Hi. I'm a user of Yamaha Keyboards. On my PSR-2000 I can play chords that are recognized by the Keyboard. Furthermore the Keyboard contains Styles that adapt their behavior by the chord that I'm playing.
Is there a possibility to add such an accompaniment mode to Live (maybe by creating a new MIDI tool that allows this functionality)? I wish that I could set MIDI tracks in Live to behave according to the chord that I play. I also would like to set split points and MIDI channels on this tool so that I can define the range on my Keyboard where chords shall be recognized.
The two programs Live-Styler and One Man Band do that already. Would be cool, if people were able to do the same thing in Live. It would be even better if you created an import function for Yamaha Styles that are available for free widely on the Web. This would allow easily importing Yamaha Styles by arranging them into Scenes in Live (with all the Fill, Break, Intro and Ending as well as the (four) MAIN parts as seperate Scenes in Live).
I also would encourage you to build a separate timeline for Chords in the Arrangement view like Cubase 7 does that. This would help to write Chords on top of the arrangement and tell the MIDI-Instruments to play according to the "written Chord".
I think all of these suggestions would make writing music and playing in live much more easy.
Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
Sounds like a good idea, but I don't think you'll ever see it. Such a small percentage of Ableton users would probably ever use this feature. How ever Cthulhu by xfer can do some fun chord things that might be worth looking into.
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
Hi HamHat,
there's also this plugin available for free: http://www.thepiz.org/plugins/?p=midiChords
Unfortunately it only recognizes single notes but not whole chords like my Yamaha keyboard does. I can set my Yamaha keyboard to different Chord Fingering Modes like: Single finger, Multi finger, Fingered, Fingered on Bass, Full Keyboard, AI Fingered, AI Full Keyboard. Why is there no VST MIDI tool available that allows doing exactly the same? I haven't found a tool yet that recognizes chords and transforms them into note patterns that I created (like the Styles on the Yamaha Keyboard).
I really hope that Ableton will intergrate this function in the future. I think chording in the Arrangement view also would help a lot with the song production. Song parts would be based on the musical patterns that are created before in the corresponding clips (let's say in C Major). I would like to use the clips in Live as patterns that would be transformed by the MIDI plugin (e. g. in F Minor). Maybe a combination of the Scale plugin would do this, but first a MIDI plugin is needed that recognizes the played chords on the keyboard or the chord that I would write in the timeline in the Arrangement view in case Abletion will add this helpful feature.
there's also this plugin available for free: http://www.thepiz.org/plugins/?p=midiChords
Unfortunately it only recognizes single notes but not whole chords like my Yamaha keyboard does. I can set my Yamaha keyboard to different Chord Fingering Modes like: Single finger, Multi finger, Fingered, Fingered on Bass, Full Keyboard, AI Fingered, AI Full Keyboard. Why is there no VST MIDI tool available that allows doing exactly the same? I haven't found a tool yet that recognizes chords and transforms them into note patterns that I created (like the Styles on the Yamaha Keyboard).
I really hope that Ableton will intergrate this function in the future. I think chording in the Arrangement view also would help a lot with the song production. Song parts would be based on the musical patterns that are created before in the corresponding clips (let's say in C Major). I would like to use the clips in Live as patterns that would be transformed by the MIDI plugin (e. g. in F Minor). Maybe a combination of the Scale plugin would do this, but first a MIDI plugin is needed that recognizes the played chords on the keyboard or the chord that I would write in the timeline in the Arrangement view in case Abletion will add this helpful feature.
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
Here is about how I could imagine how it looks like in Live:
There's a Chord button for each MIDI track that adds a MIDI device when enabled. This MIDI device should allow manipulating the recorded Clips by changing their Scale and transposition to the currently played Chord recognized by the MIDI device that analyzes the incoming MIDI data for chords (there should be several Chord recognizing modes configurable like single note, fingered, etc. in this device).
In the arrangement view I would like to write Chords in the timeline. If the Chord button is enabled all the MIDI clips of this track should be transformed (also by this MIDI device by Scale and Transposition so that the Clips fit to the Chord set in the timeline).
The MIDI device should also allow the possibility of setting another MIDI input device and Input Channel that can be used for recognizing the Chords in realtime while Live plays the arrangement or the Clips.
I think that it would be best if the Clips would be transposed and adapted in their scale like the Yamaha Keyboards do that for their Style parts. Yamaha gives here a good example of how Live could implement that functionality...
