Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Beethoven, yeah.
Some wacky ugly techno, too.
And I'm starting to get some ideas for direction on my jazz piece.
Things are, essentially, going well.
Some wacky ugly techno, too.
And I'm starting to get some ideas for direction on my jazz piece.
Things are, essentially, going well.
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
Another banner night, got my 12 bars in. As long as I get my "assignments" done, I feel pretty good about anything else I work on.
This morning I chopped up 14 organ loops. Not easy.
This morning I chopped up 14 organ loops. Not easy.
Monday, March 29, 2004
AAAAH! It's really tough to remember melodies. I should really have some staff paper here at work.
So I was listening to Drone Zone this morning, and I realized something...
Most of the music there is basically "here's a pad. OK, let's crossfade in another, ok, now twist... that's four minutes. Good enough". I mean, it's freakin' NUTS! I could write that kind of nonsense in my sleep... and I really need to start doing so. I can build crazy pads with the best of them, I think.
Most of the music there is basically "here's a pad. OK, let's crossfade in another, ok, now twist... that's four minutes. Good enough". I mean, it's freakin' NUTS! I could write that kind of nonsense in my sleep... and I really need to start doing so. I can build crazy pads with the best of them, I think.
Didn't do anything USEFUL yesterday, but that's actually a good thing. Sometimes you have to take a break.
Saturday, March 27, 2004
Friday night was pretty good, got about 24 bars of beethoven done. Today, I sliced some beats and started researching programming for Mac OSX (I've forgotten most of what I learned already).
I've decided that it's not such a good idea for me to work on my Beethoven project on the weekends; I need to work on fun stuff, or no stuff at all, on the weekends. Otherwise, I'll just dry up any creativity I may have.
I've decided that it's not such a good idea for me to work on my Beethoven project on the weekends; I need to work on fun stuff, or no stuff at all, on the weekends. Otherwise, I'll just dry up any creativity I may have.
Friday, March 26, 2004
Nothing today while at work (I just did... work!).
But... tonight I'll probably be a beat-slicing fool. I need to chop up a whole mess of sounds to get ready for making recorder trax.
But... tonight I'll probably be a beat-slicing fool. I need to chop up a whole mess of sounds to get ready for making recorder trax.
Did my beethoven last night. 9 pages down, 11 to go. Kinda frustrating when I look at it that way.
I need to get to work on my recorder projects; there's only 4 months left before we need to have them ready for shipping.
I need to get to work on my recorder projects; there's only 4 months left before we need to have them ready for shipping.
Thursday, March 25, 2004
Let's see...
Did my 12 bars of Beethoven last night. Was frustrated to realize that the Orkester patches are all single-layer. I need to fix that.
I also played with building a synth using the NNXT. I used short (1-cycle) samples to build up a synth sound. Very very cool.
And I sliced 36 guitar loops this morning. More rex fodder.
Did my 12 bars of Beethoven last night. Was frustrated to realize that the Orkester patches are all single-layer. I need to fix that.
I also played with building a synth using the NNXT. I used short (1-cycle) samples to build up a synth sound. Very very cool.
And I sliced 36 guitar loops this morning. More rex fodder.
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
I got Learning Reason installed on my work PC today, which means I'll be able to re-visit that in the mornings. I also chopped up a full batch of bass loops, which is nice.
I do need to get some Beethoven done tonight. I found out that I've done 4 minutes of that symphony so far!! Wow, that's big. There's at least that much left to go!
I do need to get some Beethoven done tonight. I found out that I've done 4 minutes of that symphony so far!! Wow, that's big. There's at least that much left to go!
Well, no beethoven last night, but at least I chopped some loops this morning.
Tuesday, March 23, 2004
What a waste. I'm spending my entire day waiting on batch processes.
Had to do some gross gruntwork this morning. All I did was install apps and slice one loop. Still, at least I have the tools in place now.
Well, I got all my tools installed at work. Maybe I'll use them, maybe I won't. In any case, I have the option now.
Monday, March 22, 2004
Oops. That last post wasn't complete. Oh well.
So here are some things I could do in "slack time" to make life cooler as a creative person:
1) chop REX loops. I mean, it doesn't take a lot of time, and I need to chop lots of them anyhow. This would mean that I'd be able to save my true "creative time" for real projects, and build loops outside that small window.
