It's been a good while since I have posted anything here. Trust me, the irony has not been lost on me. Given my proclivity (oooh, that's a good word) to ramble on generally, I have clearly been, it would seem, holding back.
In truth lots has been going on and I really cannot account for why I have not taken the time to write more here. So for some odd reason, late at night, tonight, when I should well be asleep, I have decided that it's time to remedy that.
The family is great and I am as ever the luckiest man in the world.
As for projects, that has been quite a ride lately. For a good bit now the main thrust of my "free time" has been to deal with the perfecting the EARS™ concept and the unreal amount of work that goes along with the related intellectual property issues. On the whole it is going very well, but wow, lots of work. EARS™ has taken on a level of legitimacy that I cannot fully express. It is a unique feeling to know, with 100% certainty that something works as it should. Wonderful, but unique. At least for me.
I have also, after what seems like far too long, really gotten a sense of my next musical project. It's called "With One Voice" and it will very much feature my lovely Michele. I don't wanna give too much away just yet, but I have been quite captivated by a band from my past called Jellyfish - you should check them out - and when combined with my love of the Beatles, Queen and a few others, it got me thinking...and then my friends George and Nils (seriously, how lucky am I?) both gave me, without likely realizing it, some great ideas for how to go about creating the music. Very very VERY excited. Anyway, more on that later....
Right now my other push is a book about CMAS. Or maybe more accurately, my sense of what I have learned from creating and facilitating CMAS. I am not kidding. A book feels like a good idea right now. Even if only as a kind of cathartic exercise, it might prove useful.
I already have some of the chapters/major topics worked out:
(in no particular order at this time)
1. The Music Eduction World is NOT Changing. It's Already Changed.
2. Seriously? You're saying I should do my job less effectively to keep you from having to do yours as well?
3. Money isn't everything, but you cannot expect to run most music programs on very much these days
4. There are only two kinds of music: good and bad.
5. Arrogance is the enemy.
6. Education decisions should always be made based on what;s best for kids, not adults.
7. Yeah. You heard me right. It's not just a music program, it's a legitimate record label. Get over it.
There are surely to be more, but that's what I have so far. My real issue is the book's title. I suppose I will eventually stumble upon it but for some reason I feel like until I have it I cannot truly write. As of now, I am leaning towards:
"I've Come to Kill Your Music Program"
but I am open to other ideas if you have any.
Showing posts with label Crossfeed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Crossfeed. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Monday, November 2, 2009
Turn up the silence - are iPods and other mp3 players the enemy?
Many of my students are, at times, of the impression that I deliberately try to act against their own sense of logic. Now, to be fair, there is probably some truth to that idea, though not in the manner they identify.
One example would be my desire for a fairly quiet learning environment. Keep in mind that I run a music program. A rock music program. But here's the thing: the issue is not so much the "quiet," it's the need to be able to accurately hear everything.
This has been one of the more significant learning experiences for me in developing and facilitating the CMAS (Contemporary Music and Sound) program. I guess I've been doing so much of this kind of work for so long that the notion of being able to really hear the details seemed kinda self-evident to me. Apparently not.
On the other hand, it's not really the students' fault. The proliferation of iPods and mp3 players (I have a treasured iPod myself) has been a really good thing in many ways, except perhaps for one: they create an artificial sense of auditory isolation. I say artificial because the fact is that by listening almost exclusively in headphones a person simply does not hear the elements of the recording accurately. Not even close. It's just the physics of it. (See my comments about crossfeeding for more on this and how to get around the problem.)
So they have learned to hear very inaccurately, and this inaccuracy has created a false sense of auditory reality when they work. The toughest lesson I find for even my more advanced level students is the process of replacing their past auditory expectations with new, more accurate, instincts. It takes a while, but it certainly can be done; and it's very cool when one of them takes a step forward on it, but it definitely takes some pretty serious patience to say nothing of deliberate, work on their part.
Like everything else though it is a process. One I suppose I have become somewhat hypersensitive to. I love my iPod but actually use it almost exclusively as part of my car audio system - I rarely use it with headphones. In fact, now that I am so obsessed with crossfeeding, I am not certain I could use it with headphones and not go a bit nuts without some kind of CF workaround - gotta look into that I suppose.
Anyway, back to my students and my love of messing with their logic - it's really not about the silence, it's about being able to hear. On the other hand, I always know when a student really has learned the key elements of the program: when they are able to make the distinction freely on their own. Who knows, maybe in this case, logic is over-rated.
