E. J. Garba Music Technology

An Introductory Guide

Copyright © 2007 2015 E. J. Garba. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording, or otherwise, without the written prior permission of the author.

ETHEREAL MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY

Block D 19, No. 45 Hammaruwa Way,

Opp. Muri Hotel P. O. Box 1343 Jalingo,

Taraba State, RC 1134046 NG

Phone: +2348036943881

Website: https://ethereal-multimedia.com/ About The Author

E. J. Garba (PhD, MEng, BSc) is a Music and Multimedia Consultant with ETHEREAL MULTIMEDIA TECHNOLOGY LTD. He possesses a PhD Degree in Music/Multimedia Technology. He is a graduate of in Science, Databases and Networking from St. Petersburg State University of Information Technology, Mechanics and Optics, St. Petersburg, Russia. With Master s Degree in Software Engineering, he specializes in:

Software design/development/engineering;

System support;

Web Design, Hosting and Digital Content Management;

Multimedia/Music Technology and Digital Audio Production;

Music composing and arranging;

Technical documentation and writing.

His key areas of research and development include:

Mathematical and visual modeling of In-The-Box (ITB) 3D Soundstage;

Software Framework for Real-time Automated 3D Audio Mixing and Mastering;

Computational Problem Solving;

Hybridized Interactive Algorithmic Composition Model. Acknowledgements

I am most grateful to the Holy Spirit for his divine inspiration and wisdom during this writing process.

Table of Contents

OVERVIEW...... 13

MUSIC TECHNOLOGY ...... 13

PC Mastery ...... 13 Music Theory/Practical...... 14 Creativity ...... 14 Sound...... 14 Audio Production...... 14 Audio Programming/Music Software Engineering...... 15 Sequencers ...... 15

DIGITAL AUDIO FUNDAMENTALS...... 19

SAMPLING AND QUANTIZATION...... 19 Sampling Rate ...... 20 Quantization...... 21 Sample Size...... 21 Quantization Error...... 22 Dynamic Range and Clipping...... 22 Quality and Quantity...... 23 Requisite Conversions...... 24 Resampling...... 24 Dithering...... 25

BASIC MUSIC THEORY ...... 29

ELEMENTS OF MUSIC...... 30 Pitch...... 30 Musical Scales ...... 30 Pulse and Meter ...... 31 Melody and Rhythm ...... 31 MOTIVE...... 32 Iamb Motive ...... 32 Choree Motive ...... 32 Amphibrach Motive...... 33 PHRASE ...... 33 Motive Repeating...... 33 Derived Motives ...... 34 Contrast Motives ...... 34 HARMONY AND CHORDS ...... 35 Chord Progressions...... 37 SENTENCE AND PERIOD...... 38

MUSIC CAREERS...... 41 VIII

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COMPOSERS ...... 41 MUSICIAN/INSTRUMENTALIST...... 41 SINGERS/VOCALISTS...... 41 MUSIC DIRECTORS/CONDUCTORS...... 42 ARRANGER ...... 42 ENGINEER PRODUCER...... 42 MUSICIAN PRODUCER ...... 42 EXECUTIVE PRODUCER...... 43 FREELANCE PRODUCER ...... 43 RECORDING ENGINEER...... 43 STUDIO MANAGER...... 44 RECORDING LABEL ...... 44 MUSIC PUBLISHER ...... 44 MUSIC EDITOR...... 44 MUSIC BUSINESS LAWYERS...... 44

STUDIO SETUP ...... 47

HOME STUDIO ...... 47 Studio Gears for Home Studio ...... 47 Studio Reference Monitor...... 47 Mixer Console ...... 48 Microphones...... 48 Simple Home Studio Connections...... 49 PROJECT STUDIOS ...... 49 Studio Gears for Project Studios...... 50 Mixer...... 50 Microphones...... 50 Routing Devices...... 50 Fundamental Routing Rules ...... 51 Understanding Pre-Fader...... 53 Subgroup Routing ...... 53 Multi-Effects Routing ...... 54 Cue Monitoring Techniques...... 55 Setting up Headphone Monitoring ...... 56 Battling with Cueing Latency...... 56 STUDIO OPERATION TECHNIQUES ...... 57

