fourth day: THE MUSIC BOX number

Yeah. 

I was totally burned out on the song yesterday.

I listened to it again.

I totally love it.

These are times that i actually kinda wished i took crack because then it would explain these crazy bouts of insecurity that I go through. I could just say, Oh yeah. I'm sorry. That was just the hit of crack i took before i listened to it. My bad. To be fair though, I'm pretty sure all writers, actors, and anyone else in the creative arts goes through it too. That wall of extreme self doubt where the sky is where the ground should be and hamsters rule the world.

You know, that place.

Anyway, I get over my lame-assed self and jump back into the tracks.

Finesse the mix.

good.

Move stuff around to match the vocal timing.

much better.

Finesse again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

And again.

Listen to it on BOSE headphones.

gorgeous.

Listen to it on ear buds

a little less gorgeous but still totally enjoyable.

Listen to it on computer

Not ideal but absolutely acceptable.

I remove the vocal track and export the orchestration to Itunes.

I see Garage Band doing something all fancy pants 'creating mixdowns' and such.

huh.

I don't know what's happening there but i hope it makes it better and not worse with the mix.

ITunes pops up and my song starts to play.

Oh my God....

I think I'm going to cry.

Please Garage Band.

Marry me.

Be my partner for all time and I will love you forever and ever.

IT'S.

BEAUTIFUL!

And it's done.

Unbelievable.

Three days.

I'm just...

I'm relieved, grateful and in a weird way?

already mourning working on it.

The thought of working on a new song is exciting and yet...

I'm a little sad, I'm not gonna lie.

Kinda like getting back in the dating world.

You're excited to start a new relationship but you're still carrying that last one in your DNA.

Ohhhhhh MUSIC BOX NUMBER...

Don't hate me because 12 tracks are the accepted number for an album.

we had such a magical three days...

and I will see you again come time for vocal tracks...

but in the meantime...

I will hold you close to my heart...

and think of you fondly....

....as i totes start dating another song.

sorry, Poodle.

xoxo

dl

*sigh*

I wake up.

I listen to THE MUSIC BOX number.

I hate it.

I put it away and come home after work.

I lay down a test vocal track.

I hate it even more.

What happened?

What happened to my ears?

Andy thinks I burned out on the song and need to come back to it after 24 hours.

I think I'm a talentless hack with no taste.

There are worse things...

i guess.

xo

dl

THE MUSIC BOX song, day two

Ok.

Before i jump into day two of the MUSIC BOX NUMBER...

I have a 'mixing' issue.

So, anyone out there feel free to jump in with a solution if you have one.

I'm working in Garage Band on my MAC and i have a sweet pair of BOSE headphones. Obviously, they are the shizzlet. The battery ran down on them so i used some medium quality ear buds to keep working and wtf. I mean, i knew there would be a difference between the quality of the sound, maybe the volume and stuff but... 

on another set of head phones all of a sudden it sounds like a monkey went into my computer with a fucking hammer. 

what the hell?

So.

Obviously i need to stay on the same pair of headphones for consistency in mixing but what happens if i mix on fancy BOSE headphones and someone out there gets my CD and listens to it on some ear buds. And even worse, just on their computer or something with no real speakers at all. Will they think I'm a hack. Will I actually be a hack for letting that happen because I'm a total newbie-douche with all this stuff?

Is then the solution to mix with the crappiest ear gear i have? Making a mix that sounds good with crap ear phones sound awesome with great ear phones? Or is the opposite way the best to go? 

Or perhaps it's a layered approach?

Start on BOSE phones to mix, then move down to the ear buds to finesse and finally 'test' it through my computer speakers and finesse some more?

Anyway.

I could (and will, if i have to) figure this out through trial and error but if anyone out there has a suggestion on the headphone mixing situation, I'd be thrilled to save the time and energy figuring it out myself.

So.

Back to THE MUSIC BOX NUMBER.

With the headphone situation I'm a little hesitant to finesse the strings because of the discrepancy but...

i can still hear there's something missing.

What is it.

What's the problem here.

Even though it's a 'memory piece' and can afford to be on the slightly gauzy side...

i think it still lacks bite.

The notes in the center need more of an attack.

I need something more solid in there to balance out all the wateriness of the strings and then eventual vocal.

I have a steady beat with the percussiveness of the chimes/steel strings but it needs to be sharper? Maybe? I try to take out reverb. 

No. That doesn't work. 

I try to harden my climbing 'cello' lines to give it more of an 'attack' sound. 

No. Shittles. 

This whole 'flashback' thing with the center of the song for me has always had a 'Viennese Waltz' kind of thing so it's why I'm so dead wanting the strings but...

oh wait.

wait wait wait wait wait.

no.

could it work?

maybe......

I wasn't planning to use accordion on this song at all but...

maybe it's not a Viennese sound at all...

maybe it is a French sound.

and that could be pretty cool.