2)
1) chop REX loops. I mean, it doesn't take a lot of time, and I need to chop lots of them anyhow. This would mean that I'd be able to save my true "creative time" for real projects, and build loops outside that small window.
2)
With the extended hours I'm going to be working soon, I've got to make a real effort not to burn out like I did last time; I'm going to use working on creative projects to help with this endeavor. More as I figure out what that means.
Well, it looks like I'll be pulling extended hours for another MONTH. That'll put a damper on what I can do, for sure.
I didn't spend any time on Beethoven or slicing beats on Sunday. I don't feel really guilty about that, though... I still played (and learned) a fair amount. Plus, I can't just keep doing it EVERY day. That's kinda tough.
I'll get back to those projects tonight, though.
I'll get back to those projects tonight, though.
Saturday, March 20, 2004
I've managed to spend comparatively little time thinking about junk, and more time working.
I've been slicing loops all day. It's really boring work, but I'm going to have a huge library when it's done... and that's a very good thing.
I also got my Beethoven done. Good enough.
I've been slicing loops all day. It's really boring work, but I'm going to have a huge library when it's done... and that's a very good thing.
I also got my Beethoven done. Good enough.
Friday, March 19, 2004
I've spent too much time this week thinking about future hardware, and future software, and this has distracted me from thinking about what really matters-- being creative NOW.
One of the greatest problems many of us wealthy (relative to the rest of the world, I'm in the top 1% of wealthy people) artists (relative to many people, I spend a lot of time in my art, so I can call myself an artist) have is that we spend too much time on the STUFF and not enough time in the DOING.
I'm going to fix that, somehow. I feel very guilty for wasting my time on this "stuff-oriented" thought.
One of the greatest problems many of us wealthy (relative to the rest of the world, I'm in the top 1% of wealthy people) artists (relative to many people, I spend a lot of time in my art, so I can call myself an artist) have is that we spend too much time on the STUFF and not enough time in the DOING.
I'm going to fix that, somehow. I feel very guilty for wasting my time on this "stuff-oriented" thought.
It seems that the refurb prices in the apple store are about the same as the refurb prices for education; therefore, I could pick up an educational system for the same price as a non-edu one.
This means I could just get an iBook used for a little over a grand, and not disqualify myself from an educational G5.
Bah. It's just more gearlust. I'd better get busy selling junk on eBay so I can afford this new junk.
This means I could just get an iBook used for a little over a grand, and not disqualify myself from an educational G5.
Bah. It's just more gearlust. I'd better get busy selling junk on eBay so I can afford this new junk.
And now that I look at the education store, I can get a refurb. powerbook with applecare for $1500 or so. That makes it VERY attractive, though I'd probably still want to get a G5 soon.
So many ways to spend the money I don't have. It's a good thing I'm ebaying for more cash.
So many ways to spend the money I don't have. It's a good thing I'm ebaying for more cash.
Then again, as far as Logic goes, it's probably overkill for what I need. In reality, all I need is something like Ableton Live to give me a little disk recording and maybe a little loop stretching. Truthfully, I'd be happier limiting myself to what's available in Reason, instead of all of a sudden having three times as many options.
This is tough. Logic Pro is $500 through Apple's academic store. That's so cheap that I'd be a fool to not pick it up with my new system. Of course, adding more stuff to my music studio is a sure-fire way to never get anything finished.
Really, I should chalk that up as a 1-year-from-system-purchase upgrade, or something like that.
Really, I should chalk that up as a 1-year-from-system-purchase upgrade, or something like that.
I was able to do my normal 12 bars or so of Beethoven last night. I'm doing pretty well at keeping this project going, which is encouraging. I'm toying with some ideas on how to handle dynamics, but I'm not quite ready for that yet.
I really need to stop doing my transpositions myself and let the midi keyboard handle them. If I just set my keyboard to transpose to F, I can play the part as written and probably get the job done in 1/4 the time. Right now, those transpositions are the only thing that takes a lot of time; it's also something that the computer is REALLY GOOD AT.
I also sliced up a bunch of loops (bass and guitar) in ReCycle. Another couple of months and I'll have all of my loops sliced, which will mean that I can make quicker/easier use of them. I should really create text files in each directory of loops detailing their origin, in case I ever need to go back to the source on them.