STUDIO ERGONOMICS ...... 63

SOUNDPROOFING ...... 63 The Walls...... 63 Partition Walls...... 64 The Doors ...... 64 The Windows...... 65 Floors and Ceilings...... 65 Battling with Consequences ...... 65 ACOUSTIC TREATMENT ...... 66 Structural Parameters ...... 66 Using RoomModeOptimizer ...... 67 Controlling Reverberation ...... 69

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba IX

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Using Egg Boxes ...... 70 Panel Absorbers...... 70 Helmholtz Traps ...... 71 Open-Cell Foam ...... 72 Carpet and Curtain ...... 72 Controlling Sounds from Speakers...... 72

MUSIC COMPUTER HARDWARE & SOFTWARE...... 77

SYSTEM CONFIGURATION FOR MUSIC...... 77 Hardware Compatibility ...... 77 Upgradable Configuration...... 78 Stable Performance...... 78 Adequate Storage Space ...... 78 Number of Simultaneous Tracks...... 79 High Fidelity Audio ...... 79 Operating System Compatibility...... 80 SYSTEM TROUBLESHOOTING FOR OPTIMAL AUDIO PERFORMANCE ...... 81 Hardware Optimization...... 82 The Soundcard ...... 83 The Virtual Mixers ...... 84 Conflict Resolution...... 84 The Video card ...... 85 Graphic Resolution ...... 85 The Color Scheme...... 85 PCI Bus Monopoly...... 85 External Storage Devices...... 86 Integrated Device Electronics...... 86 Serial ATA Interface ...... 86 Solid State Drive ...... 87 Disk Partitioning ...... 87 Partitioning Strategies ...... 88 File System...... 89 NTFS vs FAT32...... 90 Cluster Size for Audio Files ...... 90 Direct Memory Access...... 91 UDMA Hard Disks ...... 92 Bus Mastering...... 93 Multiple Hard Disks ...... 93 Defragmentation ...... 94 The Virtual Memory...... 95 Read-Ahead Optimization...... 99 Write-Behind Caching...... 99 Compressed Hard Disks ...... 99 The RAM...... 99 Recommended Memory Size...... 100 Virtual Cache Settings of the RAM...... 101 Background Processes ...... 102 The StartUp Folder ...... 103 System Configuration Utility ...... 104 The Registry ...... 105 Fine-Tuning the Registry with Regedit...... 106

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba X

TABLE OF CONTENTS

RAM Optimizers...... 107 The more RAM, the better! ...... 108 Optical Disc Drives ...... 109 Auto Insert Notification ...... 109 Systems and Applications Software ...... 109 OS Installation...... 110 Required Applications Software...... 111 Tweaking Windows OS...... 111 Fast User Switching...... 112 Power Management ...... 112 Hibernation...... 114 The System Sounds...... 114 Screensavers...... 115 Visual Effects ...... 115 Taskbar Auto-hide ...... 116 System Idle Process ...... 116 Background Services...... 117 System Restore...... 118 Turn Off Automatic Updates...... 118 Driver Signing...... 119 Error Reporting...... 119 Startup and Recovery ...... 120 Tweaking Pitfalls...... 121 Audio Applications ...... 121 Audio Drivers ...... 122 Audio Formats ...... 123 Audio Buffer...... 124

REFERENCES...... 127

BOOKS/E-BOOKS...... 127 WEBSITES ...... 127

INDEX ...... 133

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba Overview

Overview

It remains a fact that were initially meant for complex (mathematical) calculations; however, since the 1980s the PC () stormed the entire globe with very astonishing possibilities of data processing, management, streaming and storage in business places, schools and homes. Nowadays, the usage of computers has gone beyond these areas; practically, any type of data/information (audio, video and graphics) could be sent in or out of the computer.

Digital devices, such as , adapters and soundcards create sounds by working with the digital representations of the sound waves. They accept analogue signals, such as the output from microphones; then these signals are converted to digital formats via analog-to-digital converters (adapters) ADC, so that they can be processed. Likewise, for us to hear the result of audio production in the computer, we need to use digital-to-analog converters (DAC). DACs convert the digital representation of the sound to their equivalent electrical (analog) voltages. We can only hear this sound after these voltages pass through the amplifier and out of the speaker system.

