audio track list and descriptions of track content track 1
TRANSCRIPT
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Audio Track List and Descriptions of Track Content
Track 1: Harmonic Series – 10 Harmonics and 17 Harmonics Sine Waves
Harmonic Series built in sine waves on C2. It is played twice, first with 10 harmonics
and then with 17 harmonics. Each series is first arpeggiated, followed by the harmonic
series as a chord.
Track 2: Harmonic Series – 10 Harmonics Performed on Piano
Harmonic Series performed on an acoustic piano, built on C2. It is played twice, each
containing 10 harmonics. The first series is without sustain pedal depressed, the second
with sustain pedal. Each series is first arpeggiated, followed by the harmonic series as a
chord.
Track 3: Sustained Piano Notes
Two sustained piano notes of D0. The first without sustain pedal, the second with sustain
pedal depressed. Notice the appearances, entrances and exits of the different harmonics
and overtones present throughout the duration of the two sounds.
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Tracks 4–13: Reference Frequencies and Reference Pitches
These are a few potential reference pitches and frequencies to assist the reader in learning
pitch estimation and in establishing one’s own pitch reference. The frequencies are
sawtooth waves. The pitches are each repeated three times, and are piano sounds.
Track 4: 60 Hz
Track 5 100 Hz
Track 6: 250 Hz
Track 7: 1 kHz
Track 8: 2.5 kHz
Track 9: 4 kHz
Track 10: A4 (440 Hz)
Track 11: C4 (261.6 Hz)
Track 12: B-flat4 (466.2 Hz)
Track 13: E2 (82.4 Hz)
Tracks 14–18: Pitch Register Boundaries
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A piano is performing the groups of pitches that form the boundaries or thresholds
between the pitch registers. Each is performed three times.
Track 14: LOW to LOW-MID Boundary
Track 15: LOW-MID to MID Boundary
Track 16: MID to MID-UPPER Boundary
Track 17: MID-UPPER to HIGH Boundary
Track 18: HIGH to VERY HIGH Boundary
Tracks 19–25: Pitch Area Evaluation Source Material
These drum and cymbal sounds may serve as source material for performing pitch area
evaluations, and may also be used for other exercises found throughout the book.
Track 19: Kick Drum
Track 20: Tom 1
Track 21: Tom 2
Track 22: Tom 3
Track 23: Snare Drum
Track 24: Crash Cymbal
Track 25: Ride Cymbal
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Recording session for drum tracks, showing some of the microphone placements.
Tracks 26–33: Time Judgment Exercise
On each track a snare drum sound is delayed, and the delayed sound is combined with the
direct sound. Each track first has the direct sound in the left speaker and a single delay in
the right speaker; after one second of silence the delay is repeated four times in both
speakers. All sounds are of equal amplitude.
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Track 26: 50 ms delay
Track 27: 40 ms delay
Track 28: 30 ms delay
Track 29: 20 ms delay
Track 30: 15 ms delay
Track 31: 10 ms delay
Track 32: 5 ms delay
Track 33: 2 ms delay
Tracks 34–36: Rhythms of Reflections
This is a realization of the patterns of reflections found in Figure 1.10. A snare-drum
sound is delayed and attenuated appropriately to demonstrate the patterns of reflections.
Track 34: Pattern 1
Track 35: Pattern 2
Track 36: Both patterns simultaneously
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Track 37: Musical Balance and Performance Intensity Closely Matched
The musical balance of the instruments in the mix closely resembles the performance
intensities of the original performance. This recording was made using an ORTF stereo
microphone technique with the addition of an accent microphone in the bass drum. A hall
reverb program was then applied to the mix.
Track 38: Musical Balance Changed from Original Performance Intensity
The musical balance of the mix presents instruments at different loudness levels than
their original performances. This mix has many unnatural relationships of performance
intensity versus musical balance; some are deliberately over-exaggerated to provide
clarity to this concept.
