Lead Lines and Harmonies

7/28/2019 Lead Lines and Harmonies

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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmonies

Lesson 6: Your first original song!

Lead lines and harmonies

So far, students have explored pattern-based recording in the production of their drum andbass tracks. However this lesson is an opportunity for some more creative work, exploringreal-time recording using a MIDI keyboard.

Students will improvise and record some melodic and harmonic ideas to fit their drum andbass tracks from previous lessons.

Lesson preparation - What you need to know

Although basic real-time recording techniques have already been covered in previous les-sons, some additional tips and techniques are introduced, which will help students achievea successful result.

Teaching this lesson requires some familiarity with real-time recording via MIDI keyboardand with quantizing techniques.

You can prepare for the lesson by reading the following pages, A teacher guide to record-ing via MIDI keyboard, quantizing and grouping material.

Students will probably need to edit some of their recorded material by adjusting individualnote pitches and velocities, and perhaps adding additional parts. This will be covered inLesson 7, where material can be refined and arranged to form a finished song.

About the lesson song files

The song file Lesson 6 is intended for you to use when introducing Task 1. It contains se-quenced drum and bass tracks over which you can demonstrate improvising and recordingideas on a new track.

Students will work in both Tasks 1 and 2 with the current version of their original song. For

convenience, this is referred to in the teaching plan as the Lesson 4 song file.

! Check out the StudentWorksheet for animmediate overview ofthe lesson tasks.


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88 Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesLesson preparation and background reading

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Lesson preparation and backgroundreading

A teacher guide to recording via MIDI keyboard,quantizing and grouping material

Preparing a track for recording has already been covered in Lesson 3. However, when re-cording via MIDI keyboard, there are some additional things to consider.

Exploring sounds and improvising

Your students will probably start by exploring one or two sounds. These will now be ac-cessed from the devices in the rack via MIDI keyboard.

To hear a sound:

1 Select the sequencer track connected to the device whose sounds you want to hear.

2 Click the In column so that a MIDI icon appears.

3 Play your keyboard and you should now hear the sound.

D When improvising at the keyboard, students who have difficulty playing in time with othertracks may find it helpful to activate the Click button (1) on the Transport Panel.

This provides a metronome click or beep to help you keep in time.It can also be helpful to use the Click when recording.

Further recording tips

Tracks can be recorded in several small sections - it is not necessary to complete the wholething in one take! Move the Song Position marker to the place where you want to start re-cording each time.

We have previously recorded pattern change information in real time. Now we will be re-cording note information directly onto a track.

D Set up for recording as before and play the keyboard.This time, individual notes will be displayed on the track (1).

! If you cannot hear anysound, check thePreferences/MIDIpage to make sure that

your keyboard MIDIinput port and MIDIchannel have beencorrectly specified.

1

! When improvising(and recording) morecomplex passages, itcan also be helpful toslow the tempo bychanging the setting.Return the tempo to

its original setting forplayback.

1


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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesLesson preparation and background reading

Because Reason does not give you a count-in, you may want to set the Song Positionmarker so that the sequencer starts 1 or 2 bars before you actually intend to record, givingyou time to prepare.

Passages containing chords or layered textures can be recorded in several takes. TheOverdub switch (2) allows you to keep adding more material in the same bars.

D Set the Locators to the start and end points of the passage you want to record, and ac-tivate the Loop button.With the switch set to Overdub, you can keep recording more material each time the se-lected passage repeats. If you set the switch to Replace, previous material will be erasedwhen you next record on the track.

Creating a group

If you have recorded a phrase that you plan to use several times on a track, you can group

the individual notes together to form a unit which can then be moved or copied to otherplaces.

1 Select the pencil tool.

2 Click at the start of the material you want to group and hold down the mouse button.

3 Drag the mouse to the end of the material and release the button.

Quantizing

When recording via MIDI keyboard, you may find that the result isnt always as accurate asyou hoped! A common problem is for the recorded track to be slightly out of time with theother material, or with the Click. To compensate for this and to correct rhythmic glitches,you can apply a quantize. Quantizing moves notes to the nearest specified part of a beat, forexample, a 1/16th quantize moves notes to the nearest 16th beat. A 1/8th quantize movesthem to the nearest 1/8th beat. So any notes that have been played slightly before or afterthe beat will now be moved onto the beat.

Quantizing can be used in two ways:

During recording

Depending on the complexity of the material you plan to record, you can set up a value in theQuantize drop-down menu. This takes into account the smallest note values you plan to play

e.g. 16ths. By enabling the Quantize Notes During Recording button, any uneven timingshould automatically be corrected as you record your material.

! If you are recording abrand new song, youmay want to allow 1 or2 empty bars at thestart.

2

! When creatinggroups, it is helpful tohave the snap valueset to Bar.


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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesTeaching Plan Lesson 6

Teaching Plan Lesson 6

Introduction: Lead lines and harmonies

What makes a hit song? It might be good to dance to, but quite often its because theres a

melody, lead line or hook that everyone can sing!

