Backing Tracks Adding clicks to a backing track - useful trick

[mizmar]

So that was interesting.

I had this short piece, fine with the metronome but kept slipping out of sync with the backing track - just piano, with some syncopation.

In "desperation" I loaded the track into Audacity, generated a click track with the right tempo, aligned it with the count-in - and bingo! I could hear just what was going on... And knew how to properly listen to the backing sans click.

another useful learning / improving tool.

 

[rhysonsax]

Good idea.

And you don't have to have 4 clicks to a bar (measure) if the tune is in 4/4. You could set the click on beats 1 & 3 or just beat 1.

If you have a "demonstration" recording of the same song you can import both the demo and the backing track into the same Audacity file and pan one over to the left and the other to the right.

Rhys

PS Obviously it is very easy to generate a click track if the tempo is fixed throughout the backing track. Quite often, with human musicians, the tempo can change significantly during a track.

 

[mizmar]

so, as my next trick, I generated 4 mp3 files. All 100bmp, 4/4
1 bar click, 1 bar silent
1 bar click, 2 bars silent
1 bar click, 3 bars silent
1 bar click, 4 bars silent

Drop them into Music Speed Changer, set loop, set percent speed change so; 80% = 80bmp, 110% = 110bmp etc. (slower = harder)
... and we have a happy-clappy-beet-keeping-trainer!

new yearz resolution, stop the drift.

Edit:
Annoyingly, the loop hiccups a fraction, so I redid the track to be tune somewhat longer.