New recording in the works

"All that Surrounds Me" was written in 2005 after coming home from a week spent in London in July of that year. Our stay was sandwiched between two bombings: the first took place a week before our arrival, the second, a week after we had left.

We spent the week basking in glorious weather, seeing sites, eating delicious Indian, Portuguese and Thai food (as well as great pub fare!) and generally walking from 7:00 in the morning to 11:00 at night.

The song was the first to be arranged for the Crucible Electric Chamber Ensemble but was never recorded by this group. So, before loosing sight of it, I have decided to commit it to tape.

This evening, I recorded a rough vocal and rhythm guitar track onto track 1; track 2 received a double mix of miked acoustic guitar with the pickup being fed through the Hi-Z channel to give a brighter sound. After this had been done (one take for each run through was sufficient), my son came down to the studio and decided to have some fun, patching his voice through the various sound effects I have on the console.

A new piece is also taking shape, using the Schillinger techniques of Expansion and Contraction using r9÷8 as rhythmic template. The piece might become an orchestrated version of "Hyparxis" or might stand on its own. We shall see.

Aftershock: Mix & Closure

After trying to re-record the vocal track for the Nth time, I finally chose original take 6 as master. At 9:38 PM Sunday May 2nd, I mixed down the song to stereo and exported the results as an mp3.

And here it is, for your listening pleasure:

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"The Waves of Aftershock" © 2010 Christopher Cousineau

The mix itself is not final by a long shot. However, it does signify that work on this present song's recording is done for the moment. A new project now awaits!

Good evening, All.

Overdub experiment

Since I use a basic stereo soundcard to generate the orchestral sounds on my recordings, I have to guess the final volume relationship between the various instruments used before committing them to tape. Sometimes a great sounding balance loses its greatness when new tracks are recorded and start cluttering up sonic space. Inevitably, some of the original instruments get buried while others seem to pierce the soundscape with magical clarity. In the case of "Aftershock", part of the drums have become buried.

To remedy this, I tried to overdub the bass drum and snare track from the midi file without midi sync. I pressed record and let it fly. The tracks came out slightly out of sync (approximately 20 frames) at the start and a little more toward the 4/5ths of the song. When mixed however, the drums sound a little fatter. At the end, when the sync is quite off, it sounds like a drummer flamming lazily behind the beat.

More experiments to come.

Four new vocal tracks

Set up the studio to record a new lead vocal track for "Aftershock". Used a second mike stand to support a towel folded in two placed directly behind the vocal mike to act as a makeshift isolation / anechoic chamber (of sorts). It definitely helped to cut some of the room reverberation from bleeding into the mike, which seems to have made the vocal track a bit tighter to my ears.

The first take was a good one, with the mike pre-amp a bit too hot. The track distorts a bit in places, but might be a keeper. The next take used a limiter on the mike. The resulting track was an okay performance, but the recording was dead sounding. Takes three and four were recorded clean (no limiter), with the gain a little lower than on take one. At present, it seems to be a toss up between takes one and four. Will leave the choice to another time.

The guitar solo seems fine after all. The performance is good, so it maybe just a question of finding its correct place in the mix.

Electric Guitar completed

Recording began around 7:09 this morning, with the help of the following co-conspirators:
The first takes started by using the neck pick-up which yielded a beautiful tone, which was not used simply because it disappeared when played with the other tracks. I used both pick-ups in combination and the sound stood out without being aggressive.

The part was subtly modified also. Most of the original part is still present, but some chords have been dropped to avoid clutter. In the chorus I double the bass part, which sounds much better to my ears. The flat wound strings of the guitar and bass give another identity to this part of the piece.

The next step is to try once more to get the vocals down and maybe add a harmony line in places. We'll see.

An early morning of Electric Guitar

Rose at 6:30 and after feeding the cat, set up the studio to record the electric guitar part for "Aftershock". Ran through many takes, keeping four. In the end the question remains, does it add anything? Obviously, it adds a new sound to the picture but is it needed? The more I listen, the less I feel like keeping it. Even the instrumental outro is less than satisfying. I might just add flourishes here and there and leave out any rhythm work from the electric.

The equipment used for this session is as follows: Ibanez semi-acoustic Artist A-200, Vox AC-30 amplifier and Sennheiser e906 dynamic microphone. It is my first experience with this microphone. The tone seems to be good and it withstands pressure without distortion. I need to try it in combination with the CAD E-200, blending their respective sonic properties.

I am now off to fetch breakfast, then we are off for the Autism walk Fund-raiser.

After Victoria, Sing!

Friday evening usually means to relax and watch a movie after the evening meal. This evening's offering was "Young Victoria". Since we started to watch it early, by 9:30 it was over. This permitted me to slip downstairs and experiment with a new microphone placement for vocals.

