Adobe Audition:
Adobe Audition is one of many applications produced by the Adobe company. It can be used to edit, mix, and record audio, and is a great application for stitching clips together for video, broadcast, or remixing purposes. In comparison with other DAWs, it is quite similar to Garageband. It can be downloaded from their website and run on a windows sound card. As always, there is a learning curve associated with the program. There are many informative videos on YouTube, but the best ones are on adobe’s help website (https://helpx.adobe.com/audition/tutorials.html). Alexandra (a contributing author to this post) created her own demonstration of how one could create a mashup with the program (https://youtu.be/Ta4vPm-_oKY).
MASHUP BASICS
Here are the steps to creating a mashup:
1.Download music via itunes, youtube using an mp3 converted, or record your own (though the quality may not be as good). If you use an mp3 converted, know you can only use 30 seconds of a someone else’s song before it become illegal.
2. Open Adobe Audition CC and go to file new multitrack session (be in multitrack view the whole time)
3. Go to file import, and find you music and import into AA.
4. Now all your music is in the app, you can now start messing and remixing the music. Things you will need to use:
-the razor tool (found at the top, looks like a razor), is used to cut audio. For example, you can cut out a spike in the audio or a section that you do not want in your final product. If you want to cut out a piece of the audio and use it later in your audio mix, you can cut then copy it and paste it into your library.
-fade in and fade out (go Clip at the top of your desktop, drop it down and go to the bottom and you will find the tools and apply them to the beginning or end of the track). This tool allows the audio to gradually gain and gradually fade out, it is useful for transitions and build up.
-If you want to pick where the gradual fade starts, you can click on the yellow line with the arrow tool and change the levels and create your own fade in/fade out or change the levels within the track.
-overlapping tracks is an effect you can create by literally dragging one track on top of another. Two yellow curved lines will overlap and you can make the tracks overlap for as long as you want. This helps the audio fade into another audio. You will still be able to hear both tracks but it transitions into the next one while fading out the other.
5. Once you have messed with all these tools and cut the music and place each track next to each other, I recommend messing with duration. You can do this before, but doing it after may make the audio flow more smoothly. In order to do this go to Favorites at the top of your desktop, then find Essential Sound and click that. Next, click Music (below dialogue). After that click the Duration checkbox and make your Target whatever you want and then click the circle above Remix. You will see on your track some squiggly lines and you’ll notice the track is now shorter and flows without sounding choppy.
6. Finally you will want to export the track and to do so go to File, click Export, then Multitrack Mixdown, then click Entire Session. An Export box will appear and you will change the Output Name to whatever you wish, the location you want the track to appear (I like putting it on my Desktop), then the format (you will most likely use .mp3). Click ok and it will begin the export.