Audio Production of a Musical Work in a Home Studio

In the diploma thesis, the author presented music creation in a smaller home studio, which I have been engaged in for the past few years, and an ** overview of the production of the original musical work** »** It is a new day“ (Slo. Despite the limitations, he demonstrated that today, with appropriate equipment, skills and knowledge, and the right approach, it is ** possible to produce a musical work even in a smaller home studio and approach the level of professional products. Hardware and software for a project studio have become more powerful and accessible to wider audiences.

Solution and Method

In the diploma thesis, the author presented music creation in a smaller home studio, which I have been engaged in for the past few years, and an ** overview of the production of the original musical work** »** It is a new day**“. He described the course of audio production in a home studio from the initial musical idea to the final audio product suitable for the market.

The development of technology, computing and digitalisation have caused a boom in recording in smaller home studios in the field of audio production and encouraged the creativity of numerous musicians, sound engineers and producers. A home music studio is a space in a home environment intended for audio production – sound recording, digital editing and mixing of audio recordings with hardware and software. In addition to the term home studio, the names project studio or non-professional studio are also used.

Numerous music enthusiasts work in home studios: indie music groups, individual singers or songwriters and composers, ** radio podcasters, creators of music for films, documentaries, computer games and other media content, professional musicians, sound engineers and producers. ** What do we need to produce a musical work and how does audio production proceed in a smaller home studio? We need ** musical knowledge, ** skills and ** sufficient musical talent**.

Depending on the field of activity, these may include: music theory, knowledge of playing one or more instruments, singing, musical ear and feeling for creating music, musical composition, understanding the operation and use of hardware and software, critical listening to musical works, shaping one's own musical style and creating original musical works. When recording in a home studio, he relied primarily on his own previous experience in playing instruments, music creation and recording with software and hardware.

Every musician has their own workflow when creating their own musical work, as well as musical instruments they use in the process. The musical genre generally ** determines the audio production** and the direction in which the entire musical design and recording subsequently develop. The original musical work described in the diploma thesis is an example of an instrumental backing track for some video content or promotional video. It is also possible to later upgrade it into a pop-rock song with a melody for singing and lyrics.

The composition is in the musical scale of C major, the tempo of the song is 120 beats per minute (BPM), the time signature is the classic pop-rock 4/4 time signature – it is a moderate pop-rock musical genre. He began the musical work with an introduction and verse, continued with a bridge, which ** represents a transition between the verse and chorus**, and ended with an outro. In the musical work, the dynamics and energy of the song gradually build up in each part of the song, which is achieved through different chords, adding certain instruments, different playing styles and most noticeably by adding drums and percussion.

The musical instruments he used in creating the musical work are: bass drum, snare drum, hi-hat, crash cymbal, shaker, tambourine, congas, piano/keyboards, children's choir, strings, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, electric guitar – distortion, bass guitar and sound effects – wind and water. Further in the audio production process, with the help of hardware and software, we record sound, which requires, in addition to the equipment itself and knowledge of its use, knowledge and ** skills in recording techniques**.

Hardware basically includes: various microphones and microphone preamplifier, digital audio interface or sound card, mixing desk or mixer, computer, MIDI keyboard or controller, studio speakers and amplifier for speakers, headphones, cables, stands and other studio accessories. Software includes primarily a digital audio workstation (DAW), software plug-ins, digital effects (effects for dynamics, equaliser, compressor and time effects...) and ** virtual instruments**.

After the audio material has been recorded, we proceed with digital editing, digital mixing and final mastering of the recorded sound and music. Digital editing proceeds similarly to recording – by individual recording tracks for each instrument. In the final recordings on all recording tracks, there must be no musical, technical or production errors.

With digital mixing in audio production, we strive to obtain the best sound from the recorded audio material and finalise the musical production. Digital mixing means that we combine audio recordings from all recording tracks into one complete and final recording or ** mix. When shaping the final sound of a musical work, we use various tools and techniques, such as: ** volume settings of individual instruments, ** horizontal spatial distribution of instruments, ** editing frequency bands with an equaliser (low, mid and high tones) and ** adding digital effects** (effects for dynamics...).

In mastering or finalisation of a musical work, we add digital effects to the final audio recording, which combines all individual recording tracks in the DAW. With these audio production tools, we shape the final sound of the musical work. Finally, we export the audio file and thus the audio production of the musical work is complete.

At the very end, it is necessary to present the musical work to the audience, attract potential users and sell the created work on the market. The modern era of digitalisation and the World Wide Web offers us many new possibilities for presenting audio products. In the field of audio production, continuous education, courses, practical training and networking with other musical and media profiles and professions are important.

It is also necessary to constantly monitor trends and currents in music, technology, production techniques as well as in the media world in general. In the diploma thesis, the author tried to answer some questions for readers, stimulate interest in further reading or music creation.

Results

Despite the limitations, he demonstrated that today, with appropriate equipment, skills and knowledge, and the right approach, it is possible to produce a musical work even in a smaller home studio and approach the level of professional products. Hardware and software for a project studio have become more powerful and accessible to wider audiences. Last but not least, all hardware and software by itself does not guarantee a quality musical product.

On the one hand, all these possibilities enable creators of quality products to break through to the market more easily, whilst on the other hand, this development has very much contributed to a reduction in the quality of audio recordings. Music creation requires time and dedication and a great deal of enthusiasm before we succeed and achieve a creative breakthrough. Audio production in a ** smaller home studio** thus ** brings certain advantages** and ** opportunities** as well as ** limitations** and ** challenges. After completing the audio production project in a smaller home studio, he is proud of the ** created original musical work.

However, I am aware of the challenges ahead; both regarding upgrading equipment in the home studio, expanding knowledge and skills in the processes of recording, editing, mixing and mastering, as well as presenting original musical works. Music creators have always dreamt of audio production of their own musical works in a home music studio and successful establishment and creative breakthrough.