Auto-Tune
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Auto-Tune | |
|---|---|
| Developed by | Antares Audio Technologies |
| Initial release | 1997 |
| Latest release | 5 |
| OS | Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X |
| Genre | Autotuner |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | Auto-Tune 5 |
Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies which uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. It is used to disguise inaccuracies and mistakes, and – due to its increasing use in modern music – has allowed many artists to produce more precisely tuned recordings. While Auto-Tune is only one out of many commercial pitch correction packages, auto-tune is frequently used in the media as a blanket term to describe any audio processing with a similar effect, perhaps because it was the first product allowing pitch correction in real time.[1]
Auto-Tune is available as a plug-in for professional audio multi-tracking suites used in a studio setting, such as Pro Tools, and as a stand-alone, rackmount unit for live performance processing.[2] Auto-tune has become standard equipment in professional recording studios.[3]
Similar software products, such as Melodyne, correct rhythm and meter for percussionists.
Auto-Tune 5 is compatible with any 64-bit version of Microsoft Windows.
Contents |
[edit] Uses
At the January 2001 International Music Products Association show in Anaheim, California, Antares performed a demonstration of Auto-Tune in which they fed the output of a theremin into Auto-Tune. The effect was described as "like putting adjustable frets into thin air". [4]
The harmonization is intended to increase the musical quality of a vocal track without revealing the singing as processed. Still, with extreme parameter values, the Auto-Tune has also become popular as a distinctively electronic voice effect, similar to a vocoder. The most familiar example of Auto-Tune is the Cher effect, named for Cher, whose producers originated the effect in her 1998 hit song "Believe". It was the first commercial song that used Auto-Tune as a deliberate, creative sound effect instead of the equipment's main purpose. When first interviewed about this, the sound engineers claimed they had used a vocoder, in an attempt to preserve this as a trade secret.[5]
The singer T-Pain has used a similar effect in his own songs and in those of others.[6].
Use of Auto-Tune is not confined to Western pop music – the product comes with Arabic scales, and has become very common in Arabic music. In 2007, Saudi singer Muhammed Abduh told journalists that today is the era of Auto-Tune, in which singers rely on machines to fix their voices.[7]
According to the Boston Herald, "Country stars Reba McEntire, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw have all confessed to using Auto-Tune in performance, claiming it is a safety net that guarantees ticket buyers a spot-on show."[8]
[edit] See also
- GSnap, a freeware plugin with similar effect
[edit] References
- ^ Anderton, Craig. "In Search of the Perfect Pitch; The fix is in" EQ, July 1, 2006, Pg. 46
- ^ Antares product page
- ^ Everett-Green, Robert. "Ruled by Frankenmusic", The Globe and Mail (Canada), October 14, 2006, Pg. R1
- ^ Holm, Frode. "NAMM 2001 International Music Market". Computer Music Journal 25(3):89
- ^ "Recording Cher's Believe" http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb99/articles/tracks661.htm
- ^ Singers do better with T-Pain relief
- ^ Al-Bawaba October 8, 2007 Monday 8:04 AM EST - Muhammad Abduh: "This is the era of 'auto tune'" Retrieved via LexisNexus
- ^ Treacy, Christopher John. "Pitch-adjusting software brings studio tricks", The Boston Herald, February 19, 2007, Monday, "The Edge" Pg. 032
[edit] External links
- Antares Auto-Tune 5 Pitch Correcting Plug-In - product home page
- Melodyne and Digital Performer 4.6, other pitch correction products
- Pitchfork: Neko Case Interview - artistic integrity and Auto-Tune
- Nashville Scene: Pro Tools - Article about country music and Auto-Tune
