you know how when cutting a trailer or a commercial or really anything, that sometimes you need to chop up a song in order to make it fit? Well, I always struggle through this. How do you make this sound natural? A lot of times you're cutting into a song during a beat, and as much as you try to bring it in during a silent moment, a lot of times it can sound fake (or forced). Is there a system for this? A set of instructions to follow? Any in-depth discussion in how sound editors approach this would be much appreciated. Thanks.
getting that trailer song to jussssst fit
- Thread starter c.g._eads
- Start date
timapter
Veteran
read jay roses book "audio post production for digital video".
theres a whole chapter with techniques for music edits.
it boils down to 4 things, really:
try and edit on the beats - tap your finger on each beat and cut as close to them as possible.
if the beat has vocals, or something that makes that technique not work, then cut on the beat anyway, and "slip" your cuts forwards or backwards until you get around whatever made on the beat cutting not work.
use subtle speed altering to make the clip fit perfectly.
lastly, to smooth edits, try some reverb with a long-ish decay (this obviously depends on your content) to smooth things over. dont use it the whole time, just bring it in as you approach the join or tail to help you out if u need it...
theres a whole chapter with techniques for music edits.
it boils down to 4 things, really:
try and edit on the beats - tap your finger on each beat and cut as close to them as possible.
if the beat has vocals, or something that makes that technique not work, then cut on the beat anyway, and "slip" your cuts forwards or backwards until you get around whatever made on the beat cutting not work.
use subtle speed altering to make the clip fit perfectly.
lastly, to smooth edits, try some reverb with a long-ish decay (this obviously depends on your content) to smooth things over. dont use it the whole time, just bring it in as you approach the join or tail to help you out if u need it...
ChrisHurn
Well-known member
c.g._eads,
Think of it as adding 'space'.
Basically, you can add reverb which attempts to copy that of a recording environment. So, for example, adding 'concert hall' reverb will make your sound or music sound like it was recorded in a concert hall.
Most music has reverb added, it sounds very dry otherwise (though this depends on how it was recorded). Sometimes you want to make it sound even bigger - adding more space, will make a thicker sound, and give an echo-ish effect.
Sound & music benifit a lot from Reverb - but only when used correctly. For example, a piece of music with too much reverb will sound weird, too little and it will sound very empty, close, and dry...reverb can make such a difference to everything.
Now I am no editor, but am a composer - don't try and go for a mechanical method to editing your trailer. Edit to the music - but don't feel cuts always have to be on the beat all the time, because that's not always the best thing to do. Show the trailer to people and see if they notice the music too much - generally when people don't actually "notice" the music, the composer/sound designer/etc. has done a good job. Watch other trailers and see how they do it. You'll notice that if you seperate the music from the visuals it can sound cut up and strange, yet it goes so well with the trailer.
I know what you mean about there being a silent moment, then music just comes in and it seems forced. You want to make sure that the music comes in at the right time exactly, especially if it hits hard. If it lines up with the visual and works WITH it, then it's going to sound good. Sometimes no matter how much you want a particular track to work, it's just not going to. At times it's best to bring music in REALLY subtly before you go right into it - even if you can barely hear it. It just helps connect everything a little more. Work the sound & music together, that's really important in trailers.
Hope that helps you a little.
-Chris
Think of it as adding 'space'.
Basically, you can add reverb which attempts to copy that of a recording environment. So, for example, adding 'concert hall' reverb will make your sound or music sound like it was recorded in a concert hall.
Most music has reverb added, it sounds very dry otherwise (though this depends on how it was recorded). Sometimes you want to make it sound even bigger - adding more space, will make a thicker sound, and give an echo-ish effect.
Sound & music benifit a lot from Reverb - but only when used correctly. For example, a piece of music with too much reverb will sound weird, too little and it will sound very empty, close, and dry...reverb can make such a difference to everything.
Now I am no editor, but am a composer - don't try and go for a mechanical method to editing your trailer. Edit to the music - but don't feel cuts always have to be on the beat all the time, because that's not always the best thing to do. Show the trailer to people and see if they notice the music too much - generally when people don't actually "notice" the music, the composer/sound designer/etc. has done a good job. Watch other trailers and see how they do it. You'll notice that if you seperate the music from the visuals it can sound cut up and strange, yet it goes so well with the trailer.
I know what you mean about there being a silent moment, then music just comes in and it seems forced. You want to make sure that the music comes in at the right time exactly, especially if it hits hard. If it lines up with the visual and works WITH it, then it's going to sound good. Sometimes no matter how much you want a particular track to work, it's just not going to. At times it's best to bring music in REALLY subtly before you go right into it - even if you can barely hear it. It just helps connect everything a little more. Work the sound & music together, that's really important in trailers.
Hope that helps you a little.
-Chris
Last edited:
timapter
Veteran
i was speaking purely from a sound point of view - the points i gave will help you cut music into more managable arrangements to edit with. whether to edit on beats or not is a purely artistic thing. im saying to cut up music and make it shorter or longer, it REALLY HELPS to cut THE MUSIC on the beat, because it makes your sound cuts harder to hear.