2021

Wired for Story But Not The Kind You Might Think (#Music vs #Writing)

October 27, 2021

These days I enjoy reading about writing more than I do actual writing. My brain seems to have been rewired for music – not story. At least, not the kind of story you think of when NaNoWriMo hits the stage every November (for me, November is the worst month with Thanksgiving and travel).

Still, I keep trying to gear myself up for NaNoWriMo, even though I did it once and hated it. So why do I keep trying to do it? I was hoping to finally finish “She’s Not That Good,” but I’m thinking it’s time to put that one away for good. It’s “not that good” – lol! (And I don’t want to spend the time trying to make it that good.)

Or maybe because there’s been a bit of a letdown after 50/90 ended. I miss the music community. So when I peek into the NaNo forums looking for community, I notice there’s definitely a leaning toward younger and it all feels so corporate. I now remember how good it felt to leave Silicon Valley behind. Why would I want to step foot in it again? I don’t.

And so it’s back to Logic Pro 10.7, but this time using one of my 50/90 songs to try out some of those Dolby Atmos features. Oh, yeah, I’m much more excited about that. Here’s the song I’m going to be working on:

Now that’s my kind of story – a whole lot more fun than character sheets and outlines.

 

 

Wired for Story (#OctoberPrep #NaNoWriMo #WritingCommunity)

October 25, 2021

We’ve been locked down for so long, mentally, if not physically, that I’ve forgotten how to go out and do things. I’ve been hunkered down in my music studio totally loving it but I can’t stay there 24/7.

So climbing the walls, wracking my brain for ideas of where to go to get out of the house other than casinos and rock climbing, I went to our one Barnes & Noble, rediscovering my love of being surrounded by books and people who love them.

While on that outing, I discovered “Wired for Story,” and it got me to thinking which is the purpose of the book – lol! And I realized that what I said in Writing for Today’s Reader, that “She’s Not That Good” won’t be welcome by today’s Millennials, was somewhat true but also somewhat not true.

Yes, Millennials are overwhelmed by all they are pressured to do and want to feel good enough by doing much less, so the story of the protagonist in “She’s Not That Good” also feels that pressure and only by figuring out what’s most important to her will she feel good enough. It’s not that Millennials should just give up and settle for less. It’s that they should find that one thing they’re meant to do. That reminds me of a scene in “City Slickers.”

I was thinking that since I’m not a Millennial, I couldn’t tell a story for them. Wrong. That in spite of our generational differences, we are alike, too. Besides, I’ve often thought that Boomers and Millennials are quite similar in many ways.

I’d really like to finish “She’s Not That Good” for NaNoWriMo, so here’s hoping this will give me the push. Besides, after finishing that LogicPro 10.7 intense class (and 50/90), I need a break from music. 🙂

Logic Pro 10.7: Getting in the Groove (#LogicPro #Music #Production)

October 22, 2021

This week has been quite confusing for me. My first attempt at using Logic Pro 10.7 left me feeling quite frustrated, so much so, I’ve been rethinking my DAW of choice. Switching back and forth to Ableton Live and GarageBand (with its recent updates), I haven’t been able to call it quits with Logic. But I have figured out a few things.

I think all the Dolby Atmos hype has distorted this update. YouTubers, etc. have been so focused on the new cool Dolby Atmos features, that they’ve ignored a very vital point: how to use Logic Pro without Dolby Atmos. Not everybody has a use for Dolby Atmos. And 10.7 has other new updated features, like to the Sequencer, which is one of my favorite tools. And the loops and the dropdown menus making it much easier to find a particular pack.

So, now that I’m getting into it, figuring things out, I’m getting quite hooked on Dolby Atmos. OMG! Using my own files and not the ones provided by Groove 3’s “Logic Pro 10.7 Explained” tutorial (I think his customized key commands messed me up at first), I’ve had quite a breakthrough. (I do find the tutorial quite helpful, following along, but with my track.)

I’m still working on my 32-bar track, but once I get to a point that it can demonstrate the with and without Dolby Atmos, I’ll be sure to post it here.

How are you doing with your first steps with Logic Pro 10.7? What’s your favorite part of the update?

GarageBand 10.4.4 Update is Here, Too!

October 20, 2021

My blog is blowing up with all of these updates. And your head probably isn’t the only one spinning.

GarageBand for the Mac OS has also released an update, incorporating some of the fab features from the iOS version. I often use the iOS version to start a project, and then finish it in LogicPro. And now I can use the new features also on the desktop version. You never know when I may prefer to use it.

Check out the update from the GarageBandGuide on YouTube.

And, while a much shorter list than LogicPro, you can read the update features available on Apple’s web page or in my GarageBand for macOS release notes pdf.

Also, the GarageBand User Guide is here.

Update: Logic Pro 10.7 Is Not For the Faint of Heart

October 20, 2021

I suppose I should say “Dolby Atmos in Logic Pro 10.7” is not for the faint of heart. As it turns out, if you don’t use that feature, Logic should work pretty much as it always had. But I went down a difficult path before I discovered that.