The victim was obviously "Aftershock", which I ran through a total of 4 times, each time with a slightly different setting. I find that if the microphone is too sensitive, I tend to hold back, to avoid overloading the pre-amp. On the other hand, if my voice is placed too low in the mix, my voice starts to strain. I still have not found the perfect balance that is needed for optimal results.

Another experiment was to place the microphone in a corner and use a figure 8 polar pattern to get some of the room but to cancel out some of it also. To my surprise, the voice sounds more present, although I would have expected some boxiness, there seem to be none. This said, I am still not sure I have committed a final take to tape.

An NST playing session

What is unusual with recording and composing is, when I am caught up in the process, I have little time to actually practice guitar, let alone enjoying playing it for pleasure's sake. So, this evening saw a short break in the proceedings and I broke out my Country Gent and played.

Since the guitar is tuned in NST, I went for the pieces I have written for this tuning. In order, I played Morning Glory, Neiges, Misleading Chambers, and Danse de Sophia. Practice was soothing and quiet, just relishing the sounds and the tone of this wonderful guitar and staying relaxed throughout.

While I was preparing for this short note, I turned on the multitrack and listened to a rough mix of "Aftershock" several times through, the last time muting the vocal track. Compared to my recollection, it seems well balanced and quite enjoyable to listen to. The harpsichord and oboe give a Baroque tinge to it (which was not the original intention), yet this might change when adding the electric guitar part. Listening has confirmed that the vocal track will be re-recorded; I wish to strengthen my voice a bit, so the voice seems less strained. As it is, it lends a certain drama to the song which overstates the lyrics and is unnecessary. It is possible to write a song about loss without glossing it over with drama or histrionics. "In My Life" by The Beatles comes to mind.

Acoustic guitar and 1st vocal tracks

Around 7:45 this evening, set up two large diaphragm condenser microphones to record an acoustic guitar track, one for instrument (CAD Equitek E-200), and one for the room (CAD GXL-2400), both recorded to track two. Changed positions a few times as the sound was a bit muffled; the final position was facing the outside wall, a foot in front of the mike, with the room mike about 4 feet to my left at a height of approx. 6'. Both microphones' on-board gain was up to 9 for a live feel.

A final check for sound levels around 8:00, then a take. Take one yielded the goods, so I put the guitar away and re-arranged the E-200 for a vocal take, this time having the mike two feet in front of my computer desk. I had the diaphragm at eye level, slightly angled toward the ground so I could sing into it without popping any P's or B's. Take one was also a keeper, although not necessarily the final take. I tried a second take but it was definitely inferior to the first. Both were kept, but ultimately, another vocal track will be recorded in the future.

Will the backing track need to be thought out again? Doubt is creeping in. As usual at this stage a good flat mix reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the initial tracks. Since my MIDI track was sent directly to stereo on linked tracks 15 & 16, the level of the instruments these tracks contain cannot be remixed. This might lead to a whole new recording using a new backing track or recording each instrument separately to individual tracks and lining them up with the existing recording (I cannot sync my computer to my multitrack at this point). Both have their merits and will yield valuable experience.

The next step will be an electric guitar part, however. But not tonight.

Bass line complete

Actually got around to recording the bass line for "Aftershock" this afternoon between 14:00 and 15:45, using Hofner Bass, H & H V-S Bassamp, GXL2400 Cardioid Condenser microphone (close miking: 2-3" from the top cone). Recording was made on a Roland VS-1880, straight, no effects. The bass sounds nice, might need a bit evening out (limiter, maybe).

More on this later.

Sunday Morning Music

Most of my recent work has been geared toward finalizing my arrangement for "Aftershock", including learning the bass line for the past two days. I have succeeded in learning the part and now am working toward a relaxed state while playing. When this is achieved, recording is usually a cinch. I might not record this week-end after all, as my son had a friend over yesterday, and this means the house becomes a source of unexpected noise. Chaos happens, so let's not tempt it, shall we?

For your Sunday morning listening pleasure, I have just uploaded another piano piece which was written earlier this year, entitled "Dawn and Quiet Waters".

Dawn and Quiet Waters © Christopher Cousineau 2010.


Happy listening!

Bassline learning curve

In another life, I used to play bass with Clockwork 7, so many years ago it seems. I played a Univox replica of the Rickenbacker 4001 and loved weaving melodic ideas which would anchor the songs and give them a flavour somewhat exotic. I would always go for a Paperback Writer / Sgt Pepper sound when I could, the notes would just peak through the Treble and be there in all their Glory.

Now many (many) years later, my Univox stolen, replaced by a true Hofner 500/1, I am trying to learn the bass part I wrote for the Harpsichord for "Aftershock". Some of my bounce is back (Yea!) but some of the cross-fretboard work in the higher register (12th fret and up) needs a bit of work (not to mention limbering the fingers). I am playing through my H & H Bass Amp and realize I am in need of padding some rattles in my studio if I wish to record using a microphone.

