Music Mixing Research Articles

Mixing audio: concepts, practices, and tools

Mixing remains one of the most illusive arts of recording practice and can take a life time to master. Looking at practices, concepts, tools and mixing instruments the author provides a comprehensive insight to the art and science of mixing. Whether a hobbyist of professional this book covers basic concepts to advanced techniques as well as tips and tricks and is a vital read for anyone wanting to succeed in the field of mixing. This book is accompanied by the website www.mixingaudio.com, featuring a sample chapter, illustrations, audio and a user forum. It is rounded, extensive and offers complete coverage of music mixing. It includes a DVD with over 700 audio samples and 4 sample mixes. It covers new topics and mixing trends such as computer centred mixing.

A smart background music mixing algorithm for portable digital imaging devices

In this paper, we propose a smart background music (BGM) mixing algorithm for portable digital imaging devices to enable users to enjoy video content with BGM. The proposed algorithm automatically adjusts the BGM output energy based on the activity and energy of foreground audio (FGA) contained in a video file. To this end, the proposed algorithm classifies each segment of FGA as speech, non-speech, or a mixed signal. After that, it estimates a scale factor for mixing FGA and BGM according to the signal classification result and the energy of FGA. In addition, a fade-in and fade-out process is incorporated in the proposed algorithm in order to improve the perceptual quality of output audio at the boundaries where signal classification is changed. In order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, we implement it on a portable digital imaging device in real time and compare the user's preference of the proposed algorithm with those of conventional algorithms that mixes FGA with BGM based on voice activity detection or a predefined fixed scale factor. It is shown from the experiments that the proposed algorithm is pretty much preferred by around 79%, compared to the conventional algorithms.

A Real-Time Semiautonomous Audio Panning System for Music Mixing

A real-time semiautonomous stereo panning system for music mixing has been implemented. The system uses spectral decomposition, constraint rules, and cross-adaptive algorithms to perform real-time placement of sources in a stereo mix. A subjective evaluation test was devised to evaluate its quality against human panning. It was shown that the automatic panning technique performed better than a nonexpert and showed no significant statistical difference to the performance of a professional mixing engineer.

Model Development of Isan Country Song Compositions for Economic, Social and Cultural Value-Added

Problem statement: Country Song was related to history, society, culture and economic. The objectives of this study were: (1) the historical background in composing the Isan Country Song, (2) the current situation and problem of composing style of Isan Country Song and (3) the development of composing pattern the Isan Country Song for elevating the economic value. Approach: The research area consisted of Isan Region including Chiaya Phume, Ubon Rachatani, Amnat Charoen and Sri-Sa-ket Provinces. The samples providing information included 170 persons. The instruments using for collecting data included: The Survey Form, Interview Form, Focus Group Discussion and Participatory Workshop. The data were classified into groups. Qualitative data were analyzed according to the specified objectives. The research findings were presented in descriptive analysis. Results: The research findings found that the historical background of Isan Country Song, reflected lifestyle, social situation, ideal, and Thai Culture with the rhyme developed from traditional Country Song blending with Big Brand Music Band mixing with the local singing words and rhythm. The current situation and problem after listening to the Country Song was more increasing popular since there were many song composers and chords. There were advertisements through the media as radio, television, mobile phone and internet network. Therefore, the buying and selling of song were easier and quicker. For the song composing, the text of a song didn’t focus on the rhyme and lacked of morality enhancement. The supplementary music sometimes lacked of beauty based on aesthetic principle. For the commercial problems, there were many violations of right. Consequently, the entrepreneur sometimes faced with the lost. For development, the god points of Isan Country Song were analyzed both of the text and rhyme. The composed song model was created by bringing Pentatonic scale mixing with message of Dorian Mode. The musical instrument using for playing consisted of Isan Country Song and Western Music. Conclusion/Recommendations: Isan Country Song was still necessary for opposing the entertainment like the villager representatives. Besides, it could be developed for beauty based on music principle. In some viewpoints, it could be used as commercial usefulness. Therefore, in order to maintain the identity of Country Song which needed to be studied for knowing the development of song work, it would be good. This research could be able to be a model for new style Country Song.