I need to do another recorder accompaniment piece this weekend, I think. That would be pretty handy to be in the bag.
I really need to stop doing my transpositions myself and let the midi keyboard handle them. If I just set my keyboard to transpose to F, I can play the part as written and probably get the job done in 1/4 the time. Right now, those transpositions are the only thing that takes a lot of time; it's also something that the computer is REALLY GOOD AT.
I also sliced up a bunch of loops (bass and guitar) in ReCycle. Another couple of months and I'll have all of my loops sliced, which will mean that I can make quicker/easier use of them. I should really create text files in each directory of loops detailing their origin, in case I ever need to go back to the source on them.
I need to do another recorder accompaniment piece this weekend, I think. That would be pretty handy to be in the bag.
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Last night I successfully did my assignment, and also chopped up some more bass loops. Nothing major, but making continual process is a good thing.
I also was able to help out a guy who's learning reason some. He's doing an orchestral piece, and I was able to give him some pointers.
I also was able to help out a guy who's learning reason some. He's doing an orchestral piece, and I was able to give him some pointers.
Wednesday, March 17, 2004
Today I finally listened to some examples of the crazy stuff that can be done with Dr. Rex. I mean, as if rewriting a performed bassline wasn't crazy enough... some of it is just plain nuts.
I don't know how I'm going to be able to ignore this part of Reason any longer. Ever since I started using Reason a year ago, it was my least favorite synth in the rack. It's becoming one of my most favorite, now.
I'll bet I can find just as much cool stuff in the other units, too, if I'd just start taking the time to learn them better.
Tonight I need to get some more items listed on eBay so I can get even more money flowing into the warchest for building a monster music system. It sounds awfully "consumerish", but what I'm really looking for here is a system that'll hold up for several years, not just one or two. My mac G3 is a great example... I've been using it for several years now, first as a main system, and now as a webserver and for email. I'm more worried about the hard disk going out than anything else.
Bah. I'm just rambling. Maybe the stuff I'm doing in the background is done and I can get back to work now...
I don't know how I'm going to be able to ignore this part of Reason any longer. Ever since I started using Reason a year ago, it was my least favorite synth in the rack. It's becoming one of my most favorite, now.
I'll bet I can find just as much cool stuff in the other units, too, if I'd just start taking the time to learn them better.
Tonight I need to get some more items listed on eBay so I can get even more money flowing into the warchest for building a monster music system. It sounds awfully "consumerish", but what I'm really looking for here is a system that'll hold up for several years, not just one or two. My mac G3 is a great example... I've been using it for several years now, first as a main system, and now as a webserver and for email. I'm more worried about the hard disk going out than anything else.
Bah. I'm just rambling. Maybe the stuff I'm doing in the background is done and I can get back to work now...
I didn't realize how cheap a pair of edirol powered monitors are. I can get a 10w pair of monitors for well under $150. That's cheap enough to not be worried if they aren't perfect (I can always replace them), and they're plentiful on eBay (so I can use mad money on them).
I'll probably wait a couple of months to do that, though. Maybe even get a decent USB audio system at the same time, and just do the whole shebang at once.
I'll probably wait a couple of months to do that, though. Maybe even get a decent USB audio system at the same time, and just do the whole shebang at once.
Dr. Rex, the Reason synth, is just plain SICK.
I chopped up a bass loop in ReCycle, brought it into a Dr. Rex, re-pitched it to a single note, then created the line using a Matrix synth. It's freaking NUTS that you can do that.
And wayyyyy cool.
Also got my 12 bars of Beethoven in. Tenor clef is going to kill me.
I chopped up a bass loop in ReCycle, brought it into a Dr. Rex, re-pitched it to a single note, then created the line using a Matrix synth. It's freaking NUTS that you can do that.
And wayyyyy cool.
Also got my 12 bars of Beethoven in. Tenor clef is going to kill me.
Tuesday, March 16, 2004
It wasn't even a bug in my code. Granted, it's nice to tidy up one's code and robustify it, but the fact remains... I was doing things RIGHT. Someone else was doing things WRONG. I'm going to sing the i-was-right song!
Monday, March 15, 2004
And lastly for the night, another 12 bars of beethoven. I can almost feel how tenor clef works, but not quite yet.