Some styles of music rely heavily on melodies or lead lines, supported by harmonies that

help create a mood, and key changes that give a feeling of movement. Other styles such

as jazz have quite complex harmonies and more improvised sounding lead lines. Dancemusic styles are often quite rhythm based, but use repetitive chord sequences and short

melodic phrases to punctuate the music.

In this lesson you are going to record a lead line and some harmonies to go with your drum

and bass tracks. This time however, you can record using your MIDI keyboard.

Introductory activity

D Briefly outline some ways in which melodies and harmonies are used in todays music.Play one or two short extracts from audio CDs that illustrate some of the following andmight provide creative ideas for students:

The roles of rhythm and lead guitars power chords, riffs, etc.

Other instrumental riffs - bass, keyboards.

Use of strings short melodic phrases, soaring violin sounds, chord sequences.

Keyboard textures, or pads that form a middle layer between a bass line and melody.

Brass stabs (octaves or chords) that add interest to the ends of phrases.

Chord and key changes that create tension, or link song sections.

Melodies: memorable hooks, fragmented or improvised sounding melodies, call andresponse between different instruments or voices.

Introducing the use of a MIDI keyboard for accessing sounds and recording musicalideas.

Introducing the concept of quantization.

Exploring the use of a MIDI keyboard for accessing sounds and recording musicalideas.

Evaluating some advantages and disadvantages of real-time keyboard recording. Understanding some basic functions of quantization, applying an appropriate quantize

to tracks as necessary.

Your notes:

! Lesson Aims:

! Student Skills:

! If you have plenty ofavailable lesson time,include this task as aclass listening anddiscussion activity. Iftime is limited, go

straight to Task 1.


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92 Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesTeaching Plan Lesson 6

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Task 1: Improvising and recording

Students will improvise and record a short phrase or idea on one of the tracks.

Referring to the worksheet requirements and How to... pages, briefly introduce this task bydemonstrating the following:

D Access sounds from different devices via MIDI keyboard. (Activate the MIDI icon on thetrack connected to the device whose sounds you want to hear.)

D Set up a loop (4 or 8 bars) as an aid to improvising and experimenting with ideas.

D Activate the Click, or slow the tempo to help play in time with the other tracks.

D Set up a track for recording, enabling Quantize Notes During Recording.

D Record a few bars and play these back. Look at the recorded notes on the track.

D Show how to overdub additional ideas over the previously recorded material (check thatthe switch is set to Overdub).

Student practical work

Students open their own Lesson 4 song files and work as follows:

a. Using your MIDI keyboard, start by playing around with some ideas.

Explore some sounds on the NN19 sample players and the Subtractor 1 synth. Which sounds might be good to use for i) lead lines, ii) harmonies or pads? Why? What will you try to record first, a lead line, or some harmonies? Why have you chosen to do

this?

b. Is the music playing too fast for you to keep up?

Try changing the tempo to make it slower. Use the Click to help you play in time.

c. Now try recording something.

Before you start, click on the Quantize Notes During Recording button.

If you want to record chords or a layered part, try looping a few bars and overdubbing.

d. Listen to your recording. What do you think of the result?

Does the rhythm sound uneven anywhere? Have you played any wrong notes? Are any individual notes too loud or too soft? Do you want to delete your recording and try again?

Your notes:

! To introduce this task,you can either workwith a song file of yourown, or use the songfile Lesson 6. Thiscontains some drumand bass tracks, overwhich new material

can be recorded.

! see StudentWorksheet


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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesTeaching Plan Lesson 6

Task 2: Making rhythmic adjustments and recording more ideas

Students can now try and adjust any rhythmic inaccuracies in their Task 1 recording. Theycan then record some additional ideas on other tracks.

Briefly introduce this task as follows:

D Show how to quantize any notes that may still be out of time in the students recordedmaterial. Demonstrate different quantize values e.g. 1/16 or 1/8 (Undo each time).

D Show how to group the newly recorded material into 2- or 4-bar phrases using thepencil tool.

Student practical work

Guidelines:

a. Does your Task 1 recording still sound a bit out of time in places?

Try quantizing the track. What happens to some of the notes on the track as you click theQuantize Notes button?

b. Record some more ideas on other tracks. Each track can be recorded in small sections.

Try to think in phrases or chord sequences.

c. Group your recorded notes on each track into 2- or 4-bar phrases this will help when

you come to do some arranging.

d. Try changing the sounds on some of your new tracks.

Which sounds do you prefer and why?

Additional lesson notes and comments:

! see StudentWorksheet


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94 Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesStudent Worksheet - Lesson 6

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Student Worksheet - Lesson 6

Your new song now needs a lead line and some harmonies. In this lesson, you are going touse a MIDI keyboard to help you record some ideas.

Open the file containing your own song and play the tracks youve recorded so far.

Task 1: Improvising and recording

a. Using your MIDI keyboard, start by playing around with some ideas.

Explore some sounds on the NN19 sample players and the Subtractor 1 synth. Which sounds might be good to use for i) lead lines, ii) harmonies or pads? Why? What will you try to record first, a lead line, or some harmonies?

Why have you chosen to do this?

b. Is the music playing too fast for you to keep up?

Try changing the tempo to make it slower. Use the Click to help you play in time.

c. Now try recording something.

