For amateur or professional work with music, we may need to slow down the speed of some musical composition. This may be necessary in connection with the improvement of the aural characteristics of the track, normalization of the sound, or various purposes of the audio editing that the user performs. To perform these tasks, there is no need to download any professional editor to your PC. It will be enough to use the functionality of network services that work online and completely free. In this article, I will list services for slowing down a song online, and also explain how to use their optional.
In most cases, playback speed reduction services are free and have a simplified interface, allowing you to slow down a track online in just a couple of clicks. The whole process of loading and processing a track takes about a minute, allowing you to get a file of the selected format (usually mp3) with the desired playback speed.
Working with such sites is usually based on a standard cliché. The user goes to the site, uploads a music file to it, is determined with the desired speed of the composition and other parameters. Then the process of processing the file starts (usually lasts a couple of seconds), after which the result is loaded onto the PC.
Russian-language sites are mostly free. English-language counterparts are approximately equally divided into paid and free alternatives.
Let's take a closer look at the list of network services that allow you to slow down the speed of the necessary music online.
Audiotrimmer.com - tool to change the speed of an audio file
This site hosts various audio modification tools, including an mp3 converter, audio reverser, audio file tempo changer, and audio trimmer. There is also a tool we need to slow down a song online, allowing you to slow down the speed of the composition in a few clicks. The maximum volume of audio files is limited to 20 megabytes, most popular formats are supported (mp3, flac, wav, m4a, m4r, etc.).
Vocalremover.ru - a Russian-language resource for slowing down music
This resource has a fairly extensive functionality, including karaoke, a voice recorder, vocal trimming, a guitar tuner and other usefulness. Hosted on the site Vocalremover.ru and a tool that allows you to slow down the speed of an audio composition online in the key we need.
Ruminus.ru - adjusting the tempo and tone of the melody
This site contains a huge database of backing tracks online, available in good quality and completely free. In addition, Ruminus.ru has several service tools that allow you to remove vocals from a song and change the tempo and key of the selected composition.
Conversion-tool.com - English language music conversion tool
Among the English-language alternatives that allow you to slow down the composition, conversion-tool.com has good reviews. The main purpose of the latter is the conversion of various types of files, including the conversion of documents, HTML files and other analogues. There is also a toolkit on this site for slowing down the speed of audio compositions, which we will use.
29a.ch - graphical toolkit for changing speed online
Created by Jonas Wagner, the English site 29a.ch looks like a solid music player, with the ability to change the characteristics of the selected audio composition (loop, change speed and tone). The service has a convenient free graphical interface, and can be recommended to anyone who wants to change the speed of music online.
It is very often necessary to change the key of a music track recorded as a "minus", which, for example, was downloaded from the Internet. This may have to do with arranging the composition in such a way that it is easier to sing the vocal part when the key is too low or high in the original. Actions with the tempo (most often with its slowdown) can be associated with the process when the same backing track is still at the stage of creation, and the performer just needs to play some kind of high-speed instrumental part. But how to perform such actions using modern computer tools for this? This and much more will be discussed further.
How to change the tempo and key of a music track: options
To begin with, it is proposed to see what general actions can be taken. There are not so many options. In most cases, it is necessary to change either the tempo of the soundtrack, or the key, or both. If you have a file with instrumental parts spread out over tracks, it may be necessary to change the key only for a certain group of instruments, excluding drums, for which in most cases this is completely unnecessary. In this regard, we will consider some options for the simplest actions using various programs. Immediately it should be noted that special attention should be paid to the file format in which the original soundtrack is recorded.
How to change the key of the backing track: the simplest case
If we consider the simplest situation, when the original file is recorded in MIDI format, actions to change the tempo and key can be performed not only using computer programs in the form of MIDI sequencers or editors that support working with the corresponding files, but even on ordinary hardware. synthesizers.
For the average user, Yamaha PSR series instruments or equivalents are best suited. It is enough to write a MIDI file to removable media, open it in the instrument's interface and perform a tempo and key shift. Actually, exactly the same actions are performed in programs for working with MIDI. But after all, such a copy does not give the sound of the original track, and in most cases the tracks are presented in MP3 or more modern format - FLAC. How to change key or tempo in this case?
