(Technical Reference). Gone are the days when home recording was limited to four tracks of tape hiss on a cassette porta-studio. Now, limitless digital multitrack recording and a vast array of outboard effects and processors are available to anyone with a computer. Add a few other essentials such as a microphone, some headphones & monitors, and you've got a home studio capable of making professional recordings worthy of airplay and release. What you might not have is the know-how to harness all that vast potential ... which is where the Home Recording Handbook comes in. In this latest entry in Backbeat's best-selling handbook series, author Dave Hunter shows you how to make pro-sounding recordings without pro budgets. Packed with tips and techniques born out of years of recording experience, supported by specially recorded audio tracks on the accompanying CD, this is an essential volume for the working musician.

Written by an active composer, performer and educator, Sonic Art: An Introduction to Electroacoustic Music Composition provides a clear and informative introduction to the compositional techniques behind electroacoustic music. It brings together theory, aesthetics, context and practical applications to allow students to start thinking about sound creatively, and gives them the tools to compose meaningful sonic art works. In addition to explaining the techniques and philosophies of sonic art, the book examines over forty composers and their works, introducing the history and context of notable pieces, and includes chapters on how to present compositions professionally, in performance and online. The book is supported by an online software toolkit which enables readers to start creating their own compositions. Encouraging a 'hands on' approach to working with sound, Sonic Art is the perfect introduction for anyone interested in electroacoustic music and crafting art from sounds.

It is undeniable that technology has made a tangible impact on the nature of musical listening. The new media have changed our relationship with music in a myriad of ways, not least because the experience of listening can now be prolonged at will and repeated at any time and in any space. Moreover, among the more striking social phenomena ushered in by the technological revolution, one cannot fail to mention music's current status as a commodity and popular music's unprecedented global reach. In response to these new social and perceptual conditions, the act of listening has diversified into a wide range of patterns of behaviour which seem to resist any attempt at unification. Concentrated listening, the form of musical reception fostered by Western art music, now appears to be but one of the many ways in which audiences respond to organized sound. Cinema, for example, has developed specific ways of combining images and sounds; and, more recently, digital technology has redefined the standard forms of mass communication. Information is aestheticized, and music in turn is incorporated into pre-existing symbolic fields. This volume - the first in the series Musical Cultures of the Twentieth Century - offers a wide-ranging exploration of the relations between sound, technology and listening practices, considered from the complementary perspectives of art music and popular music, music theatre and multimedia, composition and performance, ethnographic and anthropological research.

Audio Production Tips: Getting the Sound Right at the Source provides practical and accessible information detailing the production processes for recording today's bands. By demonstrating how to "get the sound right at the source," author Peter Dowsett lays the appropriate framework to discuss the technical requirements of optimizing the sound of a source. Through its coverage of critical listening, pre-production, arrangement, drum tuning, gain staging and many other areas of music production, Audio Production Tips allows you to build the wide array of skills that apply to the creative process of music production. Broken into two parts, the book first presents foundational concepts followed by more specific production advice on a range of instruments. Key features: Important in-depth coverage of music theory, arrangement and its applications. Real life examples with key references to the author's music production background. Presents concepts alongside the production of a track captured specifically for the book. A detailed companion website, including audio, video, Pro Tools session files of the track recording process, and videos including accompanying audio that can be examined in the reader's DAW. Please visit the accompanying companion website, available at www.audioproductiontips.com, for resources that further support the book's practical approach.

Classical Recording: A Practical Guide in the Decca Tradition is the authoritative guide to all aspects of recording acoustic classical music. Offering detailed descriptions, diagrams, and photographs of fundamental recording techniques such as the Decca tree, this book offers a comprehensive overview of the essential skills involved in successfully producing a classical recording. Written by engineers with years of experience working for Decca and Abbey Road Studios and as freelancers, Classical Recording equips the student, the interested amateur, and the practising professional with the required knowledge and confidence to tackle everything from solo piano to opera.

Authorship Roles in Popular Music applies the critical concept of auteur theory to popular music via different aspects of production and creativity. Through critical analysis of the music itself, this book contextualizes key concepts of authorship relating to gender, race, technology, originality, uniqueness, and genius and raises important questions about the cultural constructions of authenticity, value, class, nationality, and genre. Using a range of case studies as examples, it visits areas as diverse as studio production, composition, DJing, collaboration, performance and audience. This book is an essential introduction to the critical issues and debates surrounding authorship in popular music. It is an ideal resource for students, researchers, and scholars in popular musicology and cultural studies.

