Up until the pandemic, I taught a recording and editing class at the Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Branch. We covered how to use their recording studio, and the fundamentals of editing what we record. I would give everyone this hand out with heirloom typos, and below is the email I sent out after class. Enjoy!
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Hey everyone,
Thanks for coming to Let’s Record and Edit. I’ve assembled a list of resources I think will be helpful for everyone, based on what we talked about. If you want to refer back to anything from class, here’s a link to our course outline.
But first, here’s the webpage for the Info Commons recording studio. You’ll find resources for using the equipment, and I’d definitely recommend checking out the tutorials page. It has detailed guides for using GarageBand, Audacity, and Audition, plus a link to log in to Lynda.com with your library card. Lynda has great video tutorials for a range of tech skills, from learning Photoshop to Protools to 3D animation. Lynda is the best.
One thing to remember: PCs and Apple computers encode files differently, so if you’re a Windows user and bring your USB drive to the studio, you’ll need to reformat the drive so that it works with the library’s system. For more info check the tutorials page. Info Commons librarians can help you out too. Just know that formatting the drive will delete everything on it.
Alright, resources!
As we emphasized, the best way to get great audio is to record it well with the right equipment. To that end:
Transom.org is a priceless resource for gear guides and recording methods. But make sure to check when an article was written, or you might end up reading about all the best recorders from 2003. A lot has changed.
Don’t miss Part 1 of their articles on Podcasting Basics. Transom’s tech guy, my hero Jeff Townes, does a great job of breaking down finicky electronics details. Part 1 recommends gear and gets you set up to record, Part 2 covers software, Part 3’s about processing audio, and so on.
Also see NPR’s Ear Training/Audio Producing Guide by audio angel Rob Byers. It’s a wonderful, clearly written walk-through with some helpful tips for general recording practices. I wish I’d read it years ago. Here’s a bonus HowSound interview with Rob Byers by Rob Rosenthal from Transom, if you’d rather listen to some of those same tips and not read them.
Some of you might like to see Transon’s latest article on gear recommendations.
And here’s one on setting up a home studio.
EQing for the voice:
We talked in class about being able to improve how the voice sounds when we equalize (EQ) the frequencies the frequencies we don’t need. The goal here isn’t to totally change the levels of the voice, but to subtly attenuate the pitches we don’t want, so esses sound softer, or consonants are clearer.
Lately I’ve been reading Behind the Mix for tips on EQing speaking voices. The guy writes with a focus on the church environment, so he knows how to EQ for spoken voices and vocals over music.
How to EQ Vocals in Six Easy Steps. He’s also got specific articles for EQing male and female voices specifically.
Voice-over people: check out this article on voice recording at home. It includes cheap and free ways to get the cleanest recording possible, and avoid wall echoes.
Music recording/editing people: Here’s a thorough rundown of the best mics for different applications. About 2/3 of the way down, he talks about mics for specific instruments.
Live sound/video people: Transom.org is your nest. Here’s an article on recording live events.
General resources:
- B&H and Sweetwater.com both have fairly responsive Q&A sections.
- Don’t forget Lynda.com. Here’s the link to their
- Saving the best, most obvious, for last: Google.com. The ‘net is full of people like us, trying to figure out why the thing won’t record, or the track won’t play. The odds are high that your question has already been answered.
*Info-tainment bonus:* If you want some creative music editing inspiration, check out Andrew Huang. He makes a lot of experimental music, like making tracks out of food and everyday objects, and shows exactly how he does it each step of the way. I’m including him here because he also explains some of the sound principals behind what he’s up to. In this song he makes out of a noisy A/C unit. (Andrew uses Ableton, but everything he does can be done in other programs.)
That’s all folks!
julian.fm 