Music has always had the power to transport us to different worlds and evoke a range of emotions. Part of the reason, why I keep various playlists for each memory, location, travel trip, etc. Creating a flawless music track can be challenging, especially when dealing with instrument fluctuations and background disturbances. It was exciting to see the transformation that creative editing can bring when I recently got the chance to help a friend edit his music track. I am, by no means a music producer; but, it was fun while I was standing behind him, listening to the track on a pair of Yamaha HS8 Studio Monitors. The music editing software Ableton seems like a boon to the musicians.
The following are some of the processes and techniques I used (or rather I suggested to use, while he did the work) to enhance the track, resulting in a more polished and captivating auditory experience.
Reducing Vocal Track and Adding Bass:
The recording we had done took place in the balcony of our apartment, this introduced unwanted traffic noises into the track. Pretty sure one guy on the bike was doing rounds on the road just to mess with us. Anyway, to address this issue, I suggested reducing the vocal track at the particular place where the honking (noises) was prominent. By doing so, we minimized the distraction caused by the external sounds and allowed the focus to shift back to the main vocals and instruments.
In addition to reducing the vocal track, I recommended adding a touch of bass to the mix. The bass serves as a foundation for the music, providing depth and enhancing the overall auditory experience. By subtly adding a strum of the bass guitar and boosting the bass frequency, we were able to create a richer sound. It added a new layer of warmth and energy, elevating the track to a more professional level. Fist bump!
Extrapolating and Replicating the Guitar Beat:
A particularly noteworthy part of the song was a section where the vocalist, who also played the guitar, drummed on the guitar to create a beat. The effect of this rhythm, nevertheless, wasn’t as strong as expected. I suggested to extrapolate and duplicate the beat to a new section of the track, this helped to make it more audible and noticeable throughout the track. This made it possible for the beat to stand out from the background noise adding a memorable and catchy component.
Final Notes
As I said, I am by no means a music producer; And, in the world of music editing, having access to powerful software can greatly enhance the creative process for a polished product. Ableton’s comprehensive set of tools and effects enabled us to tackle the specific challenges we encountered during the editing process. Whether it was reducing the vocal track, adding bass, or extrapolating and replicating the guitar beat, Ableton Live provided us with the necessary tools to achieve our desired results.
The software had an extensive library of sound samples and effects, and this helped us to experiment with different sounds, textures, and arrangements to tailor the track to our creative vision.
Special thanks to ChatGPT for helping me rewrite parts of this, refining the language, and adding an unnecessary number of adjectives. Been planning to use it to write a post, and today seemed like the right day.
© 2023 Ajan Kancharla