I began with the Logic Pro 10.7 Explained exercise videos with enthusiasm and determination. I didn’t take long to realize I was in way over my head. This version of Logic Pro seems to be only for the Logic experts.

I started following along with the lesson using the exercise file and when I used my usual method of creating a duplicate instrument track, Logic started in with all sorts of setting updates, converting my track to a master track complete with dialog box I could not kill – on repeat! I mean, really? Is this normal? It was so bizarre. I couldn’t imagine using Logic Pro in its current state, taking so long to do something that should take a second and then giving you unexpected results.

You can see here the dialog box that kept repeating and then creating a Dolby Master Track to infinity and beyond. I finally had to force quit Logic Pro to get out of this cycle. And this was just the first follow-along exercise file. Is it something about Eli’s exercise file (he does use customized shortcuts quite a bit) or is this standard Logic Pro 10.7 behavior?

I’m no expert, although pretty technical and determined, but I may close Logic Pro and never open it again if it keeps this up.

I did go back in to test the shortcut theory, and if I didn’t use a shortcut, all was well. I’ve never had this problem following Eli’s videos but his customized shortcuts are creating all sorts of problems for me. At least, that’s what I’m assuming the problem is. I will avoid key commands while using his vids. Or maybe it’s all of this Dolby stuff that’s interfering with Logic’s normal behavior. That I don’t know and nobody says.

The other piece of good news is that when I opened an older file without any of the Dolby stuff activated, Logic behaved the way it always has, including bouncing files to an mp3. YouTubers and trainers, etc, who are posting stuff about the 10.7 upgrade are so focused on the new features (Actually, the Dolby Atmos stuff), that they’re leaving out this very important information. Maybe I just missed it, but I have a feeling I’m not alone.

But, thankfully, the new non-related Dolby features seem to work just fine. And there are some cool new features, such as recording in the Sequencer and being able to organize loops/instruments by their pack name. And really cool producer packs that came from GarageBand iOS.

Logic Pro 10.7 Project Tutorial: Starting with a Stereo Mix (#Groove3 #Music #Production #LP10.7)

October 20, 2021

At the end of yesterday, I felt satisfied that I was, at least, able to hear the sample track I’d mixed using Dolby Atmos in LP 10.7. And I may have solved the plug-in floating beyond reach issue. I still have questions about how to upload a file to services such as SoundCloud and Reverbnation or to email an mp3. After searching YouTube and the internet, I still have no answer.

Not one to give up easily, I’m back to my Logic Pro 10.7 Explained tutorial produced by Groove 3. I’ve worked up to the beginning of Chapter 4: Mixing in Dolby Atmos, hoping that somewhere along the way, I’ll find the answers to my questions. Perhaps I’m missing something basic and that proverbial light bulb will go off.

Exercise Files are provided and Eli strongly recommends following along at the computer with headphones to really hear what’s going on.

Okay, so I’m going in. Will let you know what I discover.

PS – It didn’t take long to realize I need to back up and do the exercise files from the first exercise file (which is the second video) until this point. Just watching the previous videos is not enough for me to get what’s happening now. That so sounds like me – working ahead – lol! And sometimes getting lost. 🙂

It doesn’t help when the instructor uses plug-ins I don’t have…

My Logic Pro 10.7 Upgrade May Send Me Back to Ableton Live (#LogicPro10.7 #AbletonLive)

October 19, 2021

Logic Pro 10.7 is here. Yay! I was up all night working through tutorials so I would have a clue how to get started this morning when my download appeared. But I’ve been having 2 major problems (even after changing the project settings sample rate to 48 and buffer size to 512 per tutorial instruction):

  1. My file for my small 5-bar track is too big to email or upload to free plans (need upgraded size plan for SoundCloud and Reverbnation)
  2. And while I could upload the file to this blog with my wordpress upgrade, the song can’t be heard on Firefox, which was never a problem before. (Remember to listen in headphones.)

Back to searching online for more videos to see if anybody talks about these issues. Not only that, but if I want to close the Dolby plugin, I have to change my display settings to the default small, which is way too small for my eyes.

So, either I:

  1. Reinstall the previous version (thankfully, I saved it before I upgraded)
  2. Put Logic away until there’s more information about this “Export file” problem (now that you cannot “Bounce” or certainly not export just a section of the song)
  3. Keep hammering away at this problem (I think I might have solved the plugin accessibility issue)
  4. Finally switch to Ableton for good

While Dolby Atmos may be cool, do I really have a need for Dolby Atmos? If not, how do I use LP without it, as in bouncing a file to an mp3 seamlessly. As for the Dolby Atmos plugin being “integrated,” having it pop up off the screen when my display settings are enhanced isn’t really integrated. Ableton Live plugins are truly integrated and why I’ve always preferred Ableton plugins.

Logic Pro has always been a bit complicated for me. I think it just got too complicated. Can we really not bounce a file to mp3 like we used to? What am I missing?

What about you? Have you run into any “gotchas”? How about solutions to my problem? lol!