AUD210 Wrap-Up

This entry is an overall wrap-up of AUD210 at SAE and my experiences along the way! Please be kind…I am a Student.

The first project I undertook this trimester (No, I am not, and nor could I ever be pregnant) was a cover of a Southern American Hip Hop, rock infused track- 'Till It's Gone' by artist Yelawolf. We took on a group member late into the project, Cody. He was a great member of the team, but it was a difficult process getting up to speed with the direction of the project so late into pre-production. My role was to co-produce, help with live recording set-up, and co-mixing. We were rushed in the final week due to failure to follow the production plan timeline and found areas that needed improvement post final mixing, like; further brightening of the guitars, bass line etc. More care during the recording phase to remove some mistakes. On the whole, I am reasonably pleased with the outcome. Improvement requires more experience in production and researching mixing techniques, but this was a fun project to do.

Working at Triple M and Hit 105 radio has opened some Interesting doors for me to say the least. From setting up sound and lighting for gigs and sporting events (Live…literally for the band, Live), working on the street team with promotions and sponsored events, and now to producing material for them. Myself and Peter were asked by content directors at Triple M to create a Jingle for a Peanut Company. The idea was to introduce a tongue twister segment, where listeners had to repeat ‘Pick the Peanuts Picky Peanut People Pick’. A Mouthful, right? I did some small editing and arrangement, set up the live room for recording, and some vocals. Our finished product was then sent off to the client for viewing…and we nailed it. Our jingle, along with other Triple M content, beat out other radio stations entries including fierce rivals, Nova! My employers loved the product and will now come to me for added input on jingle development in the future!! Not a bad effort considering we were given 3 days to complete the jingle and the only time we could get a studio booked was 09:00am the morning after the Triple M Xmas party….

Yeah, they sure know how to throw a good time! For the purposes of another side project, myself and Peter took on a Sound replacement video that was taken from YouTube. This was actually a very fun, educational project and a good way to familiarize ourselves with next trimesters assessments. We took a Zoom H4n recorder off campus to record some clock samples, and also used the SAE stairwell to record some footsteps. Then we used Pro Tools video editing to combine the recordings/samples, and used MIDI keyboard and Logic Pro to create some Melodies and synths etc. Throw in some timing editing, and we had smashed it. I really look forward to next year at school and tackling bigger projects like this one. I still have a lot to learn about editing video in Pro Tools, but at least I have some point of reference to build from...

Now... onto the Interdisciplinary Task... the most daunting task to me personally. I am still learning how to make the music I WANT to produce...let alone be trusted to make something to someone else's project!! This was going to require some networking for a helping hand. I helped form a group and took on a project where we had to design Jackie Chan style audio for an animation sequence. I helped with some of the arrangement of the project and some researching for samples. Whilst my input was minimal due to lack of experience outside of my current capabilities, it was a great learning experience seeing how to tackle such a project that I was unfamiliar with. Learning with others and getting out of comfort zones was very helpful and informative!! For future trimesters, I now have a bit of a blue print to produce such a task!

The commencement of Project Two took a while.... too long to be honest! I found it difficult to get into a group for project two after missing a Monday class due to work commitments. So I took on a solo project later in the Tri, with plenty of help and direction from my man Tav. I tackled the melody whilst Tav handled the percussion for it. I need much more experience in self Producing which stems from my lack of facilities at home and not being able to practice as much that is required. I am definitely moving forward from zero experience, but I can still be doing better. But, with networking, problem solving and much research on mixing techniques, I believe I have presented a pretty decent re-imagining of a Slaughterhouse classic, 'SayDatThen'....

Standout Moments for me throughout the 12 week Trimester... (Keeping in mind I am a noob)

*I struggle with Ableton in a production sense. The layout confuses me. I will continue to learn on it, but not before I familiarize myself with the use of A DAW, full stop. Logic Pro has a friendlier interface to me. Whilst I am still in the development stage of my practices, Logic will be my main source of Digital Audio Workstation, along with Pro Tools.

*I have now used a MIDI instrument to record original and covered melodies, which is also a first, and the legalities behind using samples.

*Then there is putting synths via sampling into a MIDI keyboard and also creating a vocal synth that was used on multiple projects over the past 12 weeks.

*The recording and setting up of live instruments for the purposes of Hip Hop production

* The importance of mic positioning in regard to Hip Hop and mixing/production techniques like vocal/guitar layering and kick drum booster signal generating.

* I have worked for a client to perform under deadlines with Triple M.

*Used DAW’s for producing and editing a video clip.

*How to critically analyse a song and deconstruct the making of said song, for educational purposes. A chance to generate new ideas from pre-existing ones that have spawned from professionals and maybe use those techniques.

*I have also learned how to network a tiny bit better this Tri and have now made some good interdisciplinary partnerships that I hope to carry into future projects.

*The importance of keeping a steady workflow. Doing things at the last minute just won't cut it in the professional world.

*The importance of blogging. Begrudgingly. It helps me layout out my learning in written form. I can then improve by being able to consistently revisit past work and build from it. Break new boundaries and try new ideas.

After a mid-trimester chat with my Lecturer Nick, we determined that Self Confidence and Time management need improvement. At the end now, I feel these soft skills still need work. I need to understand that this whole learning thing is a long ass process and it won’t happen overnight. I can't let myself get dejected when under pressure. Which also stems into managing my time better.

Having DAW’s at home is going to be another big step in a positive direction for learning. It will allow me to conduct more tutorials online when I am not at work or school and carry out their corresponding exercises. This is a must if I am going to complete full solo projects and interdisciplinary practices. Allocation of time is going to be different next Tri for me also. It took a long time to understand the general feel/flow of the Tri and an understanding of what was expected of me: but through error, error and a bit of trial, more consistent effort is needed from me. Other than that, I feel I am performing well under pressure even though it is self-imposed. If I can keep the workflow moving consistently, I see considerable room for quick improvement. The development of my blogging skills over the last four weeks is noticeable to say the least. I have proved to myself I can work at this pace, so why not keep it up? Further networking with other disciplines can also be a great help to me in the future. I also wish to increase my online presence by uploading actual solo productions. I am not ready for this yet, but it is a goal of mine none the less.

I feel after the completion of all 5 of the projects I have been involved in, I have really taken big steps in the right direction. Having no real experience producing before this Tri was a challenge, and I have a long way to go. And even though I left myself rushing around a bit towards the end, I think I worked well under pressure and came up with a reasonably decent portfolio of work. I know my areas of required improvement as just mentioned. This music thing is all still new to me, and with hard work and a bit of direction from lecturers and fellow budding industry practitioners, I feel I can continue to grow and learn far more than I have in the coming blocks of study.

References-

Images taken from Google Images