|
Remember: When using the "2 for 1" offer in ordering, make sure you DON'T PAY FOR THE COMBO YOU'RE GETTING FREE!!! After you place your order for the one combo, THEN use the Special Request Form to request your free combo. Use the Custom Items Form to submit your custom item information. Non-credit card orders must use this Order Form.
If there is an asterisk "*" after a song title, then it is NOT a Larry Wright arrangement.
Recording Method
An in-depth look at the whole process
Over the past thirty-two years, I've gathered a bunch (about $90,000 worth) of great equipment and lots of experience which I use on a daily basis to create music in one form or another. Creating an arrangement probably takes more time than recording a Learning Tape, but it's not nearly as technically involved.
All you need to create a great arrangement is music paper, a pencil, and some arranging ability. To make a great Learning Tape takes all of the above - arranging ability, music paper, and a pencil... plus lots of experience in barbershop, vocal ability, great equipment, a great deal of electronic music and computer technical know-how, musicality and taste, and enough patience and perserverance to hang in there until it's done right.
If you're one of those few who may be curious about how it's all put together, I'm going to, in some detail, go through the whole process, from the time the music arrives to the time I deposit the finished tape in the mail
1. When music arrives, I generally try to make time to briefly run through it to see if there are any major problems in notation, arrangement construction, legibility, etc. Occasionally, I need to refuse a project because the arrangement has so many problems or is so weak that I wouldn't have any use for it in my library of tapes....I'd never resell it!
2. After I look it over and it appears solid enough in arrangement construction, it goes into my "cue" (in a folder) and waits it's turn. When I finally pull it to start on it, I go through it very carefully, this time looking for any weak areas. This process can take as little as 20 minutes or as long as 2 or 3 hours.
3. If the arrangement is an uptune and comes with tempo marking already indicated, I can immediately start recording it into the computer sequencer. If it's a ballad and needs rubato interpretation, it's a whole other process which I'll go through in #4 below.
Let's say it's an uptime. For all learning tapes, I record electronic keyboard instruments (piano/strings/electric piano) playing each vocal part. As a starting point, I use my Learning Tape "Template" in my computer sequencer (recorder) which I carefully recorded years ago. First of all, I choose one of several drum patterns I recorded into the template that fits the "feel" of the arrangement the best. As that basic drum pattern plays along, I read the arrangement real time and record MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) notes from a electronic "controller" piano keyboard into the computer, starting one part at a time, with the Lead part on track 1, the Bass part on track 2, the Bari on track 3, then the Tenor on track 4. A beginning pitchpipe tone is recorded, followed by a synthesized vocal "oo" sound as a tune-up note for each part. I record small 4 to 24 bar sections at a time, then go back and have the computer correct any errors in timing.
When I'm finished with each part, every note is in perfect time and even all the breath places are recorded in the instrumental parts. Remember, each voice part is recorded instrumentally on a separate MIDI track. I now go back and "dress up" the initially plain drum part, adding cymbal crashes, snare drum "fills" and bass drum accents where musically appropriate. The last thing to do is bring the tempo up to speed (if necessary), record any ritards, secondary countoffs, accellerandos, etc. On a fairly simple 2 1/2 minute song, this process can take from 2 to 3 hours. Let's now consider that the arrangement is a ballad and go through the recording (sequencing) process.
4. Recording a ballad into the sequencer is a much, much more labor intensive process. If the client has provided a cassette recording of the interp. plan, I first must record that cassette analog audio signal into the computer in digital form. I have a special computer that can do this. When that is complete, I'm able to listen to that interp audio track and put the sequencer in record and slowly, half a phrase at a time, play the notes on the controller keyboard and match the phrasing of the audio track. It takes a great deal of time and patience for this, as I must tweek the durations of each note to match the audio track precisely. I record only on the Lead track, but add any Bass, Bari, or Tenor pickups or swipes to that single Lead track. Recording MIDI notes to this one Lead track can take hours!
Once this track is complete, I copy it to three other tracks in exactly the same vertical timing position. Therefore, I can in effect, play the sequenced 4 tracks together and it will sound like only one part.... but that same part is on 4 separate tracks! Now I go back to that first Lead track and erase any Bass, Bari, or Tenor notes (anything the Lead doesn't sing). Then I go to the first duplicated Lead track (track #2), label it Bass, and looking at the arrangement, proceed to "pull-down" the existing Lead pitches (MIDI notes) for each note until it sounds on the Bass pitch. I do this all the way through the song, creating the Bass line, which, of course, is in perfect sync with the track #1 Lead note. I repeat the same process in duplicate Lead - track #3, creating the Bari part; and then move to duplicate Lead - track #4, pushing notes up to create the Tenor part. I then listen to all 4 parts going by and, once again tweek the durations of notes to make it match the phrasing of the audio track, or, if it's my own interp. plan, tweeking note durations to match how I'd like to sing it. This entire process can take 4 to 5 hours.
