PA6303 - Technical Set-Up For Group Performance

Though my role in the band was predominantly as a vocalist and acoustic guitarist, I also had a part to play in the electronic sound of the group. I was in charge of controlling the effects that were put on the vocals along with cueing the samples in section two of the performance. To do this, I was using an Akai LPD 8 connected to a laptop running Ableton Live software.

Image of an Ableton Live Set-Up

According to musician, Ian Vargo, “the sonic and musical capabilities of [Ableton Live] are much more robust than any other DAW” (2018, n.p.). Using the software, I was able to have a series of samples, ready to cue. These samples included a recording of myself reading a translation of a Shakespeare sonnet in Welsh and politically themed speeches. In section three of our performance, we wanted to have politically themed lyrics, so by playing samples of the speeches in section two, we were able to begin to introduce this narrative. Sonically, I was able to apply reverb, delay, distortion and chorus effects to the samples using the Ableton software. By adding heavy reverb and delay, it gave the samples the impression of “swimming around in the background” (Roth, 2020, n.p.), while the distortion gave them a “dramatic special effect” (Hitchings, 2011, n.p.); this helped to adjust the dynamics and timbre of the piece.

As mentioned, I was also in control of the effects that were placed on the live vocals of both myself and Rayanne. These consisted of effects such as reverb, delay, chorus and distortion. Adding the distortion effect played a key role in the piece because, as mention in my previous blog post (Group Performance), it amplified the grain of Rayanne’s voice in section three. According to Roland Barthes, the grain in someone’s voice displays the emotion to the listener (2010), and this was something we wanted to display during section three. Moreover, I was able to add a pitch shift effect to my vocals on a second live vocal track. Using another track with a pitch shift function is a strong way to add depth to a performance (Smith, 2014), and also added another layer of harmony to our piece.

Akai LPD 8

The Akai LPD 8 was a useful piece of equipment as it not only allowed me to turn vocal effects on and off, but it has dials that allow me to further manipulate the effects in a live setting. By using live manipulation, one can use their vocals as their main sound source in their music. This was demonstrated by musicians Katie Gately, Doseone, SK Shlomo and Lyra Pramuk, who, using Ableton Live, were able to perform only using their voice (Ableton, 2018). By manipulating our vocals, it gave us further musical expansion.

Katie Gately, Doseone, SK Shlomo and Lyra Pramuk Live Electronics Performance

My connection with the electronics elements was through gesture and then subsequent dislocation. By cueing the samples and manipulating the vocals using the Akai LPD 8, my performance has aspects of both dislocations in time and space (Emmerson, 1994). The sampled speeches were all originally performed before our performance would have taken place, causing the dislocation in time, and the effects placed on the vocals caused the dislocations in space. There is also an argument to made that the samples would have caused the performance to have been mediatised (Auslander, 1999); the audience would have been experiencing what were originally live speeches through a reproduced format.

Reference List

Ableton. (2018) ableton.com: I Speak Music: Manipulating, Improvising and Composing with Vocals [online]. Available at: https://www.ableton.com/en/blog/i-speak-music-manipulating-improvising-and-composing-vocals/. [Accessed on: 14/04/20].

Auslander, P. (1999) Liveness: Performance in a Mediatized Culture. 1st edition. London: Routledge.

Barthes, R. (2010) The Grain of the Voice. 1st edition. London: Vintage Classics.

Emmerson, S. (1994) ‘Timbre Composition in Electronic Music’, Contemporary Music Review, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 1-240.

Hitchings, C. (2011) soundonsound.com: Distortion Effects In Live [online]. Available at: https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/distortion-effects-live. [Accessed on: 14/04/20].

Roth, D. (2020) musicianonamission.com: Vocal Reverb and Delay: The Secrets to a Perfect Mix [online]. Available at: https://www.musicianonamission.com/vocal-reverb-and-vocal-delay/. [Accessed on: 14/04/20].

Smith, J. (2014) music.tutsplus.com: Creating Vocal Harmony Using Pitch Shifting Software [online]. Available at: https://music.tutsplus.com/tutorials/creating-vocal-harmony-using-pitch-shifting-software--cms-20809. [Accessed on: 14/04/20].

Vargo, I. (2018) theproaudiofiles.com: Why Ableton Live is a Superior DAW for Music Production [online]. Available at: https://theproaudiofiles.com/ableton-live-for-music-production/. [Accessed on: 14/04/20].