One-on-one tuition

[dazzjazz]

Hi all,

 

I was considering taking a Berklee online course to improve my mixing and mastering skills, but they"re expensive even before I factor in the exchange rate between the US and Australian dollar. So, I"m looking for individual tuition from someone reputable that teaches online. Any suggestions please?

[KuruPrionz]

I don't have any suggestions but I will mention that I was able to improve my mixing skills for free by logging onto www.metapop.com and competing in remix competitions.

 

I did 18 remixes going back 25 months, more and recently I did another one to see if I'd absorbed anything.

 

Most of the remixes gave me an excuse to try a new technique. I taught myself some fun tricks trying clip-stretching, pitch shifting, extreme EQ (turned a kick drum into a shaker for one), parallel processing, reverse clips and other things including various combinations of all of the above. I also worked on adding/changing beats.

 

The recent remix I went in with no set learning path. I listened to the song, stripped it down to the vocals and listened to get an idea of how an arrangement would serve the song and then I went back to a playback of all the provided tracks and started deleting tracks that I felt were just there because somebody wanted to play them. I suppose that could be more of a "producer" than a mixer but those lines have become blurred.

 

After I tossed out enough tracks to get some space (including a horrible sounding "snare" abomination, I added a drum track and then used automation to keep the percussion under control a bit.

I only spent about 3 hours but my take away was "listen to the arrangement." That was a lesson I hadn't really learned on any of the other remixes.

 

I've never won, by the way. I doubt I'll win this one but that's fine. The lessons are valuable and might save tuition if one already has a handle on them.

 

Here is a link to my page, I recommend you surf around a bit and listen to what others are doing as well. The second (There Go Elephants) and third (That Itch) posting are bits I tossed up from other times and not really examples of mixing at all.

The first one is a recent remix and then Running Back is the last remix I did before that.

 

It may not be a good path for you and I certainly don't expect you to listen to any of my efforts, just sharing something that turned out well for me. I've got a better handle on mixing than I did previously.

I won't claim to know much about mastering, I do understand there that a consistent sound that works well on all platforms is the essence. I don't think my ears are that good yet, and I KNOW my room and speakers are not.

 

Good luck!!! I'll check back in to see what this thread stirs up, great topic! Cheers, Kuru

[dazzjazz]

Anyone with a link to individual tuition please?

[MAJUSCULE]

I unfortunately don't have any exact recommendations for you Darren, but perhaps you can get in touch with a mixer you like directly? Chances are they're open to this kind of thing if they're not overwhelmed with work, same as most musicians these days.

[Nathanael_I]

Mixing Audio: Concepts, Practices, Tools by Roey Izhaki is outstanding. It is used as a textbook at several internationally known programs. The book is very up to date and includes links to a website with 2000 audio examples and sample files. It is well organized, comprehensive and better than anything I've seen online. This isn't a collection of random (and useless) "tips", but a complete guide on how to approach a mix, learn the processors, develop a workflow and so much more. Highly recommended. It is not a person. But it is also complete in the way that 1:1 would not be.

 

Mixing Audio: Concepts, Practices, Tools

 

The suggestion to play with multi-track that is publicly available is an excellent one. A lot can be learned this way. I do get the desire for tuition.

 

You might try over at Gearslutz - more audio engineers hang out there. I doubt you'll have trouble finding someone who will sell you time. It will be a question of thoroughness, hence my recommendation for the Izhaki book.

[dazzjazz]

Thanks Nathanael, sounds like a good book. I will definitely grab it.

Much appreciated.

 

Darren