avatarJames Gordon

Summary

The author, a hobbyist musician, shares how to create a simple music video to focus more on the music.

Abstract

The article titled "How To Make A Simple Music Video Of Yourself Performing" is a guide for amateur musicians looking to share their music through videos. The author emphasizes the importance of video production in today's world and offers an example music video made using affordable equipment. They discuss the equipment used, including an upright piano, a smartphone for recording, a phone tripod, and a phone-compatible microphone. They also explain the steps to make a simple music video, which include setting up the equipment, recording the video, editing, and uploading it. The author encourages musicians to focus more on their performance than the production and be patient during the learning process.

Bullet points

  • The author shares their experience and tips on creating a simple music video for musicians who want to focus more on their performance.
  • The article includes an example music video made using a modest budget.
  • The equipment used for creating the music video includes:
    • An upright piano
    • A smartphone for recording video
    • A phone tripod
    • A phone-compatible microphone
  • The author explains the steps to create a simple music video, which include:
    • Setting up the equipment
    • Recording the video
    • Editing the video using basic phone software
    • Uploading the video to platforms like YouTube
  • The author offers advice to musicians, including:
    • Being patient with the learning process
    • Focusing more on the music and performance than the production
    • Upgrading equipment for better recording quality if desired
    • Remembering that music performance and production are separate skills

The article encourages amateur musicians to try creating their own music videos using basic equipment and following simple steps. It highlights the importance of focusing more on the music and less on production for a more authentic performance.

How To Make A Simple Music Video Of Yourself Performing

Photo by Derek Truninger on Unsplash

So you want to create your own music video — Great!

This tutorial can help. As a musician myself, I love to play; both for myself and others. Getting my music across to audiences when I’m not in proximity requires some kind of recording. A picture is worth a thousand words, and a video is made of pictures, so it’s usually best to convey an audio message in movie form when possible.

Music videos are one of the most useful ways for artists to share their music. This goes for amateurs and professionals alike. Audio and video production is usually at the bottom of my priority list, since I think first and foremost about playing my instruments. As a hobbyist musician, I’m happy to just find the time to play in my busy life.

I suspect that others may be the same. We would rather take care of performing, and leave the production up to someone else. The fact is that in today’s world, it’s necessary to learn some extra skills.

I make very simple videos so I can focus more on the music.

In this article, I’ll give you an example music video, and then I’ll explain how I made it. This will include discussion of the equipment I used, and the methodology. I’ll try to avoid specific brands so that you can think about applying this to your life and your preferences.

The equipment I used:

  • Instrument: upright piano. This is neither an extremely high, nor low-end piano. I invested in this instrument a few years ago, bought it second hand from someone after a little bit of shopping around online, and it has served me well ever since. I haven’t even bothered to tune it in a couple years, and this doesn’t faze me that much. I’m pretty low maintenance when it comes to my music.
  • Video recorder: phone. Every smartphone comes with a built-in video camera and recording software. This is probably the easiest way to record if you’re making a simple video. From the phone, it becomes easy to upload to other places like YouTube, so that you can share it with others.
  • Tripod: phone tripod. It took me quite a few recordings and makeshift setups of propping my phone, to realize that I needed a good tripod — and no surprises here, you can buy one built specifically for phones. Mine works great and didn’t cost much.
  • Microphone: phone-compatible. The one I used was quite inexpensive, and that’s fine, because it still gets the music across. Microphones can be pretty pricey as well, and they can help your recording quality, but they aren’t going to make you a better musician.

Keep in mind that none of the above is top of the line. The most expensive item was obviously the piano. This can be done on a relatively modest budget. When it comes to music, like anything, you can always spend more money. I’m saying you don’t have to unless it’s really a priority, and you have the luxury.

The steps involved in making the video:

  1. Set up the equipment. Adjust the tripod, plug in the microphone, test the microphone level, test the video. Do all the basics. Again, I emphasize doing that test first. Check the mic battery life. I have had times where I finished playing and realized that the sound wasn’t working. Oops.
  2. Make the recording. An important factor to consider here: double check and make sure you have the phone storage available for the full video. I had times where the video ended mid-way because it used up the remaining storage on my phone. Video files tend to be pretty big.
  3. Edit the video. I didn’t do any editing, but you can do some simple edits and features with the stock software that comes with your phone. There are various software programs out there you can pay for as well, to have even more editing options. I recommend starting simple and building from there.
  4. Upload the video. This is where you move it from your phone to YouTube, Facebook, your PC, etc. I found that the easiest way for me, is to upload directly to YouTube. Even a longer video like this one, of 10 or more minutes should only take a little longer than the video itself to upload.

Further advice:

  • Be patient. Expect some failed attempts and some trial and error. Even the easiest video techniques take some practice to get right.
  • Don’t fuss over production too much. Instead, focus on your music. Production skills can be developed as well, but should come second to your music — because this is what people are really paying attention to. If you really want to up your recording game, consider speaking with someone who specializes in production.
  • If you are unhappy with the bare basics, upgrade. Usually by investing in some small upgrade to any level, you improve your recording quality to some degree.
  • Remember that playing music and production are separate skills. For more elaborate production, you do need to invest more time, money, and effort. Still, it’s possible to focus almost totally on music and learn the bare bones skills needed to make an effective video, as shown here.
  • After all, music should be about the performance and the musician more than the audio/video production.

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