Question for musicians - What programs do you use to record/mix your music?

I've been playing violin and learning music theory for about a year and a half now thanks to Ann. However, I'm not in love with the music I'm playing.

So, doing what every good punker does, I bought a distortion amp (Vox VT30) and plugged in. Now I play badly and loudly (bloudly?) at the same time!

All kidding aside, I like the sound of distorted/electric string instruments. Zoe Keating, Rasputina, Apocalyptica, Emilie Autumn, Michael Shulman, and these dames rock my world.

I'd like to start experimenting with some post-processing software filters to drop the pitch of the violin if possible. I've heard of morpheus droptune pedals that would help on the pre-amp side of things, but they're hella expensive for one effect. What I'm looking for is something I can record my music with, then play with the recorded file on the the computer, but I'm not sure what software I need to start with.

Last time I was in a studio, it was 1998 and we were still using analog equipment, so any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

Tags: music, violin

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Permalink Reply by Hayen Mill on March 15, 2010 at 10:38am

Err...i'm not really familiar with any post-processing stuff, so i'm going to pretend that i'm just answering to the title of the topic ^^

I'm using Reason 4 for some electronic stuff and synths, though i've heard good things about Ableton Live and Protools.

If you're into distorting guitars, may I suggest some post-rock effects? Like using a cello bow in an electric guitar? Seriously, how cool is that?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHd5nc0W-lQ

In post-rock its usually less intense, but you can try it out and mess up with it and see if you like it. However, cello bows are waaaay too expensive.

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Permalink Reply by Tome Wilson on March 15, 2010 at 11:32am

The problem with bowing an electric guitar is that the bridge is flat. On a violin or cello, the strings are slightly higher than one another, giving you more control over which one you're bowing at the time. Granted, there are some madmen who've created electric guitars with bowing in mind (the guy that did the 300 soundtrack comes to mind), but I'm not that ambitious.

If I can turn my violin into a drop-tuned death-metal instrument of chaos, I'll be happy. Unfortunately, there's not too much you can do with the actual instrument to change the pitch that dramatically, so I'm going to rely on computer filters and pedals to get the sound I'm looking for.