Summary
Throughout this project, I worked on composing a song by learning basic navigation throughout a DAW, using automation and attempting to learn song structure. The most notable thing I worked on was using multiple pads to make a decent arrangement.
Audio File Formats and Definitions
AIFF (Audio Interchange File Format): stores standard CD-quality audio; similar to WAV (Higher Quality)
WAV (Waveform Audio File Format): CD audio; can be saved with different sampling and bit rates; similar to AIFF (Higher Quality)
MP3 (Audio File): Used to store audiobooks and music on a hard drive; close to CD-quality sound; the higher quality sound comes from higher bit rates, which also take up more storage space
MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface): music data: notes played, when notes are played, how long each note is played, and the velocity of each note played; used to be able to exchange and use information between software and hardware programs; no actual audio data
All the audio file format information is found at: fileinfo.com
SMART Goal Schedule & Composition Timeline
Day 1: During this day I worked on first picking out a MIDI keyboard and opening up a new project
Day 2: During this day I explored the song structure used in Animadrop and messed around with kicks. I was still unsure what to focus on with this composition and SMART goal improvement
Day 3: I came up with various melodies I liked this day and came up with the current one this day using the Grand Piano as the track instrument. I recorded the first variation of my SMART goal melody this day.
Day 4: Using the melody from the day previous I worked on adding a bassline and made the main melody a pad. The bassline track consists of two tracks.
Day 5: I made a much more in-depth background this day with multiple basslines and small changes
Day 6: This was mostly a day of fixing off-key notes and applying automation to the project to make things sound smoother
Day 7: Mixing was the main focus of this day; as well as improving automation. This was also the final day where I recorded my final practice of the melody I worked on
Day 8: Feedback day; got some interesting opinions and applied them to the project if possible
Song Used As Template
The reason why I decided to choose this song as a framework for this project was because of the significance it holds to me. The arrangement and song structure Porter Robinson uses is incredibly interesting and I feel this certain feeling that he manages to produce in every song, particularly in this album.
GarageBand Tracks
My Composition
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EF-6qcMJ3SW6NdUc7bqIhP7jUeQ1Nwl1/view?usp=sharing
What I Learned & Problems I Solved
During this project I learned to compose a mostly complete song using actual methods that producers use when generating ideas. Some problems I went through were when learning to use automation, which I solved quickly with the help of my peers. Overall, though, I mostly messed around with simple piano melodies, which was my greatest strength during this project.
Tutorial(s) Used:
