Class 3: MIDI Controls, Mixing, and Performing

http://russellhanson.com/web/OverthrowSoundCEMMI-MIDI-Controls-Mixing-Performing.pdf

CEMMI/Artisan’s Asylum 

“Overthrow Sound: A first course in electronic music production”

Go over last week’s homework:

Write a song of a minimum two minutes  

The song should have a “song structure” including an intro, a theme, a transition or two, a modified 

theme or theme #2, and an outro and ending of the song.  There should be something memorable in the 

song that makes it stick out, the song should have something memorable about it — an idea, a vocal, a 

feeling, an instrument, a sample, etc.

In the words of Felix Cartal (http://dropthebeatsd.com/2011/08/23/artist-interview-felix-cartal/):

“DropTheBeat SD: What’s the number one rule you follow when it comes to producing a track?

Felix: Umm… I think you just have to create one thing that is memorable. And that’s what I try to 

do for every track. Whether that’s the sound of an instrument, a little riff that’s very catchy, or a 

vocal that’s really good. You know, there has to be that one part where the next day I’m humming it.

I don’t want to make a track where it’s getting played on the radio; I want to make a track where the 

guy on the street is whistling.”

Mapping MIDI and Controls:

Mapping MIDI controls in Ableton can be very easy:

1) Plug-in your MIDI controller

2) Push the MIDI button in the upper right 

3) Select with the mouse a control you want to map the MIDI control to.  Turn the knob or push the 

pad/key you want mapped.  Set parameter max/min values in MIDI Mappings.  Map multiple controls 

this way.  

4) Hit the MIDI button again to close MIDI Mappings.

Practice Interactive Drumming and Sample Triggering:

Use a MIDI controller and map some of the pads to percussion and some pads to trigger samples

Session View vs. Arrangement View and Mixing:

Ableton | Session View vs. Arrangement View

http://www.musictechtutorials.com/ableton-session-view-vs-arrangement-view/

[Tab]/Copy-Pasting to Session View

NB. Consolidating clips will stop sound.

How to enable “one-shot” samples in Session View:

Clip/Launch/Trigger/Quantization, Change from “Global” to “None”

Using Ableton as a DJ rig with headphones to cue

1) Double-click Solo on the master track to get Cue then the Solo button acts as headphone cue

2) To channel A house sound to channel B to headphones

Ableton Tip: Cue in headphones (DJ) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Cbkbof9wXk

How To DJ In Ableton Live Part 1: Setting Up Ableton And Preparing The Songs 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paL1G-8oF6A© Russell Hanson, http://russellhanson.com

Filters:

Frequency Shifter and Auto Filter (low-pass filter)

Mixing through a sonic maximizer such as “L1” “L2” “L3” etc.:

http://erikhawkins.berkleemusicblogs.com/2011/07/03/why-mixing-through-a-gain-maximizer-is-abad-idea/

http://www.waves.com/Content.aspx?id=211 Waves > Plugins > L2 Ultramaximizer

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/aug05/articles/wavesl3.htm

Erik Hawk Interviews Lucky Date – discussion of mastering, stems, remixing, mostly in Reason etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qNCkn4tXn4 (Jan 15, 2012)

Transitions:

How to make the accelerating snare/percussion hit mapping the coarse tempo control to a knob

1) Draw a long “Insert MIDI” clip

2) Add snare drum hits every beat in a 140 BPM song, make about 40-50 measures

3) Hit the MIDI button, hit the “Tempo (coarse)” control, i.e. the BPM in the upper left hand corner, to 

the left of the decimal point is “Tempo (coarse)” to the right is “Tempo (fine)”

4) Turn a knob you want to assign “Tempo (coarse)” to, set min/max tempo to 120/800 BPM

5) Press Play and turn the knob!

Programming Beats using the Impulse Drum Machine:

Ableton: Creating Beats

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ff0AcOsH3E

Dubstep synths in Reason:

Lucky Date - Create a Bleepy Dubstep Bass in Reason! (Tutorial)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYG4rcxMQvI (Jan 13, 2012)

More sample sources:

Vengeance Essential Clubsounds Vol. 3 “Bigger kicks, fatter loops, groovy fills and loads of creative 

special sounds…”

http://www.vengeance-sound.com/samples-vec3.html

Homework for next week:

- Take your song elements from your song for this week and make it performable in Session View

- Make a remix by adding a new drum beat to a song, re-sample the vocal or instrument in the song

- Drop some samples in the Impulse Drum Machine and use them as part of the performance

- Make a remix or mashup of a song by adding wobble bass, distorted bass, or bleepy synth or another 

musical element to the song 

- Make a live mashup setup in Session View