MPR6C001R~001 25105083-Coursework & Project Context: Reggae Vibes

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Alister Tucker 25105083

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MPR6C001R~001 Coursework & Project Context

Project Proposal

Production-Project-Proposal-20260507100136Download

Production Project Files (80%)

Requirement: 25 to 35 minutes of music.

Total Music Length Submitted: 25 minutes 49 seconds

With EXTRA Track (Grow them: mangroves): 28 minutes 28 seconds

Submitted tracks:

  • 2:43 All (ochra and dahl)
  • 1:51 Crave
  • 1:41 Opportunity
  • 3:18 I Come ‘Bout
  • 3:52 Dance the night
  • 3:52 King Trod
  • 2:50 Sound Thriller Trumpet
  • 2:50 Agent of Love
  • 4:12 101
  • 2:39 EXTRA Track: Grow them: mangroves [NOTE ONLY IF ALLOWED – SUBMITTED AS PART OF FINAL PROJECT: PRODUCTION (Interdisciplinary/Collaborative Project) (SHR6E032F). IF NOT ALLOWED, PLEASE DISREGARD.]

SET 1: Music written, played and produced (and mixed) by myself

    Track 1: All (ochra and dahl) [2:43]

    Track 2: Crave [1:51]

    Track 3: Opportunity [1:41]

    Track 4: I Come ‘Bout [3:18]

    Track 5: King Trod [2:31]

    EXTRA Track 6: Grow them (mangroves) [2:39]

    SET 2. Music I produced (and mixed), played by others (live bands)

    Track 7: Sound Thriller Trumpet [2:50]

    Track 8: Agent of Love [2:50]

    Track 9: 101 [4:12]

    SET 3: Music I produced (and wrote), played and improved by experienced musicians

    Track 10: Dance the night [3:52]

    Progress and Management Records (20%)

    TITLE: Creating and producing original reggae music

    Project Aim: To create a suite of original and newly mixed music in the reggae genera to build up my portfolio of music and skills, and start to build my own original style of production.

    Objectives:

    Produce (mix and master) the following:

    1) A set of original tracks, created by myself, of between 1.5 to 4 minutes in length, to fully understand the process of making music from scratch.

    2) A set of existing music tracks, produced by myself and played by bands to expand the range of material I work with.

    3) Producing a song with an artist to add variety to my ability.

    The total length of music to be produced should be between 25 and 35 minutes in length.

    Motivation

    Concentrating on reggae music allows me to further my personal interests in the craft of the genera. My objective is to produce the sounds that I can hear in my mind, and make music that is pleasing. In my previous experience I have always had an engineer to produce the music, who have missed some dynamics in the music which I wanted to include. This experience led me to believe that if I am capable, I would be able to mix my own music to its full potential which will lift the dynamics I hear. This is my personal goal in taking this BA in Music Production.

    This project was designed to help me improve my ability in creating and mixing music alone. I took the task to create new material and to apply some of the techniques I learned in good recording and mixing practices.

    I wanted to carry out this project and create a suite of reggae music to be able to mix and master the music myself. I can then add my personal input into this mix too to start to build my unique style.

    Reggae Genera

    The music will be in the reggae style (including roots reggae, lovers rock and dancehall reggae). Reggae is characterised by a slow-to-moderate tempo, heavy bass, electric guitar chords and one of 4 different drum patterns. one-drop, rock steady, rockers and steppers. A one-drop rhythm, made popular by Bob Marley in the song ‘one’ drop, is where the first beat is dropped (is silent), the second beat often is accented by the rhythm guitar or keyboard, the third beat often has a heavy hit from the kick (bass) drum and a snare rim-click (cross-stick) and the fourth beat has an accent from the guitar or keys. This creates a sway, rather than a march.