Good digital systems are cheaper than good analog devices. Digital devices normally do not require much maintenance, as compared to analog devices which are mechanical in nature. Any information stored in digital form is very durable. Finally, it is possible to produce digital sounds that never existed from digital synthesizers.

Music Technology Music technology (computer/digital music) is a strategic process of marrying the technical abilities of an average computer user with the artistic creativity of a conventional musician. This is a fast emerging lifestyle thriving across the globe. The following sections briefly explain some of the fundamental aspects of music technology.

PC Mastery Computer literacy is necessary. The music technologist must have the knowledge of the components of the computer the hardware and the software. He is also expected to know, at least, how data is transferred and processed within the computer and the functions of the various devices like the CPU (), RAM (Random Access Memory), hard disks, soundcards etc. Furthermore, the 14

OVERVIEW music technologist is free to know the configuration, assembling and repairing procedure of the computer system.

In the area of software, he should be familiar with the installation, configuration and troubleshooting procedures of the operating system (OS) and other applications. Knowing the basic components of the OS, such as buttons, menu, tab, checkbox, radio buttons, etc. will help him easily navigate through the system. The music technologist should take out some time to fully understand the applications he intends to use. All applications are normally bundled with their user manuals and help documentations. The more you know about your applications (audio/music software), the more you will enjoy your PC.

Music Theory/Practical Most of the music applications (sequencers in particular) are based on music theory notes (whole, half, quarter, eight, sixteenth, thirty-second), bars (measures), , chords, motive, etc. Therefore, having the basic knowledge of music, composition, rhythm, melody, forms and variation is a big plus. Moreover, if the music technologist happens to play a musical instrument, then every other thing will just fall in place.

Creativity There are no strict rules here. This is because it is a matter of spontaneous emergence of beautiful ideas, which were never pre-planned. However, having some knowledge of music (as discussed above) can help polish these ideas.

Sound The music technologist achieving tonal balance in his rhythms/melodies. Better still, having a forehand knowledge of sound theory/engineering (frequency, fundamentals, harmonics, overtones, amplitude, peak, loudness (RMS), clipping etc.) would make audio processing both artistically and technically interesting.

Audio Production This process, by and large, involves recording from external sources, editing/processing, equalization, application of effects, noise reduction, clicks (hum, crackles) removal, vocal processing, multi-tracking, recording overdubs/takes, composition, sequencing, sound synthesis, mixing, mix-down, pre-mastering, mastering, digital content authoring and replication.

Music Technology E. J. Garba 15

OVERVIEW

Audio Programming/Music Software Engineering This deals with the analysis, design, development and deployment of music/audio software. This could mean learning music/audio programming languages, such as C/C++, JAVA, Abc, ChucK, Cmix, Real-time Cmix, Csound, CMusic, Common Lisp Music (CLM), FAUST, Hierarchical Music Specification Language (HMSL), jMusic, JSyn, Liquidsoap, Max/MSP, Music Macro Language (MML), OpenMusic, Pure Data, SuperCollider, Vvvv etc. The end-products of digital audio programming are usually audio players, recorders, waveform editors, sequencers, synthesizers, waveform analyzers, plug-ins (effects or processors) etc.

Sequencers Sequencers are computer software that record audio onto a hard disk in real-time via a soundcard or an external audio interface. They load audio samples, for rhythm construction and beats sequencing. Samples are recorded audio snapshots, single notes or beats or rhythmic phrases from real instruments producing more accurate natural sounds than those produced by synthesizers. Examples of samples (single shots) include the kick, snare, cymbals (hi-hat, ride, splash, crash), percussions, etc.

Music Technology E. J. Garba References

Books/e-Books C S French Computer Science (Fifth Edition), Letts Educational, UK, 1996. E. J. Garba Rhythm Programming, Processing and Mastering, Trafford Publishing, Canada, 2003. Peter Buick Live Sound, PC Publishing, Kent, UK, 1996. Scott Mueller Upgrading and Repairing PCs (11th edition), Que Corporation, 1999.

