I start my tracks with a piano. Its good to find some chords first and go from there. There were times when I started with the bass or the guitar. It is also good because I like to practice it and get better at it. There are many great pianos to choose from and by piano I could be referring to any kind of chord track.
Basic Piano
I usually put about 3 to 4 chords together and play them in different rhythms. The piano melody might be the same as the lead guitar but after it (or like a delay effect). It is good to practice the basics for a while to really get familiar with the instrument. Sometimes I add extra notes to the end of chords to make them melodic.
Voicings
My have 2 favorite pianos right now one is Blue MK II. I like it because it sounds great and emulates real piano noises after chords. My second favorite is Monopoly and the Gold E Lox preset. Its a synthesizer and it sounds really good with chords or lead notes. I’ve used both of these pianos on many tracks.
Mix
The sound of the piano might benefit from EQ but it depends on the track. It might also benefit from some saturation. A little bit of chorus too. It can be quite a dynamic instrument so some compression might help us get it at a good level.
Piano Pitch
After we have recorded the main parts of the track and come back to it, we can change the key to give it a fresh sound. We can also it lower it or raise it an octave to make it go better with the guitars. Or we can just lower the root notes an octave, or both.
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