Before you start, click on the Quantize Notes During Recording button. If you want to record chords or a layered part, try looping a few bars and overdubbing.

d. Listen to your recording. What do you think of the result?

Does the rhythm sound uneven anywhere? Have you played any wrong notes? Are any individual notes too loud or too soft?

Do you want to delete your recording and try again?

Task 2: Making rhythmic adjustments and recording more ideas

a. Does your Task 1 recording still sound a bit out of time in places?Try quantizing the track. What happens to some of the notes on the track as you click the

Quantize Notes button?

b. Record some more ideas on other tracks. Each track can be recorded in small sections.

Try to think in phrases or chord sequences.

c. Group your recorded notes on each track into 2- or 4-bar phrases this will help when

you come to do some arranging.

d. Try changing the sounds on some of your new tracks.

Which sounds do you prefer and why?

! Use your How toguide to help youimprovise and record.

Check out: How to explore

sounds using yourMIDI keyboard.

Check out: How to prepare for im-

provising.

Check out: How to prepare for re-

cording. How to quantize notes

during recording.

Check out: How to delete re-

corded material.

Check out: How to quantize notesafter recording.

Check out: How to record from

different places on thetrack.

Check out: How to create a

group.


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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesLesson 6 How to student guide

Lesson 6 How to student guide

How to explore sounds using your MIDI keyboard

1 Select the sequencer track connected to the device whose sounds you want to hear.

2 Click the In column on the track so that a MIDI icon appears.

3 Play your keyboard and you should hear the sound.

How to prepare for improvising

1 If you want to work on a few bars at a time, set up a Loop by dragging the Left and Right

Locators to the required places to set the start and end points.

2 Click the Loop button on the Transport Panel to activate looping.

3 If you cant keep up with the music when playing, try slowing down the tempo.

How to prepare for recording

1 Select the sequencer track on which you want to record, and click the In column so

that the MIDI icon appears.

2 Set the Song Position marker to the place where you want to start recording, and acti-

vate the Click button (1). (If you want to have a couple of bars count in, set themarker to the start of the required count in bars.)

3 Adjust the tempo (2) so that you can record at a comfortable speed. (Return the tempo

to its original setting when you come to play back your recording.)

4 If you want to record a part with chords, or several layers: Set the Left and Right Locators to the required start and end positions and activate the Loop

button. Check that the Overdub/Replace switch (3) is set to Overdub. Click Record, Play and add more material each time the looped bars repeat.

How to quantize notes during recording

This will correct the timing of notes while you are actually recording.

1 Set up a value in the Quantize drop-down menu (1), which allows for the smallest note

values you plan to play e.g. 16ths.(You may need to experiment with several different values to get the best result.)

2 Click the Quantize Notes During Recording button (2), and record as usual.

1 2

3

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How to delete recorded material

If you dont like what you just recorded, you can either:

D Delete the notes using the eraser tool.

D Select Undo Record Track from the Edit menu, or

D Change the Overdub/Replace switch to Replace and record over the existing ma-terial. (Remember to change it back afterwards!)

How to quantize notes after recording

If the timing of some notes still isnt right, you can do some more quantizing.

1 In the sequencers Quantize drop-down menu (1), select a value. Try 1/16 or 1/8 to start

with.

2 Click on the sequencer track to select it.

3 Click the Quantize Notes button (2) you should see the notes move slightly on the

track. (If this sounds worse, select Undo Quantize from the Edit menu and try again

with a different value.)

How to record from different places on the track

D Drag the Song Position marker to the place where you want to start recording. Then setup and record as usual.

How to create a group

1 Select the pencil tool, click at the start of the material you want to group and hold down

the mouse button.

2 Drag the mouse to the end of the material then release the button.

(Click on the Arrow tool when youve finished using the pencil.)

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! When creatinggroups, it is helpful tohave the snap valueset to Bar.


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Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesLesson 6 How to student guide

How to record drum sounds in real time

In addition to creating a drum track from patterns, you can use your MIDI keyboard to triggerindividual Redrum sounds and record these in real time, even if you already have some pat-tern material or drum notes on the track! This might be useful if you want to add an extra fill,or some additional notes.

To explore the drum sounds:

1 Click on the Redrum sequencer track to select it.

2 Click the In column so that the MIDI icon appears.

3 Start with the key C1 on your MIDI keyboard, press the key and you should hear a drum

sound. On Redrum youll see a sound channel arrow button light up.

4 On your keyboard, work upwards by step from C1 and explore more sounds. Each drum

sound is triggered by a specific key.

To record the drum sounds:

1 Select the Redrum sequencer track.

2 Click the In column so that the MIDI icon appears.

3 Set the Song Position marker to the required starting place.

4 If you are adding to material that is already on your Redrum track, make sure the Over-

dub/Replace switch on the Transport Panel is set to Overdub.

Otherwise you erase the existing material by mistake.

5 Click Record, then Play.

6 Play your keyboard. When youve finished, stop recording.

Youll see the extra notes added to your track.


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98 Lesson 6: Your first original song! Lead lines and harmoniesLesson 6 How to student guide

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Documents

Lead Lines and Harmonies