Chapter 77: Recording the Arranged Version of "Nocturne"

Turquoise Records Headquarters.

When Fang Xing arrived, Liang Yusong had already convened a meeting with the heads of the company’s Artist Department, Operations, and other relevant divisions.

Liang Yusong began by addressing the current situation: “This time, Tidal Sound Culture is sparing no expense to win. Their promotional campaign is exceptionally aggressive.

“If we don’t take action, relying solely on the performances on stage won’t be enough to counter their advantage in off-stage operations.”

As the talent competition reached its final stage, the voting battles became fierce, with tens of millions being poured in at a time. There have even been cases across the globe where crowdfunding for rankings reached hundreds of millions.

Qiao Yinghong suggested, “I believe we now need to expand Fang Xing’s basic audience. Don’t just focus on the fan clubs—his music has already broken out of that circle and can compete on a broader stage.”

At this point, the head of Operations projected an image onto the screen.

“This is today’s screenshot of the Music Storm Chart. Number six is Tidal Sound Culture’s new single for Wu Junchen and his group, ‘Youthful Recklessness,’ and number seven is another song, ‘Here We Come.’”

The Operations chief clicked to the next slide and continued, “These two songs entered the Music Storm Chart three days ago. Both are studio versions, likely produced well in advance but only released now.

“After their release, both quickly climbed to the top of the new songs chart in just one day.

“Today, they’ve entered the chart of hottest songs, and their sales are astonishing.

“From the sales data, any industry insider can tell they’re pushing the rankings.

“There is fan-driven activity, but also clear company-backed campaigns, and real money is being spent for the charts.

“Once these songs charted, fans began intense promotion, drawing a lot of attention to Wu Junchen, Liu Yichen, and other Tidal Sound trainees.

“If this goes unchecked, it will influence the final popularity rankings in the upcoming competition.”

Having reviewed the chart, Liang Yusong looked to Fang Xing and suggested, “In that case, we should consider officially releasing a single or an EP to compete on the Music Storm Chart.”

The operations chief elaborated, “Fang Xing has performed six songs on the program so far. I think we should release an EP, especially a studio-arranged version of ‘Nocturne,’ to compete on the charts. Tied in with ‘Star of Tomorrow,’ it would boost his popularity.”

Up to now, both “Nocturne” and “Wild Bird” were available online only as acoustic versions, not as full arrangements.

Moreover, all six songs performed thus far were only sung on the show, with no studio versions released, hence they hadn’t officially entered the Music Storm Chart.

After a moment’s thought, Fang Xing said, “Let’s release arranged versions of ‘Nocturne’ and ‘Wild Bird.’ A single will do; two songs are enough.”

A single doesn’t necessarily mean just one song—it can be one to three tracks.

An EP is a mini-album, generally five to eight songs.

A full album typically has ten or more tracks, sometimes as many as twenty.

The operations chief added, “There are less than two weeks until the group formation finale. After the single is released, it’ll need time to gain traction, so it’s best to record these two songs as soon as possible.”

Fang Xing pulled out his newly purchased laptop and smiled. “That’s not a problem. I’ve already finished the arrangements for both songs. If we focus on every detail in the studio, it will take two hours per song—so we could finish recording both in an afternoon.”

In fact, if he didn’t fuss over every nuance, Fang Xing could likely record each in a single take.

Still, since these would be studio versions, it was worth perfecting the details.

The mention of recording immediately piqued Liang Yusong’s interest.

As a musician himself, he much preferred spending time in the studio over attending meetings.

“Then it’s settled. We’ll release the single first; you all handle the operational planning. Come on, let’s head to the recording studio now. I want to hear the arranged version of ‘Nocturne.’” Liang Yusong clapped Fang Xing on the shoulder, leading him out.

The remaining tasks could be left to Turquoise Records’ operations team.

Fang Xing and Liang Yusong went straight to the studio to record the arranged version of “Nocturne.”

The original arrangement for “Nocturne” was done by Lin Maike, one of the three giants of arrangement, and the arrangement was a key part of the song’s brilliance.

Even the original artist rarely memorized the arrangement in detail, so Fang Xing only had a general impression of “Nocturne’s” arrangement.

Fortunately, since Fang Xing was himself skilled in arrangement, he could fill in any gaps from memory.

After hearing the result, Liang Yusong was very satisfied with the arranged version.

Liu Ziming, Turquoise Records’ ace arranger, listened as well and found it excellent, so no adjustments were made—recording began immediately.

Fang Xing stood in the booth and began his first take.

When he finished, he looked out at the other two. “How was it?”

Liang Yusong gave a thumbs up. “Your vocal foundation is rock solid. You could do it in one take.”

There are indeed singers who finish recording in a single take—such as top vocalists like Tsai Chin or Terry Lin.

Fang Xing, however, wanted to polish the details. “Shall I try again? Let’s refine it.”

“Go ahead, one more time.” Liu Ziming signaled for the accompaniment to start.

In the end, both songs were recorded within two hours.

There was really nothing more to refine.

Especially when it came to vocals—every take was flawless.

Only the emotional nuances varied.

“It’s done. The rest is up to post-production.” Liang Yusong put his arm around Fang Xing’s shoulders as they left the studio together.

Fang Xing remembered something and asked, “Director Liang, do you know where in Donghai I could get a violin repaired? Preferably by someone skilled.”

Liang Yusong immediately understood. “You still feel bad about breaking that young lady’s violin last time?”

“She’s a classmate from Dongyin. If I can help, I should,” Fang Xing replied.

“You’re not developing feelings for her, are you?” Liang Yusong teased with a mischievous look.

“What of it? There’s no clause in my contract against that.” Fang Xing shot back.

“I do know a good place. Come to my office—I’ll find you the card.”

Liang Yusong returned to his office, rummaged through a large box of business cards in his drawer, and handed one to Fang Xing. It read “Confidant Music Store.”

“The owner used to make handcrafted instruments. But you want the old owner—the younger one isn’t as good. Just say I sent you; he’ll help.”

“Thank you.”

Fang Xing took the card, glanced at it, and slipped it into his pocket. Then he changed the subject. “How are we handling the guest performance segment?”

Liang Yusong thought for a moment. “Do you have someone in mind? From within the company, or outside?”

If a contestant had connections, a well-known singer as a duet partner was ideal.

If not, the show’s producers would help, but they’d most likely arrange for a member of last season’s winning group, Sky Girls.

“I haven’t decided yet,” Fang Xing admitted.

“Have you prepared the songs you’ll perform at the finale?” Liang Yusong asked.

“Almost,” Fang Xing replied.

“Here’s an idea: record a demo of your songs and send it to me. I’ll see which of our artists could sing with you. If we don’t have anyone suitable, we’ll look outside,” Liang Yusong suggested.

“All right, I’ll send you the demos tomorrow.” Fang Xing agreed. That night, he finished the last part of the arrangements and sent copies to his teammates and Liang Yusong.