequencies and a 'low shelf' filter to clean up some of the muddy high frequencies. This is what the EQ looked like afterwards.

We also transposed the sample by 4 semitones, which shifts the key of the sound by the selected amount. by doing this we slightly switched the overall tone of the beat, making it sound darker than the original.

After we established our driving sound, we moved onto placing in some drums and bass sounds. We decided to use my personal selection of drum kits that I had previously made in preparation for the session. We created a drum loop that consisted of some lagging hi-hats, a heavy kick and a punchy snare. This helped establish the trap element of the track

SNAPSHOT OF THE DRUM PATTERN WE MADE

After placing the drums, we then wanted to place an 808 into the tracks. We used a preset I had used for previous projects and placed in a pattern that went with the melody as well as the kick.




THIS WAS THE FINAL PRODUCT


Overall I feel this was a very good start and showed the qualities we were looking for. The sounds we used are of a high standard and we displayed a clear direction of what we are looking to create. Preparing the loops and

However, we weren't impressed with our decision flow as although everything we were doing was relevant to making the track, we felt we spent too much time deciding on the elements and aspects of the sounds being used. For example, there was too much time being spent deciding on the tone of our sample and whether we wanted it to be higher or lower. In terms of improvements for the next session, we will be looking to be swifter with creative decisions and will be looking to make the whole process a lot faster

PRODUCTION SESSION 2

This week my peers and I got to creating the second beat for the EP. The system of pre-preparing the drums and loops helped massively, so we repeated the technique in this session. This is the loop we used



We didn't want to change the sample too much as we already liked the tone and the ambient vibe it had. The only effect we added was some crackle and slight distortion using the 'Abby Road Vinyl Plug-in' which can be used to add vintage like characteristics to your sounds.

After this, we added some drill inspired hi-hats into the tracks as well as a punchy kick. These sounds were extremely similar to the sounds used in the previous tracks, which was done with the purpose to create consistency in sound. We then added an 808 bassline that went well with the sample.



UPDATE 6

This week my peers and I got to work with deciding a name for the EP as well as making a start on some artwork. Thinking of a name was difficult as we all collectively decided it had to be related to the theme of our project, which was Ambience. This took a detailed brainstorming session of researching and thinking to try and get a name. We started to look at other Ambient Album names for inspiration, many of which were unorthodox and somewhat ethereal in nature.

SOME EXAMPLES OF OTHER AMBIENT ALBUMS NAMES AND COVERS


         

Although we liked the unique sound of these titles, we wanted something that was more punchy and to the point. We also thought that the style of these names would fit better to an ambient album. While our themes and sounds will be ambient, we are looking to create an ambient-trap project so a name that sounds more modern and which would relate to younger people who listen to Ambient-Trap would fit more.

We also took into mind that we wanted our EP to have sounds related to the ambience of outer-space. This idea of a name sounding 'out of this world', reminded me of the use of ancient gods and goddesses names in popular culture. This inspired me to start researching through the names based around Greek Methodology, I found a couple that could match our theme.

1. APOLLO
Olympian god of music, poetry, art, oracles, archery, plague, medicine, sun, light and knowledge.
2. CHAOS
A god who filled the gap between Heaven and Earth and created the first beings Gaia, Tartarus, Uranus, Nyx and Erebos.
3. ASTERIA 

In Greek mythology, Asteria or Asterie was the Titan goddess of nocturnal oracles and falling stars

After looking at some of these names, My collaborators and I liked the sound of these names and decided that one of them should be the name of the project.

We decided that although the sound of Apollo was good and catchy, it has been used very frequently in pop culture and wasn't unique enough to stand out. The elements Apollo is the god of also don't really relate to our project enough for it to be a sentimental name

The problems that came up with the name Chaos were the same as Apollo, the name wasn't distinctive enough and sounded too simple for Album name. The idea of Chaos 'filling the gap between heaven and earth' sounded appealing as a relation to our themes, but this we did not see to outweigh the negatives of the name

Asteria was the name that we decided to go with as we all saw it as very unique and sounded special when saying it out loud. The relation between Asteria and falling stars was a good enough link to our project for it to match and the use of the name has been very uncommon in past music.

UPDATE 7

After finalising the name of the project, D'Angelo and I (Collaborator) wanted to make an album cover for the project. While researching and referencing other pieces of artwork related to Ambient albums and tracks, we decided that the style of these covers was too unconventional and that we wanted to create an artwork that related more to the trap aspect of our EP.

We both started to develop a draft image together using Photoshop, starting with the text. We looked at a couple different Trap albums, looking for some inspiration of the type of font we were looking to create. My collaborators and I had to decide whether we were looking for a cover with text and an image or one with just an image. We decided on one with both as to show off our name and make it memorable for the listener







We found a font that we liked and made the text, featuring the name of the EP. We added some faint shadows onto the text as well as mixing some extra shades of purple in order to make it more compelling. 

We then went on to add a marble background that we felt created a smooth and simple backdrop. The cracks within the marble we felt looked good with the shading within the text and added character

We then finally added the chain which was simply an aesthetic choice and made the artwork a bit edgier. 