The MIDI Manual: A Practical Guide to MIDI within Modern Music Production, Fourth Edition, is a complete reference on MIDI. Written by David Miles Huber (a 4x Grammy-nominated musician, producer and author), this best-selling guide provides clear explanations of what MIDI 1.0 and 2.0 are, acting as a guide for electronic instruments, the DAW, MIDI sequencing and how to make best use of them. You will learn how to set up an efficient MIDI system and how to get the most out of your production room and ultimately ... your music. Packed full of useful tips and practical examples on sequencing and mixing techniques, The MIDI Manual also covers in-depth information on system interconnections, controllers, groove tools, the DAW, synchronization and more. For the first time, the MIDI 2.0 spec is explained in light of the latest developments and is accompanied with helpful guidelines for the long-established MIDI 1.0 spec and its implementation chart. Illustrated throughout with helpful photos and screenshots, this is the most readable and clearly explained book on MIDI available.

Recording Music on Location provides an exceptional collection of information regarding all aspects of recording outside of the studio. Featuring clear explanations on how to achieve professional results, this book is divided into two distinct sections: popular music and classical music. Whether you record in the local rock club, jazz cafe, or in an orchestra hall, Bartlett offers sage advice on each stage of the process of location recording. Packed with hints and tips, this book is a great reference for anyone planning to venture outside of the studio. Audio examples, tracking sheets, weblinks, and downloadable checklists are available on the companion website at www.focalpress.com/cw/bartlett. This edition has been thoroughly updated and includes new sections on iOS devices, USB thumb-drive recorders, and digital consoles with built-in recorders, along with updated specs on recording equipment, software, and hardware. This edition will also show you how to prepare recordings for the web and live audio streaming, and covers spectral analysis, noise reduction, and parallel compression. A new case study will go in depth on classical-music recording.

Master the basics from first principles: the physics of sound, principles of hearing etc, then progress onward to fundamental digital principles, conversion, compression and coding and then onto transmission, digital audio workstations, DAT and optical disks. Get up to speed with how digital audio is used within DVD, Digital Audio Broadcasting, networked audio and MPEG transport streams. All of the key technologies are here: compression, DAT, DAB, DVD, SACD, oversampling, noise shaping and error correction theories are treated in a simple yet accurate form. Thoroughly researched, totally up-to-date and technically accurate this is the only book you need on the subject.
* Expand your knowledge with this thorough treatment of digital audio for a wide range of disciplines* Clearly explainations require a minimum of math to allow for easy understanding* Get up to speed with how digital audio is used within DVD, Digital Audio Broadcasting, networked audio and MPEG transport streams

This book examines music stores as sites of cultural production in contemporary India. Analyzing social practices of selling music in a variety of retail contexts, it focuses upon the economic and social values that are produced and circulated by music retailers in the marketplace. Based upon research conducted over a volatile ten-year period of the Indian music industry, Beaster-Jones discusses the cultural histories of the recording industry, the social changes that have accompanied India's economic liberalization reforms, and the economic realities of selling music in India as digital circulation of music recordings gradually displaced physical distribution. The volume considers the mobilization of musical, economic, and social values as a component of branding discourses in neoliberal India, as a justification for new regimes of legitimate use and intellectual property, as a scene for the performance of cosmopolitanism by shopping, and as a site of anxiety about transformations in the marketplace. It relies upon ethnographic observation and interviews from a variety of sources within the Indian music industry, including perspectives of executives at music labels, family-run and corporate music stores, and hawkers in street markets selling counterfeit recordings. This ethnography of the practices, spaces, and anxieties of selling music in urban India will be an important resource for scholars in a wide range of fields, including ethnomusicology, anthropology, popular music studies, and South Asian studies.

