While Mike and Austin started Brave Sound to be a music studio/presenter, we quickly realized that educating musicians to help them record and present themselves online, more frequently, at lower cost, and with better quality, is one of the best things we can do.
Our mission is to help NYC’s improvised music community take our live performance-based art and package it in new ways that are cost-effective, competitive, and distributable in our modern times.
Here’s some tools you can use yourself to keep making music, improvising together, and documenting it even in the midst of a global pandemic:
JackTrip
Free, open-source software created by CCRMA of Stanford University. Allows users to play music with a peer (or multiple peers, though this is more difficult) over the internet in real-time (up to around 500 miles of physical distance). Not only is the audio sent over JackTrip real-time, but it’s also uncompressed. Which makes it an invaluable tool for making studio-quality recordings over the internet. Use it to hear your students in higher fidelity, live-stream a concert with a friend 300 miles away, rehearse before a gig without needing to travel… the use is up to your own creativity.
Cons? Quite demanding on the computer and your internet connection. Command-line application with no easy-to-use user interface.
Watch our FREE live masterclass session that covers everything you need to know about using JackTrip
Austin will show you how to do this:
Free Audio Software
A mass list of extremely high-quality software that can make your recordings sound better at zero cost.
Best Free DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) for Windows:
Cakewalk by Bandlab – completely fully featured professional DAW at no cost.
Best Free DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) for Mac:
Garageband – capable software that comes with your Mac. Would highly recommend an upgrade to something like Reaper (for $60) though.
Best free EQs:
Tokyo Dawn Labs VOS Slick EQ
Tokyo Dawn Labs Nova
Ignite Amps PTEq-X
Lufikitus
ReaEQ
Reverbs:
Smartelectronix Ambience
TAL-Reverb-4
Convology XT
Compressors:
Tokyo Dawn Labs Kotelnikov
AdHd Leveling Tool
Klanghelm MJUC jr
Klanghelm DC1A
ReaComp
VladG Limiter No6
Color:
Klanghelm IVGI
Softube Saturation Knob
CHOW Tape
Izotope Vinyl
Tools:
Voxengo SPAN
Orban Loudness Meter
TBProAudio dpMeter4
Izotope Ozone Imager
For those who know what they’re doing: AirWindows
Amps:
Audified | Live Guitar and Bass Bundle LE
Ignite Amps SHB-1
Amplitube Custom Shop
Sounds:
Kontakt Player and Komplete START
ProjectSAM The Free Orchestra
BBC SO Discover
Spitfire Labs
Westwood Upright Felt Piano
PianoBook
Ample Bass P Lite and Guitar M Lite
Full Bucket Synths
Steven Slate Drums 5.5 Free
