help needed for drum track creation.

C

cortexx

Member
Here is my ordeal.

I'm a keyboard player , i love playing my boards and also composing my own material but seriously lack the ability to create good, original drum sections.

I have a DR880 and native intruments battery so i have the tools but lack the workflow to put stuff together.

What i'm looking for is basic information on how to create drum and rhythm pieces to integrate into my work, I love trance , dance , industrial etc but have a mental blockage with the rhythm section.

I'm pretty sure I can come up with alot of original sounding music if only I could translate thought into a tangible beat.

Do any of you guys have any tips on where to get started on this , maybe even share your own workflow techniques for your drum sections.

Up to this point I have been relying on pre-programmed rhythm presets but i really want to be making my own.

thanks

;)
 
Tips for half-time feel

Using Alesis SR-16 (and no I am not interested in buying anything else :D )

I have a song that is suppossed to slow down at the end... the last measure or two and on the SR-16 the whole song is programmed to one tempo... so any tips on how to create a pattern that would sound like it was half-time?
 
blutimus said:
I have a song that is suppossed to slow down at the end... the last measure or two and on the SR-16 the whole song is programmed to one tempo... so any tips on how to create a pattern that would sound like it was half-time?
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This may be no help at all since I don't know what other equipment you're using, but here's what works for me when it comes to tempo changes.

I create a tempo map on my recorder (Yamaha 2816) and then hook it to my drum machine (DR-770) so that the recorder is the master and the drum machine is the slave. Then I transfer drum voices to the recorder one pass at a time, putting each voice on a different track. Because it's following the tempo map, the recorder orders the drum machine to slow down and speed up automatically at all the appropriate points in the song.
 
Well that's a pretty good tip... though I don't know jack about MIDI :eek:

I have a Tascam 788 and the SR16 so I assume I could pull that off... I'll have to study up on that...

I was thinking something like making a patern that was the same length as the main pattern but with half the drum events...

Thanks for the tip...
 
blutimus said:
Well that's a pretty good tip... though I don't know jack about MIDI
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Yeah. I wish I could tell you that MIDI is easy and intuitive, but I didn't find it to be that way. On the other hand, I did find it to be well worth the time I invested in figuring it out, even though I really hate reading manuals.

I was thinking something like making a patern that was the same length as the main pattern but with half the drum events...
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Cutting drum events in half will definitely have an impact on your song -- maybe even a really good one -- but I strongly doubt that it will create the illusion of a tempo change. It's much more likely to create the impression of a sudden "hole" in the music, which will definitely grab the listener's attention. And that can be either good or bad, depending mostly on what comes next.

If you decide to experiment with it, please come back and share the results in the forum so we can benefit from your experience.
 
I spent some time following your links and they were very informative but what im looking for is suggested workflows, how do you guy start your tracks from the ground up?

Do you start programming the complete kick sequence in the track ? do you program fillins while doing this or are you waiting and adding them at the end?

My main problem is that Im a total keyboard player with practically no experience creating drum tracks.

:confused:
 
cortexx said:
My main problem is that Im a total keyboard player with practically no experience creating drum tracks.
Click to expand...
In general, I'd say that most people start with the kick, then add the snare, and then start layering cymbals, toms, and percussion on top of that.

But since, like me, you're not a drummer, I'd recommend that you resign yourself to using the preset rythm patterns on your DR-880 -- at least for a while. That's pretty much what I do with my DR-770. Since I'm not a drummer, I figure there's not much chance I'll be able to program a pattern better than the guys who created the presets, so I start with the presets and then tweak the parts that I just can't live with.

Perhaps this suggests another good starting place for you. Perhaps you should try dissecting a few of the preset patterns on your DR-880 to see how they're put together. Then you might feel more comfortable building your own patterns.
 
Yea your rightks ...

I have been using and tweaking the presets for over a year now and im looking to really diversify my rhythms.

I have want i want in my head , making it reality is a huge hurdle :o

It's incredibly frustrating not being able to reproduce thought to sound.
 
Maybe I missing something but it seems that what your looking for is more related to ideas than techniques? Possibly you could hook up with a good drummer/percussionist for a while and trade ideas. Possibly this will give you some insight to create your own parts electronically afterwards.

Just a thought!
 
Well I have the ideas , i can envision and hear the track in my head (cue:twilight zone music) , but getting it reproduced on my drum machine is a major hurdle , I am actually trying to get it down in NI battery too and can't get it right.

I feel like someone in a coma that can hear people talking but can't talk back. :mad:
 
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