Making a remix EP
Background of the study
The 21st century has seen a transition in the music industry in the sense that musicians have had a tendency of pirating music that belonged to a different party. This has been encouraged by the public listeners that have developed a passion for unoriginal music. As a result, musicians whose songs are remixed normally come to some sort of agreement with others with the interest of remixing their songs on order to legitimize the procedure.
Statement of the problem
Despite the formal agreements between original music owners and prospective second owners through remixes, there has been a debate on whether it is possible to make a remix version of a song sound better than the original song on a smaller budget as compared to the original budget. This is a relative question that is dependent on quite a number of factors including production time difference of the two songs. Therefore, this paper tries to assess the credibility of the claim that it is possible to make a remix version of a song sound better that the original version on a smaller budget.
Objectives of the study
Null Hypothesis
It is not possible to make a remix version of an original song sound better than the original version on a small budget.
Comprehensive steps of remixing a song
A remix is typically an original version of a song re-done to provide an entirely different sound. In order to achieve this, one may come up with a new music from scratch or alternatively replace a song with loops obtained from an existing song. This is done by:
1st step-Extracting vocals from a chosen track
This is done by cutting the vocals and subdividing them into phrases that can be timed easily. Additionally, one may opt to change the vocal line completely. An amazing way to achieve this is to know the quality of music from which only vocals can be extracted without any other part of the song. It is imperative to get this procedure right since the quality of the final sound is entirely dependent on the clarity of the vocals extracted (Crane, and Albine, 2007).
The most trustworthy source of a song with such clarity is an original acapella obtained from trusted websites. In addition to an original acapella, the achievement of clear vocal relies on other factors. These include the cancellation of the related music bed with the help of its direct instrumental complement and the use of centralized channels of extraction equipments with the help of perfect quality sound editing software.
This procedure is normally followed by the replacement of the vocals with an entirely new voice. It is to some sense a cover version of the original song (Crane, and Albine, 2007). However, if the new vocalist sounds almost the same as the previous then the song becomes a perfect remix. One ought to keep limited background noise so that the final outcome is not clouded music.
Timeframe step 1
This step is estimated at a timeframe of 120 hours due to it technicality.
2nd step-Coming up with the vocal bed
This process begins with identifying a suitable musical key for the new track. It is important to note that this is done with the help of loops obtained from either the original version of the song, other tracks or coming up with completely original beats. In this second step, one also needs to build beats for the remix from scratch. In addition to building beats, instrumentals too are needed for this process. This is an implication that beats and instrumentals are built concurrently (Lessig, 2009).
The most reliable way to come up with a musical key is to play the original song using a piano or a guitar in order to ascertain the musical key that best suits the remix. One can definitely pick portions of a song that lack lyrics and loop it. The trick is to always ensure that the tempos match. This is very much the manner in which a DJ mixes different tracks in a live concert.
Making beats is alternatively the easiest way to go. This is done with the help of a beat maker, mostly BTV solo because it is known to make perfect beats (Spaulding, and Gisnash, 2008). The created music bed and lyrics with the same key and tempo are then loaded to one’s preferred DAW software. An amicable tool for this procedure is usually Albeton.
Timeframe step 2
This step is relatively easy and may take approximately 70 hours to complete.
3rd step-Arranging the entire song to come up with an entirely different version of the original
This involves taking the created music bed together with the vocal track and positioning them in a customized manner to fit one’s own preferences. At this point, one may opt to leave the song at that. Alternatively, others opt to use sound effects in a creative manner in order to come up with an entirely different twist of the remix version of the song (Spaulding, and Gisnash, 2008).
It is important to note that before one maps the vocals and beats, he may still be running the two on multi-track mode. It is at this point when it is advisable to include other effects like delays and reverbs in order to pimp the song. All the same, this is one’s musical creations that he or she may opt to include or keep out according to own preferences.
Timeframe step 3
Since this step involves the amalgamation of the results form steps 1 and 2, it is estimated to take about 100 hours.
Total Time
Having combined all the hours in the three steps for making a remix, the whole project is estimated to take a total time frame of 290 hours.
Equipments
In order to carry out this proposal, one ought to acquire the following equipments. This procedure involves the use of computer software that is downloadable from the internet. The equipments and software include:
- Computer (desktop or laptop with perfect processing speed)
- Perfect sound editing software
- Piano
- Guitar
- Beat maker (BTV Solo)
- DAW Software (Albeton)
All these tools should be submitted for assessment in order to come up with the intended results of the research.
Reasons for carrying out this research proposal
As already mentioned, it is quite a challenge to know whether remixes are cheaply created as compared to their original versions. This is the reason why I am carrying out this research in order to draw a clear line between these two mind-boggling entities. I am quite prepared to conduct this research because of its readily outsourced equipments. I am positive that this work will enhance my professional development in research and data analysis in the sense that I will improve my ability to process, analyze and evaluate data.
References
Crane, L., & Albine, S. (2007). Tape op: The book about creative music recording, Vol. II. Sacramento, CA: SingleFin.
Knobel, M., & Lankshear, C. (2010). DIY media: Creating, sharing and learning with new technologies. New York: Peter Lang.
Lessig, L. (2009). Remix: Making art and commerce thrive in the hybrid economy. New York: Penguin Books.
Spaulding, J., & Gisnash, S. (2008). Career building through digital sampling and remixing. New York: Rosen Pub. Group.
