Farz SAVE ME

When doing the track, I managed to quantise the instruments used, this included the piano and the drums, however there was a problem on logic which didn't allow me to quantise the kick drum and hi hat seperately. However, I managed to add my own kick drum which creates more power and presence in the track, also, I used the velocity tool and use different velocity numbers on the kick drum to create variation and dynamic on the track.

I also managed to use a synth to create more of a brighter sound and make the track sound more cleaner. After recording the synth, I had to use the piano roll to see if the synth key was in tune with the actual track, I also stretched the notes to make them more present in the track. 

Composing Task 1

Remix of come together by The Beatles

When remixing Come together by The Beatles, I changed the style of the drums to a more electronic kit which makes the song sound more relevant and modern which might influence the younger audience as well as the older audience. I also made the drum kit more complex, this involved increasing the hits on the Hi Hat and the snare drum to create more variation. The effect this has on the listener is that it doesn't create any type of boredom or doesn't make the song sound too simple. This also creates groove and funk.

In terms of structure, on the build up to the third verse, I made the break 8 bars instead of 4. I chose to do this because I wanted the build up to the second verse be more intense and joyful at the same time, I managed to do this by adding a complex drum beat in the last 4 bars which creates a lot of variation in the track. To make the track sound more funky and edgy, I made the bass a bit louder and added compression to it, this has a great effect on the listener as the funkiness makes the listener want to move and dance which evidently causes pleasure.

Also, with the bass scale I changed the melody of the notes from an F to a G to create a difference in melody. However, I chose to change it only on a particular part of the song which is on the hook so it still follows the regular root scale in the first half of the song.


Original Composition

When making my original composition, I wanted the song to somehow relate to the Thriller Album by Michael Jackson, therefore, I chose to use similar chords and drum beat to make the song sound similar but at the same different from Billie Jean. I used the chords Dm, Em, F and G using the french horns which three of the chords are used in Billie Jean. However, in order to make the song differentiate from Billie Jean, I used the chord G to change the melody within the song. The use of the french horns reminds the listener more of a melodic style as it could bring them back to their past or childhood music as these horns create an impression of 80's music. Also, the chord F isn't played in the style of legato like the rest of the chords are, I specifically played the chords twice in which it sounds more like a staccato feature in the song. This use of staccato (also a use of syncopation) makes the listener surprised in way as it is unexpected but also creates movement.
In the beginning of making the track, I wanted to add a rock guitar to make the track vary in terms of instruments and styles. I had deleted it as I thought it wasn't a great idea at the time, however, I recently added a simple rock guitar melody in the song so the song doesn't sound too soft or too clean. The chords I have used used are on the beat except for the third chord, this is quiet effective as it is a use of syncopation and creates variation.

In the song, I also used a harmony using a trumpet which starts off with a low harmony coming together with five different harmonies to make the song sound fuller and create suspense on the build up through the song. In the first half of the song, I used a very simple bass melody which repeats itself until the "chorus" of the song, the effect repetition has on the listener is that the sound could become exhausting for somehow boring for them, therefore, in the second half of the song, I used a different type of bass melody which sound more staccato and involves more complex movement between notes. By doing this, it shows dynamic and most certainly creates more edginess and funk in the bass. In addition, instead of following a particular melody-note pattern in the bass, I also changed the note of the bass in some parts of the melody so it doesn't repeat itself too much through out the track. This shows more variation through out the track and makes the track enjoyable to listen to.

I also used the velocity tool when it came to the drum kit, I specifically made the kick drum change in velocity on specific parts of the song as it has a big impact on the groove and feel of the song. This also avoids the song from being tedious.

The song follows the chords: Dm, Em, F and G, when the eight bars finish I added a Dm7, Em7, Fmaj7 and a G7. By doing this, it makes the chords more complex and makes the chords more richer and fuller.

Gig review 1

On the 11th of October, I was fortunate to witness the performing arts show which involved the mixed performance of: drama, musical theatre and dance. Each performance had the objective to tell a story to the audience including movement and emotion in their actions. For example, one of the performances in dance was related to the general topic of family or friendship, this was evident when they finished a scene with all characters hugging and showing love towards each other.

The performers were most definitely engaging with the audience, they certainly engaged with the audience as they were making a lot of eye contact and some scenes involved talking to the audience which made us feel part of the performance. In addition, when a scene involved a rhetorical question, the characters would always look at the audience. The effect of this is that it creates a sense of tension and suspense which gradually builds up in the rest of the performance. 

The standout moment from the performance was certainly when the musical theatre students got together and performed a choreography. In my opinion, that was a very special moment as students showed fluency in their movements. Since the song was also upbeat, it engaged more with the crowd because it was evident that the performers were having fun on stage. Their facial expressions created a sense of happiness and energy on stage which made the choreography stand out. 

In general, I think that all performances were enjoyable and the show was special. However, the some students from the dance department struggled a bit when it came to dancing in time with the music making it seem sloppy. Nonetheless, it was entirely consistent through out the performance therefore it wasn't completely obvious from the audiences point of view. 

Skills Audit

As a musician, the skills I think I present as a musician mainly lies on the vocal and accuracy of instrument playing. One of my skills would be my falsetto, in which I am able to vocalize powerfully but I can also use a soft and airy falsetto depending on the song I am singing. One of my classmates had mentioned that the accuracy of my drum playing is really good, this involves managing to keep tempo correctly on a specific song and knowing the right beat to play and the approach of different songs. As a student, my skills include the knowledge of the music industry, I have a great amount of knowledge when it comes to musical knowledge, particularly when It comes to discussing the structures of albums and the effect it has on the listener.

One of my classmates called Juan is very talented at playing different instruments, he plays the: clarinet, guitar, piano, violin and can also sing. This makes him a multi talented musician and makes him a very enjoyable act to watch. As a student, he has a large understanding of musical theory and can read musical notes. This makes it easier for him to play songs using musical notation.

One of my other classmates is called Alex, one of the skills he mainly possesses is his ability to improvise during the duration of a song. His scales and guitar riffs manage to stand out making him a very talented guitarist. If he knows the key of any song, at any point through out the track, he is able to use pentatonic scales to make the track sound funkier or catchier than it already is. As a student, he doesn't have much communication, however, he is able to progress quickly foe tasks set making him a quick learner.

Induction Gig Evaluation

In yesterday's performance, our band performed Billie Jean by Michael Jackson, all four singers managed to sing the song accurately and managed to stay in key and include emotion up to a certain extent. A lot of the performance went well, mainly the accuracy of the chords and vocal tone. However, a few times throughout the performance, there was a struggle in terms of harmonies in which some vocals stood out more than others, the negative thing about this is that it causes the harmonies not to be as smooth as they should be.


There was a lot of communication throughout the performance, for example, when it came to the bridge, we had purposefully pre-planned a change in tempo of the song to create some sort of tension and brightness particularly in the vocal and extended chords in which we all looked at each other and reminded ourselves on the change of tempo. On the build up to the performance, we had rehearsed a few times before going into the theatre. At sound check, generally as a band we were certainly confident, however, the harmonies could've most certainly been more accurate and smoother which we unfortunately didn't manage to show in the final performance. We had practiced a weeks before a couple of times in which we had given each band member parts to sing and we decided which part of the song flowed better for which singer.


In terms of engaging with the audience, our band showed a good amount of engagement with the audience particularly when it came to the pre-chorus of the song, as this was the build up to the chorus, it was the perfect time to show engagement.


Confidence was the main feature which the band generally managed to present, especially with one member of the band, Joe, he managed to show his dance moves confidentially and fearlessly. The band performance as a conclusion was a great performance as the audience also showed support by clapping and shouting.

ISLAND RECORDS

Chris Blackwell is the founder of Island Records in 1959 where he formed the label in Jamaica, he was on holiday in Jamaica in which he came across a band which he liked and chose to record them and promote their music. However, the label started to achieve major success worldwide in the 1970's. When island records came to the UK, they brought a pop/reggae influence genre which was slightly unusual at the time. Some key artists that have been part of Island Records include: Bob Marley, U2, Nick Drake, Roxy Music and Sly and Robbie.

Farz Logic Mixes

In this lesson, I made some changes to the sound of the drums making it sound more electronic. I also changed the structure of the track in which I made the intro before the second verse longer, I did this to create more tension and suspense. I changed the sound of the guitar to a classic guitar to make it sound more cleaner and brighter, however the contrast between the vocals makes the genre vary.

Album Presentation

Songwriting groups and band

Songwriting group
Kenya- vocals
Paulo Reiss- guitar
Peter- vocals
Alex- guitar
Josh- drums
Alfie- bass
Two guitars, one piano, two microphones, one drum kit and a bass

Band performance
Joey- vocals
Paulo- vocals and guitar
Juan- vocals and guitar
Alfie- bass
Josh- drums

Bio Paulo Reiss

Paulo Reiss' music uniquely differentiates from the basic pop/RnB music genre. The simplicity of his songs creates tension but simultaneously creates a melodic, fresh and vibrant vibe. He claims to be from mars due to his music being "out of this world." In the past, Paulo has won awards such as the VMA award for best male artist, EMA award for best song and an award for song of the summer. All of his awards have made him an inspiration to many people out there including his fans and artists around the world.

In relation to his personal life, he says that his life has always been revolved around music besides the fact that his childhood dream was to be a footballer. However, he claims that his musical inspiration has always been himself and he never doubts what he's capable of. Recently, his album "You will never be as good as me" has gone triple platinum and has appealed to the likes of Ed Sheeran, Drake, Donald Trump and The Pope.

Logic Access session - 2/10/17

In today's access time. I managed to make a new track, in this track I managed to use a trap beat which usually isn't something that I would usually make, I also managed to to use a synth which created a pop/rnb vibe. I done a four bar loop and a use a quantiser for the piano riff with a quantiser of 1/32.