Websites WEBSITE DESCRIPTION/PUBLICATION LINK 1. Acoustic Treatment www.acoustic-treatment.com/ 2. Acoustic Treatment - Music Tech Magazine www.musictechmag.co.uk/mtm/acoustic- treatment 3. Acoustic Treatment and Design for Recording www.ethanwiner.com/acoustics.html Studios 4. Acoustic Treatment for the Recording Studio www.recordingreview.com/articles/blogs/69/Aco ustic-Treatment-for-the-Recording-Studio.html 5. Acoustical Materials for Audio and Music www.acousticalsolutions.com/applications/broad Recording Studios cast.asp 6. Alternative Culture http://www.alternativeculture.com 7. Articles on Music Production and Setup www.audiomecca.com/recording-studio/articles- music-production-and-setup/ 8. Aureus Media - Complete Music & Digital www.aureusmedia.com/music.html Audio Production. 9. Build a recording studio and recording www.build-a-recording-studio.com/ equipment guide 10. Careers In Music www.kenfoster.com/Articles/Careers.htm 11. Digital Audio Processing www.bluesofts.com/related/digital-audio- processing.html 12. Digital Domain http://www.digido.com 13. Digital Pro Sound - audio production, mixing www.digitalprosound.digitalmedianet.com audio, audio engineering. 14. Digital Recordings - Digital Recording www.digital-recordings.com Techniques 15. Doctor Audio -- Midi & Digital Audio -- PC www.doctoraudio.com/catalog2.html Hardware 16. eMusicTheory.com learning www.emusictheory.com/learning.html 17. Free Home Music Recording Studio Guide http:// yourhomestudio.com 18. Funk Logic - Optimizing Your PC for Digital www.funklogic.com/pcaudio.htm Recording 19. Gary Ewer's Easy Music Theory www.musictheory.halifax.ns.ca/lessons.html 20. Hardware Secrets http://www.hardwaresecrets.com 21. Harmony central www.harmony-central.com 22. Home Recording Studio setup configurations www.soundrecordingadvice.com/studio.html 23. Home Studio Acoustics Treatment www.petethomas.co.uk/home-studio- 128

REFERENCES & FURTHER STUDIES

acoustics.html 24. Home Studio Recording www.home-studio-recording.com 25. How to Set Up A Home Recording Studio www.gearwire.com/home-studio-set-up-erik- byrne.html 26. Introduction To Acoustic Treatment www.record-producer.com/ 27. Introduction to Digital Audio Editing http:// members.thesongeditor.com/se/ref/IntroToDigita lAudio.jsp 28. Multimedian http://multimedian.com 29. Music & Audio Software Manufacturers www.synthzone.com 30. Music Careers http:// musicians.about.com www.menc.org/information/infoserv/careersinm usic.htm www.menc.org/information/infoserv/Dictionary. html www.music-careers.com www.uwrf.edu/music/careers.html www.ccsf.edu/Departments/Music/careers.html www.pgmusic.com/careers.htm 31. Music Careers - Jumpstart your career in the www.musiccareers.net music business 32. Music Jobs & Careers www.scenta.co.uk/music/jobs.cfm 33. Music Production Studio - A Comprehensive www.musicproductionattic.com/musicstudio/mu Set Up Guide sicstudio.html 34. Music Studios Sound Proofing http:// teonix.net/en/search- Music_Studios_Sound_Proofing.html 35. Music Theory - an overview of basic music www.musicdials.com/theory.html theory 36. Music Theory Resources www. musictheoryresources.com 37. Optimizing PC for Audio Applications www.annoyances.org www.digitalproducer.com www.musicxp.net 38. PC Recording www.pcrecording.com 39. PG Music www.pgmusic.com 40. Pure Performance http://www.pureperformance.com 41. Real World Digital Audio - hands-on tips for www.realworlddigitalaudio.com every imaginable aspect of digital music production 42. Recording Studio setup: Acoustics www.musiciansnews.com/11/recording_studio_s etup_acoustics.shtml 43. airing PCs www.UpgradingAndRepairingPCs.com 44. Setup a Recording Studio on Your Computer - http://reviews.digitaltrends.com/guide34.html Guides by Digital Trends 45. Solomon's Music Theory & Composition http://music.theory.home.att.net Resources 46. Sound on Sound www.soundonsound.com Recording Magazine 47. SoundFont: Introduction to Digital Audio www.soundblaster.com/soundfont/tutorials/welc ome.asp?articleid=54141&page=3 48. SoundFonts www.soundfonts.com, www.geocities.com, www.hammersound.net 49. Soundproofing Guide To Building Home www.soundprooffoam.com/Quick_Guide_to_Bui Recording Studios lding_a_Home_Recording_or_Practice_Studio.ht