I'm learning a lot, though. This is the most in-depth I've ever gotten into a piece of orchestral music.
I'm 3 pages into an assignment which is 19 pages total. I'm glad I'm not trying to do this for a school assignment or anything.
I still have no dynamics in the piece, other than wrong ones. Still, it's sounding vaguely like music.
I'm learning a lot, though. This is the most in-depth I've ever gotten into a piece of orchestral music.
I'm 3 pages into an assignment which is 19 pages total. I'm glad I'm not trying to do this for a school assignment or anything.
I still have no dynamics in the piece, other than wrong ones. Still, it's sounding vaguely like music.
I got ReCycle tonight. In about 5 minutes of screwing around with some loops I already had on my computer, I had a somewhat believable rock groove going.
This is going to do wonders for my "business" music. My personal music... that remains to be seen.
This is going to do wonders for my "business" music. My personal music... that remains to be seen.
It's just wrong. The ROM I hand to my boss works fine for me, but breaks when I give it to the company president. Grr.
I picked up a new garage door opener over lunch today. Woo hoo.
I mean, this is going to sound like whining. I *hate* having to do this kind of thing. Really. I wish life could just take care of itself, without me always having to deal with stuff. I'd be a happy guy if I could just do my work stuff, play with my kids, and do my creative stuff without all the other junk. Ah well, it's just whining.
I mean, this is going to sound like whining. I *hate* having to do this kind of thing. Really. I wish life could just take care of itself, without me always having to deal with stuff. I'd be a happy guy if I could just do my work stuff, play with my kids, and do my creative stuff without all the other junk. Ah well, it's just whining.
Today I was able to answer a couple of (fairly technical) questions on the Reason users forum. That felt pretty cool.
OK, so this is too cool. I can just sit here in my IM program, which I have up and running all the time, and add entries to this weblog. Pretty cool. Certainly easier than logging in via a web page.
So this is just another test, checking to see if I can quickly blog to blogger using the GAIM client.
Hm. I started this entry because I thought I hadn't entered anything at all last night, but that seems not to be the case.
My debugging box is making a HUGE amount of noise. Very disturbing.
I set up a bunch of auctions on eBay last night. My aim is to, over 40 weeks, clean my office out of 10 years worth of junk. It's a big job, I just hope I'm up to it.
My debugging box is making a HUGE amount of noise. Very disturbing.
I set up a bunch of auctions on eBay last night. My aim is to, over 40 weeks, clean my office out of 10 years worth of junk. It's a big job, I just hope I'm up to it.
Sunday, March 14, 2004
All I entered on my beethoven project was 8 bars or so. Still, it's more important to do some each and every day than it is to do a particular amount. I feel better about doing 8 bars than I would have felt about blowing the whole thing off just because it was late and I couldn't do as much as I'd like to.
Saturday, March 13, 2004
Ordered a ton of samples today. I know for a fact that a large portion of them won't be terribly useful, but that goes without saying for any sample library. Anyhow, I spent about $40, and got somewhere around 6-10GB of samples. Some of it should be pretty easily useful, actually. There's a fair bit of symphonic and vocal bits in the libraries. Too much trance/techno/whatever, to be sure... but I still might be able to use bits and pieces of that, as well. You never know, especially when you have the ability (using ReCycle/Reason) to use microscopic bits and pieces of a sample.
After worship rehearsal, I worked a little on a project I thought of just before waking up. Once I get ReCycle on Monday, I can start doing it in earnest. I'm going to take a worship song (sometimes when I feel your Love), which has a minimalist backing track, and attempt to remix it. I'll chop the vocals into smallish slices, and then write my own accompaniment.
I'm not sure if it'll work or not, but it'll be worth trying.
I'm not sure if it'll work or not, but it'll be worth trying.
Friday, March 12, 2004
20 bars tonight of the Pastorale. That brings me to a total of 53 bars. Tonight's was really busy, though, and was more along the lines of 200 bars of music (10 staves for 20 bars).
That's almost like work. Almost. Took me about an hour and a half.
That's almost like work. Almost. Took me about an hour and a half.
Well, the bug I handled earlier today was indeed ugly. It also wasn't 100% mine (though I'm the one who'll ultimately handle it).
Now I can settle down for an evening of creation, or something resembling it. Russell's asleep, and Andrew's out too.