I drag the old beast out from the closet. 

I check the clock. 

11:30pm. 

Ew. 

That's not really cool to be playing accordion at 11:30pm. But then, I remember that my three neighbors work at night too so maybe it'll be cool? Maybe they're not even home yet. Well, it's NYC. If they have a problem with it I'm sure they'll find a way to let me know. This usually involves security knocking on my door. Bless. 

It's a risk but...unless someone complains... 

the muse has struck and i am laying her down now, chicklets!

I start with playing on the '2,3' of the measures since i have the bass strings hitting on the down beat. I play it back. Oh fucking HELL THAT'S AWESOME! It's really haunting but also totally within the musical palette of this number. I'm already chastising myself for not thinking of this all along.

Inspired, I double the last half of the bass string line to see if it won't give it more edge on the big climax.

holy fuck balls...i friggin LOVE it.

Even more inspired, I decide to add an entire accordion solo in a section i was really not sure of what to do with anyway. In the original arrangement, a huge chorus comes in and sort of sings 'Ah' a la Harry Potter meets Danny Elfman? Which i love but, a big chorus is so not part of what I'm going for on this CD. I considered maybe doing a three part vocal arrangement there on 'ahs' myself but was never really crazy about that either. However structurally, I really wanted to keep that section in, so what i needed was something to encapsulate 'the past' there. I take a stab at using the accordion instead.

It fits.

It's perfect.

I can't stop listening to it.

It now sounds like this sort of time machine back to a little European street corner in front of a french bistro or something. 

Holy Jeeze Balls.

I absolutely love it.

SO fricking excited about this idea.

What i'm not excited about is the incredible 'clacking' my accordion keys make. I will literally have to go in garage band later and try to isolate and take out as many as i can. Sounds like fun. I hope i can be drunk and do that. 

It's pretty quick work to fill in the rest of the arrangement now that i have the lynch pin of the accordion. it just makes everything make musical sense to me. Everything comes in a rush and i try to keep up. 

Holy cow.

it's done.

I mean, it's not DONE done.

I still need to lay down a test vocal track for timing, ritards, accels, etc

and do a loooootttttt more mixing but...

It's got a beginning, middle and end where there was just nothing 24 hours ago.

This is amazing to me.

I look at the clock, 2:45am.

Good Lord.

Where does the time go?

I say a quiet thank you to my neighbors for not calling security on me..

and make a mental note to not do anything acoustic after 11pm ever again. 

Best not to push it with the neighbors.

And ultimately, it's just uncool to do.

Must reign in nocturnal muse.

I go to bed with my head swimming.

After lying there, i look at the clock.

3:30am.

I sneak over to my computer and listen to it again.

I'm like a kid at Christmas.

Well, either that or a crack addict.

I only let myself listen to it once and then go back to bed.

Smiling.

This is already way too much fun.

G'night.

xoxo

dl

Track One: “THE MUSIC BOX”

Day one on the Music Box number.

I lerrrvvv this song by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. I heard it in a movie years ago and burst into tears about halfway through. It didn't hurt that it was also sung by one of my all time favorite singers, Liz Callaway. 

The thing with this arrangement is because of the movie it was in- the arrangement served more the movie’s dramatic‘montage’ instead of it’s own natural musical line.  It had a rather robust swell in the middle, that’s always struck me as too much too early when just listening to the song alone. My hope is to create an arrangement that serves the song instead- with the swell creeping in, twice instead of once. ‘Earning’ the final climax as opposed to just hitting you between the eyes too early on.

I’m working on this number first because it will possibly be one of the most layered tracks on the album. It’s a ‘memory’ piece and so I can afford to use more synth,  less acoustic, reverb the crap out of it and get away with it not sounding like ass?

Maybe?

While I’ve said it before…

I’ll say it again.

Crappy synth sounds make me throw up a little bit in my mouth. They’re not my favorite thing on a CD and I really despise them in orchestra pits. 

And mine are not awesome.

Not at all.

This has to be addressed because I refuse for my CD to sound like a demo.*

*Demos are CDs of songs that composers put together and then use to shop their show around. I guess I probably record upwards of 15-20 demos a year, and they’re almost always completely synthed.  Even the piano, making the synthed demo a double-edged sword, I think.  On the one hand, it allows potential producers to ‘hear’ what the score might  sound like all fleshed out orchestrally. And that’s good. On the other hand, it screams “I HAVE NO MONEY!” Which is of course is obviously the reason you have a demo in the first place but… as you inevitably can’t avoid that cheap after taste kinda stank in your mouth that bad synths leave…not good.

So.

Yeah.

New main goal.

Avoid the ‘demo factor’ at all costs.

Question is how?

Here are my options for the synthed string situation.

