Mixing Your Soundtrack

So now I have my sounds, what happens?

Now we "mix" them. To do that we need to upload the sounds you have downloaded or recorded to Soundation. Soundation is currently the best web-based software I have found to affordably mix audio tracks. Soundation is free to use - so long as you are using their preloaded sound bytes.  However, to use the clips we have recorded or downloaded, the site requires at least a one year $19.99 subscription. Let's play around with that now. 

OK, I am in Soundation, let's start mixing!

Slow down, let's first upload your tracks. To do so, follow these steps:

• Select "File" from the upper left side of the page.

  • Under "File" select "Import Audio File."

    • Now, locate the files you have created or downloaded from Freesound and press "Open" 

      • Repeat this process until you have all of your files. You will not see them until the next step.

To find your files once you have uploaded or imported them, follow these steps:

• Look to the upper right of the page. You will see three tabs labeled (from left to right) "Library," "Premium Sounds," and "Project."

  • Click "Project."

    • Here under project you will now see all of your sounds.

      • Drag each sound clip to a separate Audio Channel or what we call a "track"

        • Each sound should have its own Audio Channel so that we can "mix" its volume, pan it to the left or right, and move it individually toward the beginning or the end of the "song."

OK, all of my sound bytes are uploaded and separated into their own Audio Channels (tracks). What now?

Now for the FUN! 

Using your Sound of Art Analysis Worksheet pay close attention to which parts of the image you "heard" these sounds. Was this sound in the left side, center, or right side? Do you hear it really loudly? Do you hear it right away or does it come in later on because you don't immediately notice it?

Let's start with PANNING.

Panning is the ability to "slide" a sound to the left or right of the speakers. So when I saw the ocean and the Greek god, Zephyr, blowing on Venus on the left side of The Birth of Venus I want to make sure those sounds of the ocean are panned to the left of our soundtrack. 

To play with panning follow these steps:

• Notice the circular "knob" located in the center of the right side of each Audio Channel. That know is our panning tool.

  • By clicking and dragging the know to the left or right you are telling that track to move to the left or right speaker. 

    • The blue strip around the knob tells you how far you have moved the sound in each direction.

      • So in track one, the sound is almost centered, but panned slightly to the right.

      • Track two is panned almost totally to the right.

      • Meanwhile, track three is panned nearly 100% to the left.

Adjusting the VOLUME of your tracks.

Let's use the same image from above to talk about adjusting the volume of your individual tracks.

In this image we are using the long, thin bar the runs across the Audio Track beginning beneath the FX button and ending under the "nn" in the word Channel. To alter your individual volumes:

• • Click on the square slider on your volume bar.

    • Drag the volume bar left or right.

      • sliding to the left will lower your volume while sliding to the right will increase your volume.

        • In the image above, track one is nearly turned down all of the way. This is the talking I heard in Birth of Venus but the talking sounded like whispers to me.

        • Track two is the sounds of birds chirping in the forest, so I turned this track all the way up.

        • Track three was the strong sounds of the ocean and the blowing wind. It was too loud and overpowering the birds, so I lowered it down.

Situating your tracks within your "soundtrack."

In Birth of Venus the first image I notice is Venus herself. Next I see Zephyr blowing on her. As I continue to examine the painting I notice the details, the forest scene to the left and the goddesses of the seasons ready to clothe her. Since that is the order I saw the details, that is the order I want my audience to "hear the images."

To situate your tracks within the song, follow these steps:

• Simply click on the track you wish to select and drag it to the left or right. Dragging a song left will make it appear early in the "song," while dragging it to the right will make it appear later.

  • Ideally you want these sounds to overlap, as many of them will be happening at the same time, especially in busier works of art like Guernica.

    • You will notice that the "whispering" I heard in Birth of Venus comes very late in track one.

    • The same is true for the bird sounds in track two.

    • Instead, the first sound I "saw" was the ocean and that is why track three is dragged all the way to the left.

Once you have the tracks where you want them, press play. 

Listen. 

Make Adjustments. 

Save your file.

Share.

What are my alternatives to Soundation?

While iMovie and Windows Movie Maker are free alternatives they do not easily allow for the multitrack mixing of sounds. That is to say that is is either difficult of impossible to layer tracks on top of each other. Additionally, neither will allow you to easily adjust the track to the left, center, or right channels - something that really makes this project unique and such an interactive experience.