MIXING #1: WHAT IS IT?

I’m sure you’ve heard that at some point during the music production process, a song needs mixing to enhance the sound. But what on earth is mixing anyway? In this article we will briefly touch on a few things concerning what mixing actually is. Due to the fact that a great portion of the information in this blog will be centered on the home studio and mixing music, I will be mainly addressing those who are seeking to improve the quality of their mixes. This will also help you artists out there to better understand some of the basic understanding that your audio engineer should have concerning their job! However, everybody else is still welcome! Now let’s jump on into it!

So, what is mixing? Ready here’s the official Z’LEA Traxx definition:

Mixing: is a series of informed decisions that balance the sonic relationships between individual instruments/sounds embodied in a song.

To expound on this meaning, mixing is basically the art of making decisions in regards to blending individual tracks of a song into wonderful living, breathing, moving music. I’m getting excited now! Since we are mixing music, I would like to bring another interesting definition to your attention that I found in The American Heritage dictionary. One particular way it defined music really changed my understanding on what mixing is for the better. Ready? Here we go:

Music: the art of arranging sounds in time to produce a composition that elicits an aesthetic response in a listener.

Isn’t it great! So in other words we are handling audio material that has been arranged to trigger response. Music does just that! Music has the power to change a mood, heal a heart, excite, show love, warn, cast out demons or let them in, it can be used to cause a war or peace, to control the mind, and way more! Music moves and causes reaction because it is more spiritual than we understand. It is alive you know. Music is just as alive as the people performing the music even if they’re all dead! Right, so now comparing these two definitions, what do you gather would be your job if you are a mix engineer? Your job would be to make sure that at all times you are working toward the purpose and intent of the song. You must connect with the mood, motive(s), and flow of the song as it progresses in order to properly deduce what it needs if anything at all! If so, what does it need? In addition to your being in tune with the music, there are principles and techniques that you will need to gain understanding of in order to accomplish the job. Likewise, there are some tools you will need to become well acquainted with. Among basic tools for mixing are; volume, equalizers, compressors, gates, limiters, delays, and reverbs. All these are essentially used to obtain and maintain balance among all the tracks while enhancing the tone, clarity, and depth of the “big picture” for the song. The way you treat each track and the overall song with these tools will also have a critical impact on how the music affects the listeners. However, this masterpiece will not be crafted by the tools themselves, but by the ability of the mixer to make informed decisions that work in favor of the song. Yes, every single decision made in a mix should be for a reason. I’ll repeat….. EVERY SINGLE DECISION MADE IN A MIX SHOULD BE FOR A REASON! When I first began, man I was destroying songs while over working my tools for no reason! It was horrible. I was sucking the life out of the music and destroying all its dynamics, putting holes all up in it (you’ll learn that later lol). I basically would take a song and butcher it till finally, I just shot it dead! Lol for real!!!!….Then I began to take my craft much more seriously and I was literally surprised at how far God brought me by just dedicating myself to learning the right things while asking for His help! Do this from the jump and in a fraction of the time it took me, you’ll learn steps ahead where I was! By the way, you never really do stop learning. Well, at least you shouldn't. I still am and as a result all my skills are constantly being refined. So, the job is to enhance the song in a way that will help it not hurt or hinder it! That song has got to accomplish its purpose when it hits the listener’s ears and as a mixer you will play a vital role in bringing that to pass. What is that purpose? Remember, to cause reaction. Music moves, either for the better or the worse!

Someone may still ask,” I mean….But….Does it like really take all that just to get my music sounding professional….Is it really like…..that important?...Like……Why?” BECAUSE! Mixing is highly beneficial in that when it’s done well it adds clarity, control, dynamics, energy, and like I said earlier life. Also, if you are serious about mixing and want opportunities then you have to offer high quality! If you are a serious artist and want to post music online, submit music for licensing opportunities, GET RADIO PLAY, or sell your music seriously, then again you need to offer high quality! Do your best, you don’t necessarily have to be the best, but the quality needs to at least meet certain standards so that it can be enjoyed by as many people as possible. Your music should be able to hold its own next to commercial songs. Isn’t that what we all want? Well mixing is ONE of the essential processes that will definitely aid you in reaching that accomplishment! If you are literally just beginning your mixing journey, don’t be disheartened when you don’t get the results you want. As I will repeat, it takes time for your ears to hear and the body to adapt to feeling the intricacies of the music consciously. So, if it’s going to be what you do, then learn it and learn it to the very best of your ability! You can do it! All things take time. At first it and for a while it will not be easy but as long as you don’t give up, in time, you can produce great music!

Now that we have examined what mixing is and some of why it is important, it is time to invest time and the energy into learning the right things so that we can get better. The "HOW" you approach a mix is key to quality time efficient work! I advise you not to stop with this article, study more, join mailing lists, google mixing, read, learn, and practice whenever you can! A lot of work goes into learning to become skillful at ANYTHING, and YOU CAN do it! I hope that this helped you in some way to understand what mixing really is! Please if you haven’t already, join the mailing list on The Z Blog page or the home page. In this blog we will be walking through the mixing process from start to finish so be sure to stay with us! Christian/Gospel artists need a mix for a project? Contact me right here at ZLEA Traxx.com…..Thank you so much for your time! God Bless You All!