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Arghh - autotune

Lol... very likely it's already part of those tools, or will be soon. Random pitch variation is very easy to do in software...
Hm

Don't sequencers have a "humanise" function to make the timing of notes slightly less perfect?
 
I don't know what 'muzak' is like in US malls and supermarkets, but the tinny ceiling speakers playing absolute pap does NOT make me want to shop in these places and we tend to dash in, get what we need with no browsing, pay up and dash straight back out. I usually don't wear 'me ears' in such places either as, even with levels turned down, the noise is objectionable. Auto Tune plays a HUGE part in this I feel, robotic samey vox all but chanting mindless lyrics over a boom titty boom backing with a generic programmed beat.

Lord I sound like my parents and grandparents these days :(
 
Hm

Don't sequencers have a "humanise" function to make the timing of notes slightly less perfect?
Yes, most of them have had such a feature for decades now. They add randomness or some weighted randomness to timing, velocity, pitch, or whatever other attribute you want. They kinda work, but a real performance is almost always better.
 
P.S. I hated 'Believe' by Cher but it was a worldwide hit for her and in a recent interview she did come across as a well 'grounded' and i think sensible person.

One pop song from the 80's which really *could* have done with vocal assistance is 'China In Your Hand' by T Pau where singer carol decker seriously struggles to hit that top note and for me it's buttock clenching whenever it comes on the radio.
 
Yes, most of them have had such a feature for decades now. They add randomness or some weighted randomness to timing, velocity, pitch, or whatever other attribute you want. They kinda work, but a real performance is almost always better.
The old Moog Modulars had it as standard - analogue linear supplies that drifted and sagged needing constant (re) tuning in a performance or recording :D
 
Lol... very likely it's already part of those tools, or will be soon. Random pitch variation is very easy to do in software...
What would Shane MacGowan make of it all - God rest his soul.
 
I remember feeling heart broken when the engineer / producer of a little EP my amateur band made a while back quantised my drum tracks to line everything up !

All the drummers with great time and feel (not me!) played with the space in a bar of music. I guess there will just be a Charlie Watts plug in, an Al Foster plug in , a Clyde Stubblefield plug in - you get the idea. I imagine it’s entirely possible to analyse ‘feel’ with AI and recreate a style.

God this is so depressing !!
 
Is a singer that sings in tune an option
Every singer, even the best, hits a bum note sometimes. And they know, even if the audience doesn't notice.
 
What the world needs -- is Tom Waits, autotuned.

The numbing sameness of the sound of so many current pop stars/acts is distressing (to me) to hear. And, yes, I realize, that homogeneity isn't strictly due to processing, but rather the old adage imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. :facepalm:
 
Thinking about Autotune and art (and reading @JustJones' post above) reminded me of the episode of Star Trek (TOS, as they say) with the green alien. The boys in the lab kept trying to fix her skin tone. :oops:


jUucF-1477069085-1202-blog-trek_cage_oriongirl_1200.jpg
 
Autotune was originally designed to assist in the sonar mapping of seabeds for the mining industry. The inventor was not a musician, so you can't blame him. I don't believe he had any "intentions" on how the tool should be used and was astonished to see the creative ways it was adopted.

Musicians always use things in unexpected ways. That's the prerogative of the artist.

Thankfully there is an almost unlimited amount of recorded music available to us, and I would guess that 95% of it is not autotuned, so it seems a little mean-spirited to complain about it.
 
Thankfully there is an almost unlimited amount of recorded music available to us, and I would guess that 95% of it is not autotuned, so it seems a little mean-spirited to complain about it.
And in my memory, pop music has always been best avoided, with some notable exceptions.
 
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