Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Oxymorons "R" Us
Forum rules
Please see forum announcement for description and rules!
Post Reply
Mikethebook
Posts: 1803
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 3:04 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Location: Scotland

Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by Mikethebook »

Having discovered a lovely air on a CD with a wonderful backing, I would like to learn to play the piece and then be able to play it against a version of the track without the original whistle. I've tried using Audacity and the technique for removing a vocal to create a "karaoke" track but it doesn't seem to work and remove the whistle. Anyone gone down this road and successfully created their own backing track from an original tune?
highland-piper
Posts: 913
Joined: Tue Nov 24, 2009 1:11 pm
antispam: No

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by highland-piper »

If the backing track is mainly lower pitch stuff you could make a shelf filter in Audacity and cut off everything above the fundamental of the lowest note the whistle plays.
Mikethebook
Posts: 1803
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 3:04 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Location: Scotland

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by Mikethebook »

Thanks. Sounds good. Can you give me more information on how to do that? I'm not that familiar with Audacity.
highland-piper
Posts: 913
Joined: Tue Nov 24, 2009 1:11 pm
antispam: No

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by highland-piper »

on the "effects" menu. equilization.

You just draw a curve by clicking and dragging.

You could experiment, or maybe someone knows the answer, but I'm guessing a d whistle is playing mainly above 550 hz (i.e., the d above middle C). Or is it an octave above that -- 1100?
cboody
Posts: 676
Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2009 10:45 pm
antispam: No

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by cboody »

1100
Mikethebook
Posts: 1803
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 3:04 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Location: Scotland

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by Mikethebook »

Thanks for the tips. I'll give it a try but am realising the problem with this. The particular track I like has a Low F whistle in it so removing it would mean substantially cutting across the backing instruments. But I should find another track that uses a high D whistle and try it with that.
User avatar
MTGuru
Posts: 18663
Joined: Sat Sep 30, 2006 12:45 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Location: San Diego, CA

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by MTGuru »

If it's a stereo recording, you can also try phase-inverting one of the channels then mixing both channels down to mono. Works best if the lead is centered and there's good L/R separation of the rest, otherwise much of the rest may also disappear. But yes, I've had good (or at least usable) results with some recordings.
Vivat diabolus in musica! MTGuru's (old) GG Clips / Blackbird Clips

Joel Barish: Is there any risk of brain damage?
Dr. Mierzwiak: Well, technically speaking, the procedure is brain damage.
Mikethebook
Posts: 1803
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 3:04 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 8
Tell us something.: May 2022, I'm a second-time beginner to the whistle and low whistle after a three-year gap due to a chest injury brought to an end twelve years of playing. I've started on a high whistle and much is coming back quickly but it will be a while before I can manage a Low D again where my interest really lies. I chiefly love slow airs rather than dance tunes and am a fan of the likes of Davy Spillane, Eoin Duignan, Fred Morrison and Paddy Keenan.
Location: Scotland

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by Mikethebook »

Thanks MTGuru. That's the initial route I tried and described as "karaoke" when I started the thread. It wasn't particularly successful!!
Tunborough
Posts: 1419
Joined: Sun Dec 05, 2010 2:59 pm
antispam: No
Please enter the next number in sequence: 10
Location: Southwestern Ontario

Re: Creating a Minus Track on Mac

Post by Tunborough »

cboody wrote:1100
For the record, a concert-pitch, high D whistle starts at 587 Hz.
Post Reply