I'm a classically trained (degree holding) pianst/composer. How can I use el!
Question: I'm a classically trained (degree holding) pianst/composer!. How can I use electronics in my compositions!?!?
I often go to avant-garde concerts, etc and I love the mix of genre and use of electronics in the performances that I see!. I have seen people use amplified instruments, weird pedals and devices; I have seen people use things that create sounds both from instruments being hooked up to the device and from instruments playing into mics and then other sounds occuring as a result of those sounds, etc etc!.!.!.how does one become involved in this or learn how to use electronics in thier compositions!. I am particularly interested in piano since it is what I play, but I am interested generally as well!. I find it so interesting but the idea of using electronics is so daunting for me since I have such a conservative background!. I have used prepared piano and unsual acoustic techniques for instruments!.!.!.but nothing electronic!. Can someone point me in the right direction and give me examples of devices that I can use and what they do!.!.!.etc etc!.!.!.thanks!!!Www@Enter-QA@Com
Answers:
First of all, good luck on your endeavors! And welcome to the world of electronic music!. As a classically trained composer/pianist myself (who does a great deal of work with music technology), I can give you lots of pointers to start you on your way!.
The first thing to know is that learning music technology is like learning a new instrument in and of itself!. Like any instrument, it requires lots of study (reading manuals, listening to recordings, experimenting with knobs and buttons to see what they do, etc) and a great deal of practice as well (just about every electronic device or program comes with hundreds of presets and combinations to try, and part of the learning curve is seeing which ones produce the sounds and effects you desire in your music!.) It may take you a couple of years before you hit your stride and find the best way to make the technology work for you (just as it took you a few years of piano playing before you found how you wanted to express yourself on that instrument!.)
The second thing to know is that like any musical instrument, the best electronic ones also come at higher prices!. Every violinist knows that a Guarneri or Stradivarius violin (in the hands of a master player) will produce a better tone than a dime-store student model that you get on Ebay for $100!. Similarly, if you are micing acoustic instruments (either for recording or for live electronic processing), you will get far better results from a matched pair of condenser mics (retail: $1000) than a couple of handheld mics from Radio Shack (retail: $80)!.
Like a student starting out, you may want to buy some of the lower-end gear while you are still learning the basics, but as you get better, be prepared to have the finances to add to your collection and upgrade your instruments!.
Finally, like any other musician learning an instrument, you've got to study the masters of the craft to see how to ply your trade!. As a pianist, you probably have your list of great pianists you admire and listen to; similarly, start building your CD/mp3 collection of great artists working with electronics that catch your ear!. Check out the tape pieces of Stockhausen and John Cage (early masters of music concrete- the technique of splicing together various sound snippets to make a collage), and check out the tape loop pieces of Steve Reich (which can be closely duplicated today using computer-based delay devices)!.
And be prepared to study works outside of the "classical" genre: if you're working with electronics, artists like Terminator X (of Public Enemy) and DJ Spooky are carrying on the music concrete tradition just as surely as Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood is finding new inspiration in minimalist looping patterns inspired by Reich and Glass!.
This may seem daunting to learn this all at first- just as it probably seemed daunting the first time you had to play a difficult piece by Liszt or Rachmaninoff!. But the more you study and practice (and research- hang out with other electronic musicians, go to concerts by composers working with electronics and ask them how they are getting the sounds they work with, and subscribe to magazines like Keyboard or Electronic Musician to see what's out there and who's doing what with what!.)
While you're doing all that, here's a quick etude idea (think of this as a techie version of the Hanon finger studies you are familiar with) to get you started!.
You will need:
A microphone (one for now; eventually you will want a second one for fuller sound!.) Ask your local music store for recommendations for good piano mics to get that fit into your budget!.
A mixing board to plug the microphone into!. (Again, see what the store has that fits into your budget- it need not be something digital and fancy now, but eventually you will want to upgrade)!.
A good keyboard amplifier or powered speaker (if you can't get a powered speaker, you will need to get an amp for the speaker)!.
A multi-function electronic effects device (one that can do delay, chorus, reverb, flanging, and whatever other effects that come with it!.) The TC Electronics M-One would be a good example of something like this to get (although other companies like Alesis, Yamaha, and Lexicon also make good products as well!.)
Sufficient audio and power cables to hook all this stuff up (ask for help if you need tips for exactly what cables you need!)
Once you have the ingredients, here's the recipe:
Connect the mic to an channel in the mixing board and focus the mic on the hammers of your piano!. Assign that mixing board channel to send the signal from the mic to the Aux 1 Send (this is known as "busing to aux 1")!. Connect the Aux 1 send output of the mixing board to the input of your effects device, and connect the output of your effects device to a different channel of the mixing board!. Then assign that mixing board channel to send the signal from the effects device to the main output of the mixing board (which will then be connected to the keyboard amp or powered speaker!.)
The end result: when you play anything on the piano, the piano sound will be transformed in some way by the effects device and you will hear the result from the amp or speaker!. Keep the effects device near you where you can play with the settings, and start playing: use different delays, choruses, flanging sounds, whatever sounds are built into to the device, and see what happens when you make your music a reaction to what you are hearing!. Feel free to change all sorts of knobs (such as delay time or chorus width) and see how you like the results!. And most importantly, write down all the tweaks you are doing- this is how you learn how all this stuff works (and so you can put these details into any composition you come up with!)
If you have any questions about this, feel free to post again in Y!A, and I (or someone else here knowledgeable about this field) will be glad to give you tips and suggestions!.
Happy tweaking & composing!Www@Enter-QA@Com
The first thing to know is that learning music technology is like learning a new instrument in and of itself!. Like any instrument, it requires lots of study (reading manuals, listening to recordings, experimenting with knobs and buttons to see what they do, etc) and a great deal of practice as well (just about every electronic device or program comes with hundreds of presets and combinations to try, and part of the learning curve is seeing which ones produce the sounds and effects you desire in your music!.) It may take you a couple of years before you hit your stride and find the best way to make the technology work for you (just as it took you a few years of piano playing before you found how you wanted to express yourself on that instrument!.)
The second thing to know is that like any musical instrument, the best electronic ones also come at higher prices!. Every violinist knows that a Guarneri or Stradivarius violin (in the hands of a master player) will produce a better tone than a dime-store student model that you get on Ebay for $100!. Similarly, if you are micing acoustic instruments (either for recording or for live electronic processing), you will get far better results from a matched pair of condenser mics (retail: $1000) than a couple of handheld mics from Radio Shack (retail: $80)!.
Like a student starting out, you may want to buy some of the lower-end gear while you are still learning the basics, but as you get better, be prepared to have the finances to add to your collection and upgrade your instruments!.
Finally, like any other musician learning an instrument, you've got to study the masters of the craft to see how to ply your trade!. As a pianist, you probably have your list of great pianists you admire and listen to; similarly, start building your CD/mp3 collection of great artists working with electronics that catch your ear!. Check out the tape pieces of Stockhausen and John Cage (early masters of music concrete- the technique of splicing together various sound snippets to make a collage), and check out the tape loop pieces of Steve Reich (which can be closely duplicated today using computer-based delay devices)!.
And be prepared to study works outside of the "classical" genre: if you're working with electronics, artists like Terminator X (of Public Enemy) and DJ Spooky are carrying on the music concrete tradition just as surely as Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood is finding new inspiration in minimalist looping patterns inspired by Reich and Glass!.
This may seem daunting to learn this all at first- just as it probably seemed daunting the first time you had to play a difficult piece by Liszt or Rachmaninoff!. But the more you study and practice (and research- hang out with other electronic musicians, go to concerts by composers working with electronics and ask them how they are getting the sounds they work with, and subscribe to magazines like Keyboard or Electronic Musician to see what's out there and who's doing what with what!.)
While you're doing all that, here's a quick etude idea (think of this as a techie version of the Hanon finger studies you are familiar with) to get you started!.
You will need:
A microphone (one for now; eventually you will want a second one for fuller sound!.) Ask your local music store for recommendations for good piano mics to get that fit into your budget!.
A mixing board to plug the microphone into!. (Again, see what the store has that fits into your budget- it need not be something digital and fancy now, but eventually you will want to upgrade)!.
A good keyboard amplifier or powered speaker (if you can't get a powered speaker, you will need to get an amp for the speaker)!.
A multi-function electronic effects device (one that can do delay, chorus, reverb, flanging, and whatever other effects that come with it!.) The TC Electronics M-One would be a good example of something like this to get (although other companies like Alesis, Yamaha, and Lexicon also make good products as well!.)
Sufficient audio and power cables to hook all this stuff up (ask for help if you need tips for exactly what cables you need!)
Once you have the ingredients, here's the recipe:
Connect the mic to an channel in the mixing board and focus the mic on the hammers of your piano!. Assign that mixing board channel to send the signal from the mic to the Aux 1 Send (this is known as "busing to aux 1")!. Connect the Aux 1 send output of the mixing board to the input of your effects device, and connect the output of your effects device to a different channel of the mixing board!. Then assign that mixing board channel to send the signal from the effects device to the main output of the mixing board (which will then be connected to the keyboard amp or powered speaker!.)
The end result: when you play anything on the piano, the piano sound will be transformed in some way by the effects device and you will hear the result from the amp or speaker!. Keep the effects device near you where you can play with the settings, and start playing: use different delays, choruses, flanging sounds, whatever sounds are built into to the device, and see what happens when you make your music a reaction to what you are hearing!. Feel free to change all sorts of knobs (such as delay time or chorus width) and see how you like the results!. And most importantly, write down all the tweaks you are doing- this is how you learn how all this stuff works (and so you can put these details into any composition you come up with!)
If you have any questions about this, feel free to post again in Y!A, and I (or someone else here knowledgeable about this field) will be glad to give you tips and suggestions!.
Happy tweaking & composing!Www@Enter-QA@Com
I just posted a few lines of recognition on another answer!.!.I will repeat it here!.!.!.Quite often I am very impressed to witness the kindness and generosity of people here in this classical section!.
It is rather overwhelming to see how they help each other!. Really help!
I only hope the good work is continued!.!.!. I want to thank in this case, Mr!. Joshuach and Mr!. Asnakeny!.!.!.Wonderful job!Www@Enter-QA@Com
It is rather overwhelming to see how they help each other!. Really help!
I only hope the good work is continued!.!.!. I want to thank in this case, Mr!. Joshuach and Mr!. Asnakeny!.!.!.Wonderful job!Www@Enter-QA@Com
Request: post a recording of one of your compositions, so that we may hear it, and possibly offer helpful suggestions!.
AlberichWww@Enter-QA@Com
AlberichWww@Enter-QA@Com
Don't let you're background hold you back!. anyone can learn this stuff with enough time and patience!. the best way to start is get some equipment and software and start messing around with it!.
as far as equipment and software there's a lot out there!. since you're just getting started with this there are a few free programs, and some cheap equipment you can use to try it out!.
you'll want an editing program like audacity, protools, or DP!. these let you organize you're electronic material, it's like staff paper for electronics!.
http://audacity!.sourceforge!.net/download!.!.!. (this one's free)
as a pianist it might be fun to have a sound module hooked up to a laptop and a midi keyboard!. with an editing software you can record straight into your computer and then do whatever you want compositionally later!.
you'll need a setup like one of these:
http://www!.rolandus!.com/products/product!.!.!.Www@Enter-QA@Com
as far as equipment and software there's a lot out there!. since you're just getting started with this there are a few free programs, and some cheap equipment you can use to try it out!.
you'll want an editing program like audacity, protools, or DP!. these let you organize you're electronic material, it's like staff paper for electronics!.
http://audacity!.sourceforge!.net/download!.!.!. (this one's free)
as a pianist it might be fun to have a sound module hooked up to a laptop and a midi keyboard!. with an editing software you can record straight into your computer and then do whatever you want compositionally later!.
you'll need a setup like one of these:
http://www!.rolandus!.com/products/product!.!.!.Www@Enter-QA@Com