Music is an abstract art, recording the flashing ideas of human thinking in the ups and downs of notes, showing the charm of art with rich melody and rhythm. The computer is a kind of technology tool, which concentrates complex and complicated operations on a small integrated circuit and uses high-speed evolution to free the constraints of reality. If you combine music and computer, it is the "computer music" that I want to introduce to you today. It is the new art of hearing in the digital age, and it is the perfect combination of technology and music. A person's music inspiration can quickly complete the artistic concept of a musical piece with the help of a computer, breaking through the limitations of instrumental playing technology and realizing the grand effect of the huge band. With the help of computer technology, our artistic creative thinking is directly linked to the final musical works, and the middle part of the performance will be easily realized by us. The musical dream of "One Man Band" is no longer far away, and all kinds of computer "players" with excellent skills are around. Let us join the magical world of computer music! â— PC computer â— Sound card with higher signal-to-noise ratio (a sound card with better quality, such as the more popular MAYA 44 sound card) â— Sequencer software (such as Sonar, Figure 3, for organizing and editing the input MIDI signals to form a complete MIDI track) â— MIDI effects (such as Style Enhancer Micro 2.0, which is used to add realistic, rich and "humanized" effects to MIDI signals) â— Multi-track audio editing software (such as Vegas) for mixing audio tracks derived from individual MIDI tracks for further processing) â— Audio effects (such as Waves 3.0, directly on the audio Wav file, optimize the sound effect) Fiber Optic Patch Cord,Fiber Patch Cord,Fiber Patch Cables,Fiber Optic Patch Cable Huizhou Fibercan Industrial Co.Ltd , https://www.fibercannetworks.com
The first step of preparation is different from what many friends have expected. Computer music does not need to accumulate traditional professional equipment. For the average user, a computer plus some software plus some of the most basic multimedia equipment is enough. Generally summarized, it can be divided into two categories: hardware devices and software devices:
1. All the computer music production ideas of hardware devices are based on PC computers and corresponding multimedia supporting hardware devices. They are responsible for the conversion between digital signals and analog signals, and realize the input and output of signals. It is the most basic. Hardware facilities. Specifically include:
2. The best hardware facilities for software devices work under the organization and management of software. Whether the resources of hardware can be used more reasonably depends on the choice and use of software.
In the most basic computer music production process, we need the following music software:
â— Post-processing software (such as T-Racks 2.0, the final Wav file generated by the multi-track audio software and the mastering process to make the sound quality better) Of course, the device regulations are not so strict, in general According to the principle of "enough to use, can replace it", let as many music lovers as possible have a computer music addiction and enjoy the auditory impact brought by computer music! When we are ready, our production process begins.
The input music of the second step is composed of a specific note. The note is also the most basic unit of music, so to get a complete song effect, you have to start with the input of the note. There are two input methods: MIDI keyboard entry and mouse entry. The former is more efficient, but it needs to be equipped with a corresponding MIDI keyboard or a keyboard with a MIDI interface; the latter is cumbersome to operate, but the cost is low, and it can be achieved with the same degree of proficiency.
1. MIDI Keyboard Input First we start the installed Sonar 1.0, select Options-MIDI Devices to open the device settings dialog box, select the input device as the sound card's MIDI input interface, select the output device as the sound card's wave table synthesis, and then press the OK button. Next, open the sound card's settings panel, set the recording port to MIDI mode, and activate the red R in front of the recording track in Sonar, ready to start recording. We know that we will record the note information played by us on a specific instrument, so we should first specify a specific instrument! On the track panel, Ch represents the MIDI channel, selected in 1-16, Pch represents the instrument name, and a variety of instruments are displayed in the drop-down menu for us to select, an electric piano Electric Grand Piano, when playing You will hear the sound of the electric piano. Vol indicates the volume of the track. If you feel that the volume is not large enough during performance or playback, you can increase its value by a maximum of 127. Key+ indicates tonality, which raises or lowers the pitch of the notes during performance in semitones. Normally, it is set to 0 by default. Pan refers to the position of the left and right channels. Different instruments have different pan positions in the band. Not all instruments are placed in the middle of the left and right channels. This will gradually summarize its regularity in actual operation. . Ok, after completing the above settings, you can press the red recording button (or use the shortcut key R) to start playing. All the notes you play on the MIDI keyboard and related information will be recorded in Sonar, with spaces after the end. The key stops, then goes back to play and listen, Sonar recorded is not very accurate!