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba 129

REFERENCES & FURTHER STUDIES

ml 50. Soundproofing rooms using cheap do it www.soundproofingsecrets.com/ yourself designs 51. Soundproofing Walls, Ceilings and Windows www.soundproofing101.com/ 52. Sounds in Mind - Digital audio production for www.soundsinmind.com audio interviews, corporate music, and spoken word for narrative poetry projects. 53. Spinwarp - digital music, tutorials, techniques & www. spinwarp.com tunes. 54. Studio Covers http://www.studiocovers.com 55. Studio Setup for Home Recording @ Home http:// homerecording.com/studio.html Recording dot com 56. Studiotips - tips on studio design, acoustics, www.studiotips.com/ and wiring 57. SYNTH ZONE - Music Theory & Education www.synthzone.com/theorytb.htm Resources 58. The Of Recording Studio Soundproofing http://www.recordingreview.com/articles/articles /152/1/The-Basics-Of-Recording-Studio- Soundproofing/Soundproofing-Your-Home- Recording-Studio.html 59. The MIT Press The Computer Music Tutorial. www. mitpress.mit.edu/catalog/item/default.asp?ttype= 2&tid=8218 60. The Stanford University CCRMA - Center for www. ccrma.stanford.edu/ Computer Research in Music and Acoustics 61. http://www.tomshardware.com 62. TweakHeadz Lab (Electronic Musicians Café) www.tweakheadz.com 63. Wikipedia - the free Online Encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ 64. Zonicweb.net music technology dictionary: www.zonicweb.net/music/musictechnologydictio music, MIDI, audio and electronics terms nary.htm explained 65. zzounds.com www.zzounds.com

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba

Index

Index

chromatic scale ...... 30 A clipping...... 23 ...... 84 cluster ...... 90 Acoustic Treatment...... 63, 66 color schemes ...... 85 Active monitors...... 48 common time...... 31 active primary partition ...... 87 Composers ...... 41 ADC ...... 13, 21 Computer Music ...... 13 aliasing...... 21 conflicts...... 82 analog-to-digital converter ...... 21 Contrast Motives...... 34 Arranger...... 42 Creativity ...... 14 ASIO ...... 122 CRT monitor...... 85 ATA ...... 86 cue monitoring...... 55 ATA-2 ...... 86 Cueing Latency...... 56 audio file size per second...... 24 audio formats ...... 123 D

Audio Production ...... 14 DAC ...... 13 audio traffic ...... 82 dB 22

DDR-SDRAM...... 100 B decibels ...... 22 Bass Clef...... 29 defragmentation...... 95 bass traps...... 71 Derived Motives...... 34 bit depth ...... 21 digital amplitude...... 21 Buffer ...... 124 Digital Audio Programming...... 15 bus ...... 77, 78, 80, 84, 85, 86, 92, 93 digital-to-analog converter ...... 25

C Direct Memory Access ...... 92

CacheMan...... 108 DirectSound ...... 122 chord...... 35 dithering...... 25 chord progressions ...... 37 DMA...... 92

Choree Motive ...... 32 Dolby...... 83 134

INDEX

Dolby Digital...... 83 Graphics Hardware Acceleration ...... 86 dominant ...... 37 H drivers...... 111 Hard Disk Drive ...... 86 Dynamic range ...... 22 Hardware Compatibility List...... 111 Dynamic window ...... 22 harmonics ...... 19

E harmony...... 35

Egg Boxes ...... 70 HCL...... 111

EIDE...... 86 Home Studio ...... 47 emulated drivers...... 122 hum...... 58

Engineer Producer ...... 42 I Enhanced IDE Iamb Motive...... 32 EIDE ...... 86 IDE...... 86 Executive Producer ...... 43 Integrated Device Electronics extended partition...... 88 IDE ...... 86

