One of the best things you can do to practice piano is to sit down at a piano in a quiet room (preferably with low lighting and a nice piano) and play for three hours without music.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about playing the piano was to try and not play the same note twice in my chords. It requires that you add notes you don’t expect to your existing combinations and even though there is a considerable amount of experimentation necessary to find a note that doesn’t sound awful, when you actually find a note or two that somehow works with your standard chord, your entire composition lifts of of the ground. Your chords sound fuller and sort of jazzier and the possibilities for where a song can go open wide up.

Give this a try and take the time to experiment. If you know a song already that uses straight forward chords, try rephrasing the song so that the chords you use have at least four unique notes. (Some doubling of notes is okay but I recommend this mostly for the tonic or the notes your bass hand is playing.)

Today it’s easier than ever to record professional quality audio from your own living room. Technology has advanced and prices on equipment are at all-time lows. Despite this, there is still required a certain amount of homework to separate the mountain of junk from the truly empowering recording equipment.

Common Blunder: Internal Sound Card

I know, you’re probably thinking, "man it would be sweet to have an internal sound card in my laptop so I wouldn’t have to lug a lot of equipment wherever I go to record." - I was once the person having that thought so if that sounds like you, consider the following: Internal sound cards tend to be a bit noisy. This means that on your recordings, you are likely to get low levels of unwanted sound (like a humming or buzzing) that will really sound awful when you start layering tracks.

I just bought a new computer that is very quiet and I am planning on running a few tests to see if the high quality on-board sound cards on some of these new computers can compete with external cards but in the mean time, I am recording my next album through the USB powered Emu 0404 that I know and love from my previous recordings.

Why Choose The Emu 0404?

There are a number of Preamps on the market right now. I’ve used models ranging from crappy $30 Preamps to Art Tube Preamps and the Emu 0404. Don’t get a cheap Preamp unless someone you trust recommends a specific model. The really cheap models I’ve used have across the board sucked and left my recordings with an embarrassing noise floor.

Since the Emu 0404 is an external sound card, you don’t have to worry about unwanted mechanical sound coming from the card itself. Be forewarned however that you will need to use a computer that has USB 2.0 ports to operate this piece of equipment.

But just because the cheap stuff sounds, well cheap… that doesn’t mean we have to break the bank buying one of the ridiculously expensive models. We can still get studio sound for less than $200.

You’ll likely be powering some large diaphragm condenser mics at some point (read my review of Studio Projects Large Diaphragm Condenser Mics here) so you need to have a preamp that will provide 48 volt phantom power. If you need two mic inputs (especially useful for recording piano) I recommend the Emu 0404. If you only need one mic input (say if you are recording guitar and vocals) than consider the Emu 0404’s little brother, the Emu 0202. I’d also recommend the ART Tube MP V3. The ART Tube provides a nice warmth and I would have likely used it exclusively if I only need one input. The 0202 and the ART Tube MP V3 both have one mic input and one instrument input.

The Emu 0404 has a number of peripheral qualities, most notably its direct monitoring capability. Direct monitoring helps to keep tracks correctly positioned relative to each other. This is very useful for multi tracking and makes your life much easier when going back to layer audio files. If you have to constantly realign audio files for every layer you record, you are going to have a huge headache and you’ll probably rack up studio time costs just getting the file right for listening back to.

Other than the Emu and the ART Tube, I wouldn’t recommend anything under $300.

Word Of Caution

For all of the Emu’s qualities there is one minor thing you should be aware of when using this piece of equipment. The input volume levels are very sensitive. I’d recommend starting out with the input knobs lined up to the white line and carefully adjusting these levels to achieve the desired level on input volume. It’s not a big deal if you are aware of it but if you aren’t you could end up clipping a good take. The ART Tube’s input levels aren’t as bad but they’re still sensitive.

Samples

I recorded my entire album using the Emu 0404 Preamp. You can hear samples of the final recording here. You should notice how clean the audio is. When you get right down to it, most audio equipment separates from the competition by providing an opportunity to record close to the original sound.

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*I am paid a small commission to recommend the specific music equipment distributor that I do (samedaymusic.com) which I do guilt-free since I both use this company to get my own equipment and because I believe this to be the best online company for getting gear at the lowest price, fastest guaranteed shipping, and best customer service.

(Consider signing up for my xml feed for updates about music theory, reviews, insider tips and secrets about music.)

Think about your voice in three sections, 1.) your chest voice or lower voice, 2.) Your head voice or higher voice and 3.) the awkward place in the middle where the first two voices butt up against each other.