Using the FL Studio Music Sequencer on a Single File
Simply enough, the necessary operations can be performed in the popular FL Studio sequencer. To begin with, let's consider the procedure when you have a soundtrack in the form of a single audio file. First, the original file must be loaded onto the selected track, and then set in the step sequencer to the first beat, which corresponds to the note C5. Immediately note that setting the base note for audio higher or lower will automatically cause the key to shift along with the tempo, which is very inconvenient.
In this case, it is better to set a different tempo separately (the program will prompt you to resample). As for exactly how to change the key of the minus, for this it is better to use not a step sequencer or setting the base note of the anchor, but a fader for changing the overall pitch (pitch).
However, the disadvantage is that the rate of change will only be shown as a percentage.
Actions with files in audio editors
Now let's see how to change key or tempo in audio editors. Again, we proceed from the fact that we have a single phonogram file. To perform these actions, either the Pitch Bender (change the pitch) or Stretch (change the tempo) function is used.
If we talk about how to change the key of the track, after calling the appropriate tool, first set the empty value (Flat), and then select the level using semitones (Semi-tones). The start and end levels for the entire track must match. Set the quality to Excellent.
To change the tempo, use the “stretch”, but don’t get carried away too much, since you can change this parameter, however, like the key, up to a certain limit.
Actions with track-by-track key and tempo changes
However, it is most convenient to work with phonograms, which are not complete ready-made files, but sets intended, for example, for independent mixing (there are a lot of them on the Internet).
In this case, you can change the key in the same audio editors and with the same tools, but the advantage of such actions is, as already mentioned, that the drum part can be left unchanged (so that the drums do not sound unnatural after making changes in pitch). At the same time, you can change the volume of each fragment in relation to the original, as well as add your own effects.
Online Services
Finally, if you do not have sufficient knowledge to work with the above programs, you can turn to specialized online resources where you will need to upload your audio file, set the final value for key and tempo, wait for the material to be processed and download the resulting file to your computer . The option, frankly, is not the best, although not costly in terms of time and money. It is much better to use the proposed methods, and at the same time to study the basic operations in the process of processing files, so to speak, by the “scientific poke method”. It is possible that in the future such skills will come in handy.
Conclusion
Finally, it remains to add that in the simplest cases, when a special sound quality of the final material is not required, you can also use various primitive utilities for making quick changes (for example, Audio Speed Changer). But in any case, you need to clearly understand that it is impossible to change the parameters of pitch and tempo within too wide limits, since such actions will only lead to the fact that the entire phonogram will sound absolutely unnatural. In the best case, as it is believed, there will be no noticeable changes, if you do not exceed the change in tonality by 1.5-2 tones up / down and no more. Beyond this threshold, the downward changes become too pronounced.
What is tonality in music, learning to identify and change the tonality
Music theory includes a huge amount of diverse terminology. Tonality is a fundamental professional term. On this page you can find out what key is, how to determine it, what varieties there are, as well as interesting facts, exercises, and a way to change the key in a backing track.
Basic moments
Imagine you decide to play a piece of music. You found the notes, and when parsing the musical text, you noticed that after the key there are sharps or flats. We need to figure out what they mean. Key signs are accidental signs that persist throughout the performance of a musical composition. According to the rules, they are set after the key, but before the size (See Figure No. 1), and are duplicated on each subsequent line. Key signs are necessary not only to avoid writing them down constantly near the notes, which takes a lot of time, but also so that the musician can determine the key in which the work is written.
Figure #1
The piano, like many other instruments, is tempered. In this system, the units of calculation can be taken as a tone and a semitone. Thanks to the division into these units, from each sound on the keyboard, it is possible to form a key, either major or minor. This is how the modal formulas of major and minor were invented (See Figure 2).
Figure #2
It is according to these scale formulas that one can build a tonality from any sound, either in major or in minor. Sequential reproduction of notes according to these formulas is called a scale. Many musicians play scales in order to quickly navigate the keys and key signs with them.
The tonality consists of two components: the name of the sound (for example, to) and the modal inclination (major or minor). To build a scale, you need to select one of the sounds on the keyboard and play from it according to the formula, either major or minor.