    Management Plan

    Workflow

    1. Equipment Check: Before staring recording, I start the computer and DAW, and check all equipment and mics are functioning correctly.
    2. Studio Template: I start by opening my studio template in the DAW (Figure 1). This gives a jump-start to my workflow.
    3. Add instruments/vocals: I set up my project with instrumentation and gain staging. I then record my vocals and build midi tracks (Figure 3) around that. This allows me to easily edit and input ideas while listening so my audio files would have already been corrected for mixing.
    4. Export to audio files: Bounce in place to audio.
    5. Stack track: I stack-track as this helps me to use one fader to control sections of the music while mixing. It also assists me in easily finding if there is a problem section (eg too loud). These steps encourage a faster flow (see Figure 4 and 5).
    6. Panning. I then start panning which is where the mixing process starts (Figure 6). Panning finds room around the speaker to give different instruments their space. Panning and volume levelling can give context to the music and once this is done right, the mixing and mastering is more straight forward.
    7. Mixing (EQ and Plug-ins): I route my tracks through buses to an auxilary channel strip where I add EQs or plug-ins if needed, according to mixing chain for best results, as this gives more control over the project outcome and are tools for shaping sound.
    8. Effects: Compression, saturation, reverb, delay and other effects may be used at this stage if needed.
    9. Alternative mix: I then make an alternative project (Figure 7) with an alternative mix which I compare with the original, and think about what I can merge to make a better mix. This process may be iterative for my benefit.
    10. Bounce: I then bounce and listen to the song, so that if changes in the mix are needed, I can do so immediately.
    11. Listening: Throughout the process of creation and editing, listening is key. For this is good to refer to a listening framework (see Figure 2). For listening, a good environment and regular breaks are needed, including listening to other music.
    Figure 1: Studio Template

    Figure 2: Example Listening Framework (Hepworth-Sawyer & Golding, 2011)

    Figure 3: Example of music being written in midi

    Figure 4: Example showing Track Stack closed

    Figure 5: Example showing Track Stack open

    Figure 6: Example of Panning
    Figure 7: Example showing Project Alternatives

    Project Outputs

    1. Set 1: I created 5 (+1 extra) tracks completely by myself for this project. This included the creation of all material. I produced (wrote, created and mixed) these tracks from scratch, therefore I know all the ins and out of them, which gives me a better scope and sure direction for the final production and improves my confidence in my ability to work alone.
    2. Set 2: I also used some my original live band music to experience mixing live music in 3 tracks. In this set, I created the music which was improved by experienced band members during recording, hence the initial ideas are mine. In my productions, I also source backing vocals and harmonies in order to get a fuller and more professional sound. I mixed all these tracks.
    3. Set 3: I also mixed a set of electronic music (1 track). This music was produced for my studio. It is electronic music, and on this track, I am producing an artist called, ‘Regimental’ in Newcastle. I have written the lyrics and part of his vocals can be heard on the track. I mixed this track.

    This was my own individual specialist project and I worked alone to achieve results in my home studio (see Figures 8 and 9 and Videos 1 and 2 below). I was able to complete the project within the specified time.

    Figure 8: Example of myself in my home studio. Also showing room sound sanitization.
    Figure 9: Example of myself singing in my home studio

    Video 1: Example of myself in my home studio testing and setting up my studio equipment.

    Video 2: Example of myself in my studio with my studio equipment, integrating live music with electronic music.

    Project Outcomes

    In order to accomplish my project, I started by researching reference material on music production, mixing and mastering (see Bibliography). I did some research on different techniques and found which one I was most comfortable with. My creativity went well and my best practice of levels and panning, and following the mixing chain has yielded the results I wanted. My general understanding of shaping and manipulating sound has improved. However, I did not get enough time to mix the tracks as I wanted to because I spent more time in creation than mixing. I will apply my knowledge to all of my work going forward from here using the same approach and techniqe. One aspect I found difficult, was receiving qualified feedback in the music production process as reggae is not such a popular genre with the mixing engineers in the northeast.

    For myself during this process, I found that recording vocals first really helped the process. This gives me an impulse to react musically to the vocals. In my previous projects I tried to sing the song out whilst creating the music but this was not as good as hearing the vocals directly and proved slow. I also did some merging of electronic and live bass on the track called ‘opportunity’. The outcome of me going through the process of this project has made me more eager to create and go full steam ahead using the techniques, tools and principles I found available for music production.

    References:

    Books:

    • Burgess R,J., 2013 The art of music production: the theory and the practice (4th edition)
    • Camps D. Music Production 101: The new way to produce music at home or anywhere.
    • Gibson D. 1997 The art of mixing: a visual guide to recording, engineering and production. ISBN 0-928371-17-1
    • Hepworth-Sawyer R., Golding C. 2011 What is music production? A producers guide: the role, the people, the process.
    • Savage S. 2014 Mixing and mastering in the box: the guide to making great mixes and final masters on your computer. Oxford University Press.
    • Brecht De Man B., Stables R. & Reiss J.D., 2020. Intelligent music production. Routledge. ISBN 978-9-315-16610-0

    YouTube: