CMU School of Drama


Friday, October 30, 2020

A Musical Middle: Adding Depth & Musicality To The Core Of Your Mixes

ProSoundWeb: Here we’re going to look at everything that happens in the mix between the foundation and the vocals. It’s the peanut butter and jelly between two slices of bread, and it’s extremely important if you want the song to sound musical and powerful. The instruments that live in this area will give the song its musicality and key signature and encourage people to sing along, so let’s explore how we can wrangle all this musical information together so that all the instruments are clearly heard and identified yet working together to form a beautiful “musical middle.”

2 comments:

Jin Oh said...

I decided to click on this article right away since our Studiocraft class had a mixing workshop recently, and I actually got really interested in mixing after playing around with the program for a bit. I really do I agree with the article saying that mixing is an extremely essential part for song to be powerful, and even a small adjustment can change the impression or the strength of the song. I enjoyed reading this because the content was fairly basic and straightforward compared to the other articles that I have read that sounded more detailed. I am glad that I could read the article while I am “agree”ing with it, instead of just feeling like I am learning the information. It was especially helpful to read the insight and tips regarding EQ (Equalization), since that was the part I particularly had fun with during the mixing workshop. It was also new to read how using the “visual common sense” is available even with the sound technologies.

greenbowbear said...

This article was really informative while keeping the information pretty beginner friendly! I’ve enjoyed the ProSoundWeb articles I’ve been able to read. Unfortunately, it seems like they don’t keep articles on their site after a certain amount of time, meaning many of them I’ve found on the blog I can’t access.
The HPF & EQ section was pretty familiar for me. I’ve worked in both live and recording sound, and one of the important parts when working with a lot of tracks/instruments is to isolate their frequencies. Otherwise, you’re leaving in a lot of unneeded noise. Its also important to note that sometimes an instrument’s EQ needs to be harsh for it to come through in the mix. It might sound bad when singled, but together it works!
The panning section was newer to me. I’ve only worked with a left and a right speaker and maybe a couple of fills for live, and I’ve never been comfortable enough with them to play around with panning. I’ve done my fair share of panning for recording settings, but its more for stylistic reasons.
I’m glad FX was brought up, as it can also be a great way to finish off a mix.