2. The mouse input is not discouraged by friends who don't have a MIDI keyboard. We can get the same effect with the same mouse. The biggest feature of mouse input is accuracy, which can be accurately set regardless of the length of the note or the pitch. Its main operation can be done in the piano reel window, which is also the most commonly used editing input window in Sonar! First create a new track, then select Piano Roll in the upper shortcut bar to enter the piano reel window. What is presented to us at this time is a long-lost piano keyboard, but it is placed in a vertical direction. This kind of placement naturally has its own unique features, and you will love it after you use it often. Click the left mouse button on the corresponding note position of the corresponding section to add a note. If you feel the length of the note is not suitable, drag the mouse to the right end of the note and drag it to adjust it; if you feel the pitch is not correct, drag the mouse to the center of the note. It is very convenient to change it and hear the effect right away (see Figure 5). What should I do if I miss a note? Press the E key of the keyboard to enter the delete state, and click the left mouse button to delete a note, which is also very simple. Below the piano reel window is the velocity curve window, where you can use the mouse to change the intensity of each note, making the music effect more natural, sounds more pleasant!
The third step of the multi-instrument audio track After completing the most basic note input above, we will enter the track operation part of other instruments. If the MIDI signal is recorded for a specific note, the operation of the MIDI track is performed for different instruments and different parts. It is these different MIDI tracks that make up the complete MIDI music. It is the various parts of the instrument we operate that can form the complete feeling of "one person's band". Like a general commander,
Coordinate the "sound power" of each part of the band, and give full play to your organization and creativity! On the basis of the electric piano just now, we will add a few other parts. First select the MIDI Track under the Insert menu to add several new MIDI tracks and determine its various track properties parameters as described above. Choose Church Organ, Electric Guitar, String Ensemble, Synth Bass as the instrument. It is important to note here that the Ch channel values ​​of different instruments cannot be the same, otherwise no matter what instrument is used, it is a tone. Next, enter the notes of each track separately and edit and modify them. Now the prototype of several major voices has been formed, try to play, um, there is really a band of flavor! There are some tricks for the operation of the track. For example, Mute on the track property panel means mute, and it will not sound when pressed. Solo means solo, only the track that presses it can Sound; use the Clone command to copy another track that is identical to the current track; use Wipe to delete all note information for the current track.
The fourth step is to make music more realistic. Computer music is often considered to be the lack of humanity. "Digital Voice" and "Icy Voice". The reason is because we didn't use various instruments to play tricks when editing MIDI messages. Accurate performance. In addition to the use of complex MIDI control information, you can also use MIDI effects to uniquely optimize MIDI signals to bring them closer to real instrumental effects. Below we will use Style Enhancer Micro
2.0 (hereinafter referred to as SE) This is a very good MIDI effect device, combined with the use of specific instrument introduction software! Saxophone has always been a problem in MIDI production. Due to the complexity of the breath, strength and other techniques, it is generally difficult to achieve realistic effects. Now we will use it to "cut the knife" to see the powerful power of SE! Use the right mouse button on the Fx in front of the Saxos track in Sonar to select the SE interface for MIDI Effects-Style Enhancer Micro 2.0. At first glance, how to start with such a complicated interface? Don't worry, for ordinary users, those specific parameters don't have to be meaningful. We only need to select the specified instrument and unique playing style in the preset menu! After selecting Reed, select Sax Solo Sweet Vibrato, close the window, and use the space bar to listen to the effect, wow! So realistic, Sax's sense of temperament and melody and melody suddenly appeared, sitting still and listening to the "ice" and "hard" of digital signals, each note is so harmonious and natural. No wonder some people give SE a good name - humanized effects, SE is definitely worthy of the name! Figure 7: Style Enhancer Micro 2.0 In addition to the saxophone, SE also offers hundreds of performance styles for piano, bass, guitar, string and other major instruments. There are 16 kinds of playing skills to choose from. Meet the needs of our various music!
The fifth step of post-production has completed the prototype of the music MIDI part. Next, these MIDI tracks should be converted into audio files, and then optimized and synthesized in the post-production software to make the sound quality better and more powerful. Listening. You can also record vocals for your music, more like a complete song.