One example would be my desire for a fairly quiet learning environment. Keep in mind that I run a music program. A rock music program. But here's the thing: the issue is not so much the "quiet," it's the need to be able to accurately hear everything.
This has been one of the more significant learning experiences for me in developing and facilitating the CMAS (Contemporary Music and Sound) program. I guess I've been doing so much of this kind of work for so long that the notion of being able to really hear the details seemed kinda self-evident to me. Apparently not.
On the other hand, it's not really the students' fault. The proliferation of iPods and mp3 players (I have a treasured iPod myself) has been a really good thing in many ways, except perhaps for one: they create an artificial sense of auditory isolation. I say artificial because the fact is that by listening almost exclusively in headphones a person simply does not hear the elements of the recording accurately. Not even close. It's just the physics of it. (See my comments about crossfeeding for more on this and how to get around the problem.)
So they have learned to hear very inaccurately, and this inaccuracy has created a false sense of auditory reality when they work. The toughest lesson I find for even my more advanced level students is the process of replacing their past auditory expectations with new, more accurate, instincts. It takes a while, but it certainly can be done; and it's very cool when one of them takes a step forward on it, but it definitely takes some pretty serious patience to say nothing of deliberate, work on their part.
Like everything else though it is a process. One I suppose I have become somewhat hypersensitive to. I love my iPod but actually use it almost exclusively as part of my car audio system - I rarely use it with headphones. In fact, now that I am so obsessed with crossfeeding, I am not certain I could use it with headphones and not go a bit nuts without some kind of CF workaround - gotta look into that I suppose.
Anyway, back to my students and my love of messing with their logic - it's really not about the silence, it's about being able to hear. On the other hand, I always know when a student really has learned the key elements of the program: when they are able to make the distinction freely on their own. Who knows, maybe in this case, logic is over-rated.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Wolves and Sheep (update)
Somewhere in the chaos I had the idea that at least part of this blog would be to document the creation of my next album, "Wolves and Sheep," so taking a bit of a break from my music education observations, here's the current scoop:
So right now there are about 15 songs in various states of completion - in other words, the basic framework is complete, though there may be some minor re-writing to do on either the music, lyrics, or both. Of those, 5 or so are fully composed, though I suppose once I get to tracking them in the studio, a whole 'nother set of options will likely open up. There are also a literally countless group of riffs and ideas that may or may not turn into fully formed pieces. Also, in general, nothing is for sure till the song is fully realized in production, so certainly those numbers are gonna change.
In any case, the seemingly endless stops and starts on this for the past year or so seem to be finally aligning themselves into a workable plan and the project is beginning to take a form of sorts. The basic idea is to create a two part CD. The first half will be the music presented in "normal" mixes for standard audio systems like home stereos, cars, etc. The second half will be the same material presented in crossfed mixes specifically intended for headphone listening, which, thanks to the massive popularity of mp3 players, has become an equally typical listening environment.
Of course with the limitation of only 80 minutes available on a CD, this really means only 40 minutes of unique material. Interestingly, this is having the unintended effect making me be perceived by some as a kind of recording arts purist as that is pretty much the limit that was experienced during the years when vinyl records were the standard format for distribution. To be fair, I probably am a bit of a purest in general, but it was only recently that I found it evidenced in such a way.
Ok, so enough the trivial, the real essence of this project seems to be that the sound itself has evolved significantly over the past year or so. As an example, the rhythm tracks are all being dominated by really cool world percussion grooves that I have to say have been a blast to compose, play and record. There are still drum kits within the textures, but there is a different kind of life to these tunes largely due to the timbre shift. Another element taking hold is the use of choirs. Full on, massive choirs, in some cases, not just the expected, if not typical, vocal harmonies and overdubbing. Certainly this is adding a significant load to the production end of things; but, man, it's also really pushing me musically, which, all the rest of it aside, I find just fantastic.
The last part of all of it may be the more "ambient" material that has been emerging lately. It seems to be an offshoot of a lot of the looping I seem to be fond of when performing live, but that is not always a true representation of the original recording of the song. Hard to tell at this point where that is gonna lead, but I guess that's the beauty of all this. As it evolves, I can continue to update.
So right now there are about 15 songs in various states of completion - in other words, the basic framework is complete, though there may be some minor re-writing to do on either the music, lyrics, or both. Of those, 5 or so are fully composed, though I suppose once I get to tracking them in the studio, a whole 'nother set of options will likely open up. There are also a literally countless group of riffs and ideas that may or may not turn into fully formed pieces. Also, in general, nothing is for sure till the song is fully realized in production, so certainly those numbers are gonna change.
