Another reason to record multiple takes is for double-tracking. This involves using two takes of the same performance simultaneously, often panned to either speaker. As long as the timing is consistent, it gives a dramatic injection of power to energetic music and glossy richness to gentler performances. Double-tracking works well for vocals and guitars, and even better for orchestral strings.
Using samples is an easy way to make recordings sound professional,
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but it can feel like painting a picture using clip art. However, making musical collages from less predictable sound sources can be far more rewarding. Other people's records are a useful source of musical material (albeit with legal ramifications if the recording is released), but so too is the TV, a microphone and an assortment of props or the great outdoors. Found sounds aren't the preserve of obscure electronica. Doubling a bass drum with a sample can give extra welly to rock music, while countryside sounds are perfect for a folk recording. Dropping samples directly on to an audio track often works well, but loading them into a sampler virtual instrument and playing them with a MIDI keyboard can generate something more melodic or rhythmical from otherwise non-musical sounds.
Next month
We hope that this feature has left you with plenty of things to try out for the next few weeks. Next month, we'll conclude this three-part feature by guiding you through the process of mixing your music down to a single stereo audio file.