Strengthening exercises
- Try to play the major scale from the "D" sound. Use the ratio of tones and semitones when playing. Check for correctness.
- Try playing the minor scale from the "mi" sound. It is necessary to play according to the proposed formula.
- Try playing scales from different sounds in different moods. Slowly at first, then faster.
Varieties
Some keys may have a certain relationship with each other. Then they can be included in the following classifications:
- parallel tones. A feature is the same number of key signs, but a different modal inclination. In fact, the set of sounds is absolutely identical, the difference lies only in the sound of the tonic. For example, the keys C major and A minor are parallel, they have the same number of key signs, but different modal inclination and tonic sound. There is a parallel-variable mode, which is characterized by the fact that there are two parallel keys in the work, and they constantly change the mode, then to major, then to minor. This mode is typical for Russian folk music.
- The eponymous have a common tonic sound, but at the same time a different modal inclination and key signs. Example: D major (2 keys), D minor (1 key).
- One-terts have a common third (that is, the third sound in a triad), they are no longer united by either the tonic, or key signs, or mode. Usually, the one-tertz minor is located a small second or a semitone higher than the major. Accordingly, the one-tertz major in relation to the minor is located lower by a small second or a semitone. An example is the keys of C major and C-sharp minor, in the triads of these chords the sound “mi” coincides.
Strengthening exercises
Determine how the two tones relate to each other. Put the appropriate number next to the example:
- Parallel
- namesake
- Single Tertsovye
Questions:
- B major and h minor
- A major and a minor
- G-dur and e-moll
Check your own knowledge.
Answers: 3, 2, 1.
Interesting Facts
- As a musical term, it originated in the early 19th century. It was introduced by Alexander Etienne Choron in his own writings.
- There is a "color" hearing, which is characterized by the fact that a person associates a certain tonality with a specific color. The recipients of this gift were Rimsky-Korsakov And Scriabin.
- In contemporary art, there is atonal music that does not take the principles of tonal stability as its basis.
- English terminology uses the following designation for parallel keys - relative keys. In a literal translation, these are “related” or “related”. The same names are designated as parallel keys, which can be perceived as parallel. Often, when translating specific literature, translators make an error in this matter.
- The symbolism of classical music has assigned a certain meaning to some keys. So Des-dur is true love, B-dur defines beautiful men, heroes, and e-moll is sorrow.
Circle of fifths
The circle of fifths is a special schematically presented information in which all keys are located at a distance of a perfect fifth clockwise, and a perfect fourth counterclockwise.
Related keys
There is such a thing as tonal relationship. The greater the difference in signs, the further the relationship. Depending on the systems, 3 or 4 degrees are distinguished. Consider the most popular system, which divides keys into 3 degrees of relationship.
|
Relation degree |
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Group |
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Sign difference |
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What keys |
parallel |
S, D and their parallels |
S Harm for Major |
Keys on b.2 ↓ and their parallels |
Major Major– m2, m3, b3 ↓ and Minor ss harm. - on b2↓ and the minor of the same name |
Minor Minor– m2, m3, b3 ↓ and Major DD to b2 and major of the same name |
For major uv1, uv2, uv4 and uv5, for minor the same intervals ↓. |
Tritonante and its parallel |
First group divided into 3 categories:
- This is a parallel tone. The difference in signs is 0. These keys combine six common chords. Example: F major and D minor.
- 4 tones. Between the main and final tonality, the difference is one sign. These are the keys of the subdominant and dominant, as well as parallel to S and D. An example, for the key of G major: S - C major, parallel S - A minor, D - D major, parallel D - B minor.
- Considered only for major keys. A difference of 4 signs is a harmonic subdominant. An example for C-dur - the harmonic subdominant - is F minor.
Second group kinship is divided into 2 subgroups:
- 4 tones. The difference is two key signs. It is easy to find these keys from the main one; they are located a large second above and below + the parallels found. Example: the main key is A major. Above and below by a major second or tone of key: B minor and G major. Parallels for the keys found: these are D major and E minor.
- Difference of signs from three to five. Finding the key will depend on whether the key is major or minor.
