MECA Tantric Tuning Notes
1. I Got Rhythm
a. Strums and plucks should be clear and clean. Listen for clarity, should be able to distinguish between the three guitars playing: one on left, one in the center, and one at the right. Left is the lead, and often heard most prominent
of the three. The guitar player on the right is very lightly tapping his foot.
Song is fairly simple, but unique in that the three guitars span most of the frequency spectrum. There should be no harshness and strong peaks, making it a good song to listen for overall tonality and linearity.
2. Ain’t No Sunshine
a. Good center vocal, life like in size with very sweet midrange tonality. The Bass guitar is left of center with full, rich tonality.
3. Won’t You Come Home Bill Bailey
a. This piece covers a wide range of instruments, often with solos and duets.
Pay attention to each individual instrument along with its placement. Starts off with a snare drum solo located slightly left of right center. Trumpet (with a mute plug) comes in around 10 seconds at the left. At around 45 seconds a
slide trombone joins in on the left with the trumpet, a tuba at left center, and a clarinet on the right. A saxophone comes in a little after 2:30 on the right as well. Banjo solo alongside to the right of the drums at right center around
3:45. Instruments are distinct and sound realistic.
4. Goodbye Porkpie Hat
a. There is a great sounding guitar that comes in left of center at about 2 minutes in. There is some excellent cymbal or hihat work towards the end of the track.
5. Got to Get You Into My Life
a. The vocal is front and center (however, she moves and becomes left of center after around 45 seconds). The drum kit is behind and to the right of center. The piano is just left of center and well behind the vocalist, giving a good sense of stage depth.
6. Silk Road
a. This piece highlights sub and midbass frequencies. It contains some very deep and low drums starting at around 20 seconds that should be visceral.
Pay attention both to low-end extension up through to the lower midrange making sure the sound is rich, full, and detailed…but also not overly exaggerated or blooming. Midrange frequencies are highlighted by a Chinese lute that comes in at around 1:50 and should sound lifelike. Listen to the breath and air, and pay attention to the differentiation of tone between a traditional flute vs. a wooden one. A gong is struck at around 2:20 near the left followed by a string instrument called an erhu at left center. The erhu has a distinctive sound that is smooth and blends delicately. Chimes
accentuate the high frequencies throughout this track.
7. Baker Street
a. Nicely focused center vocal. There are some chimes that come it at center stage that sound great with articulation and tone. There’s a harmonica to the right of center, it seems to be away from the microphone creating a bigger
image. There are kongas behind the vocalist on the left they sound very nice and discrete. There are left and right guitars.
8. Bring It on Home
a. Very nice articulation to the vocalist, you can really visualize her mouth moving as she sings this song. The drum kit is very dry and just behind the vocalist. The piano occupies the left side of the stage and is very focused and discrete sounding. There are two guitars, one left and one right. The guitar on the left has some great string work and sounds very discrete. There is a second vocalist that comes in right of center. There is a sax that comes in on the left side of the stage in front of the piano and is very prominent.
9. Valse Criollo
a. This track is a bit subdued to start with. It has a wind instrument right of stage, a piano that occupies center/left stage. A drum kit comes in to add some life to this truck at center stage. The song gains energy around 3 minutes in and there is also some nice cymbal work.
10. Coal Miner’s Blues
a. This track gives a great sense of room space. Notice how the banjo plays at left center, you can hear the echo across the room towards the right. It is a very open space with very little furniture or acoustic coverings that adds to the sound and musicality of the song. Notice the male vocal at the right that faces us and his voice echoes throughout the room. At the end of the song, listen for the decay of the banjo. It should be sufficiently long to be believable in an open, barren space.
11. Dock of the Bay
a. Rhythm vocalist is far right and very full and rich in texture and tonality. The lead vocalist comes in left center. He can be heard tapping his foot at about 1:10 in. That and his breathing add up to some great realism.
12. Concerto in F Major (Spring)
a. This is a great live sounding track. The violin work is very nice. There are dueling instruments at about 2 minutes in. Very full stage on this one.
13. Stepping (Isise)
a. This track is great for bass and midbass articulation. Song has very good rhythm and far left and right instruments. The drums have great tonality, the mallet hitting the skin has excellent impact and very discrete sound.
14. Bass Resonance Description
15. Bass Resonance
a. Great pluck, with full and rich tonality.
16. Dynamic Test Description
17. Dynamic Test
a. Get this track to play loud without breaking up!