In any case, the seemingly endless stops and starts on this for the past year or so seem to be finally aligning themselves into a workable plan and the project is beginning to take a form of sorts. The basic idea is to create a two part CD. The first half will be the music presented in "normal" mixes for standard audio systems like home stereos, cars, etc. The second half will be the same material presented in crossfed mixes specifically intended for headphone listening, which, thanks to the massive popularity of mp3 players, has become an equally typical listening environment.
Of course with the limitation of only 80 minutes available on a CD, this really means only 40 minutes of unique material. Interestingly, this is having the unintended effect making me be perceived by some as a kind of recording arts purist as that is pretty much the limit that was experienced during the years when vinyl records were the standard format for distribution. To be fair, I probably am a bit of a purest in general, but it was only recently that I found it evidenced in such a way.
Ok, so enough the trivial, the real essence of this project seems to be that the sound itself has evolved significantly over the past year or so. As an example, the rhythm tracks are all being dominated by really cool world percussion grooves that I have to say have been a blast to compose, play and record. There are still drum kits within the textures, but there is a different kind of life to these tunes largely due to the timbre shift. Another element taking hold is the use of choirs. Full on, massive choirs, in some cases, not just the expected, if not typical, vocal harmonies and overdubbing. Certainly this is adding a significant load to the production end of things; but, man, it's also really pushing me musically, which, all the rest of it aside, I find just fantastic.
The last part of all of it may be the more "ambient" material that has been emerging lately. It seems to be an offshoot of a lot of the looping I seem to be fond of when performing live, but that is not always a true representation of the original recording of the song. Hard to tell at this point where that is gonna lead, but I guess that's the beauty of all this. As it evolves, I can continue to update.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
A working theory
I recently had the opportunity to do some final testing on my crossfeeding headphone mixing procedures and I am happy to report that it is, so far, remarkably successful. The basics of this last testing was pretty simple. I produced an entire 23 track CD - about 70 minutes of music with a wide variance in style/genre - entirely using my crossfeeding methods.
The proof of the success was equally simple. The sample tracks of the final CD have gone over unbelievably well. The implications of this are pretty significant. The most obvious are that I am now capable of doing high end studio work pretty much anywhere, anytime - a blissfully freeing notion. It also means an incredibly important tool for my students. It means that the cost of a "pure" room for mixing, for anyone, is now rooted almost entirely in the cost of a high quality set of headphones - imagine, for example, the benefit to college students studying audio production living in dorms. (FYI, Earbuds, and anything by Bose, are not going to be acceptable for any kind of quality result due to a lack of uniform frequency response and a significant tendency to color the sound, respectively.) There is also the possibility of creating a version of the process within the RTAS, VST, and AU plug-in formats which might mean a viable monetizing opportunity.
Anyway, as this all begins to play out, it is really exciting to know that the results are being so well received. Makes me feel like there are countless possibility opening up.
The proof of the success was equally simple. The sample tracks of the final CD have gone over unbelievably well. The implications of this are pretty significant. The most obvious are that I am now capable of doing high end studio work pretty much anywhere, anytime - a blissfully freeing notion. It also means an incredibly important tool for my students. It means that the cost of a "pure" room for mixing, for anyone, is now rooted almost entirely in the cost of a high quality set of headphones - imagine, for example, the benefit to college students studying audio production living in dorms. (FYI, Earbuds, and anything by Bose, are not going to be acceptable for any kind of quality result due to a lack of uniform frequency response and a significant tendency to color the sound, respectively.) There is also the possibility of creating a version of the process within the RTAS, VST, and AU plug-in formats which might mean a viable monetizing opportunity.
Anyway, as this all begins to play out, it is really exciting to know that the results are being so well received. Makes me feel like there are countless possibility opening up.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Crossfeed the what?
So for some time now I have been toying with the seemingly simple concept of being able to do accurate audio mixing with headphones as opposed to standard monitors, the usual term is called "Crossfeeding" and over time I have become a huge fan of it. It started out as just a kind of frivolity - I just thought it might be fun to see what was possible.
But in more recent times it started to become a more significant and legitimate goal. The driving force was really the birth of my first son Gray. My wife Michele has always been pretty tolerant of the studio work I do at home - in fact, she is pretty accomplished on ProTools herself - but when Gray was born a bit over two years ago, it became obvious that a change was needed if I was ever going to be able to get any work done consistently. To be fair, "Dude, "as we sometimes call him, has a pretty good sense of what works in a mix himself; but let's face it, he's still just a two year old, and daddy's work only keeps him interested for so long. Plus, I'm used to working late at night, and that train pretty much left the station once Gray was in the picture, just from a purely practical standpoint.