Our goal should be to navigate between these three parts without an awkward break and I just figured out a sweet technique for getting through that tricky spot in your voice where the chest jumps into the head.

Use Your Nose

When you approach the middle of your range, try breathing out of your nose as well as your mouth. By doing this, it helps guide your body into directing the flow of air to appropriate resonators such that vocal breaks become a thing of the past.

That’s it! Try it out. See if you can sing a tone from the bottom of your register all the way up to your high voice without a break. See if you can do the same with your voice falling from the top of your register to the bottom without breaks.

"hey joe-
quick question, how do you copyright your music?"

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The dumb answer to that question is you pay 45 bucks to the library of congress per work, fill out paper work and wait. You can copyright a whole CD for 45 bucks because they also let you copyright complete works as one package.

The actual answer to that question is that you own copyright on your music the moment it is in some concrete, tangible form… like a recording or a sheet of music, and that registering it only helps to prove ownership of a work in legal battles that are both rare and well, in this day and age I imagine it is easy to prove you were the first one to record an audio file based on its presence on websites and the date of upload.

Now, if you want to know what I recommend…

Don’t bother. I register my own IRSC codes (something you will have forever once you get em) for free and use the free audio program Audacity to print IRSC data onto your finished audio files (you can also use the open source program to edit and master your tracks.) We can cover that subject in a later post. But you might consider applying for the ISRC codes now since they take a week or so and it’s nice to get that sort of thing out of the way.

I use AmieStreet to sell my music and they date everything I upload so I don’t worry about ever having to prove I was the first one to record something - especially since I can release songs as singles on AmieStreet.

I know it is hard to take that advice as a first time recording artist but it isn’t easy to steal songs and as long as you can provide evidence that you were the first to record something via an independent, online service, my sentiment is that you’ll be fine.

The first microphone I ever bought was an Oktava MK319 large diaphragm condenser, which I got for around a hundred bucks. I had read a number of great reviews on the mic and I was excited to check it out with the rest of my new music gear. But when my microphone arrived and I plugged it in, it sadly fell short of my expectations in the form of a constant, annoying noise floor.

I planned on recording piano for my CD so I knew I would be needing two mics. After some more research I bought a Studio Projects C1. When I plugged that microphone into the same set up I had used with the Oktava, I was shocked to find that the noise floor had disappeared. Instead of that annoying, constant hum, I heard the most amazing sound… my voice!

You know how sometimes you cringe when you hear your voice on an answering machine? - I’m especially ashamed of my recorded self but when I heard my voice through this mic, shivers went down my spine… I actually sounded good. The mic captured my natural voice and accentuated it. I sounded like a professional singer.

Well, I gave the Oktava MK319 to my rapping brother (Lil’ Miggs), knowing that the noise floor could be taken out in editing software without much of a difference in the quality of the pre-sampled rap recordings and I immediately bought a Studio Projects C3. I had done enough research to know that the C3 is just a C1 with a couple of added features (it has a figure eight and an omni directional pattern in addition to the cardiod pattern the C1 is limited to.)

Clarity and Punch

I was reticent to buy the mics at first because the brand name sounded trashy (which might account for the low price) but from the moment I plugged my new mics into my E-Mu 0404 to this very day, nearly two years later, I have been nothing but proud of my purchase. I have since sold my C1 on eBay and upgraded to the C3 so I would have matching capabilities. Oh and I never worried about having a "matched pair" of mics - the two I own are not a matched pair but I record with them anyway and they always sound stunning together. I don’t think I would be able to hear a difference between a matched pair and the two I have - something I probably couldn’t say with any other mic.

Sample

Yesterday I recorded my singer over a piano track I laid down in a rehearsal studio. I haven’t had a chance to clean this thing up at all really besides cutting it together and I still have to add a number of instruments but if you are interested in hearing what these mics can do - PRE MASTERING -, check out my work in progress, "He’s Got":

http://www.joeraciti.com/hesgot.mp3

(I plan on having this song up on Amie Street soon so if you like it, you can check back in a couple of weeks or subscribe to my rss feed and I’ll let you know when it is ready for release.)

Now, Catherine is admittedly a much better singer than I am but after she heard herself recorded she got giddy and her face turned red. She kept playing what she had recorded over and over again in awe of how good she sounded (and she isn’t vain!) Later that night she asked if we could record again. I said, "sure, what do you want to record?" She said, "anything!"