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Distant microphone placements for cello recording.
Tracks 39–41: Distance Location
A single cello performance illustrating different distance cues. A single performance was
recorded with ten different microphones tracked separately. Each microphone was at a
different distance (varying from several inches to over twenty feet), height, and angle to
the cello. Different combinations of the microphones provided proximity, near, and far
distance location qualities.
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Track 39: Proximity
Track 40: Near
Track 41: Far
Close and near microphone placements for cello recording.
Tracks 42–44: Stereo Location
A single guitar performance was recorded using several microphones at different
distances, height, and angles to the instrument. These separate microphone tracks were
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used to create the two spread-image sizes of tracks 42 and 43. Reverb was added to track
42 to create track 44; the reader might wish to add a different reverb to track 42 and
compare the results.
Track 42: Narrow-spread image of guitar performance
Track 43: Wide-spread image of guitar performance
Track 44: Narrow-spread image of guitar performance source with a reverb program
added to widen the image.
Close microphone placements for guitar recording.
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Distant microphone placements for guitar recording.
Tracks 45–47: Space within Space
Description: Various sound source and environment groupings provide examples of
space-within-space considerations. Some material is purposefully over-exaggerated
(without concern for artistic results) to allow for easier recognition of the concepts.
Track 45: The snare drum and high hat appear in the same environment but at
different distances. The bass drum is in a separate environment.
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Track 46: Additional different environments existing side by side are presented here.
The bass drum and snare drum have separate environments, and a third environment is
created for the toms.
Track 47: A distinct overall environment is superimposed onto an overall program to
apply a perceived performance environment. The environment has very pronounced
qualities and was applied at a high level to emphasize this concept. This environment was
applied to the mix of Track 53. The reader may wish to add a different hall or reverb
program or other processing to that track to observe other results.
Recording session for drum tracks, showing additional microphone placements.
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Tracks 48–53: Sound-stage Dimensions and Production Aesthetics
Description: These tracks were made from a single drum-set performance, recorded by
fifteen close microphones, four stereo microphone techniques and six microphones
capturing room sound. Various mixes and stereo microphone technique recordings were
made from the same solo drum set performance for the tracks in this section. They were
also used to create tracks 37, 38, 45, 46 and 47.
Track 48: Mix of close microphones resulting in a wide and deep sound stage.
Images have many different widths and distances and appear in individualized locations.
This is a highly controlled mix with crafted sound qualities and unnatural relationships of
sounds.
Track 49: This is the mix of track 48 with the addition of a pair of cardioid
microphones in an X-Y coincident technique. The microphones were located
approximately 0.75 meters above and 0.25 meters behind the drummer’s head. The
stereo pair adds an overall environment to the drum set for another space-within-space
relationship and it changes the listener-to-sound stage relationship.
Track 50: ORTF (near coincident) stereo microphone array using Neumann TLM
103 microphones located approximately 0.5 meters above and 0.25 meters behind the
drummer’s head.
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Track 51: Spaced omnidirectional microphone technique with two DPA 4006-TL
microphones located approximately 2 meters from each side of the drum set.
Track 52: Tracks recorded with closely placed microphones are mixed to
approximate a live performance. The relationships of performance intensity and musical
balance are closely aligned, and sounds are focused in the center area of the sound stage.
A single overall environment has been subtly added to provide common sonic traits to all
sounds, and create a sense of fusion.
Track 53: The musical balance (dynamic levels of the mix) of track 52 is used here,
unaltered. The sound stage is widened significantly, and some distance locations are
altered. Instruments are placed in one of four distinct environments: bass drum and snare
drum have separate environments (the snare drum’s environment has a shorter decay than
it had in track 46), all cymbals are in a single environment, and all toms are in a single
environment (the tom environment has a significantly longer decay than it had in track
46).