- Dur: 6 major and 2 minor: above and below by m2, m3 and b3; ss is a harmonic, located b2 lower, as well as a minor of the same name. Example for G-dur: As-dur, B-dur, H-dur, Fis-dur, E-dur, Es-dur and f-moll and g-moll.
- Moll: 6 minor and 2 major: for a minor second, minor third and b3 above and below; DD is a major second higher and the major of the same name.
Third group is divided into 2 groups:
- 3 keys that do not have a single common chord, the difference is 3-5 signs in the opposite direction. For a major, it is necessary to find the minors higher by the following intervals, and for the minor, the majors at SW.1, SW.4 and SW.5 are lower.
- Tritonanta and its parallel. There is a tritone from the original tonic, for C-dur - Fis-dur.
Depending on the degree in harmony, there are many ways of modulation.
Transposing chords- This is a handy tool for vocalists who cannot pull out certain notes in a piece. You simply lower or raise the chords to a different key while maintaining their shape and the melodic sound of the song. This is quite convenient for those who do not have a capo with them or simply cannot sing in the desired key. This article is devoted to how to transpose chords.
Why transpose chords?
To change the key of the chords to a more comfortable one for vocals
If you can't play a piece, whether it's higher or lower than your range, then it's much easier not to drag the notes, but to transpose it into a different key to make it much more comfortable to sing. To do this, however, you will need to either master the barre technique, or, which is much easier, get yourself .
Songs have barre chords, but you only know how to play open chords
This is a more special case, and it does not always work. However, if the song is played, for example, while holding barre chord sequences, then you can try to transfer them to open forms - although it will often be much easier to use a capo.
The song is sung in a different key
This often happens if the song was selected by a non-experienced musician from memory, and not by ear. Then it may be melodically correct, but the chords used in it are different. In this case, the transposition skill will definitely help you understand what is wrong in the selected melody.
Four ways to transpose chords
Below are four ways to transpose chords. These are the simplest and most popular methods that will suit even beginners who are not familiar with musical theory, and for whom keys are completely unfamiliar.
Many chord sites have a transposition feature. Usually the text indicates the harmony in the original key, and with the help of special buttons you can raise or lower it by half a tone or more. This is extremely convenient for beginners who are not familiar with the concept of musical theory and simply need to move the triads to other positions.
There is a program that will help you transpose chords. It is downloaded from our website (link below) and is absolutely free. In addition, it is also easy to learn for a beginner, but you need to know the concepts of tonality to use it.
(19 Kb)
How to use it:
- Download the archive and extract it to your computer;
- Open the file "coverton.html";
- In the first window, you must insert the lyrics of the song with the chords put down on it;
- After that, use the buttons in the middle to select the key to which you want to transfer the chords;
- In the second window on the right you will see the same text, but with different chords that fit the key.
Using a Capo to Change Keys
A capo lets you shift the frets of a triad without changing the .However, in order to use it correctly, you need to know what key the song is in and what you need to translate it into - and this is already working with music theory. However, a capo should definitely be in every musician's arsenal because it makes playing music easier and expands the possibilities of the instrument.
Chord transposition table
For those who know music theory, the transposition table is perfect. It is presented below. It should be used like this:
- in the first line, select the main chord (which determines the key)
- in the column find the one you want to change to
- all other chords are exactly the same
Example
You have a song in the key of Am (A minor) with chords Am-F-C-G, and you need the key of Em
We are looking for Am, go down in the column and find Em
All the following chords will be on the same line as Em, just start searching from top to bottom from the original triad.
It will look like this:
- Am = Em
- F=C
- C=G
- G=D
To until the end to figure out how to transpose, find all the chords that are presented in this example in the table.
Modulation is a way of building harmony when you change the key of a song as it progresses. This is a very beautiful method to diversify a composition and is often used by various bands to surprise the listener.
Usually, musicians simply translate a minor key into a major one, or vice versa. This sounds extremely unusual.
In order to make modulations, one must understand the rules by which they are made. Usually the chords are set to a fifth apart - that is, if you want to translate a melody from the key of C, then the correct chord is Am.
Besides, there is the concept of jump modulation, when all chords go at once to any other tonic. Here everything depends directly on you and your composing talent.