The basic (MIDI) tracks have been recorded onto my hard-disk recorder and sound much better now that the sound is a bit beefed up. If I can manage a few hours of quiet over the week end, I will record the acoustic and electric guitars. Vocals? Maybe. Stay posted!

Less is more

A most overused phrase, sometimes unfortunately used to excuse acts of barbarity. In the case of Art, may that mean Cooking, Painting or making Music, it does apply almost eternally. Even when one wishes to go overboard with an idea, it is always good to take a step back, observe, remember the original intent, inspiration and / or aspiration, and remove the clutter. So,....

This is what is taking place with "Aftershock". The Intro was conceived as a Guitar / Bass duet, punctuated by snare and bass drum punches. What I hear now appears to be overstated; clarity has been smothered and though I removed the Harpsichord part which doubled the guitar, it seems the cymbal work will also have to go. Maybe I should let it sit a day or two and work on something else. I might be to close to the picture to fully appreciate what is there.

Now for some short e-correspondence before closing for this evening.

Sunday morning, once again

Not much work of consequence on Thursday and Friday. Trying to get in tune with writing a part for drums and percussion for "Aftershock" but could not get past the whimpiness of the drum samples I had at my disposal. I finally found a way of ignoring this situation and got a part growing on Saturday morning. I have just run through the drum parts section by section to correct any timing faults and inconsistencies and I believe it is a winner. Since the rhythmic aspect has been written out to my (immediate) liking, I will be able to improve it when a better soundfont becomes available.

I also continued with the Oboe part. This is a transliteration of the parts I had written for e-bow, with slight rhythmic changes that could not be addressed as previously played.

Now for breakfast and preparing for the day's activities.

Outline complete

Finished the outline structure of "Aftershock" around 9:45 this evening. The harpsichord part is complete, ending at measure 78 and clocking in at 4min 45s 45c according to the Transport in Rosegarden.

After listening to the piece and playing along with the guitar to weed out any glitches, everything seemed suited to start work on percussion. Or so I thought. While listening to the playback I started falling asleep trying to "hear" what the percussion should sound like. Even writing this short note is ZZZzzzz....

I guess that means I am going to turn in for now.

More work on Aftershock

After wasting an hour watching (and falling asleep from lack of stimuli) a National Geographic documentary on the Phoenicians, I decided to put in a bit of guitar practice before retiring for the evening. Walked through Hyparxis (lead part), Misleading Chambers and Magnetic Fields. By this time, I was feeling awake again, so fired up Ubuntu and started writing the continuing score for Aftershock.

Harpsichord is almost complete, I still need to complete the last part of the piece where the guitar solo begins. English horn and oboe parts are in need of additional tweaking, but they are also coming along quite well.

My son then procedeed to show me yet another clip (mash-up) of some promotional films for Ravin Rabids which he finds hysterical. I must admit that some parts will get a smile out of me, although I can't be exposed to it for too long.

Now for some reading, then sleep.

Piece: The Waves of Aftershock

I am an early riser. Even on my monday off. What do I do when everyone else in the household is asleep? Slip down to my studio and write music, ha!

This morning I jotted down Verse I and II for harpsichord and english horn. Then, after rebooting following a crash,  I wrote out the middle 8 (harpsichord only, for now).

At the moment my tools of choice are Ubuntu Studio with Rosegarden 1.7.2. I mostly use soundfonts via FluidSynth plugin, though I am hoping for a day when an improved sonic palette becomes available. I am aware that other tools are out there, but I prefer to spend the time I have writting music than fighting a learning curve battle with demos of products I am not sure to use in the long run.

Into the Blue of Sky

This piece was written to explore Schillinger's concept of Harmonic and Rhythmic interference. The rhythm aspect is based on the resultant of r3÷2 (2+1+1+2) and the harmonic aspect was taken from the key of D Dorian. Enjoy!

Into the Blue of Sky © Christopher Cousineau 2010.

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Easter Sunday, 2010

This is to be a record of my compositional activities. My aim when composing is to experience the awe I felt as a child when music would generate emotional states beyond my comprehension. I feel successful when a piece achieves this aim. I feel blessed when it generates this response in others. I am lucky to have had both experiences in the past. With perseverance, this will be the hallmark of all music I bring into existence.

This morning I have begun work on a piece entitled "The Waves of Aftershock". The piece was written during late summer 2009 after learning of the death of a dear friend. This morning's work consisted of writing out the introduction for Harpsichord. I will continue working out the complete structure of the piece using this instrument as a guideline and will flesh out the arrangement once this has been completed.

I wish to share these pieces as they evolve. As I gather experience with this new tool, I will find ways of incorporating small media players or links permitting to listen to this music from this page. 

I wish you well.