5. Now these computer MIDI instrumental tracks are ready to be transferred (recorded) onto digital tape (into my digital 24 track recorder). The tracks must be recorded one-at-a-time to tape. Keeping all of the 4 tracks in perfect sync is accomplished by using SMPTE code to lock the computer sequencer timing-wise to the digital recorder. The instrumental sounds I choose to be sounded by the MIDI notes (MIDI notes have no sound) come from three different "sound modules" and consist of: 1. sampled acoustic grand piano; 2. synthesized electric piano; 3. synthesized strings (violins) sound (to obtain sustained notes a vocalist would sing). These three sounds are being played simultaneously for each voice part, creating a full, rich, “layered sound”. Remember, these instrumental voice parts have been recorded onto separate tape tracks (1 thru 4) on a multi-track digital tape recorder.
Once that is accomplished, I'm finally ready to record my voice, one part at a time, on tracks 5 thru 8 of the digital tape recorder. I almost always start by recording the Lead part (on track #5). I must carefully listen to the instrumentally played Lead note in the headphones, and sing along, matching the often tricky rubato phrasing. I have to match, not only the pitch, but the timing of the instrumental Lead note, and yet make it appear (sound) like a Lead freely singing with style and soul. When the Lead voice track is recorded, I then record the Bass part on track #6, Bari part on track #7, and Tenor part on track #8, always “fine tuning” to the Lead part.
I have to admit that there is no such thing as recording these parts from beginning to end in one take. There are many, many “punch-ins” where slight mistakes in timing or pitch,... or even errors in vocal color, strength, or style cause “punch-in”. With great equipment and lots of practice, I’m able to “punch-in” in the middle of a phrase (or sometimes even a word) erasing the error and overlaying the correct vocal performance.
To sum up so far, the time it takes to record the MIDI notes into the computer can take from 2 to 8 hours. Transferring the computer MIDI track to the digital multi-track tape recorder is generally about 30 minutes. The time recording the vocal parts can vary from 1 1/2 hours for easy, short uptunes .... to 4+ hours for difficult ballads with someone else’s interp. plan. Once I’m happy that all 4 vocal parts are in tune and in sync and blend together, I’m ready for the mix-down phase.
6. I mix to a stereo DAT (Digital Audio Tape) recorder, doing a full, balanced mix first, using 2 digital reverberation units and a DDL (digital delay) device. I mix in full stereo, panning the Lead/Tenor voice parts and the instrumental Lead/Tenor parts left, while the Bass/Bari voices and Bass/Bari instr. parts are panned right. The “instrumental vocal parts” are mixed much lower than my voice parts, but still help fill out and blend the vocal parts a bit more. The pitch is also slightly reinforced by the instrumental tracks.
The Lead mix is next. All effects (reverb) are removed from the left side of the stereo field (right side remains with reverb), and the Lead voice (and instrumental) parts are panned hard left, while the other 3 voice/instr. parts are panned hard right. The pitchpipe note, tune-up note, and drum countoff clicks are mixed in. Once again the instrumental voice part is mixed much lower than the voice part, but still remains to slightly reinforce pitch and rhythm.
Each individual part is mixed in this same fashion for a total of 5 mixes. This mixing process may take 30 to 45 minutes for an average 2 1/2 minute song. Of course, all tape tracks, both multi-track and 2 track DAT, must be documented (labeled) properly which also takes time.
7. The mixes are now dubbed off to cassette which generally takes about 30 minutes. I use only high bias (chrome) cassette tapes and dub off in this order: Side A: Full mix, Lead mix .... space.... then Full mix, Bass mix. Side B: Full mix, Bari mix .... space.... Full mix, Tenor mix.
8. And last, but not least, is all the paperwork.... doing the Invoice and/or Receipt on the computer; including a copy the arrangement (which accurately reflects what’s on the tape); customizing and printing a copy of my “stereo mix” form letter (for new clients only); constructing and printing cassette labels and the address on the envelope; enclosing the tape in bubble pack; and finally sealing everything in the envelope. This part of it can easily take at least another 30 minutes.
Total time spent from start to finish is anywhere from 10 to 20 hours, depending upon the complexity of the project. Once in a great while, when the arrangement is poorly handwritten and there’s been lots of clean-up work and fixes (rhythm, phrasing changes, etc.) to the manuscript, I’ll get “carried away” and completely notate the arrangement (for which I don’t normally charge the client). This adds another 5 to 7 hours to the project.
|
