Eric Arena demonstrates to U of H students in the Hartt School's Studio B.
In the evening on November 12, 2009, Hartford AES welcomed Hartt School of Music graduate Eric Arena to the Hartt School's Studio B. Arena, producer and engineer at Zing studios in Westfield, MA, shared his expertise in his presentation "Enhancing Your Drum Sounds WIth Samples". Eric offered a step-by-step Pro Tools tutorial, using beat detection, quantization, and Sound Replacer to augment and replace existing drum sounds. Reminding us that no one formula will work for every project and that different genres and artists call for various levels of post-production, Arena demonstrated from rock and metal sessions. Although modern technology allows us to manipulate the sound and timing of a performance, he stressed the importance of good recording practice. The in-depth seminar covered even the finest details - how to maintain dynamics, listen for errors, check phase, and carry out good practices such as consolidating edited tracks to zero.
Arena emphasized the importance of enhancing sounds with samples in modern production, suggesting, "Knowing how to do this can definitely get you an entry-level position."
