Do you know where the front of the piano is? It apparently turns out that too many engineers don’t. And it turns out that I was one of them.

The other day, I opened up an email I got from Stumble Upon to peruse some new links, and came across this gem on Daniel Farris’s blog: Piano Recording: The Dumbest Popular Wisdom in Modern Record Making

Now I have not actually done any research on the piano to fact check Daniel’s post, so take all this with a grain of salt (I have some questions, too. Like what about the upright piano? Where’s the front of this instrument?).

The reason I felt inspired to share this idea with you, is because reading Daniel’s post caused me to have some epiphanies about the general understanding of capturing recordings in stereo, which I hope to further dissect and discuss. Whether or not Daniel’s post originates from knowledge that actually does reside in the history books, the ideas shared in his post are still valid in the field of creative recording, and illuminates a technique worth significant study, practice, and use. Not to mention that whenever you attend a piano recital, the instrument is positioned as Daniel has described.

For now I simply wanted to share this learning experience. Here’s the link to Daniel’s blog post: [http://danielfarris.wordpress.com/2009/02/23/piano-recording-the-dumbest-popular-wisdom-in-modern-record-making/]

Photo by woodleywonderworks. Licensed under a Creative Commons License.

After publishing my post a couple weeks ago, Record-Making Purgatory, I got to thinking about some examples of overdubbing ideas that may help spark creativity. If you’re currently stuck in a “purgatory predicament,” perhaps these suggestions will snap you out of it.

1) Overdub a second snare
Try putting an additional snare track over or under the original snare. Use a different snare/tuning/timber, and have the drummer (or anyone, really) perform this the entire length of the track. You may need to slightly edit the timing of the track later to line it up closer to the original. In the mix there are a lot of different options-wild EQ and compression settings, huge reverb, small reverb, gated, expanded, wild delay settings, or leave it totally natural. Do whatever you feel, but get creative.

2) Overdub a floor tom
Try this in sections of the song. Maybe there is a breakdown that it would fit nicely into. Maybe you simply reinforce the drum fills. If you go with the latter choice, and you know you are going to do this on the tracking day, you can plan ahead by yanking some direct mics off the drum kit to use elsewhere. Again, in the mixing phase your options are wide open to your complete creativity.

3) Overdub another part on bass
Usually when people think up parts to add to an arrangement, they never think to see what this may sound like on bass guitar. Don’t overlook this option. We did this on a project I was involved in a while back, and it was a brilliant idea.

4) Double the bass guitar with a synth bass
This can add a sub-harmonic, distorted texture under the bass. In the mix tuck it just under the original bass to make it all blend in, sounding as one part. The combined tracks can sound like the most unique bass guitar anyone has ever heard.

5) Reamp vocals
Kind of like using a synth to add a sub-harmonic texture to the bass, try adding a somewhat subliminal timber to the vocal. It will require you to obtain possession of a reamp box of some sort. I’m pleased with this one: www.reamp.com. In the mix, blend this new track under the original vocal, add a little EQ magic to the top end, and you will get a nice touch of added presence to the lead vocal (or backgrounds if you’d rather).

Hope these five ideas inspire your creative vision to help you escape the dreaded record-making purgatory. I may actually take my own advice, and try some of these ideas out on a project I’m currently working on.

I would love to know how this turns out for you. If you end up trying some of these ideas out, post links to your recordings in the comments for all of us to hear. And if you have any other creative overdub ideas that you would like share, please leave those in the comments as well.

They’re not going to steal your idea. Because it’s impossible to steal mastery of a trade.

You can’t out out “George Martin” George Martin. Or out “Prince” Prince

YOU are the magic puzzle piece that makes it all work. Don’t worry about giving away the secret to the sauce. No one can make it all work like you, because you are the magician. You are the integral piece that connects all the dots.

What you need to do is engage with your audience. Show them how it works. Expand the enthusiasm of your fans by discussing the build of whatever it is that drew them in in the first place.

“Want to know how we got the guitar to solo to sound like the end of the world? Modulated octave fuzz split through two amps. Check out my new video where I show you how.”

“Want to know we got the background vocals to sound so huge? MS and Blumlein stereo mic’ing. Head over to my blog where I explain that, along with many other recording and mixing techniques.”

They will go from enthusiastic to completely addicted, spreading your ideas, your name, and your mastery around in the process.

No one can out “You” You.

Photo by brokinhrt2. Licensed under a Creative Commons license.

Tracking day is the big day. You just committed a lot of money to the studio to make a record, and there’s no turning back now. It’s possibly the most exciting part of a project, because you’re still anticipating everything-imagining how glorious the end result will sound-yet simultaneously the project has come to fruition, because the basic tracks are being recorded right now.

Your overdubs are different. Now you’re off the big studio’s clock. The excitement from the tracking day has had time to settle, and now you’re simply putting in “another day at the office.”

This middle phase of has the potential to become record-making purgatory, where everyone is stuck with their own form of writer’s block. The artist can become unsure of themselves, bouncing from one extreme idea to another looking for direction. The A&R guy can become nervous, wondering if his project is losing competence. This can end up putting immense pressure on you to save the project.