Compare

These mics sound exactly like the top of the line Neumann mics that’ll run you up $3,000. In this new era of the do-it-yourself recording artist, I can’t imagine recording without these mics. They will have the single most dramatic effect on the quality of your recording and you won’t regret for a single day ever having bought this wonderful piece of equipment.

You can recorded very high levels of sound pressure with these mics - like a bass drum for example - without worrying about damaging the instrument (I record every instrument I track, including drums, using these two work horses and I am thrilled with every result.)

Don’t believe me? - I would recommend going to a Guitar Center or some other place with mics and ask to run a comparison test. You will be amazed.

If you do get a chance to compare and you find your mind blown, all I ask is that you try and remember my little blog and notch me up one for credibility.

If you have questions or comments, just leave a comment on this post and I will do my best to follow up.

*I am paid a small commission to recommend the specific music equipment distributor that I do (samedaymusic.com) which I do guilt-free since I both use this company to get my own equipment and because I believe this to be the best online company for getting gear at the lowest price, fastest guaranteed shipping, and best customer service.

(Consider signing up for my xml feed for updates about music theory, reviews, insider tips and secrets about music.)

Part of being the best musician you can be is keeping your ear to the ground for what new styles of music are emerging. Be open minded and try and give a lot of different things a chance. That’s not to say let any old crap influence you… I think you could stand to give a song 15 seconds of a chance. In some cases you know right away that a song sucks or is great but for the in between stuff… 15 seconds.

Anyway, I came across the coolest new music site on the internet. It’s kinda like music tracks as stocks. As demand for a track rises, so does the tracks price. You can effectively own shares in a track (write a rec) and be compensated when the track rises in price. You can use that earned money towards buying other music. You start out with money and a limited number of recs for free so it doesn’t have to cost you anything - I plan on never spending real money on this site at all. I actually had this idea and mentioned it to my friends before one said, "I think someone has a site like that already" - well I looked into things and crap - there was Amie Street.

So I put my whole album up and watched the wheels turn. It was pretty sweet. My songs were downloaded and/or bought over 400 times in the first three days. I am writing this post as a bit of a test to see if the embedded music player works. Below the body of this paragraph should be my player. Check out my music and if you like Amie Street… sign up here: http://amiestreet.com/user/signup?invite_id=65055

Update: I make you this offer, an added incentive to check out my tunes on this site - If you recommend one of my songs, I will recommend one of yours (that’s not to say I will necessarily speak highly of your track… I may tear into it!) I have a large fan base on the site that receives a notification when I rec a song and at the very least you get to hear what I think about your song. If your song isn’t free, that also means I’ll buy it. What do you think?

The last group of shapes we need to learn before we can master all the major and minor chords is a group I call "mirror weirdos."

This group is related to the "weirdos" group (can you tell?) It’s like you flip the shapes from the "weirdos" group horizontally and you get the shapee below (all minor chords).

All in all we get an A#/Bb minor, a B minor, and a D#/Eb minor.

Congratulations! If you have been keeping up with my other shape lessons you now know all the major and minor chords you can play on the piano. This is really great news.

Practice playing these chords by having a friend randomly call out a shape and playing the appropriate set of chords. It is important that you learn these chords well because we are soon going to be breaking down what we have learned and looking at it in a new way. Until next time, keep practicing. A little a day is better than a lot once in a while.

Using all the shapes that we have covered so far we can play most of the 24 major and minor chords (whoa!) We only need 6 more (or two more groups of shapes) until we can play all of the major and minor chords. Let’s check out a group of shapes I call "weirdos"  so we can play three sweet major chords, Ab major, B major, and F# major.

Check out the picture below. I know these three shapes are all different but if you think about them as a group of weirdos it will be easier to remember the next group and to remember this strange family of major chords.

Now you know, I often say, "dream about these shapes and tomorrow you will be able to play them." Well, that’s mostly true. You should dream about this new group of shapes but it may take a couple of days of dreaming to really get it. Hey things are getting a bit harder now but you know what, you can do it. Be patient and practice. You have to enjoy the little steps so don’t get mad it if you don’t get it all at once.

So we are continuing to think about chords as shapes because I love shapes and that’s how I think about music. It makes it so much easier to remember large amounts of information by reducing it to something as simple and lovely as a shape.

The Upside-down Left Triangle shape gives us three minor chords that we can easily play just by applying this simple shape to a keyboard. Take a look below at my diagram.

So as you can see, using this shape we can play a C#/Db minor, F#/Gb minor, and a G#/Ab minor. So, practice playing these sad sounding chords and remember to think about this shape. I want you to be dreaming about these cool-colored, upside-down left triangles when you go to sleep tongiht. 

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