«Il Club Silencio». Alcuni aspetti dell’uso del sonoro nel cinema di David Lynch

In his own words, David Lynch moved from paintings to movies through his ear. Since the beginning of his career, he has been taking charge of every sound layer in his films – music composition, sound engineering, design, editing, mixing and post-production. Moreover, as it is quite known, he has been collaborating for the last twenty years with composer Angelo Badalamenti. Anyway, what is most striking in Lynch’s production is that sound becomes a sort of ‘detonator’ in several layers of interpretation of his movies: narrative, linguistic, and aesthetic. Boundaries between music, sound effects, noises, and voices on the one side, images, colours, frames, and movement on the other become fluid, thanks to the ‘compositional’ approach of the director. That makes Lynch a remarkable case study as far as the redefinition of audiovisual analysis in contemporary cinema is concerned. I will focus on a famous and enigmatic sequence extrapolated from Mulholland Dr. (2001) – the one set in Club Silencio – and I will try to spot some remarkable features of the director’s treatment of ‘film composition’. The method of analysis I use, modelled on Michel Chion’s reflections, meets of course some difficulties by approaching this fluid and fleeting audiovisual text. Nevertheless, to take as a starting point the notion of ‘synchronous’ in Chion’s meaning, allows me to reconsider the meta-linguistic element such predominant in this sequence and to assume that David Lynch gives the spectator a subconscious key of interpretation, by manipulating the whole sound factor.

Use of genetic algorithms for Indian music mixing

Music has changed and evolved through time and time tells that it has always been for the better. In our study, we have implemented Genetic Algorithms for the generation of music by music mixing to provide willing music lovers, the first step to personalize music to suit their liking. A music loop library, containing a list of all tentative loops which are to be used in the remix production alongwith the parameters which define them, is used for this purpose. A loop is an endless band of tape or music allowing continuous repetition. These loops cover all the major music instrument families with particular emphasis on Indian musical instruments as they have been extracted from Indian songs after careful observation using a sound editor. The combinations of different loops for the analysis is run through genetic algorithms. Some important parameters of a loop from the point of view of music mixing are: Depth, BPM (beats per minute), length of the loop and type of the instrument. A fitness function is calculated for the genetic algorithm to rank various combinations of loops for the next generation. The best loop combination can be selected out of the final set of population.

An innovative professional music recording/monitoring space

A new kind of professional recording/monitoring space has been designed and constructed as part of the Blackbird Studio complex in Nashville, Tennessee. The room will be introduced and the early subjective impressions will be discussed. The objective of this new room was threefold: first, to provide a surround mixing space with much-improved virtual source localization over a broader footprint in the space, second, to provide a highly diffuse space for the recording of live music performances by one or more vocalists and/or musicians, and third, to investigate a largely diffuse monitoring environment as it might benefit the quality and/or efficiency of professional music mixing in different formats. This presentation will discuss some of the results and some of the surprise outcomes, including practitioner-reported improvements in quickly attaining comprehensive, surgical equalization of sources, possibly attributable to an environment with somewhat more equal reverb times across the frequency spectrum.

Carnival in Galicia Scattered Ants, Whipped Backs, and Hammered Plowshares

Vigorous masking, dancing, music, drinking, and celebratory chaos mixing old and new animate Carnival in Portugal and northern Spain. Harris attended five Galician carnivals in 1998, reporting here on his experiences.

Evaluation of multitrack recording practices in rock and roll

Pop and rock music reaches its listeners using loudspeakers as the interface between the recording medium and the acoustic environment. The art of creating pop music recordings relies on a terrific amount of audio equipment to not just capture but also enhance the musical instruments recorded. In the never-ending search for a more compelling loudspeaker playback experience, the equipment of the recording studio is often used in unexpected and creative ways. The application of signal processing to multitrack pop music occurs using approaches that are accessible, but not necessarily intuitive to the acoustician. In this presentation the snare drum is studied to provide a view of some modern multitrack music recording and mixing techniques. The sound of the drum is analyzed both before and after some typical signal processing in an attempt to quantify the motivation behind these recording practices. Microphone selection and placement priorities are discussed. The application of equalization, compression, and ambience effects is analyzed. The perceptual significance of some processes is demonstrated through the playback of audio examples, both before and after signal processing. A live multitrack mixdown in which discreet elements of the mix can be isolated for evaluation is presented.

Art and Music Mix Well

Art and Music Mix Well