So use the overdubs for what they are: a place take liberties. Do things that stretch the limits. Use unfamiliar gear and techniques. Employ methods that promote creative thinking; techniques that challenge writer’s block.

Overdubs are the pivital moment. They can make or break a record. It can be that one stroke of red amongst a canvas of gray. Don’t miss the opportunity to make a statement by introducing the sonic character which becomes the standard for the genre, or the hook that takes the song from average to platinum-selling hit.

Worst case scenario is that you end up with a track or two that don’t get used. You can always trim the fat, but you can’t add what’s not there.

The studio is the recordist’s instrument. It’s your moment to really dive into your creative outlet. You got into this line of work because it’s supposed to be fun. This is definitely one of your chances to make good on that.

I’ve got some friends who are a little bit older than me, and have been making records longer than me. It’s great to have these friends, as they are my mentors. They teach me things on a near daily basis. They challenge me to keep my production skills sharp.

I also have a group of friends who are a little bit younger than me for whom I act as the mentor. The (maybe not so) ironic thing is that they teach me just as much-and sometimes more-than I teach them.

This happens in three main ways:

1. They ask me questions, and I have my knowledge and skills tested because I have to come up with the “correct” answer and/or good advice.
2. They ask me questions, and I don’t know the answer. I research it, I teach it to them, I learn something new.
3. They flat out teach me something I knew nothing about.

I not only keep my skills sharp by keeping in touch with my mentors, I also constantly have my skills sharpened by the people whom I teach. It’s great to focus on networking with people who have been making records longer than you, and picking their brains for knowledge. But what action are you taking to put yourself in a position in which you can learn by teaching someone who has less experience than you?

Photo by foxypar4. Licensed under a Creative Commons license.

Can people identify your work by listening to the records you produce, record, or mix? With every project you are a part of, you should be working with this in mind. Work to establish your identity so that when people think of a certain style of music, or a certain kind of instrument, you’re the person whose name comes up in the conversation.

You should become so familiar with a certain style of music, or a particular kind of instrument, that you understand the most accurate approach to best capture and represent that music or instrument within a recording. At that point, not only will you become known for your ability to produce, capture, and mix these recordings, but your name will become synonymous with that musical style or instrument. The production will superimpose perfectly over top of the artist’s music and sound, and in turn appear completely invisible in the recording. Moreover, once you understand the rules of capturing these recordings better than anyone else, you will also know how to creatively break the rules, making for a much more interesting and rich recording.

Think about how Chris Lord-Alge is known for his ability to mix power-pop and mainstream rock, Brian Eno as the guy who produces ambient music, Joe Barresi and his ability to record rock guitars, or Stephen Street for his work in the British alternative music scene.

Just like these guys, work to become the go-to person for a certain style of music, or for recording a particular instrument.

When everything is perfectly in tune in a recording you end up with a boring recording. It’s as if the music was created in a laboratory by machines mixing chemicals together.

Consider the best, most timeless works of literature. They are often crafted with themes of imperfection, struggle, and the reformation of someone or something. Likewise, the best songs are often written using similar lyrical content. The advantage a songwriter has is that they are able to more powerfully evoke the desired emotional experience with musical accompaniment.

The producer has the opportunity (perhaps the responsibility?) to augment the emotional evocation, by utilizing production techniques which subconsciously provide context. One of the best ways to communicate the emotional imperfections and moral complications of human beings, is by using slightly out of tune instruments.

For examples of what I’m talking about, dig up your old Bob Dylan, Velvet Underground, or Pixies records. There are no shortage of fans who will regard each one of these record catalogues as timeless masterpieces, despite the fact that you can find many instances where the instrumentation is blatantly out of tune (I don’t even need to bring up Kurt Cobain, who quite possibly may be the poster child for out of tune rock guitars). And you know what? They’re right it sounds great!

Spin The Wink by The Velvet Teen is an example of a fairly recent song which has always stuck out in my mind because of the out of tune piano, which is very prominent in the intro. I don’t know if the piano is deliberately out of tune, but it certainly inspired me as a record maker. I love how the piano being out of tune adds depth, tension, and complexity to the recording.

In each one of these examples, the “tastefully out of tune” instrumentation worked. It sets up the context for the lyric. It augments the emotions in the story with human imperfections. Work to provide context for the emotions that the artist is evoking, by experimenting with the textures of slightly out of tune instrumentation.

You know that old, cheap, piece of trash gear you bought a long time ago when you were first getting into recording? That useless piece of junk that you threw in the back of the closet because it’s so awful that it’s not even worth the effort or expense to list on ebay? Use it.

Pull that thing out from under all the other junk you’re embarrassed to admit that you own, and make it the featured sound on your next recording or mix project. Not only will you find an exciting new sound that can be the center element to craft a unique mix around, but I bet you will find a whole new excitement about that old piece of garbage.

I did this a while back on a project I played guitar on. It was the perfect quirky element that allowed me to craft a space in the mix specifically for the guitar. Not only am I thrilled that I didn’t sell this piece of junk, now I proudly display it on the shelf next to all the other guitar toys I’ve collected.