1) Get the Orchestra Jam Pack for MAC ($100)-

Sounds good in theory but when I read the customer reports on it there were a lot of people complaining about the fact that it doesn’t have solo instruments. At least not violin and cello which is really what I need. So, a good idea but not good enough for my budget. 

2) Try to see if my acoustic accordion can be used and finessed through garage band to sound like a cello or a bass (pretty likely).

3) Try to see if my acoustic flute can be used and finessed through garaged band to sound like a violin (less likely).

4) Try to see if I can get my boyfriend to hum cello lines, I can trying humming for upper strings and just finesse the crap out of them?

5) Experiment with patches within garage band that sound more like strings than the string patches. Sounds crazy, but already I’m making headway on this idea. According to Todd Almond (resident Garage Band expert extraordinaire) ‘shimmering flute’ sounds pretty close to a cello when played really low and finessed.

6) Try to bury the synthed strings and avoid chords altogether. I find if you just play one note or clean octaves instead of chords in the string patches and then bury them within the mix…they actually don’t sound so bad. They actually sound....dare i say it...good?

7) Call in a favor with my two buddies from Sweeney Todd (Lauren Molina (cello) and Jessica Wright (violin)) and see if they won’t do a sistah a solid. I would definitely have to use acoustic strings for exposed lines that were not merely holding up another chord. That's a given. If I can't get solo lines acoustically then i won't do them at all.

8) Shoot myself in the head.

So with that all in mind…

Let’s dive into THE MUSIC BOX song.

My plan is for it so start with a music box sound…go on a journey…fill it up in the middle with richer sounds…and then come back to the music sound. As if opening the music box releases a memory, takes you to another place-and then when the song winds down, the memory disappears along with it and you’re back where you started.

That’s my goal anyway.

She said, optimistically.

I start with the obvious ‘music box’ patch in garage band.

Oh dear sweet baby Jesus…that’s HORRIBLE.

Wow.

It sounds remarkably NOTHING like a music box but more like one of those heinous ‘jack in the box’ things. But all busted and shit. Like it got run over by a truck or something. And then set on fire. And then run over by another truck.

No.

Not an option.

I need a much sweeter sound.

I start investigating other patch categories.

I look for a celeste patch in 'keyboards'. No.

I look for a harpsichord patch I can soften up. No.

How about a ‘pingy’ piano sound way up high? No.

“Synth” sounds? No

Aha!

'MALLETS'!

No xylophone or glock patch but I do find “Chimes”.

Ppppppppppeeerrrrrffeeecccttttttt.

Sweet.

I lay down the main track in chimes.

So far so good.

Then I copy that track and put it in another track underneath it in a guitar patch of ‘steel strings’.

Awesome.

It takes the edge off the chimes, which are really great but after awhile seem to ‘wear’ on the ear a bit. I make a note to try and take them out all together once the songs gets going and let the steel strings take over in the middle.

Ok.

Now I layer in some climbing strings.

Ew.

Fucking synthed strings.

I bring them waaaaaayyyyyyyyyyy down in the mix.

Better.

I take some reverb out.

Even better.

For the center of the song….i bring in another line of strings but down in the bottom for a nice full feel. Like cello and stand-up bass low. Too much? Don’t know yet.

I listen back to what I have.

Huh.

Not bad but…not great yet.

The main thing that bugs me is that there are multiple key changes in this thing…and this is where the synthed strings really sound shitty. When a live person is playing a string and there's a juicy modulation up, they'll really play into that new key. They'll nudge it almost, with their bows. I've just got an awkward 'wah/space/wah' thing happening and it won't do at all.

I need to mask these key changes and smooth them out.

I look into the ‘synth’ patches which can get all crazy and fun. We’re talking stuff that sounds like lasers, or aliens, or whatever. I find a patch called “Itzmar Ambience”. I have no idea what that means but it’s awesomely creepy with a nice sort of ‘waaaaahhhhHHHHHhhhhaaa’ effect. I try to use it to cover my key changes and it’s actually really cool. It certainly does the trick of masking the modulating strings but make a note to ask Andy (the bf) if he thinks it’s too X Files-y for a 'music box' number.

Oof.

Head getting fuzzy.

Almost four hours have gone by in what seems like five minutes. It's almost 3am. That's just nutty. I listen to what I have so far.

I like it.

It’s on the way to being where I might even love it someday.

But it’s time for bed.

I will attack it again tomorrow with fresher ears and eyes.

Until then… g’night my lovelies.

XO

dl

GUESS WHO JUST CALLED ME...

Michael McLean.

Yay!

Hooray for the wonder that is the blog world and random Google searches.

MIA file officially closed.

xo

dl

MIA FILE Update

Thank you so much to everyone who helped put me in touch with EVERY composer and lyricist on my list save one:

MICHAEL MCLEAN 

(I have tried to get in touch with him via his website www.michaelmcleanmusic.com but to no avail)

Anyone with any ideas or possible leads on this guy?

