(2024)
In this course we were asked to create a 10-minute live performance that would have a harmonious and artistic coherence, as it would showcase the technical skills we have and acquired through this course. The process was both productive and creative because there was both a research component and a personal project component.
My influence for the Live Performance approach came from DPR Artic. DPR Artic is a DJ in underground bars and concerts and is DPR Ian's personal DJ on tour and live shows. DPR Artic is an inspired and innovative DJ, known for his unique sound. He is a member of the independent music and video production company DPR (Dream Perfect Regime) whose musical style ranges from electronic beats to melodic rap, with each member having their own distinct sound. As for DPR Artic's music, he incorporates live instruments and creative samples into his mixes, giving an organic and dynamic feel. When he is at concerts he usually just adjusts the sound and visual effects for DPR Ian. However, during the concert schedule he closes the concert with a performance together with DPR Cream (https://youtu.be/N_AoCuGnUzk?si=uEZCIntIkLldyctf ). He does live editing of the sound, lights and visual effects. He processes both the sound of the synths and programmed material live as well as Cream's voice as he sings into the microphone. Both collaborate on stage with a wireless connection and send the sound to each other. DPR Artic's visual effects are unique. He incorporates a mix of projections, lighting and pyrotechnics to create an immersive and visually stunning experience for his audience. He often collaborates with visual artists to design the appropriate visual effects that complement his music and elevate the overall performance. The use of visual effects adds another layer to his already enchanting live shows (https://youtu.be/RZ_gm6i7zoA?si=KQLSyPbEfLD6etxl). As for DPR Artic's personal work in underground bars, it is characterized by a mix of electronic, hip hop and indie rock music as he often experiments with different genres and creates a unique sound that captures the essence of the underground music scene. His sets are known to be energetic and dynamic, with heavy beats and catchy melodies that keep the audience engaged as he has voice samples that are processed live and add to a pleasant and original experience. DPR Artic's music appeals to a wide range of listeners and has gained a strong following in the underground music community. He is known for his skillful DJ techniques and his ability to keep the crowd engaged and dancing all night. The visual effects are not as numerous as in live shows. He usually has only one monochromatic light that changes brightness intensity and rhythm depending on the beat of the music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIOgUye-YBM).
The basis of the live performance that I created is in combination with the Narrative Production course, with the knowledge of the teachers. The original idea of the piece came from DPR Ian “MITO movie” who uses many string instruments. DPR Ian’s instrumentals often incorporate a mix of electronic and rock influences as he is known for his experimental and edgy sound. Then I was inspired by the film Ballerina with GRAY as the main music producer. The film’s musical production shows the skillful use of multi-layered melodies and the use of trap beats and electronic elements. It also incorporates vocal effects and harmonies that add to the overall atmospheric feel of the songs. From there I was inspired by the rhythm that I wanted the piece to follow because the main sounds were ambience and made the sound somewhat boring and monotonous. So I added a rhythm inspired by the references that I had found. The basis I created was heavily influenced by my references, which were from moving images of films in combination with music (O'Brien, Cinema's conversion to sound technology and film style in France and the U.S. 2005) (Practical art of motion picture sound 2003). The initial piece is quite close to dark music for film scoring (Howell, Popular film music and masculinity in Action: A different tune 2015) (Karlin et al., On the track a guide to contemporary film scoring 2013). To approach the sound effect as best as I could I drew information and knowledge from the book “Electronic Music” by Nick Collins in order to adapt the sound of my live performance close to the characteristics of DPR Artic. At the same time, the book “The Art Of Music Production” by Richard James Burgers helped me understand my role as a music producer and guided me in the development and creation of the work, while “The History Of Music Production” gave me an aesthetic spark as it helped me understand how to approach certain genres of music and expand the palette of instruments I used with electronic instruments and synthesisers.
There are differences and similarities between my own live performance and DPR Artic's. The first difference is evident in the genre of music. As mentioned, DPR Artic focuses on electronic, hip hop and indie rock music, while I focused on ambient, noise music as I have taken inspiration from all three artists and my goal was to combine them. Another difference appears in the live setup since he has more visuals and achieves the performance of visuals and sound together. While I have a static image and lights that are complementary to help with the aesthetics. Finally, another difference appears in the setup of the equipment for the live performance as I use the AKAI MPK while DPR Artic uses more synths and consoles. However, similarities can be found as the idea of the monochrome lighting came from DPR Artic's underground live performances. I also mix genres of music, ambient and noise that came from elements of hip hop based music productions, like DPR Artic (Burgess, R.J. 2014 The history of music production. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Page 81 ). Finally, some effects that I used help to approach the dynamic, widening and sharpness of the sound that is quite often observed in DPR Artic's music.
I tried to approach and create the sounds I was looking for as best as I could. After I was done with the setup of the sounds, I started processing them with the appropriate effects to build the live performance. The general idea was to create an abstract soundscape, which would change with noise music and the beat. The idea of noise came from a lesson in class where we were asked to play a note and change its sound with various effects.
Nothing was used on Channel 1.
