Having your own platinum record might be far-fetched, but you can record and mix music at home, thanks to audio-editing software. Anjali Thomas gets into the groove
When he has time, copywriter Rakshit Doshi, 25, composes and records his own music on his PC at home. All he uses is a microphone and an audio-editing software. “I got interested in the idea of making my own music while I was in college, where I had a band called Brake Dust,” says Doshi. “We started playing covers, but later began composing our own music, and that’s when I started editing songs at home.”
Brake Dust may have broken up, but that hasn’t stopped Doshi from continuing to experiment at home. Once he composes the lyrics and basic rhythm on his guitar, he uses Adobe Audition — a simple editing software used to record vocals and guitar chords — and then spends about three hours whipping it into shape. “To pad up my sound, I use drum synthesisers, a software that allows users to emulate an actual drum kit,” Doshi adds.
The idea of making music on a PC was unheard of even a decade ago. But thanks to technology, today even a person with limited experience can put together a passable composition at home. There are many audio-editing programs available for both pros and amateurs, and these can be broadly divided into recording and composition software. For instance, Adobe Audition (which Doshi uses) has basic recording functions, while with Fruity Loops Studio 6 (FL6), one can compose a piece.
“Finding the right software and learning how to use it is not easy initially, but it’s worth the effort,” says 29-year-old ad-scheduler Ninad Bhise, who spent a month familiarising himself with the programs. He composes music on FL6 (Fruity Loops), a software that allows users to experiment with different sounds. It has a bunch of virtual instruments that you can use to create tracks. He also records and mixes on Steinberg’s Nuendo, a program that lets him record not just vocals and guitar, but also keyboards and synthesisers (MIDI). If you’re a newbie and don’t know where to begin, start with the basics. Ranjit Menon, a 27-year-old interface designer who plays the keyboard, recommends Sony’s Sound Forge, a simple recording software. “You can compose on FL6, and then record on Cubase or Nuendo, both of which are complicated but give you better options when mixing,” he says. Mac users can opt for Garage Band, a software favoured by amateurs, and graduate to Logic, a more professional program
The range of editing software available today caters to beginners, amateurs and pros. The software manufacturer Cakewalk, for example, has programs where anyone can create songs just by dragging and dropping sound files. At the other end of the spectrum is industry-standard software such as Protools.
Claver Menezes, 32, a freelance musician who composed the title tracks for a number of television serials such as Bombay Talking and Khul Ja Sim Sim, has set up a home studio. “I can record a hundred takes, if required, at no additional cost,” he says. “So, instead of charging my clients Rs2 lakh, I can bring down the cost by about Rs50,000.” Sahil Makhija, 25, lead guitarist and vocalist with the band Demonic Resurrection, edits, mixes and masters his songs on his PC. “I use Nuendo and Adobe Audition. We hire a studio only when we’re recording. This saves us a lot of money,” he says.
For professionals like Menezes and Makhija, technology has given them a lot of creative freedom. But for Bhise and Menon, who are happy to make music at home, the end product is not what matters. They either upload their music on the net or burn it on a CD to share with friends. And feel like a great rocker.
No comments:
Post a Comment