The story of recorded sound - the technological developments, the people that made them happen and the impact they had on society - from the earliest inventions via the phonograph to LPs, EPs and the recent resurgence of vinyl. While Thomas Edison's phonograph, the first device that could both record and reproduce sound, represented an important turning point in the story of recorded sound, it was really only the tip of the iceberg, and came after decades of invention, tinkering and experiment. Into the Groove tells the story of the birth of recorded sound, from the earliest serious attempts in the 1850s all the way up to the vinyl resurgence we're currently enjoying. This book celebrates the ingenuity, rivalries and science of the modulated groove. Vinyl collector and music buff Jonathan Scott dissects a mind-blowing feat that we all take for granted today - the domestication of sound. He examines the first attempts to record and reproduce sounds, the origin of the phonograph, and the development of commercial shellac discs. Later he moves through the fascinating story of the LP record, from the rise of electric recording to the fall of 7-inch vinyl, the competing speed and format wars, and an epilogue that takes the story up to the present-day return of vinyl to vogue. Into the Groove is the story of the science of sound - the technological developments, the humans that made them happen and the impact they had on society. It uncovers tales of intrigue and betrayal, court battles and lesser-known names who are often left out of most histories. Read this book, and find a new appreciation of the not-so-simple black disc that holds a special place in the history of music and sound.

A definitive study guide for the AS and A Level syllabuses. This comprehensive guide: * works through each component with step-by-step guides * offers tips for producing and for composing, as well as for the exam papers * includes detail on the history of recording technology and on all relevant genres of music * contains a clear glossary of all the key terms you need to know for your course

Classical Recording: A Practical Guide in the Decca Tradition is the authoritative guide to all aspects of recording acoustic classical music. Offering detailed descriptions, diagrams, and photographs of fundamental recording techniques such as the Decca tree, this book offers a comprehensive overview of the essential skills involved in successfully producing a classical recording. Written by engineers with years of experience working for Decca and Abbey Road Studios and as freelancers, Classical Recording equips the student, the interested amateur, and the practising professional with the required knowledge and confidence to tackle everything from solo piano to opera.

What is the difference between an echo and a reverberation? How do you calculate the best note to whistle in a toilet?Where do you best place microphones for that perfect recording? In this fascinating little book, musician Steve Marshall explores the subject of acoustics. From decibels to dolphins, stereo to surround, this book will appeal to singers, musicians, architects, biologists, and anyone who ever wanted to know more about the wonderful world of sound.

Becoming Elektra tells the incredible true story of the pioneering Elektra Records label and its far-sighted founder, Jac Holzman, who built a small folk imprint into a home for some of the most groundbreaking, important, and enduring music of the rock era. Placing the Elektra label in a broader context, the book presents a gripping narrative of musical and cultural history that reads like an inventory of all that is exciting and innovative about the 60s and 70s: The Doors, Love s Forever Changes, Tim Buckley s Goodbye and Hello, The Stooges, The MC5 s Kick Out The Jams, Queen and Queen II, The Incredible String Band, Carly Simon s No Secrets, and many, many more. First published in 2010, Becoming Elektra was praised as 'eye-opening (Q) and a 'dazzling narrative (The Sun), and for 'perfectly encapsulating the enigmatic, unpredictable spirit of the label (Record Collector). This fully revised and expanded edition includes a brand new foreword by John Densmore of The Doors and draws on extensive new interviews with a wide range of Elektra alumni, including Tom Paley, Judy Henske, Johnny Echols, Jean Ritchie, and Bernie Krause, as well as further conversations with Holzman himself. It also adds two new chapters: a look at Elektra in Britain in the 60s and a reappraisal of the label s 70s output.

Good live sound engineering and concert sound engineering requires more than plugging in some amplifiers and turning a few volume knobs. It demands knowledge of acoustics and electronics combined with working with a band or producer to give them the sound they want. Every venue is different -- from the cozy bar to a medium-sized concert hall to an outdoor arena -- and each brings its own challenges to audio engineering. But it's the live sound engineer's job to work with and control the acoustics and make sure the band sounds great. This book is going to be the missing link between the technical side of audio engineering and normal everyday language and understanding. It'll discuss the most important aspect of Mixing a live show, and how to be creative with the tools you are given. The idea is to go and use the book in a practical environment. In depth descriptions of what each knob does, and how they affect the end result. Musicians and aspiring live-sound professionals can lean from an expert who has mixed for acts including La Roux - The Hoosiers I Amy Winehouse I Corinne Bailey Rae- and worked sets from the main stage at Glastonbury to the local cozy bar, gleaning invaluable insight into what the pros do, how they do it, what they do it with. Readers will learn the technical, practical, and political aspects of the job - from customizing mixing approaches and choosing the right equipment to working with artists and other engineers. The book also includes insightful, sometimes bizarre, but entertaining anecdotes about the climb to the big time. Author Dave Swallow combines a lively writing style with essential details, including complete gear lists for featured tours, and informative sidebars that offer specific advice on how to get started and get the gig.