Now I can settle down for an evening of creation, or something resembling it. Russell's asleep, and Andrew's out too.
I had a bug handed to me not long ago. This is a big one-- theoretically, it could cause some serious problems for us.
I've probably got it squashed. The problem is, I'm sitting here waiting to see if I've nailed it. In the meantime, I've got nothing to do that's important enough to start on. This means trouble.
I've probably got it squashed. The problem is, I'm sitting here waiting to see if I've nailed it. In the meantime, I've got nothing to do that's important enough to start on. This means trouble.
Amazon.com: Books: Power Tools for Reason 2.5 : Master the World's Most Popular Virtual Studio Software
That book sounds really great. I'm trying to learn how to use Reason more effectively. It doesn't help that I'm not convinced that I'll stay on the same (Windows) platform for the next several months, though. Reason works on mac and PC just fine, but I don't want to get too much into the PC command-key feeling if I'm going to leave for the mac soon.
That book sounds really great. I'm trying to learn how to use Reason more effectively. It doesn't help that I'm not convinced that I'll stay on the same (Windows) platform for the next several months, though. Reason works on mac and PC just fine, but I don't want to get too much into the PC command-key feeling if I'm going to leave for the mac soon.
One thing I was planning on doing, creativity-wise, is some development (privately) for the GameBoy Advance, Nintendo's handheld unit. It's actually a fun platform, because it's so simple.
According to thisthread, though, that option might not be open to me. I'm kinda disappointed.
More time for making music, less reliance on programming-as-creativity.
According to thisthread, though, that option might not be open to me. I'm kinda disappointed.
More time for making music, less reliance on programming-as-creativity.
As part of my recorder accompaniments project, I need to figure out what notation software to use. There's a few options, including finale's free products.
One that's more interesting is to use some tools from The abc notation language. abc is a free, simple way to do notation on the computer. It can be used to do conversions from & to midi without too much trouble, too.
It's a matter of figuring out how it works. Time, as always. Something like Melody Assistant/Harmony assistant might be faster, and they cost less than $100. It's the old payoff of time vs money. I think that if I spend the time learning, it'd pay off in ways other than financially, but I'm not sure.
BTW, still waiting on assets to build.
And blogger's "blog this" bookmarklet isn't behaving as nicely in Firefox as I'd like. Fooey.
One that's more interesting is to use some tools from The abc notation language. abc is a free, simple way to do notation on the computer. It can be used to do conversions from & to midi without too much trouble, too.
It's a matter of figuring out how it works. Time, as always. Something like Melody Assistant/Harmony assistant might be faster, and they cost less than $100. It's the old payoff of time vs money. I think that if I spend the time learning, it'd pay off in ways other than financially, but I'm not sure.
BTW, still waiting on assets to build.
And blogger's "blog this" bookmarklet isn't behaving as nicely in Firefox as I'd like. Fooey.
Listening to: SomaFM: Listener Supported, Commercial Free Internet Radio. Specifically, the Secret Agent stream.
All the while, I'm building asset databases for work, and watching my officemate do some cool stuff.
I've got a pretty nice setup for sound here at work. I've got an extigy along with a nice 4.1 surround-sound system of speakers. All in all, pretty sweet... and pretty much unused, except for listening to music. Someone else's music. Oh well.
All the while, I'm building asset databases for work, and watching my officemate do some cool stuff.
I've got a pretty nice setup for sound here at work. I've got an extigy along with a nice 4.1 surround-sound system of speakers. All in all, pretty sweet... and pretty much unused, except for listening to music. Someone else's music. Oh well.
People have lots of ideas on what creativity is. I'm no different.
I haven't felt very creative for the past several years. In the past I've made music, written fiction, done lots of things... but not so much lately. Recurring troubles caused by the weak job market, kids, a house... all of these things have meant little time to explore the creative process.
What I intend to do here is provide links to my current musical projects, discuss those musical projects, add links to things that inspire me... basically, a scratch pad and a repository of notes.
I haven't felt very creative for the past several years. In the past I've made music, written fiction, done lots of things... but not so much lately. Recurring troubles caused by the weak job market, kids, a house... all of these things have meant little time to explore the creative process.
What I intend to do here is provide links to my current musical projects, discuss those musical projects, add links to things that inspire me... basically, a scratch pad and a repository of notes.