Modulation in music
In regular pop songs, modulations are almost never used. This technique is characteristic of rock music, especially the genres of "progressive" and "avant-garde", where there is a departure from the classical canons of musical theory. At the same time, chords do not always go into another key completely - it all depends on the arrangement.
Most importantly, before breaking the basics, learn them. Learn to transpose complex triads into ,and also transfer songs to other keys.
Conclusion
Even a beginner should learn what modulation is. This is essential to understanding music theory and how music works in general. In addition, it is definitely worth understanding for those who want to expand their knowledge in arranging and composing. This is quite easy to remember, but it opens up extremely rich possibilities for thinking through the composition of your own songs.
There are many definitions of the concept key, but I have not yet seen clear ones.
For example, Wikipedia says that tonality is the pitch position of a major or minor scale. In general, it is. There is a major scale (mode) - a set of notes with certain intervals between them. And you can start this scale from any of the 12 notes of the act. From which one you start - this will be the tone. We play a major scale - a major tonality. We play minor - minor.
And simpler, in general, key is a set of chords that sound in harmony with each other.
For example, the chord progression Em Am C D sounds harmonious, while the progression Em Cm# D# C sounds so-so, shitty.
To find out which keys song, you need to look at its first or last chords. They usually match. And in most cases, this is the tone of the song. For example, if the song is played Em Am C D - the key is Em (E minor).
To learn how all these chords are played, see the previous lessons.
Why do we need to change key songs? In order to:
- adjust the song to the voice
- avoid playing really crazy sequences like Fm A#m C# D#, bring them back to normal
- you don’t know how to play barre yet and want to translate the song into a key that doesn’t have it
There are times when a song doesn't fit your voice. Those. it is too low or too high. In this case, it is necessary transpose, i.e. transfer to another key in which it will be convenient for you to sing it.
The figure below shows all the notes in one act. There are 12 of them. It starts with the note E - the sixth open string, and ends with the note D#. At the same time, teach the location of the notes on the sixth string.
Change key(do transposition) will learn from an example.
Let's say there are Em Am C D chords and they don't fit your voice. Let's try transposing the song 5 semitones down. To do this, we transpose each chord by 5 semitones. The letter is preserved during the chord, i.e. if there was a minor - there will be a minor, if there was a major - there will be a major.
Looking at the diagram above, lower Em by 5 semitones. 1 semitone will be D#, 2 semitones will be D, etc. At 5 semitones (frets) there will be Bm.
We do the same with the Am chord. 5 semitones down - you get Em.
C becomes G, D becomes A.
In total, we translated the song from the key of Em with chords Em Am C D to the key of Bm with chords Bm Em G A.
Let's assume that this tonality did not fit our voice. Let's try a different tone. Let's translate the original chords Em Am C D 2 semitones (frets) up.
You get F#m Bm D E.
If it doesn't work again, you can try changing the tone again. And so on until you find yours.
Practical advice: translate the song into about half a laktaves, i.e. 5-7 frets. further, if it doesn’t fit, then from there another couple of frets up or down.
Very often in songs there are such chords:
Fm A#m C# D#
This is due to the fact that some bands tune their guitars half a step up or down.
Those. when you see obviously scary chords, don't try to play them. See what happens if you transpose them a semitone up or down. In this case, if we lower the song by 1 fret, we get simple chords Em Am C D
In addition to the purely textual way of changing the pitch described above, you can transpose songs (change key) without looking at any diagrams at all and without knowing the location of the notes on the 6th string. This, by the way, is one of the advantages of the guitar over other instruments. You can not cram anything, but be able to do everything.
To do this, just take each chord of the song on the barre and transpose the same number of frets.
For example, again, let's take our favorite chords Em Am C D (as you certainly learned, this is the song of the Kino group - A Pack of Cigarettes)
Let's take each chord on the barre and transpose, for example, 3 frets up. About what chords will be the result, you can see in one of the previous lessons.
Get chords Gm Cm D# F
Why else might you need to change the key (transposition)?
For example, you recently picked up a guitar and don't know how to play barre.
In this case, you can translate the song into the key of Em - there is no barre in it. Or, for example, in the key Am - in it there is only F barre, and even then not always.