Creating music is all about the story. The story within the song itself, and the underlying story of how the song was written, produced, and recorded. Not only does that old piece of garbage allow you to find new creativity, but it also becomes a part of your story as a record maker.

“What kind of keyboard is making that weird sound at the end of the chorus?”

“That’s not a keyboard. That’s actually a guitar run through this old piece of junk I had laying around.”

Photo by tombola2004. Licensed under a Creative Commons license.

The following is a post that was originally published on 6/2/08. Due to a data loss issue producer notes suffered on 6/2/08, I am republishing it today. It is the last of four posts that will be republished in an attempt to retain the integrity of producer notes.

I’m back from a two week leave from Producer Notes. My time away from here allowed me to relive a bit of pressure that built up as a result of my ongoing balancing act between my freelance production/engineering career, and the operations of my startup. I was able to do quite a bit of Radical Notion business planning, and pickup several recording sessions as well. I got a whole lot of work done, but it’s definitely not complete. I will likely have to take another leave before the summer is out. Thanks for your loyal readership, and for staying subscribed throughout this process. Now on to today’s post…

Recording should be a creative process. The technical aspect of it should be pretty much invisible. In order for that to happen, you need everything to run as smooth as possible. Nothing derails your creativity quicker than constant technical hiccups. This week I put together 5 tips that will help things feel smoother and more creative when recording your own band, or recording for someone else. This list is meant to be 5 individual tips, not a step-by-step process.

1) Plan your setup beforehand
Planning out your setup should be done at least the day before you intend to record. Determine whether you will record everyone at once, or if you will be building the recording part by part. Figure out the best use of the recording space, and the best place for each instrument within that space. After you know where you want to put the instruments you need to decide what mics and gear to use. Then patch it all up and get it ready.

2) Test your setup beforehand
Once all the equipment is setup, go through and test each input to make sure you are getting a clean signal from the mic, through any gear, to the DAW and to the headphones. An easy way to do this is simply to have a band-mate go around and talk into each mic while wearing headphones. The last thing you want is to sit down the day you are supposed to record, and realize that you are not getting any signal into your DAW. Save yourself from a massive panic attack. Test your setup the day before you record.

3) Record to an external hard drive.
Your internal system hard drive is not meant for recording! It is meant to run the operating system and other various applications that you use on a day-to-day basis, such as your DAW software. Do yourself a huge favor and buy an external hard drive. Keep your session document and audio files in a folder on this external drive. Name the folder the same name as the song. Most DAW software will take care of this folder creation/naming for you. But allocate your recordings to this new drive! Having an external hard drive also makes things more convenient when recording at several different locations. If you are taking the project to a place that has the same DAW software as you, you can bring your drive and everything should open up perfectly on the other system (this is not always true, unfortunately).

4) Simplify
You want to always keep the shortest path to the DAW. Don’t put every compressor, EQ, reverb, delay, time displacement discombobulating logarithmic refracting unit known to man in your signal chain. Refrain from over calculating things. Having more gear in the signal chain means having more things to worry about (and more noise). Leave the EQ’ing, compressing and audio time travel for the mixing stage.

5) Keep things consistent
There is no use in changing something just because. Find your basic setup, and keep it the same through the recording process. This way you eliminate the possibility of confusing anyone (or yourself) and causing a technical mess. If your setup is working fine the way it is, then there is no sense in changing what’s working.

I hope you can find a few of these tips useful. Perhaps you already knew some of them. When writing this post I thought of well over 5 tips, so I plan on making this a recurring post. If you didn’t find anything useful this time, maybe you will next time. In the meantime feel free to leave comments with your own tips. Or you could send me your tips via email at stinson[AT]producernotes[DOT]com. I might include them in a future post. Hope your recordings are full of creativity…

The following post was originally published on 5/5/08. Due to a data loss issue producer notes suffered on 6/2/08, I am republishing it today. It is the second of four posts that will be republished in an attempt to retain the integrity of producer notes.

eSession is a service that someone told me about around a year ago. I forgot all about it until it resurfaced somewhere else just recently. It’s a pretty cool idea of connecting music makers together via web based tools to collaborate on recordings. The community ranges from amateurs who make music in their spare time, to music industry professionals looking to make their next record. It costs nothing to join, but the use of the resources (various tools, community connections, disk space, etc) cost on a pay-per-use basis.

There are two ways to sign up: 1) as an eMember 2) as an eTalent member. An eMember is the standard signup method. An eTalent member is a musician or engineer who has at least 15 verifiable major label credits. The only difference between an eMember and an eTalent member is that eTalent members are publicly visible professional accounts. eMembers are not publicly visible unless someone does a search.

Please do not take this post as an official review, as I have not tried out eSession yet. The service simply piqued my interest because it’s a pretty cool idea, and it is free to join. But I am probably going to set up an account to get a better feel for how it works.

As the internet develops, the music making world continues to become an online collaboration. eSession seems to be a useful tool as studios and musicians continue to connect and collaborate with one another globally via the web.

What do you think? Is there anyone who is already using eSession? Visit the link and then come back and leave comments with your thoughts. [www.esession.com]