Channel 2 used the Erosion effect which degrades the input signal by shaping a small delay with filtered noise. The frequency control determines the color or quality of the distortion. Wide Noise has independent noise generators for the left and right channels, which creates a stereo enhancement. This adds noisy distortions that seem digital. I also used Cabinet which is an effect that imitates the sound of five classic guitar cabinets. It uses physical modeling technology to provide a range of authentic sounds, with optimized microphones and microphone placement. The microphone selection allows you to choose from a variety of speaker sizes and combinations. I also used Double Thick which is a phaser-flanger. The Phaser-Flanger combines the functions of the flanger and phaser effects in one device with separate functions and offers an additional Doubler function. All functions can be used to create rich, expressive sounds with a wide variety of tools and detailed options. Two LFOs and an envelope follower provide a wealth of shaping possibilities.
Channel 3 used an Echo which is a modulation delay effect that allows you to set the delay time on two independent delay lines, while giving you control over the envelope and filter shaping. I also used Reverb. Reverb is an audio effect that simulates the acoustic properties of sound as it reverberates in a physical space. In addition I used an LFO which is a Shifter which is a multi-purpose audio effect for pitch and frequency shifting that can be used to add ringing modulation to the incoming sound or to shift the pitch or frequency of the sound in real time. I also added an Overdrive which is a distortion effect that is subordinate to some classic pedal devices commonly used by guitarists. The distortion stage is preceded by a band-pass filter which can be controlled with an X-Y controller. Finally, another Erosion (Sine 3.2 Max).
On Channel 4 I added an EQ (Small Dark Room), a Reverb (Dirty Synth Room), a Cabinet (Small Drum Room) and a Phaser (Phasing).
An Auto Pan (Copycat) was used on Channel 5. The Auto Pan offers LFO-based amplitude and shift control to create automatic panning, tremolo, and amplitude shaping and cutting effects synchronized to the beat.
Channel 6 uses a Phaser-Flanger (Double Ether) and EQ (EQ eight) and a Pitch Modulation-Auto Pan Effect (Tremolo). Auto Pan offers LFO-based amplitude and panning control to create automatic panning, tremolo, and amplitude modulation and cutting effects synchronized to the beat. Auto Pan's LFOs modulate the amplitude of the left and right stereo channels with sine, triangle, sawtooth, or random waveforms.
On Channel 7, two Erosion (Noisy) and (Sine 962 High) and one Redux (Low Sample Rate) were used.
Nothing was used on Channel 8.
A Redux (Low Sample Rate), an LFO (Rhythm Against 8ths) and a Limiter (Reduce) were used on Channel 9.
One LFO (Push 3 LFO CV 1L) and two Delays (Brain Dance) (Mid Filter Delay) were used on Channel 10. The Delay provides two independent delay lines, one for each channel (left and right).
Nothing was used on Channels 11,12,13.
On Channel 14, an Echo, a Cabinet (Small Drum Room), two Shifters (Tape Malfunction) (Electric Distortion) were used.
Nothing was used on Channel 15.
On Channel 16, a Modulation & Rhythmic (Dirty Tape Head), a Cabinet (Sit In The Mix) and an Erosion (Sine 16 Max) were used.
Channel 17 uses two Dynamic Tube (Hot Driven Tape) (Broken Tube) and one Phaser-Flanger (Phaser Feedback). The Dynamic Tube effect infuses sounds with the peculiarities of tube saturation. A built-in envelope follower creates dynamic tonal variations related to the input signal level.
Channel 18 uses a Shifter (Race Car), Auto Filter (Follow Me), the Auto Filter effect provides classic analog filter emulation. It can be shaped by an envelope follower and/or an LFO to create moving filter effects. The envelope follower can follow either the filtered signal or an external side chain source. and an Echo (Set Back In Space).
Nothing was used on Channel 19.
One of the above was used on Channel 20.
Nothing was used on Channel 21.
Nothing was used on Channel 22.
On Channel 23 two Echos (Pong) and (Echo) were used.
Nothing was used on Channel 24.
During the live production process, there were various difficulties. One of them was that because I am not knowledgeable in music theory, it was practically difficult for me to think about how I would start composing the piece and find the right harmonies. Then, because I have never done such a large live performance before, it took many takes to get a smooth result and to get closer to my sources of inspiration, although there were still differences. Finally, I had the idea to distort some samples from the voices of Narrative Production because I was inspired by DPR Articν, whose live performances are characteristic, but it did not materialize due to difficulty in synchronization and lack of experience.
In conclusion, creating a live performance was interesting, creative and gave the opportunity to study the program in depth as well as helping to discover new skills. There may have been some difficulties and I could have done some things better, but it gave me an opportunity for experimentation and personal expression.
All Links for my projects are at my Portofolio.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
O’Brien, C. (2005) Cinema’s conversion to sound technology and film style in France and the U.S. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Practical art of motion picture sound (2003). Amsterdam: Focal Press.
Karlin, F., Wright, R. and Williams, J. (2013) On the track a guide to contemporary film scoring. Florence: Taylor and Francis.
Howell, A. (2015) Popular film music and masculinity in Action: A different tune. New York: Routledge.
Burgess, R.J. (2013) The Art of Music production. New York: Oxford University Press.
Burgess, R.J. (2014) The history of music production. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Collins, N. and Escriván, J. d’ (2017) Electronic music. Cambridge: Cambridge university press.
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