The reader might want to use this track (or any of the other drum mixes) to experiment
with changes to the overall qualities of the recording, especially perceived performance
environment, timbral density, and program dynamic contour. Subtle changes in these
areas are often elements of mastering a recording.
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Tracks 54–56: Playback System Set-Up and Calibration
The following tracks are presented to assist the reader in evaluating the quality of their
playback system and to help them prepare for accurate listening to the audio tracks and to
the musical examples cited in Understanding and Crafting the Mix.
The listener’s playback system should not have a loudness button or tone control
engaged. Loudspeakers should be located away from walls and reflective surfaces, and
the listener seated appropriately. Chapter 15 discusses playback system and listening-
location considerations. These sections should be examined to establish as accurate a
playback system and environment as is reasonable for one’s situation and financial
means.
Performing listening evaluations with an inaccurate playback system will lead to
inaccurate conclusions. The material will be misperceived and learned incorrectly. The
reader/listener must hear the tracks and musical examples cited in this book accurately in
order to learn to recognize these new materials.
An inexpensive sound-pressure level meter will greatly assist you in this process.
Track 54: Setting an appropriate listening level
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Pink noise is played in two 8-second segments. The first segment should be at a nominal
listening level. The second segment is 5 dB higher, and represents loudness levels that
might typically be reached during a typical music recording.
Set your loudness level so that the first segment is at a comfortable, though somewhat
loud level. If a sound-pressure level meter is available it should read approximately 85
dB SPL. This will be your nominal listening level, and should become the average level
of the program material you will hear.
Do not adjust the level. The second segment will be noticeably louder, but it should be
tolerable and should not cause distortion to your playback system. If it is not tolerable,
lower the level and listen to the first segment again. If you are noticing a distortion in the
sound, your playback system is in need of attention. You must address this situation
before using the playback system for listening exercises.
Track 55: Evaluating the loudness balance between left and right loudspeakers
Pink noise is now directed to individual channels. In 5-second segments, pink noise will
appear at the left speaker, the right, then center (each speaker equally). This sequence is
repeated three times. All sounds are at the same loudness level and should be played
back at your nominal listening level that was set while listening to track 54.
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Use these pink-noise segments to ensure that the loudness relationship between the two
speakers is correct, and that radical room interference or alterations to sound are noticed.
Any reversed loudspeaker polarity should be apparent. Listening carefully, one should try
to determine that there are no differences in spectrum (sound quality) and amplitude
between the speakers and when they are combined. Any detectible differences between
the left and right channels are cause for concern and need to be traced. The SPL meter
will be very useful for balancing the loudness levels of the two speakers.
Track 56: Evaluating frequency response
Six 5-second sine tones are presented in the following order:
1 kHz
100 Hz
5 kHz
500 Hz
15 kHz
40 Hz
All sounds are at the same sound-pressure level, and you should be playing them back at
the same nominal listening level that was set in track 54. The first four tones should be
readily apparent, and near the same loudness level—depending upon your nominal
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listening level. If this is not the case, a serious problem is present in the monitoring
system that must be corrected before using the system to evaluate sound.
The last two tones are at the extremes of the hearing range and are likely near (or just
beyond) the limits of your playback system. These two tones will appear significantly
softer, though they are recorded at the same SPL as the other four. While this should not
cause alarm, readers must be aware of the limits of their playback systems as well as their
own hearing. These tones provide a first step that will lead to that knowledge.
CREDITS:
Cello: Eli Cohn
Drums: Thomas Yahoub
Guitar: David Janco
Piano: Daniel Bolton and Sage Atwood
Engineers: Phil Reese and William Moylan
Assistant Engineer: Erh-Chaun Lai
Producer: William Moylan
Mastering engineer: Adam Ayan
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Recorded and mixed in the Sound Recording Technology Studios at the University of
Massachusetts Lowell.
Mastered at Gateway Mastering Studios, Inc. Portland, Maine.
Copyright and Phonorecord ℗ 2006 by William Moylan. All rights reserved.