Music + Technology :ยงห An Introduction
Jack Oughton
Technology • Simply put I define technology as the tools we use to help us achieve an aim • The level of complexity determines the ‘height’; Low Tech -> High Tech
Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Music • • • • • •
Organized Sound/Pattern -> Example: Listened to the tracks. What do they have in common? Which did you prefer? What is music to you? Why do we have music?
Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Formal Elements of Music Music can be said to be comprised of the 3 following parts:
• Melody: – “A succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence..” • Harmony: – “The science of the structure, relations, and practical combination of notes..” • Rhythm: – “A specific kind of such a pattern, formed by a series of notes differing in duration and stress..” Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Exercise: Got rhythm?
Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
So Music + Technology = ? • Tools (tech) applied to the creation and dissemination of music. • Areas of music technology: • Recording Music: Microphone • Synthesizing Music: Synthesizer • Storing Music: Vinyl, CD • Representing Music: Musical stave, tablature. • Broadcasting Music: Radio, Internet Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Exercise: Getting Technical • Of the resources immediately available to you now, which can you use to make music from? • Try not to focus to rhythmic/percussive instruments • 1 minute! • Can you find anything that is pitched?
Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Some Examples? • • • • • • •
Pitched ruler Pitched rubber bands Blown paper Blown bottle Things you can do with your voice Ways you can use your fingers Constructing drum kits from available material in your bag? Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
• Music technology is about “organizing sound” from the resources available to you • Doesn’t have to be electronic, or even a ‘official’ musical instrument • New instruments are invented every other day. • So be resourceful!
Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
What can you do with music technology? • • • • • • •
Mastering Engineer Film Composer Performer/Musician Sound Designer Studio Recording Engineer Dialogue Replacement Foley, field recording Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Genuine badass
Advanced Music Technology • The field of Music Technology is usually associated with more advanced technology. • We study how to manipulate software and hardware • We use it in the studio • We use it live recording • Multimedia Entertainment depends on our understanding (music, film, television, computer games, theatre, art installations, etc..) Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Introduction To REAPER (Rapid Environment for Audio Production, Engineering, and Recording)
• Reaper is a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) • This is the kind of software used in the industry to create and produce music. • Though simpler than many other industry standard DAWS, Reaper is actively used by thousands of recording studios and music professionals for its simplicity and open format. Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Demo : Reaper Some things we can do with Reaper • Example: Synthesis vs. Recording: We can either generate new sound or rearrange existing sounds to create music. • Hardware vs. Software: How much studio equipment do we actually need for the purpose at hand? • Applying Effects: How we can make a preexisting sound more interesting. • Applying Presets: How we can use the expertise of others to improve and program our sounds. Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
Music Tech: Musician Empowerment • Music technology is more powerful and more cost effective than ever. • This is thanks to the falling prices and increasing capabilities of the personal computer and digital hardware. • Thanks to the internet, learning how to use these tools is as simple as searching for Youtube tutorials. • So, the boundaries to making and recording music are lower than they have ever been! • If you have ever wanted to explore music making with minimal cost outlay, now is your time. • www.reaper.fm/download.php - start here and try Reaper for free. Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij
About Jack • Jack is a musician and composer from the UK. • He got started properly recording music when a friend showed him to use Reaper. • He makes music under many musical aliases. • At the moment he writes as Xij, composing electronic and orchestral music: www.music.xijindustries.com - or Google “xij music” • Send him your tracks. He wants to hear them! Jack Oughton - www.xijindustries.com twitter.com/xij