This ground-breaking book is the first-ever study of the role played in musical history by song collectors. This is the first-ever book about song collectors, music's unsung heroes. They include the Armenian priest who sacrificed his life to preserve the folk music which the Turks were trying to erase in the 1915 Genocide; the prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp who secretly noted down the songs of doomed Jewish inmates; the British singer who went veiled into Afghanistan to learn, record and perform the music the Taliban wanted to silence. Some collectors have been fired by political idealism - Bartok championing Hungarian peasant music, the Lomaxes bringing the blues out of Mississippi penitentiaries, and transmitting them to the world. Many collectors have been priests - French Jesuits noting down labyrinthine forms in eighteenth-century Beijing, English vicars tracking songs in nineteenth-century Somerset. Others have been wonderfully colourful oddballs. Today's collectors are striving heroically to preserve endangered musics, whether rare forms of Balinese gamelan, the wind-band music of Chinese villages, or the sophisticated polyphony of Central African Pygmies. With globalisation, urbanisation and Westernisation causing an irreversible erosion of the world's musical diversity, Michael Church suggests we may be seeing folk music's 'end of history'. Old forms are dying as the conditions for their survival - or replacement - disappear; the death of villages means the death of village musical culture. This ground-breaking book is the sequel to the author's award-winning The Other Classical Musics, and it concludes with an inventory of the musics now under threat, or already lost for ever.

Since its initial release in 1997, Paul Gilreath's The Guide to MIDI Orchestration has been the premiere text on creating realistic emulations of a symphony orchestra using samplers and computer recording techniques. Now in its fourth edition, The Guide to MIDI Orchestration explains how to merge this ever-expanding technology with the artistry of orchestration to produce the most lifelike recordings possible. The book is written for composers, arrangers, and MIDI musicians of all levels, and will be helpful to game composers, film and television composers, traditional orchestral composers, teachers, instructors, and the serious hobbyist. Highlights of the book include:

• Introduction to and overview of the orchestra
• In-depth discussions of each orchestral section
• Detailed information on each instrument's timbre, range and uses
• Discussions of orchestration techniques
• Demonstrations on how to build an orchestration from the ground up
• Presentations on techniques for achieving balance and musical interest
• Setup and recommendations for software and equipment
• Details on setting up a multi-computer network for use as slave computers
• Overview of software sampler and Digital Audio Workstation software
• Presentation of note entry methods
• DAW and sampler template implementation
• Detailed steps for achieving realistic reverberation and instrument placement
• Start to finish steps to achieve a final mix
• Insightful interviews with top mastering engineers

Visit

www.focalpress.com/cw/gilreath-9780240814131/

for updates and enhanced content including PDFs of orchestral library reviews and additional written content, audio files of musical examples from the book, video demonstrations, and much more.

Major Label Mastering: Professional Mastering Process distills 25 years of mastering experience at Capitol Records into practical understandings and reliable systems. Containing unparalleled insights, this book reveals the mastering tricks and techniques used by Evren Goeknar at one of the world's most notable record labels. Beginning with the requisite competencies every Mastering Engineer must develop, Major Label Mastering delves into the particulars of the mastering studio, as well as fundamental mastering tools. Included among these tools is The Five Step Mastering Process, a rigorously tested system that equips the practitioner to successfully and confidently master a project to exacting standards of audio fidelity. Covering all bases, the book discusses both macro and micro considerations: from mindset approach and connecting with clients down to detailed guidelines for processing audio, advanced methods, and audio restoration. Each chapter ends with exercises intended to deepen understanding and skill, or to supplement course study. Suitable for all levels, this is a unique resource for students, artists, and recording and Mastering Engineers alike. Major Label Mastering is supplemented by digital resources including audio examples and video tutorials.

Recording Analysis: How the Record Shapes the Song identifies and explains how the sounds imparted by recording processes enhance the artistry and expression of recorded songs. Moylan investigates how the process of recording a song transforms it into a richer experience and articulates how the unique elements of recorded sound provide essential substance and expression to recorded music. This book explores a broad array of records, evaluating the music, lyrics, social context, literary content and meaning, and offers detailed analyses of recording elements as they appear in a wide variety of tracks. Accompanied by a range of online resources, Recording Analysis is an essential read for students and academics, as well as practitioners, in the fields of record production, song-writing and popular music.

