User guide

Chapter 1 An Introduction to Logic Express 21
MIDI recordings are used to trigger (play back through) either external MIDI devices,
such as synthesizers, or internal software instruments. Software instruments are
calculated on the Macintosh CPU, and played back through your audio interface or the
Macintosh audio outputs. Not only can you record the notes of your performance, but
you can also record and play back information such as synthesizer parameter
changes—all in real time.
Audio recordings can be made by playing an instrument (such as a guitar) or singing
into a microphone, as examples.
Step 3: Arranging and editing
Once your musical material has been imported or recorded into Logic Express, you will
generally organize it into a “song structure”. This is done in the main Logic Express
window, called the Arrange window.
Musical material appears as rectangular blocks, known as regions. These regions run
from left to right across the Arrange area, and are positioned on vertically stacked
lanes, known as tracks. You may freely copy, repeat, loop, move, shorten, lengthen, or
delete regions—either on a track, or across tracks. This grid-like layout and the use of
building blocks (regions) makes it easy to see, and create, the overall song structure.
There will be many occasions where you’ll need to perform more detailed edits to your
MIDI or audio data recordings than is possible at the region level. Logic Express offers a
number of editing windows that allow you to modify your musical material at a variety
of levels. As examples of where this might be useful:
 You have made a recording of a great main vocal performance, but can hear a thud
in the silent passages between two phrases, where the vocalist kicked the
microphone stand. It probably goes without saying that this isn’t a sound you’d like
to have on the finalized CD. No problem. Simply edit the recording by inserting
silence during the thud, or perhaps cut that portion out of the recording entirely.
 You have made a MIDI keyboard recording that is perfect but for one note that
should have been a C, but is a B. No problem. You can simply drag the MIDI note
event from B to C.
More detail can be found in “The Basics: Projects and Regions” on page 23.
Step 4: Mixing, automating, using plug-ins
Following the creation of your arrangement and any edits that may have been
required, you would commonly move on to the mixing phase of your project. Mixing,
as a term, generally refers to balancing the relative levels of each song component. Put
another way, the main vocal needs to be louder than the bass, guitars, drums, and
keyboards, thus allowing the lyrics to be heard.