I was playing with Garage Band on the iPad, testing the different virtual instruments and their potentials. Listening to several diverse groovy beats from the mid century Jazz and Motown era, I realized the bass line was important to set the tone of the tune, the beat of the song, the core of the story the melody would tell. Because of that, the first instrument to play was the bass. I was tapping on the iPad screen on the virtual strings, practically the same way you would tap your numerical password to unlock your phone, visualising a pattern or a figure as my finger moved, and I accidentally came across the repetition you hear on the above recording. I played around a bit with the tempo of each note, but decided it was simple and melodic enough for what I wanted.
I went on to put some drum beats along with the bass line. There are three drum tracks. One just for the beginning, minimal. Only a high hat, or a pandero. The second adds a little more drum sticks and ends with a cymbal. Then the music picks up and I the full drum helps give the tune its swing.
I then went to add organ keyboards. I would usually choose the virtual piano, but for the kind of music I was doing, the synthetic sound of the organ was better, like a church organ from space. I just had to find the right chords to play along the bass line, and it was done.
The end of this tune needed a wave of sound. One that would go up and down. The last note, being carried a while longer, like an epic end of a symphony. A chose a set of strings and just just played one chord, pressing my finger on the screen of the iPad to keep the note alive as the rest of the instruments stopped. This was the last thing I added to the song, just to make it fit the opening video of my “Moon Day” Live broadcasts. The strings come to give an extra boost when the title appears, and it fades away as the title fades to white.
You can check the song again with the video here.
What about the comics?
This time around, I wanted to talk about the making of that small tune. Sometimes, your creative self bleeds outside of your regular work. I don’t assume to be a music expect, on the contrary, but the soundtrack of our lives is real, in music and in a great variety of sounds, from the chaotic sounds of the big city to the sounds of the birds and the dogs and the cats and even the bunnies, and this soundtrack inspire us even when everything is silent.
Silent moments only help us listen to the soundtrack that plays inside our minds.
What kind of music do you hear inside your head?
Does it inspire you?
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I work mostly in silence at the studio, but I’m always listening.
Be safe. Be kind. Be curious
Pa-ZOW!
Fábio Moon
Moon Base, São Paulo
October 11th, 2021
Engage