1. MIDI to Wav conversion If you have already achieved satisfactory playback in Sonar, you can convert them to audio files and post-process them in multitrack software. The conversion operation is also very simple. First set the sound card's recording port to MIDI, then press the Solo button on the track to be converted in Sonar and insert a new audio track (Audio Track) to set the audio track's In port to Stereo Wave In, the last time you activate the red R, you can start recording while playing! When finished, save it as a Wav file using Export Audio under the File menu. Repeat the above steps to convert all MIDI tracks into Wav files for use in the multitrack audio software below!
2. Sound quality optimization in Vegas Vegas Audio 2.0 is a multi-track audio software that is very simple to operate but does not show weakness. It is mainly used to process the added audio track. After launching Vegas, first drag the previously saved Wav file into the upper area in the browser below to create multiple audio tracks. At this time, you can adjust the volume, pan position and other parameters of the track on the property panel in front of the track. You can also use the Audio-Track Fx under the Tools menu to open the track effect and set it in the equalization, compression, and noise gates. set. Creating Multiple Tracks in Vegas If you want to use different volume levels for audio events in different locations, you can use the Audio Envelopes-Volume volume envelope under the Insert menu to set freely, and the voice envelope is the same. the use of. Reverb is one of the most widely used effects settings in music, giving music a sense of layering and space for an immersive feel. If you want to use the reverb effect on the tracks in Vegas, just use the Audio-Insert Assignble Fx command under the Tools menu and switch to the Fx column in the panel in front of the track to set it. Other effects are also applied to the same method to achieve your desired results.
3. Singing Recording After completing the production of the music accompaniment part, we also need to add some vocals to the music to make it feel like a complete song, which requires the use of Vegas recording function. First set the sound card's recording port to the microphone, then press the red button in front of the track. Finally, press the record button to play the accompaniment music while recording our songs, just like karaoke, very convenient! After the recording panel is set, play it for audition. If the effect is not satisfactory, delete it and record it. In addition to the general recording mode, Vegas also supports the insertion of recordings, which makes it easy for us to supplement a sentence in a paragraph, which has strong practical value. First select the part that needs to be re-recorded, then record the mouse before this part, the place where the sing is good is not affected, and the part that needs to be re-recorded will be automatically replaced with the current effect. Music can do it! After completing the vocal recording, we can add reverberation, compression, equalization, etc., to make it sound more beautiful and harmonious. When the overall playback effect is satisfactory, you can use the Render As under the File menu to save all the tracks as a stereo audio file, and our music works will be "released" soon!
4. Mastering process "mastering process" is the last process of music, which can greatly improve the quality of sound, and generally grasp the effect of sound. We recommend T-Racks 2.0, an excellent mastering software. Simply input the Wav file of the music and choose an ideal effect. You can directly output the CD performance of the publishing level, which is amazing! After launching T-Racks, I saw a dinosaur icon interface, which is the iconic "mascot" of the software! We open the stereo file just saved from the Open in the lower right corner, and open the preset menu with the Load above, select SUITE-Gentle master 1. Now press the space bar to hear the effect, wow, the sound becomes clear and full, I really didn't expect our computer to make such Hi-Fi effect! If you are satisfied, press the Process button to save as a new file; if the effect is not satisfactory, you can also choose other preset values, which is very convenient! T-Racks 2.0 main interface In fact, T-Racks mainly uses the principle of analog tube amplifier to "warm" the sound, so some people call it "warm sound software", which can be displayed in the colorful display lights above. See the effect of this "warm sound"! Don't underestimate the handling of "warm sound". After comparing the audition, you will find that the effect before and after use is really different! The remarkable degree of T-Racks' improvement in sound quality is not only the level of a grade, it directly affects the effect of the final sound generation, so recommend every friend to try, absolutely give you unexpected surprises!
The audio file obtained after T-Racks processing is our final result. There is always an unspeakable joy in the face of my own meticulous work! Now I know that computer music is not as mysterious as I imagined. As long as we have the help of our music ideas and computer technology, we can realize the dream effect of "one person band"! I hope that all music lovers will come to be the commander of "one-person band". When faced with many excellent computer "players", try to lead the whole situation and direct the taste of "a thousand horses". I hope you are in the computer. Help with more beautiful and beautiful music!