F interrupt ...... 82

FAT...... 89 interrupt handler...... 83

FAT32...... 89 Interrupt ReQuest ...... 83 file system...... 89 IRQ ...... 83

Foldback...... 53 L foldover...... 21 L.W. Sepmeyer...... 67 fragmentation...... 94 Latency...... 122 Freelance Producer...... 43 Listening Axis ...... 61 Front Side Bus Logical Drives...... 88 FSB...... 77, 78 loudness...... 22 FULL DUPLEX...... 80 fundamental frequency...... 19 M

measures G bars...... 31 Graphical User Interface melodic movement ...... 32 GUI...... 86, 100, 114

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba 135

INDEX melody...... 31 Nyquist theorem ...... 20

Memory Management Unit ...... 96 O memory-resident applications...... 103 ...... 77 meter signature ...... 31 open-cell foam Microphones...... 48, 50 acoustic foam ...... 72 Microsoft System Configuration Utility operating system MSCONFIG...... 104 OS 14, 90, 100, 101, 109, 110, 111, 112 Mixer...... 50 overdubbing...... 55 Mixer Console...... 48 overtones...... 19 MME ...... 122

MMU...... 96 P mode...... 66 Paging File...... 96

Panel Absorbers ...... 70 Motive...... 32 partial...... 19 Multi-Effects Routing ...... 54 Partition Walls...... 64 Multimedia extensions partitions ...... 87 MME ...... 123 PC Mastery ...... 13 multiple headphone ...... 56 PCM...... 21 Music ...... 29 phrase Music Business Lawyers...... 44 ...... 33

Music Directors/Conductors...... 42 pitch ...... 30

Music Editor...... 44 plug and play ...... 111

Music Publisher...... 44 pnp...... 111

Music Theory/Practical ...... 14 Power On Self Test

Musician Producer ...... 42 POST ...... 102

Musician/Instrumentalist...... 41 PowerQuest PartitionMagic...... 89

Pre-fader ...... 53 N primary partition...... 87 near field monitor...... 47 Project Studios ...... 49 Noise Reduction ...... 52 Pulse Code Modulation...... 21 noise shaping ...... 25 noise sources ...... 58

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba 136

INDEX

R Sentence...... 38 Serial ATA RamBooster ...... 108 SATA...... 86 Rambus ...... 100 signal flow scheme...... 55 random access memory Signal-to-Noise Ratio...... 22 RAM...... 77 Singers/Vocalist ...... 41 Random Access Memory Small Computer System Interface RAM...... 99 SCSI ...... 86 Read-Ahead Optimization...... 99 SNR...... 22 Recording Engineer...... 43 Sound...... 14 Recording Label ...... 44 Sound diffusers ...... 70 Reflection Free Zone soundcards...... 79 RFZ...... 74 soundproofing...... 63 registry Soundproofing ...... 63 regedit ...... 105, 106 staff...... 29 resampling ...... 24 studio ergonomics...... 63 resonance ...... 66 Studio Manager...... 44 rhythm...... 31 Studio Operation Techniques ...... 57 RMS...... 22 Studio Reference Monitor...... 47 RoomModeOptimizer ...... 67 subdominant...... 37 Routing Devices ...... 50 Swap File ...... 96 S System Idle Process...... 116 sample and hold ...... 20 System Restore...... 118 sample resolution ...... 21 T sample value...... 21 Task Manager ...... 102, 116, 117 sampling frequency ...... 20 taskbar ...... 102 Screensavers ...... 115 Taskbar...... 84, 116 SCSI ...... 86 thrashing ...... 96 SDRAM...... 100 timbre ...... 19 semitones ...... 30 time signature...... 31

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba 137

INDEX tonic...... 37 virtual cache...... 101 transfer rates ...... 92 virtual memory ...... 96

Treble Clef...... 29 Vista ...... 81 triad ...... 35 W

V Windows XP80, 81, 88, 89, 90, 98, 99, 101, 110, 111, 112, 121 Vcache ...... 101

Digital Audio Production & Music Technology E. J. Garba