Practicing with your part removed: making a minus-one track
A “minus one” is a recording of a song with one part missing — yours. Playing along with it is the closest thing to rehearsing with the band when the band is not there. With Band Stem Mixer you can make one from a recording you already have.
Why practice with a minus-one track
Practicing alone with the original recording has a problem: the musician on the record is playing your part too. You hear their notes over yours, and it is easy to think you played something you did not. With your part removed:
- You hear exactly what you play, against the rest of the band.
- You have to keep time yourself, as on stage: nobody covers for a missed entry.
- You learn what the other parts do while you play — the drum fill that leads into the chorus, the bass line under your solo.
Making one in three steps
- Separate the song into vocals, drums, bass, and other (see how to use).
- Press M on your part. The song plays on without it.
- Save it with “Save this mix (MP3)” if you want to practice with it elsewhere, for example on your phone at the studio.
Settings for each instrument
| You play | Mute | Tips |
|---|---|---|
| Vocals | Vocals | A karaoke track. Backing vocals and harmonies usually go with the vocals, so they disappear too. |
| Bass | Bass | Turn the drums up a little (110–120%) to lock in with the kick drum. |
| Drums | Drums | Turn the bass up so you can follow the groove. Without a click, the band's tempo is now your job. |
| Guitar or keys | Other | Guitar and keys are in the same part, so muting “Other” removes both. If the song has both, turn “Other” down to about 30% instead and play over it. |
The faders go up to 150%, so you can also bring up a part that is hard to hear in the original mix.
Keep a little of your part as a guide
Muting your part completely is the goal, but not always the best start. While you are still learning the song, turn your part down to about 20–30% instead of muting it. You can still hear where it goes, but your own playing is louder. Lower it each time you practice, and mute it when you no longer need it.
When you need to hear a passage clearly first, solo it: see hearing the bass and drums clearly.
What to expect from the separation
- Traces of your part may remain. The AI estimates each part from the mix; a little of the muted part can still be heard, especially at loud moments.
- Other sounds can change slightly where they overlapped with your part — for example, the edge of a snare hit that coincided with a bass note.
- Guitar and keys are not separated from each other; they share “Other”.
For practice this is usually more than enough. For tips on getting a cleaner result, see how to get better separation; for why it happens, see how AI separation works.
Which songs you can use
Use songs you recorded, or recordings you have the right to use. Separating a song for your own practice is one thing; publishing or sharing the separated parts or your minus-one track of someone else's song usually needs the permission of the rights holders. Music from streaming services cannot be opened in the app.