ELEVATOR MUSIC
You will create an elevator music version of a well known song of your choice. The song should be recognizable by most people.
Project Assigned on 11/18/2019
Project Due on 12/6/2019
Listen to several sections of this YouTube example of elevator music.
CHOOSING A SONG
ARRANGE YOUR SONG
PROJECT SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
You will create an elevator music version of a well known song of your choice. The song should be recognizable by most people.
Project Assigned on 11/18/2019
Project Due on 12/6/2019
Listen to several sections of this YouTube example of elevator music.
- What characteristics does this music have versus music you typically listen to?
- Think of tempo, style, and instrumentation.
- Take note of all the different instruments you hear.
- Make a list of the most popular instruments you might like to use for this project.
CHOOSING A SONG
- You should be quite familiar with the song
- Do not pick a song that already sounds like elevator music. To make the project more fun and interesting, choose something as far from elevator music as possible
- Consider how simple or complex your song is
- "Band on the Run" by Paul McCartney and Wings or "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen might be a little complex. Although if you are up for the challenge, go for it!
- If you are newer to the whole music thing, choose something a bit more simple like "Imagine" by John Lennon or "Wonderful Tonight" by Eric Clapton
- Consider, will you be using the controller to record the different parts, the piano roll, or both?
- There are several song books available to use as a reference and to help you arrange your song
- You may also search online for, or bring in, your own resources.
- You are responsible for finding what resources you need for your song or arranging it by ear
- I can advise whether or not your resources will be sufficient
- You will need to be flexible in the song you choose in order to find sufficient resources.
- GET APPROVAL FROM MR. SHEARER BEFORE STARTING YOUR ARRANGEMENT
ARRANGE YOUR SONG
- Start a new Mixcraft project with 4 Virtual Instrument tracks
- Set the Key, Tempo, Time Signature to match your song
- If you do not know what these are, be sure to ask for help
- Write out a few measures and have Mr. Shearer check for accuracy
- Be careful not to get too far into the project only to find out you are doing something wrong
- Save the project as ElevatorMusic_LastnameF_SongTitle
- E.g. ElevatorMusic_ShearerM_FreeBird
- Set the Key, Tempo, Time Signature to match your song
- You do not have to arrange the entire song. At a minimum your project should be in an AABA format (or something comparable)
- Verse, Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus
- Verse, Verse, Bridge, Verse
- Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus
- At a minimum your arrangement should contain tracks for the following
- Melody - e.g. vibes, saxophone, muted trumpet, flute, refer to the MIDI Survey project
- Harmony - e.g. strings, jazz organ, guitar, refer to the Chord Progressions project
- Bass - e.g. bass guitar, string bass/double bass, refer to the Chord Progressions project
- Drums - refer to the MIDI Beats project - a simple rock beat or bossa nova
- In many cases, you may need to make up the harmony, bass, and drum parts to match the progression of the song you choose.
- The resources you find should give you at least the chords and the melody
- As dull as elevator music seems to be, make your arrangement interesting
- Use different instruments for different parts of the song
- Experiment here, try anything, you might find something that works that you didn't expect
- However, don't compromise the intent of the elevator music
- Change the style, make it jazzy, bossa nova seems to be a popular choice for elevator music
- For swing styles, set your snap settings to 1/8th note triplets and select the "3" when editing in the piano roll
- Use different instruments for different parts of the song
- Use FX and sound effects
- E.g. start with some rain or ocean sounds that fade into the beginning of your song
- Your sound effect must fit the song and style
PROJECT SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS
- Step 1 - On a flash drive, create a folder named ElevatorMusic_LastnameF_songtitle
- Step 2 - From Mixcraft, open your project, select File > Copy Project Files To > Folder
- Step 3 - Locate the folder you created on the flash drive in Step 1, Select it, then click OK
- Step 4 - Bring flash drive to Mr. Shearer
- Project Requirements (60) - Did you follow all the instructions above?
- Production Value (60) - Does it sound like typical elevator music? Is the song recognizable?
- Creativity/Originality (40)
- Effort (40) - Is the final product a representation of your ability level and time spent on the project?