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First Day: Mastering 101

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Effects, Synth & Mixing Primer

Date: April 7, 2024
Author: Beat Kitchen
Category: Mixing

Welcome to your first day of mastering 101 at Beat Kitchen and I want you to look at the person on your left and look at the person on your right. Because two of those people are probably not hitting their mixing targets.

Tags: mixing

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Recent Resident Gyms
- OFFICE HOURS: We explored how to build emotional tension in songwriting without relying on additional chords, lyrics, or volume, covering the full range of musical tools available — melody, rhythm, arrangement, orchestration, and performance. We also dug into synthesis options beyond subtractive synthesis, including wavetable and FM, and spent time on meter and feel, particularly triple and compound meters like 6/8 and how changing meter can completely transform a piece. The session was wide-ranging and idea-focused, drawing on examples from Depeche Mode, Lana Del Rey, Eminem, and "Fly Me to the Moon."
- OFFICE HOURS: We talked about the "Abbey Road Reverb Trick", which is basically cutting the lows and highs of a reverb send or return. You can additionally boost or cut additional frequencies to create space in the mix, or highlight something you want to in the mix. We looked at examples from a singer/songwriter project, and talked about how to approach the philosophy rather than using the same numbers in the EQ each time.
- OFFICE HOURS: -mixing notes on their song -micro timing in mixing -difference between mixing and production -reference tracks -piano sounds, MIDI vs real -acoustics in a home studio -recording studios credibility vs engineer's experience
- EAR-TRAINING-GYM: An ear training session built around a deceptively simple but challenging exercise: generating random chord progressions and attempting to conceptualize how they sound — including identifying a likely key — before playing them. Using an online chord generator tool (shared via the Discord chat), the session explored multiple progressions, each presenting its own puzzle around key identification and harmonic context.
- OFFICE HOURS: Drum tips
- EAR-TRAINING-GYM: We listened and studied pitch and the use of auto tune vs natural performances
- OFFICE HOURS: Helped Nadine troubleshoot her live synth sync issues, midi concepts, and music production
- OFFICE HOURS: We discussed some of Varun's work in progress, and listened to his songs, as well as discussed arrangement choices, lyrics. Alee mentioned mastering and we briefly discussed mastering and the video that will go with her song she's been working on.
- PRODUCTION-GYM: We talked about Smashing Pumpkins 1993 track, Cherub Rock. Analysis of mix, arrangement, production choices, and contextual production process to current production methods. We also discussed the importance and impact of pre-production on this track and on students own projects and processes.
Learn more about Residency
Upcoming Resident Events
- Office Hours: Nathan
  Mar. 01, 1pm (PT) | 4pm (ET) | 9pm (UK)
- Office Hours: Nathan
  Mar. 01, 5pm (PT) | 8pm (ET) | 1am (UK)
- Weekly Beat Challenge: Nathan
  Mar. 02, 7am (PT) | 10am (ET) | 3pm (UK)
- Office Hours: Nathan
  Mar. 02, 9am (PT) | 12pm (ET) | 5pm (UK)
- Music Theory Gym - Special!: Nathan
  Mar. 02, 6pm (PT) | 9pm (ET) | 2am (UK)
- Instrument Gym: Jon Mattox
  Mar. 02, 9pm (PT) | 12am (ET) | 5am (UK)
Learn more about Residency
Upcoming Courses
- Mar 2, 2026 DAW Core Skills
- Apr 02, 2026 Comprehensive Program
- Apr 2, 2026 DAW Core Skills
- Apr 18, 2026 Harmony 1-Day Intensive
- Apr 19, 2026 Musician Basics Elective
- Apr 22, 2026 Effects, Synth, & Mixing Primer
- May 7, 2026 Hardware & Recording Primer
- May 11, 2026 Vocal Kitchen
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First Day: Mastering 101

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