Indie Rock 101 is a clear, concise, all-in-one primer for beginning to mid-level musicians looking for the essential fundamentals behind running, recording and promoting their band. It's all the basics that can take years to collate from more specialized or technical books, magazines and websites and it s written by a real independent musician.
* Part I, Running Your Band covers the topics most relevant to forming and running the band: the people, practice and songwriting
* Part II, Recording covers pre-production considerations, gear and how-to basics, and timeless fundamentals and techniques around recording, mixing and mastering
* Part III, Promoting covers what you need to know to establish and grow your fan base, including graphic design, your press kit and website, sharing and selling your music, playing out and making a video
Whether you re just starting out or looking for a 360-degree primer to help take your music to the next level, Indie Rock 101 is the one book that covers it all.
Featuring photos and Q&As from:
Birdmonster * CDBaby founder Derek Sivers * Juliana Hatfield * John Vanderslice * Karate * Mark Kozelek of Sun Kil Moon * Spanish for 100 * World Air Guitar Champion "Hot Lixx" Hulahan and more
*Written by music industry insider, learn from someone who has been there and succeeded
*Gives insight and need to know information on running, recording and promoting your band that is usually gained through painful experience- overcome the barriers facing your band
*Get on the runway to becoming pro, explains how to navigate the music world without a label and get your music out to the world

Packed with studio tips and professional tricks and more than 200 illustrations, Secrets of Recording by Lorne Bregitzer makes it easier than ever to create pro-quality music at home. This book is the only reference you will ever need to start producing and engineering your music, or other artists' music, in your own home studio. Covering less than ideal acoustics, solving problems before they occur, tools of the editing phase, and much more, you can gain the knowledge and know-how to make your recordings sound like pro recordings -- understand the technology, use it in the right way and you can make a good recording great.
Reveals the engineering secrets used by the top producers, exposes the hidden skills of music production
Make good sound great, by understanding the technology, using it properly and applying professional techniques
For the home studio setup, be creative & resourceful and achieve great results- without professional resources!

From the paperwork to the practical aspects, Access All Areas gives you an excellent insight into the live music and touring industry. Drawing on a vast range of real-world experiences Wilkins provides you with the key technical aspects of gigging and touring in an easily understood manner. Whether you are performing in a church, club or concert hall, Access All Areas has examples and suggestions to make the event run smoothly. Gain understanding of the terms and techniques involved in live music performance. Learn what the industry use as standard equipment as well as what it does and how to use it effectively from an industry expert. If you are backstage, in front of the mic or behind the sound booth this book needs to be in your toolbox for constant reference.
* Gain expert advise on key practical areas of the live music scene and what's involved in putting a show together
* Benefit from Wilkins' extensive industry experience
* Learn how to stage an event in any venue

Pop Music Production delves into academic depths around the culture, the business, the songwriting, and most importantly, the pop music production process. Phil Harding balances autobiographical discussion of events and relationships with academic analysis to offer poignant points on the value of pure popular music, particularly in relation to BoyBands and how creative pop production and songwriting teams function. Included here are practical resources, such as recording studio equipment lists, producer business deal examples and a 12-step mixing technique, where Harding expands upon previously released material to explain how 'Stay Another Day' by East 17 changed his approach to mixing forever. However, it is important to note that Harding almost downplays his involvement in his career. At no point is he center stage; he humbly discusses his position within the greater scheme of events. Pop Music Production offers cutting-edge analysis of a genre rarely afforded academic attention. This book is aimed at lecturers and students in the subject fields of Music Production, Audio Engineering, Music Technology, Popular Songwriting Studies and Popular Music Culture. It is suitable for all levels of study from FE students through to PhD researchers. Pop Music Production is also designed as a follow-up to Harding's first book PWL from the Factory Floor (2010, Cherry Red Books), a memoir of his time working with 1980s pop production and songwriting powerhouse, Stock Aitken Waterman, at PWL Studios.

We're all able to record music; a smartphone will get you quick results. But for a good sound, a lot more is involved. Acoustics, microphone placement, and effects have a huge influence on the resulting sound. Music Production: Learn How to Record, Mix, and Master Music will teach you how to record, mix, and master music. With accessible language for both beginner and advanced readers, the book contains countless illustrations, includes tips and tricks for all the popular digital audio workstations and provides coverage of common plugins and processors. Also included is a section dedicated to mastering in a home studio. With hundreds of tips and techniques for both the starting and advanced music producer, this is your must-have guide.