[MUSIC]
So pre-production.
I happen to think that pre-production is probably the most important
part of the entire production process.
What do you guys think?
>> I mean I think it's the most fun and
also if we can get it right everything else tends to work out.
Yeah, so I do agree.
It's laying the foundation.
I think it's super, super important.
>> For me I think that clearly defining what it is that we're trying to do,
that's the first step.
What ways do you find it to define things like that?
>> So what I'll usually do is go and search of a reference track.
>> Yeah. >> And reference tracks can be really good
for trying to find out what we want to achieve eventually in terms of production,
song writing, mixing, vibe, any of that, even the groove.
>> Yeah. >> And so
I'll find something that is closely resembles when I'm looking for.
>> Yeah.
>> And then I'll analyze that and start my production after that.
>> Yeah, great, great.
>> I mean I do the same thing.
I find also if you're working with other people giving them the reference and
telling them what you're accomplishing or what you're pulling from it.
Super useful because I have that real reference.
I do a lot of analysis.
I don't know if you guys do.
That's just me, I just start with a really in-depth analysis of things.
>> I do too. And actually,
one of the tools that we want people to do this week,
that is something that I've done a lot of, is an Emotional Timeline.
And we have a couple examples that we're going to show here and
there's others that you'll be able to see in the course itself.
The first one is one actually by Stephen Lizard who is in one of
my classes who's the bass player for the Dave Matthews Band.
And you take a look at this and first off there's a timeline,
it gives us elapse time.
There's the form of the song which of course is very important too,
I think kind of define.
And then there is notes in terms of the arrangement which is good
to be able to see that all at once.
>> And then there's two lines, one for dynamics and another one for emotion.
And often they're the same thing, but occasionally they're not,
occasionally there is a big emotional pole when it's quiet.
But having both of those lines and
then also something that indicates where the climax or
the climaxes are can really be helpful when you go around to produce these.
And the other example I wanted to show is the one that you use.
>> Yeah. >> Because you do the same thing but
you do it in a DAW.
[CROSSTALK] >> I did the same thing, write my DAW.
I don't have the dynamics contour line but
I think that's usually shown in the wave form.
>> Yeah, exactly. >> Except in this track which
is incredibly.
>> [CROSSTALK] >> It's already mastered but that's okay.
>> But I also call it emotional line and
I just use any kind of automation and I chop up the reference track,
and I give indicators of what's going on on each section.
And I color based on emotional thing and I always use bright red for the climax.
So, it seems like we're coming up with the same things even though
I thought this was my idea.
>> We didn't think of this at all.
>> I noticed when Daniel Lengua was here a few years ago, he does the same thing.
He does it with charcoal and paper.
And I was first introduced to this back at the University of North Texas in
a jazz band arranging course.
Where the teacher traced back to Schoenberg and
even all the way to Beethoven.
So people have been doing this for symphonies and
all sorts of stuff for ages.
>> Right.
>> The great thing I think about it is that it just
gives you a two-dimensional thing.
You can look at it all at once and it's a piece of art that works overtime.
But you get to absorb it all.
>> It's this kind of forced view.
>> Another really important thing that producers have to do, I mean,
I feel like one of our main roles is that of scheduling and casting.
Can you talk a bit about that?
How do you go about scheduling your projects?
>> It's really important to at least for my productions,
be able to schedule out absolutely every stage of the process.
Not only does it make it easier to work with other musicians, in my opinion but
it also makes it easier to schedule your own time and make sure that you get
everything done in a timely and orderly fashion, like you expect yourself to do.
And it's also really important as well when you start working with other
musicians.
Now, even though this course doesn't require,
although it's strongly encouraged to work with other musicians, having a schedule
in time set out to record them and work with them is really, really, important.
>> Absolutely.