My other motivation was to create a viable tool for my students to do their work. (I created a Contemporary Music program a few years ago for a public high school that has proven incredibly successful - I got very lucky; more on that in another post very soon) Anyway, there is a practical matter for them both in the recording labs at the school, and also, like me, if they choose to do work at home. So between my own curiosity and needs, and those of my students, it - accurate headphone mixing - became a more pressing priority recently.
Fortunately, the concept has been around for quite some time, originally gaining some prominence, at least in theory, in the early 1970s, so there was a lot of data to cull and develop the methodology I am currently employing. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge a very serious piece of work from John Conover dealing with the spacial distortion research of Siegfried Linkwitz. This pretty much is what allowed me to create the final, successful utility for ProTools.
There are a lot of products these days, particularly higher end headphone amps, and even headphones themselves, making use of various algorithms to create the same effect I have generated, but I find myself now somewhat addicted to the tweaking process and it has been fun to work to fully refine my own method.
So as my new Crossfeeding obsession grows - not insignificant towards my motivation is the success I am having at accurately being able to to mix with a good set f headphones - I began to formulate a way to perhaps rethink my entire creative process as well, not just the way I mix. And thus I came upon "Crossfeed the Mix." A kind of band mentality, even though it's pretty much just me for now. I have no idea where it will take me, but it has been very freeing already not to think of my creative output as me, but as "Crossfeed..." Perhaps it is just my imagination, but as I tell my students, the ability to be able to push your creative process is a powerful and wonderful thing if you handle it the right way.
As I begin work on a new CD, I plan to document my progress in these posts as well as the progress of my other creative ventures, including the music education program I mentioned above and my production company too. Certainly, some family items will make appearances as well, and to that end I figure if nothing else, years from now, should I proved disciplined to keep this up, these posts will help serve as a way for my kids (and grand kids someday) to learn more about me. Not a bad motivator that one either.
But in more recent times it started to become a more significant and legitimate goal. The driving force was really the birth of my first son Gray. My wife Michele has always been pretty tolerant of the studio work I do at home - in fact, she is pretty accomplished on ProTools herself - but when Gray was born a bit over two years ago, it became obvious that a change was needed if I was ever going to be able to get any work done consistently. To be fair, "Dude, "as we sometimes call him, has a pretty good sense of what works in a mix himself; but let's face it, he's still just a two year old, and daddy's work only keeps him interested for so long. Plus, I'm used to working late at night, and that train pretty much left the station once Gray was in the picture, just from a purely practical standpoint.
My other motivation was to create a viable tool for my students to do their work. (I created a Contemporary Music program a few years ago for a public high school that has proven incredibly successful - I got very lucky; more on that in another post very soon) Anyway, there is a practical matter for them both in the recording labs at the school, and also, like me, if they choose to do work at home. So between my own curiosity and needs, and those of my students, it - accurate headphone mixing - became a more pressing priority recently.
Fortunately, the concept has been around for quite some time, originally gaining some prominence, at least in theory, in the early 1970s, so there was a lot of data to cull and develop the methodology I am currently employing. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge a very serious piece of work from John Conover dealing with the spacial distortion research of Siegfried Linkwitz. This pretty much is what allowed me to create the final, successful utility for ProTools.
There are a lot of products these days, particularly higher end headphone amps, and even headphones themselves, making use of various algorithms to create the same effect I have generated, but I find myself now somewhat addicted to the tweaking process and it has been fun to work to fully refine my own method.
So as my new Crossfeeding obsession grows - not insignificant towards my motivation is the success I am having at accurately being able to to mix with a good set f headphones - I began to formulate a way to perhaps rethink my entire creative process as well, not just the way I mix. And thus I came upon "Crossfeed the Mix." A kind of band mentality, even though it's pretty much just me for now. I have no idea where it will take me, but it has been very freeing already not to think of my creative output as me, but as "Crossfeed..." Perhaps it is just my imagination, but as I tell my students, the ability to be able to push your creative process is a powerful and wonderful thing if you handle it the right way.
As I begin work on a new CD, I plan to document my progress in these posts as well as the progress of my other creative ventures, including the music education program I mentioned above and my production company too. Certainly, some family items will make appearances as well, and to that end I figure if nothing else, years from now, should I proved disciplined to keep this up, these posts will help serve as a way for my kids (and grand kids someday) to learn more about me. Not a bad motivator that one either.
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