This was the Draft product we had created.




UPDATE:

After reviewing the cover we created, we wanted to make some changes for the final product. We decided to add colour and emphasise the blue a bit more. We also decided that the font was too simple, so we added a clipper mask layer to the text which will paste another image over it. In this case, we decided to layer the same marble image over the text which added a lot more character to the words. 

This is the final product that we created.


UPDATE 8:


UPDATE 9: 

After creating a beat with my peers this week, The block of sounds we had created needed to be arranged into a full track. This was something I had planned to work on personally, so I looked into some different arrangement techniques and advice. Here are the videos I found the most useful in getting some of this help.





From research and previous knowledge of arrangments, I was able to get a grip on how to arrange a Trap song and some of the techniques used to do so. To get started with my group music, I started to arrange the intro to the songs in 3 different ways and then decide collectively which one was best.

1. This set of arrangement follows a stereotypical trap/drill arrangement. The intro is for 16 bars and features the introduction of the 808s and hi-hats within the 8th bar, getting the listener attracted fast but not too sudden. The verse starts as the kick begins to follow the 808 and create a groove for the track

2. This set of arrangement is a lot more subtle with its intro and has the hi-hats lead into the verse at the 8th bar and all other elements of the track following it


3. Similar to number 2, the intro is more subtle with the Hi-hats opening and the 808 not appearing until the verse. Here, the snares accompany the hi-hat in establishing a groove and adds more layers to the intro to make it more interesting


















CP: Bibliography

BIBLIOGRAPHY

CASE STUDY:

5 - (Eno, B) (1978) Ambient 1: Music for Airports liner notes. [online] Music.hyperreal.org. Available at: http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/brian_eno/MFA-txt.html.

3 - (Norman, J) (2019). George Owen Squier Invents Muzak: HistoryofInformation.com. [online] Historyofinformation.com. Available at: http://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=3366 [Accessed 31 May 2019].

5 - (Gursten, J) (2019). History of Muzak: Where Did All The Elevator Music Go? | WQXR Blog | WQXR. [online] WQXR. Available at: https://www.wqxr.org/story/history-muzak-where-did-all-elevator-music-go/ [Accessed 31 May 2019].

1 - (Kostelanetz, R.) (1993). A dictionary of the avant-gardes. 2nd ed. Schirmer Books, p.12.


6 - (T. Lysaker J.) (2018). Brian Eno’s Music for Airports 40 years later | OUPblog. [online] OUPblog. Available at: https://blog.oup.com/2018/12/brian-eno-music-for-airports/ [Accessed 31 May 2019].

2 - (Watson, M.) (2019). A Short History of Ambient & Downtempo by Mike G. [online] Ambient Music Guide. Available at: http://ambientmusicguide.com/history-of-ambient/ [Accessed 29 May 2019].

PROGRESS UPDATES:

UPDATE 1

Music, C. (2017). 10 tricks every trap producer should know. [online] MusicRadar. Available at: https://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/10-tricks-every-trap-producer-should-know-638684 [Accessed 1 Mar. 2019].

UPDATE 2

Berthume, J. (2017). Logic Pro Tip #1 - How to Make Any Instrument an Ambient Pad. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://youtu.be/3XK5GaYiKqs [Accessed 4 Jul. 2019].

UPDATE 3

Holy, H. (2019). The SECRET To Making Ambient Melodies. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://youtu.be/Y7Jywy1sDI0 [Accessed 2019].

UPDATE 4

Forbes, T. (2019). How to Use Reverb For Ambient Soundscapes - Sound Museum. [online] Sound Museum. Available at: http://sound-museum.org/how-to-use-reverb-for-ambient-soundscapes/ [Accessed 4 Jul. 2019].

UPDATE 5

MIDTERM REVIEW










Wednesday 12 June 2019

CP: Mid-Point Presentation

This week, I presented my mid-point presentation. This was a good opportunity to present my ideas and the current state of my project as well as most importantly, get feedback from peers. 

"HOW ARE YOU LOOKING TO RELEASE THE COLLABORATIVE PROJECT?"

'The project will be released through Soundcloud and will be promoted through our use of social media and sharing throughout the college.'

"WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO CREATE A PROJECT THAT CONSISTS OF A DJ SET AS WELL AS AN EP?"

The Dj aspect will be Blaine's personal side to the project. Although he will be a key part of the production and recording process, Blaine wanted to incorporate a performance for the project. He will be mixing all of our songs on the EP along with some other

"YOU MENTIONED YOUR RESEARCH INTO AMBIENCE AND THE ORIGINS, CAN YOU GIVE SOME EXAMPLES OF THESE AMBIENT ARTISTS YOU HAVE LOOKED INTO?"

Some of the originators of ambient music include artists such as Erik Satie and Claude Debussy, who both cultivated the early forms of Ambience. An example of a more modern Ambient artist would be Brian Eno, who was responsible for the genre's breakthrough and was the person who coined the phrase 'Ambience'

"IS THERE AN OVERALL CONCEPT TO THE EP?"

No, the themes are totally musical and don't really have any underlying concept. we want to make a well produced and mixed ambient-trap EP

CP: Final Product