My Original Track

For my original track, I wanted to focus on my favourite style of music, around the rnb and hip-hop genre but has a bit of the Wild Wild West theme behind.

My drumbeat I created by going into Ultrabeat and started messing around with the velocity of the notes and the rhythm. I felt that I needed to loop this throughout my track. But I as I started adding other instruments, I felt that it was becoming way too much so I reduced them by taking some out at the beginning, some from the centre and a chuck from the right. I boosted it up on the Channel EQ.

My synth sounds, I kept it simple and at first I wanted to use it a lot during my track but it was overbearing, so I ensured that it was soft but it stands out during the track. But on the channel EQ, I felt that it didnt need to be too loud and it could be still heard through the track.

I also compressed them as I felt that it could help with the sound levels so that it doesnt sound too quiet but isnt too loud.

I did the strings to add some edges. Again the notes are simple. Also to add for an edgy sound I used the clean electric guitar as it holds the notes longer and it makes my track sounds like a rocky sound. This is where the wild Wild West theme takes place. But it was too loud so I went on the channel Eq to turn it down but I ensured that it could be heard.

On the piano roll for electric guitar, I quantize them to 1/8 of a note but I didnt add any velocity as there is no need as it already adds enough high frequency.

On the other strings. The Hip Hop, I went on the Channel Eq, I turned it down.

My piano sound, I wanted it to be puncher sound and then I wanted to use another instruments chords so I copied the strings notes onto the piano instrument.

Also on the channel EQ, it had to be turned up event though I boosted the notes up on the piano roll. This had to happen as it one of the instruments that plays a main part within the track.

Then I added acoustic guitars but I copied the notes from the strings, bass and the clean electric guitar and it made it sound really soft.

I used the channel EQ on the classical acoustic guitar as I wanted it to be heard but I didnt want it to sound too bassy.

With my bass instruments, this where I felt my track wasnt complete and the bass fills it up. I made sound really bassy by turning up the velocity up.

Once I completed my track, I played it through the beginning and went onto the automation and either turned down or up all the instruments. As you can see, I through each section of the song soloed 2 instruments at a time together and sorted out the levels, I boosted the drums, synths, classical guitar and the others were turned down as these were the one that were overpowering the entire song.

Then finish and tide up the song, I went on the main mixer and mixed it down. I changed the tempo of the track as it sounded to slow and boring and I bused them into 4 tracks so that the levels were balanced and then bounced it down.

My Remix Track

For my remix, I wanted to stick with a simple R&B song so I decided to remix one of my favourite artists Janet Jackson. To make my remix easier for myself, I decided to get an accapella of just the vocals. So I went on YouTube and requested for the accapella and downloaded it as an mp3 and imported it onto Logic. Then I started to play the track through and looped certain vocals to think if I could use it in my track and then I came across the chorus when Janet sings Got Me So & Excited. I decided to use them only for the chorus of the track. I cut up the vocals and put them into two different audio channels. I used the fade tool to fade in out the vocals as it is an accapella track. On the channel EQ I ensured that both were levelled right so that its not loud or quiet. I also used the vocal transformer when she sings Got Me So.

Then I needed to come up with a drum beat, so I went onto the Ultrabeat drum plugin and started looking through the different drum instruments and I choose to use the Hiphop beat. Once I choose what tempo of the drum pattern for my track, I dragged it onto logic and copied it over throughout my track. But as I got into the track more, I realised I wanted to be some changes so at times during the track I took some of drums out in certain places or I shorten the notes.

The next step was to do the strings. I choose the Hip-Hop string instrument and for my first part of track I create a simple melody and then for the chorus, I copied the drum beat pattern onto the string instrument to build up the track. I felt for an RnB remix its important to ensure that the tracks has a change of melodies within the song so that its not to repetitive. Again I changed the string pattern when it was going into the bridge/outro section by cutting the string notes shorter and allows the song to finish fast. Then I went on the channel EQ and turned it up as I wanted it to stand out more. As you can below are the strings quantized and all the different patterns involved during the string chord changes. At times where the speed of the notes went faster and others were played to a normal speed.

The next step was to do the piano. I created two different piano channels as they were done differently. The first piano was placed at the beginning of the track with the original piano recording and the other was when I used the string recording and copied it onto the piano instrument track. I created chords in some parts and others fast note changing that I used from the string recordings. As you can from the piano roll, there are a lot of sections from piano recording some I created and the others that I copied from the drum beat. I quantized each note from the one I recorded because I didnt press it hard enough when I recorded so I went on the piano roll and chose the velocity tool and started to increase each notes velocity so that it can be heard when it plays. Then I went on the channel EQ and gave it a boost.

The next to do was the bass. I created two channels of bass as it was divided between the chorus section and the verse section. The chorus section of the bass also had simple chords that seemed to fit in well and the verse section of the bass was very quick and bouncy where I copied the drums chords into the bass. At the end of the track the bass picks up speed with the other instruments and creates good ending. On the piano shows how the notes scattered is when they are played.

On the channel EQ there is a boost given to the bass as I wanted to it fill up the track and also it makes the track more enjoyable for anyone to listen to but there is also a dip in the EQ as it can affect the frequency.

Then I compressed the bass by turning the gain down.

The next to do was tenor saxophone. Again I created a simple melody to it and then I copied it again as these were just featuring in the chorus of the song. I quantized them to of a note. This instrument couldnt be heard so I went on the channel EQ and boosted them up. On the piano roll, I had selected all the notes and used the velocity tool and boosted them up as well because when I recorded it didnt seem to play the notes hard as I did.

Next to was the Beach Bells. I copied the piano instruments onto the beach bells. I wanted the beach bells to create an atmosphere effect. On the channel Eq, I created a small increase of volume. They were quantized on the piano roll to a of a note.

The final instrument I created was the electric guitar. This is where I start to add another genre of a rocky sound. I copied the drum recording on my electric guitar instrument. On the channel Eq I turned it up for it to be heard because during that section that it is playing its suppose to come in strong. On the piano roll I quantized it to of the note as it was playing at a quick speed.

After completing the entire track, I sort out the sound levels by going onto the automation and listening through the song and turning certain instruments up or down to a certain/right level.