Recording drums — Overheads: the XY and M/S techniques - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 23
LearningAs I told you last week, there are several techniques to record the incredibly important drum overheads stereo track. We already saw the ORTF method and today we'll dive into the XY and M/S technique…
An interview with producer and Live expert Laura Escudé - From Violins to Ableton
Interview / PodcastLaura Escudé, who performs under the name "Alluxe," has built a successful and eclectic career in the music world as a producer, performer, and programmer. An expert in Ableton Live—she was Ableton’s…
The traps of automation - Glitches and clicks - A guide to mixing music - Part 118
LearningToday I'll write the second part of our brief compilation of the most common mistakes and issues when dealing with automation.
Recording drums — Overheads and the ORTF technique - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 22
LearningThis week we'll focus on, in my opinion, the most important track when it comes to recording drums: overheads.
The traps of automation - Part 1 - A guide to mixing music - Part 117
LearningAs we've seen in the past weeks, automation is no rocket science or black magic. However, when it comes to putting it all into practice there are some pitfalls you should try to avoid. Here's a brief…
Recording drums — Mono Room - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 21
LearningIn this episode we'll start discussing the recording of drums with what is usually called the Mono Room track, which is much more important than it seems...
Handling intro-verse-chorus transitions with automation - A guide to mixing music - Part 116
LearningWith this article I'll close the automation "tips and tricks" chapter by approaching it from a song structure point of view. This time we'll deal with how to put together different puzzle pieces like…
Recording drums — Introduction - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 20
LearningToday we'll begin discussing a topic that will take us several weeks to cover: recording drums.
An interview with legendary producer/engineer Ed Cherney - For the Joy of It
Interview / PodcastTalk about an impressive career—Ed Cherney has produced or engineered a veritable who’s who of iconic musicians including Bonnie Raitt, Eric Clapton, Iggy Pop, The Rolling Stones, Buddy Guy, Bob Dyla…
Highlighting background instruments - A guide to mixing music - Part 115
LearningToday I invite you to join me in discovering some automation techniques that take advantage of our animal instincts to give some background life to your music.
The importance of good tuning - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 19
LearningThis week I invite you to discuss the importance of tuning in a recording situation.
Automation - Tips and Tricks - A guide to mixing music - Part 114
LearningIn the previous episode we saw how you can, in theory, make use of human instincts to keep the attention of the listeners throughout an entire song, simple as it may be. This week I'll reveal some tr…
The bothers of a home studio - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 18
LearningToday I'll address some constraints inherent to recording in a home studio. Being aware of these issues will allow you to prevent them more easily to avoid any unwanted noises making their way into y…
Instinct and automation - A guide to mixing music - Part 113
LearningToday we'll look into a concept that's relatively simple to understand and which will be of a lot of help when you automate your mixes.
Recording a hardware synth - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 17
LearningThis week we'll tackle a somewhat peculiar case: hardware synthesizers.
Automation - A case study, looking into the details - A guide to mixing music - Part 112
LearningLast week Yours Truly had the boldness of giving you some homework: to analyze the mix of "The Look" from an automation point of view. This week it is my turn to do the honors.
Tidy up! - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 16
LearningI'll dedicate the first article of the year in this series to tidiness in your home studio. I know it seems a bit off-topic, but trust me it is much more important than it appears at first sight.
Automation - A case study - A guide to mixing music - Part 111
LearningIn my opinion, automation is at the core of a well-accomplished mix. And yet, as I have pointed out numerous times, this stage is often neglected by beginners, most certainly due to a lack of underst…
The 3:1 rule - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 15
LearningIn this episode I invite you to discover a trick that every beginner ought to know, the so-called 3:1 rule.
Automating the star of your mix - A guide to mixing music - Part 110
LearningToday we'll see how to automate the most important track of your mix. This is usually the vocal track, but it might as well be a solo instrument. The true star of your song deserves special attention…
Recording a pizzicato double bass - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 14
LearningAfter having recorded a bowed upright bass last week, today we'll see how to track a double bass played with the fingers, a technique called pizzicato.
A top producer/engineer on technique, gear and recordin… - Talking Shop with Dave O'Donnell
LearningWhat do Keith Richards, James Taylor, Katy Perry, John Mayer and Eric Clapton have in common? They’ve all had albums produced, mixed, or engineered by Dave O’Donnell. A native of upstate New York, Da…
How to automate your mix - A guide to mixing music - Part 109
LearningUp to now we've seen automation from a relatively theoretical point of view. That's all very nice, but the time has come to really take the plunge. And that's when the questions start to arise: how s…
Recording a bowed upright bass - The ultimate guide to audio recording - Part 13
LearningIn this article we'll see how to record an upright bass played with a bow. But don't worry, we'll also see how to record a pizzicato double bass in our next article.
A guide to mixing music - Part 108 - The levers for artistic automation
LearningToday we'll look at the parameters better suited for artistic automation.
