Evaluation

Critical analysis:

My project is was to make 3 track with Neo-soul hip hop and RnB elements, this fits into the music industry because, most of the music today especially in hip hop, they use a lot of jazzy complicated chords and good sounding RnB vocals. a good example of this is j Cole and Kendrick and the song they make.With my work compared with bigger artists, I feel like I've still got a lot to learn before I reach where they are. For example, some gospel artists know most complicated chords of by heart and can identify chords that have been used in any song which I would like to be at and the only way for that is practice. Where I am struggling at is learning new neo-soul chords and putting them into my work. I also feel like I'm struggling in also my vocals and the deliverance for my voice which in time will get better by practising. I would also change the vocals in my RnB track and put more harmonics in my work instead. What I would do differently is make my tracks with all three elements into one track for my time to mix it.

Research:

My research at first was based on Neo-soul chords, hip-hop drum patterns and RnB vocals. What developed with my vocals was my breathing and vocal techniques. this developed cause I wanted to know how to breathe correctly when singing and how to use vibrato in my song. What else developed was researching mixing and different plugins on logic x. I researched this so I know more about mixing for my track and what the role the compression has. My method of research was mostly online and some from asking teachers for their help and insight towards what I was researching. theses research where useful for me cause it help close the gap in things I didn't know from the start for my project. What I've learnt from my research I have embedded them into my work. for example, my Neo-soul track has complex minor 7 chords which I research online and from my teachers. For my area of work, I feel as if I did enough research for my project. For my research, I should of lookup on different mics and micing techniques. I didn't think about that at the start because I didn't think I was going to use live elements in my tracks.While researching I've learnt about different vocals techniques and breathing when singing or recording vocals. also, I've learnt about neo-soul chords and how to play them in my track.

Technical/Practical skills:

My research helped in my practical work by providing the information need for each area in my research.An example of this is with my Neo-soul with chords.before researching, I had no clue about the chords and how they are played. the skills that I've developed over the project was being able to come up with complicated chords. another skill I've also learnt in doing able to mix my work to get a good balance of sound. Over the project, my skills I've got already has expanded more than before I started to project but I still need to learn a lot more in other areas such as mixing/mastering, complicated chords and vocals. I develop the skill I've got from the project but researching and putting into practice what I've learned from what I've read.

Presenting My Work:

For the presenting part of the work, I decided to put my work on SoundCloud.I choose to present my work like this because, In the music industry, hip-hop artists or producers would put their music online for their audience. Since I was doing a hip-hop related project I thought that would be the best way to put out my music for my audience. The method I choose for my project didn't reach my audience because I don't have enough audience on SoundCloud.

Project Management:

For Managing each part of my work I successfully completed all that was intended for my project.The biggest challenge I faced was learning and coming up with chords for my Neo-soul track. nothing made me divert from my project entirely but, I did branch out from my original and had to research those to help with my project. For most of my work I fount it hard to come up with melodies. so I got some help with a classmate of mine and he suggested some things I could try. With access time, I use it for mixing and recording vocals. I also went outside the college, such as Roundhouse, to mix when I'm not in college. With my project, I have completed everything that I planned for my project.    

Problem-solving:

The problem I faced during the project was learning how to play Neo-soul chords but sought out help from one of my teachers who help me understand it better. a technical problem I had was mixing and using compression or any other plugins besides reverb into my work. How I solved this is by experimenting with them and the effects it doses too. I also asked for help from teachers if I couldn't understand what they actually do in my work. since the start of the project the techniques I had was good hearing which helps with my mixing. The Ides a had at the start of the project was to perform at the gig but then diverted to putting it on Soundcloud due to the leak of time and preparation.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, i gain a lot of skills from my research and from talking to my teachers and also experience with my practical work that went hand and hand with my research which will help me in the future to become a better musician. Even though I completed my work I feel as if I could have done better in my work and improve on things that seem like it needs to be. For example, I could have come up with a better RnB track with more vocals in the track and also mix it too. I also could have added more instruments and idea into my Neo-soul track but, due to poor time management, I couldn't do that. though I didn't make my track the way I saw it at the start when writing up the proposal, I am happy with what I've learnt and will help me in my music in the future.