Ashville.Guru Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 Hey everyone, So here's what I need to do. It (also) involves loops on stage, so Mr. Tonysounds will have to excuse me... ! I have one-hit samples from Indian percussion instruments, and a bunch of midi phrases/loops. Now in the kind of music I play, songs don't follow a fixed tempo - the tempo is stepped up, in jumps, spontaneously. Usually the lead singer's call - but often the crowd has a say in it . No conductor/metronome/click tracks! Tap tempo is an obvious solution. The cach - I'm only allowed 1 sustain pedal (for ergonomic reasons), and both my hands are on the keys. Oh and I also need to use that pedal for, well, sustain! My current solution: midi processing programs on the laptop. Here's what I do - I have a toggle button that sets up 'sync mode'. Sustain now doubles as tap input. Once the tempo syncs, I switch back to normal mode. I need to be in sync mode only briefly, when tempo changes. Otherwise all hell breaks loose. Took some practice, but works like a charm. And there's another, non-percussive loop that needs to be running all the time, throughout the performance. This is a simple drone, runs at a constant tempo, and is not synced to the main rhythm!. So much for the accompaniment - for the main course, I need to emulate a few Indian instruments, for which I use Kontakt scripting/ midi processing. For example, for my Harmonium samples, I use a LFO to simulate the hand-pumped action of the bellows, along with a constantly-held scale root note. I've got all of this to work, but then, there's the associated pain of using a laptop on stage. I've always kinda assumed that my needs are a bit too quirky and exotic to have hardware solutions, even in flagship workstations. Is this true? Or are there ways of doing all/any of this, easily with current hardware? Some combination of KARMA and/or VAST (not familiar with either)...? Looking forward to your inputs. Partial suggestions might also be useful - so don't hold back, let the ideas, thoughts and opinions flow! Thanks in advance. Cheers, Guru This is really what MIDI was originally about encouraging cooperation between companies that make the world a more creative place." - Dave Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 Do you have a drummer/percussionist? Any possibility of doing a trigger to MIDI tap tempo? Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashville.Guru Posted August 13, 2011 Author Share Posted August 13, 2011 Do you have a drummer/percussionist? Any possibility of doing a trigger to MIDI tap tempo? Only on occasion, Dan. One of our regulars uses a Roland Octapad with midi outs; but otherwise it's mostly traditional Indian instruments on percussion, like the Tabla or Dholak. There's no 'band' as such, but more like a guild or pool of musicians. Whoever's available in the area for that evening fills in. Many a time I don't know whom I'm playing with... until a few hours prior! Sometimes meet new percussionists on stage, during setup . Part of the motivation for the loops, is to reduce this very uncertainity...! This is really what MIDI was originally about encouraging cooperation between companies that make the world a more creative place." - Dave Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashville.Guru Posted August 18, 2011 Author Share Posted August 18, 2011 ... and a very gentle bump. This is really what MIDI was originally about encouraging cooperation between companies that make the world a more creative place." - Dave Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.