Gene921
Hi Everyone - I've just recorded a new song and now want to experiment with changing the structure (i.e., perhaps starting with the chorus, or moving a verse to the end of the song). Any thoughts on the fastest/easiest way to move entire sections around? It occurred to me to just mix all my tracks down, export - and then start a new project with the mixdown exclusively for chopping up and moving sections around. But is there a better way?
Thanks in advance!
I toss stuff around when arranging all the time. I approach it differently than the illustrious suggestions above.
Under the Edit menu is Select By Time. That's my surgical precision friend.
Let's say you want to move everything from measure 7 and a half, 8 measures of a chunk of it, to measure 25. I don't know why, but that's what you want. Let's say that's your pre chorus blob.
1. First you need to open up space for inserting 8 measures at measure 25. So essentially you need to push what's at 25 to 33. If you're clean cutting at a measure number you can use Insert Measures. If your desired spot is not clean, like it's at beat 2 tick 120 of measure 25, then using the Select By Time feature allows you to grab exactly what and where you want.
2. Let's say you want to simply open up 8 measures at measure 25. Aside from the easy out inserting measures, to do it with Select By Time you would first click on any track to highlight it/select it. Then hit Control A for Select All. Under the Edit menu choose Select By Time. Pick your starting time (25) and the end time can be out there at the end of the song (which it shows by default). Control Alt X gets you Cut Special. Here you can grab the events, markers, automation as desired. Control Alt V gets you Paste Special where you can surgically indicate where you want to put your blob, for example (33), and indicate if you want to paste events, markers, automation etc. Okay, having pasted that you've opened up the 8 measures. The song has an open space between 25 and 33 now. However, with that same technique you could have opened 8 measures 2 beats and 120 ticks if you had wanted to, because this method allows plenty of flexibility and precision.
3. Now you want to copy your 8 measure prechorus from measure 7 and a half to measure 25 where the opening of 8 measures is waiting.
4. Select any track. Control A to Select All. Under Edit choose Select By Time. The starting time is 7 3 ( measure 7 beat 3 to grab from the halfway point). Ending time is 15 3. Control Alt C is Copy Special. Choose events, markers, etc. Control Alt V is Paste Special. Put in 25 for the time location you want to make the paste, check the markers, automation checkboxes as needed, etc. you've now moved your pre chorus blob to that spot.
It takes way more time to type this than to do it, which is seconds after you've done it once or twice. Super flexible and precise.