Please let me know.

DL

A FEW ODDS AND ENDS....

Ok so.

With most of the legal and budget business out of the way - the fun part begins, finally!

MUSICAL WORK!

Just a heads up…

I will not be posting the actual names of these tunes until the CD is ready to be sold. As I mentioned before, I have had my work and ideas stolen before in the recording industry and I have sadly learned to cover my ass in this area. I will still give a shout out to the writers though, but the song titles are Top Secret until the CD comes out. Sad, but true.

However, it could be kinda fun in a way.

When the CD comes out, all your bloggers out there could listen to the CD and try to figure out which song is which. I’ll try to give the tracks ‘names’ close enough to what they are so it shouldn’t be too hard to figure them out.

And this all brings me to…

"Some final odds and ends..."

While I'm overwhelmed by my list of 42 possible songs and desperately trying to find a pattern in there I realize, there are definitely 8 songs I am 100% sure of, theme or not. So I take my list of 8 and choose one to start with.

I have to keep reminding myself…one step at a time with this project. 

Ok, my PLAN here is to arrange and orchestrate all the song tracks first, leaving the vocals to the very end because I know that I am in BILLY ELLIOT until Christmas and therefore will be in NYC in my apt with all my instruments for the next three months without having to pick up and go somewhere else for a regional gig, etc. And, if I can get all my tracks done by the time I’m done in BILLY ELLIOT…when I go home for Christmas I can (hopefully) record the vocals in probably one of the most perfect acoustic halls in the country, The Hochstein Music School in Rochester, NY.

Ok.

Time for some synth patch home work.

Hmmmm...after experimenting with my music synth patches on my Yamaha and on my MAC's Garage Band I realize that some of the patches are really great, and some of them totally suck ass. 

I mean, really really suck ass.

Yowza.

Well.

That's a shame.

As is usual with most programs, my lamest synth patches are strings and woodwinds. And I don’t even have reed patches on this thing. That’s fine tho- I’ve got the reeds covered with my acoustic accordion, and the woodwinds covered with my flute and tin whistle but the strings.

Of course,  I LOVE strings so much, I purposely never learned how to play them. I never wanted the magic of listening to them to go away. I think you always lose that wonder of listening to an instrument or voice when you know even just a little bit about how it's played. 

Funny story…

I did the recent “Broadway Winners” Town Hall Concert and underneath the stage there is a TV monitor where all the performers can hang out and watch the show as you’re waiting to go on. Well. There was a certain male singer performing who had received much acclaim for his rendition of the song he was singing that night. And while he was singing, two of the other men on the program stood not 6 inches from the TV screen downstairs and spent the whole song ‘dissecting’ this man’s technique. Not so much in a critical way but more like, two doctors would watching a surgery.

"Oh, I see he chose the Heimlich incision."

"Oh yes yes, indeed he did."

"Interesting.  When I did that surgery I chose the Bambalt Incision."

"Oh really? Fascinating. I think he's doing a fine job, but personally I'd go another way. But that's just me."

 "Ah yes, I quite agree." 

I mean, blah blah blah blah blah!! Come ON, guys! Really?

And it was pissing me off because I am NOT a male singer and so this guy’s singing was still magical to me because I could give a fuck about the Heimlich Inicision or whatever. Ultimately I felt bad for them, because you could tell they totally had respect for the guy, but they were never going to be able to just sit back and enjoy his work. E-ver.

Anyway, bottom line...

Because I think strings are made of unicorns and fairy dust- I have absolutely no ability to play them myself. 

So…this is a constraint.

However…I DO love constraints as I find I’m the most creative when I have really strict parameters. So, maybe my lack of string playing prowess will be good. Maybe if I just stick to the acoustic instruments I know, I might just have a real cool ‘unique’ sound….kind of a Tom Waits-y thing.

We’ll see.

At the Imperial Theatre, I mention my patch problem to the ladies in my dressing room (the fabulous Jayne Paterson and the fantastic Liz Pearce). Jayne tells me about something called a “JAM PACK”? It’s apparently better quality synth patches for Garage Band. Sweet! I’m not sure how much that’s gonna cost but maybe by the time I've got everything else budgeted, if i find myself with an extra $100 i'll get it and redo some of the string tracks?

Anyway, a worry for another time. Until then, I’ll orchestrate now with what I have. The actual sounds can be adjusted later and I can always re-record stuff with acoustic instruments (and call in some favors from buddies who play strings).

Ok.

Enough of this bullshit.

Let the music BEGIN!!!

See next blog: THE MUSIC BOX song.

HERE WE GO!!!!

 

XO,

dl

 

PS

I have purchased a fancy new microphone that has an automatic USB port. A Samson CO1U USB Condenser Mic. I'm very excited- but it has dutifully subtracted from my budget.