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The importance of taking notes

Taking notes is a key step to improving my final productions.  I don't mean taking notes away from my ultra killer kazoo solo, I am talking about breaking out pen and paper.

 

If you have ever listened back to your songs or mixes, you have surely encountered a “spot” (or maybe several “spots”) in the song that make you cringe as it plays by.  This could be that one bass note which clashes with the organ, or the one 'slightly out of time' snare hit, or maybe just that the vocals are a tad too loud.  I recommend writing down everything that is not 'perfect' as the song plays through.  You can then return to your song or mix, armed with your notes and start making adjustments.  It's very important that you start the note taking process from the FIRST listen back and I will explain why.

 

Humans are very adaptive creatures.  For a simple example, let's picture getting in to a hot tub on a cold winter night.  As you step into the hot tub water, your senses scream that you are going to be boiled alive!  After a short time you force yourself to sit down and your body eventually gets accustomed to the temperature.  Now, what happens when we get out? Brrr!!!  The opposite is true when taking a cold shower, eventually your body will get used to the temperature and it will 'feel' right.  (Barring the extremes of course!)

 

Our ears adapt to stimuli just like our bodies adapt to temperature changes.  When we first start mixing a song, we might boost the high-end on the EQ a bit.  After a short time, our ears will become accustomed to the extra high-end and we may decide to boost a little more.  Now, if we take a break, or listen to other music for a bit, when we return to our mix we realize the high-end is WAY to high.  This is why it is important to have a reference song to compare with, while we mix.  A blog post on using reference mixes can be found HERE.

 

Our ears and minds will also adapt and become accepting of parts that we did not originally like upon first listen.  There could also be psychological reasons for this, especially if it is our own material, but I'm not smart enough to have a psychology debate on the subject.  Because we adapt so well, this is why it is important to take notes of the problems you hear on the FIRST listen!  You don't want to give your ears or mind a chance to adapt or dismiss the problem areas.  Also, by having written notes in your hand, you have specific instructions, written by YOU, on what needs to be addressed.  You then have a clear road map on how to make your mix or song sound great!

 

I wish I could tell you it only takes me one time to get everything right in my song or mix, but I would be lying.  There are mixes I have listened to dozens of times and taken dozens of notes before I felt I had it 'right'.  Like everything else in life, the more you do it, the better you get. Give it a try and let me know if it helped!

 

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Mike Lizotte

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