2 minute read

Deadline

Due at the start of Week 9: 27 Oct.

Introduction

Our midterm assignment is a sketch for a fixed-media piece, which can serve as a “preview” of your final project. By “sketch,” we simply mean a working version: not final, not perfect.

You may treat this as:

  • A miniature version of your final piece,
  • An independent study in sound that diverges from your final project, or
  • A testing ground for ideas you may or may not carry forward.

This is a chance to explore particular sound material that really interest you, experiment with your field recordings, software plugins and/or synthesizers and samplers, borrow any approaches or concepts you may have found useful from our work in micromontage, modular synthesis, or frequency domain resynthesis, and demonstrate your developing skills in mixing and automation.

Learning Objectives

By completing this assignment, students will be able to:

  1. Identify and organize diverse sound sources (field recordings, synthesis, samples) for compositional use.
  2. Apply mixing techniques (EQ, tonal balance, gain staging, compression where appropriate) in a Reaper session.
  3. Demonstrate creative use of automation to shape dynamics, timbre, and spatial qualities.
  4. Construct a multi-track session (minimum 4 tracks) that integrates multiple sound sources into a cohesive sketch.
  5. Evaluate the effectiveness of their mix for clarity, balance, and expressivity.
  6. Produce a stereo audio file (48 kHz / 24-bit) and a transferable Reaper session folder that can be opened in another computer system.

Assignment Criteria

Your submission should meet the following guidelines:

  • Length: Approximately 3 minutes in duration (slightly longer is acceptable; significantly shorter is not).
  • Reaper Session: Your project folder must contain all audio and Reaper session files.
  • Source Materials: Include at least 2 sound sources (recorded or synthesized).
  • Tracks: Use a minimum of 4 tracks in Reaper.
  • Automation: At least one form of automation (e.g., volume, panning, a plugin parameter, etc.) must be present and intentionally thought out. That is, don’t simply move automation randomly to satisy this part of the assignment; your automation should demonstrate that it has purpose linked, ideally, to your own listening.
  • Plugins: Any plugins used must be listed so the session can be recreated on another computer.
  • Mixing: Strive for tonal balance using EQ and dynamics processing.
  • Export Format: 48 kHz / 24-bit WAV file.

Submission Instructions

  • Submit your Reaper project folder (with all audio files included in your mix, plus your Reaper session file(s)) and your exported stereo soundfile.
  • Send via Etna, or by email via WeTransfer or a preferred cloud storage link.
  • Due by Week 7: 13 Oct..

Evaluation Criteria

Your midterm will be evaluated according to the following:

  • Completeness (20%) — Meets all technical requirements (mix duration, minimum number of tracks, file formats, Reaper project folder in tact).
  • Sound Source Use (20%) — Incorporates at least 2 distinct sources creatively, using transformations of the sounds that show intention and inventiveness.
  • Automation (15%) — Evidence of thoughtful automation shaping dynamic, timbral, and/or spatial qualities.
  • Mix Quality (25%) — Attention to tonal balance, EQ, and clarity of layers, or blend, where required.
  • Creativity & Originality (20%) — Demonstrates a personal approach to your chosen material, exploratory or expressive use of sound.