Clemency

Composer • Improviser • Theorist

Music philosopher, humor theorist, burgeoning Street Fighter player and wannabe Dad. Seeking harmony.

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@clementcomposer
Mastodon: www.zirk.us/@clemency


Maybe it's just me, or maybe a lot of musicians have had this relationship with the production side of the process, but there's always been an undercurrent of resentment towards it with me. People should care about the music, not the production, right? What's the deal with this obstacle that people just can't seem to get over to listen to my """actual work"""?

As it turns out, how your music enters people's ears matters a lot. Those soundwaves are so much more than the notes on your staff paper (or in your DAW). Real human listeners hear a lot more than just the music, and the 'other stuff' ADDS UP.

I came up with this analogy to think about the importance of different parts of the process:

You're a writer. You want to write a great monologue. People would rather listen to a great monologue than a shitty one, and you want to do your best artistic work. Great! This is where musical composition and arrangement falls.

Let's say you've already written a great monologue. Do you want Joe Schmo from next door to read it, or do you want Patrick Stewart to read it? It's the exact same words, so does it matter? Hell yeah it does! I'm pretty sure most people want to hear Patrick Stewart. This is analogous to the performance and/or recording part of the process. A great performance recorded well makes a big difference to your music.

Now you've got a great monologue being read by Patrick Stewart. Here's where mixing and mastering comes in: do you want to hear him read it on a train full of people? Do you want to hear him read it through a gas mask? Or do you want to hear him read it alone on a clean stage with a subtle spotlight? It's the same actor giving the same performance of the same words, so does it matter? Of course it does! The soundscape matters a LOT to people being able to connect to your music. Does it have depth, detail, and a pleasing frequency balance free of interference?

And then, ON TOP OF ALL THAT, if you have a beautiful, clean stage performance by Patrick Stewart of your incredible words, how are most people going to hear it? Are they in the room with him? No! They're going to watch it on their phones!

There is so much quality work that is necessary at every stage of the audio process in order to make that final sound wave that reaches people's ears the best thing it can be. Like it or not, your music is always about so much more than just the music.


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