In part 2 of this series, I explained how I do my Clean Edits. In this installment I discuss how I do Blended Edits.

Blended editing is a way of mixing two pieces of audio in a way that creates an even transition from one section to the other. This type of editing is particularly useful when the two pieces of audio have background sound such as a coffee shop, street scene, or the ambience of a room.

Leading the cut

Leader is a piece of audio that precedes or follows the spot where a Clean Edit would normally be. Unlike the Clean Edit, which needs very little or no leader in the cut, Blended Edits require a measurable amount of leader. Ultimately, you’ll need enough leader on both ends to allow for overlap that can be “secretly” blended.

Why not cross fade?

I don’t like the term cross fade because it suggests that the overlapping leaders are faded-out and faded-in at the same rate so that the entire cross fade occurs within the overlap. My experience is that this method produces a noticeable dip in the audio signal where the fades intersect — a telltale sign of an edit. This may be desirable for creative reasons such as scene transitions or mixing two very different types of audio. When uniting two different pieces from the same audio source, you will need to use blending if you wish to disguise the edit.

The art of blending

Blending is an art, not a science. There’s no specific calculation to make it happen. There is a formula that I follow; the fade-in should occur in the first third of the fade-out, and then use your ears. What does that mean in English? Here it is in point form:

• Place the two pieces of audio on separate tracks of the audio-editing software;
• Overlap the leaders;
• Fade out the ending audio from the start of the overlap to the end of the track;
• Fade in the new audio source from the start of the overlap and end roughly 33% of overlap later (note, faster fade-in than fade-out);
• Listen carefully to the edit with your eyes closed (nod to Bruce); and,
• Adjust the blend as necessary, repeating until the blend is your secret.

How much overlap to use depends on how much space you want to have between the outgoing and incoming foreground audio, and how much (or how little) is necessary to hide the edit.

Adjusting the blend

Here are a few pointers for adjusting your blend (try one at a time to understand the results):

• Increase the duration of the fade-in from 33% in small increments;
• Decrease the duration of the fade-in from 33% in small increments; and,
• Increase the overlap, adjusting the initial fade-out/fade-in accordingly.

Practice

The first few of these that you attempt will require some time and patience. Eventually you will figure out how the subtle changes in the blend affect the overall sound and feel of the edit. With a little practice, you will be able to achieve a seamless blend with very few, if any, adjustments.

In part four, I will explore editing decisions for an interview.