There's a Chord button for each MIDI track that adds a MIDI device when enabled. This MIDI device should allow manipulating the recorded Clips by changing their Scale and transposition to the currently played Chord recognized by the MIDI device that analyzes the incoming MIDI data for chords (there should be several Chord recognizing modes configurable like single note, fingered, etc. in this device).
In the arrangement view I would like to write Chords in the timeline. If the Chord button is enabled all the MIDI clips of this track should be transformed (also by this MIDI device by Scale and Transposition so that the Clips fit to the Chord set in the timeline).
The MIDI device should also allow the possibility of setting another MIDI input device and Input Channel that can be used for recognizing the Chords in realtime while Live plays the arrangement or the Clips.
I think that it would be best if the Clips would be transposed and adapted in their scale like the Yamaha Keyboards do that for their Style parts. Yamaha gives here a good example of how Live could implement that functionality...
Last edited by Udo Behm on Mon Nov 18, 2013 8:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
Here's a suggestion of how the corresponding MIDI Device could look like:
This manual describes, how the Chord Fingering works for the Yamaha PSR-2000 Keyboard (see pages 62-63): http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/emi ... 2000E1.pdf
This manual describes, how the Chord Fingering works for the Yamaha PSR-2000 Keyboard (see pages 62-63): http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/emi ... 2000E1.pdf
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
I think that such an Accompaniment Mode/Chord detection function also would be very useful for creating MIDI devices like Vocal Harmonization or Vocoders. Such devices could be added to a Track and allow manipulation of incoming Audio signal in real time by the currently recognized chord or by the chord that is currently "played" in the timeline (when the play position turns over a "written" chord in the Arrangement view and this changes the "detected Chord" and therefore the Vocoder or Vocal Harmnony MIDI Device based on the detected Chord.
Would be cool if you might create such a Vocoder as an Audio effect with the option, that it changes its algorithm by the currently detected chord (that is either played and recognized live in the track where the "Chord" button is set or that is written in the timeline).
The Yamaha manual also gives here a good example of how Vocal Harmony works in my Keyboard (I think this behavior could be adapted 1-by-1 in Live). See pages 129-131: http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/emi ... 2000E1.pdf
Would be cool if you might create such a Vocoder as an Audio effect with the option, that it changes its algorithm by the currently detected chord (that is either played and recognized live in the track where the "Chord" button is set or that is written in the timeline).
The Yamaha manual also gives here a good example of how Vocal Harmony works in my Keyboard (I think this behavior could be adapted 1-by-1 in Live). See pages 129-131: http://www2.yamaha.co.jp/manual/pdf/emi ... 2000E1.pdf
Re: Add Accompaniment Mode in Live
I think this is a great idea.
But even a half way house would be so useful. So many times for my workflow I will begin with an idea which lives in one scene. Then I want the same thing but - say in minor instead of major - or also transposed - just to add harmonic variety and build a song structure that isnt just looping endlessly in one key like so much modern music does.
So - since I have a good ear - I just duplicate the scene and go in manually to harmonically transform any melodic or chordal clips to the exact new harmony I want.
Now there are many MIDI tools in LIVE now which crudely get you "there" but they are just that - crude. What we need is something like a good arranger where any harmonic transformation process gets done intelligently.
We often hear a lot of negative talk by producers and podcasters - who poo poo hardware arrangers - or/and also software ones like Band In A Box.
But given the ableton is more about starting ideas from scratch - simply to be able to make - say a scene - into an ableotn "Style" where the scene - one made by oneself - not a style-vendor - and then use fingered modes to experiment with harmonic ideas would be so liberating.
Modern DAWs and MPC type tools allow enormous amounts of experimentation in the sonic and rhythmic space- and they dont shy from creating marketplaces for pre-made content, like loop collections or NI MASCHINE Expansions... so the "made elsewhere" thing already exists. - just not in a very musically harmonically intelligent manner.
Imagine if NI MASCHINE expansions came with every melodic and chordal WAV loop having an equivalent MIDI file/pattern for it?
The world of arrangers whether hard or soft - would become more "hip" and useful - if content such as NI expansions were available in a form - along with the necessary software - that could be played as an arranger would.
It would expand possibilities not close them down.
But even a half way house would be so useful. So many times for my workflow I will begin with an idea which lives in one scene. Then I want the same thing but - say in minor instead of major - or also transposed - just to add harmonic variety and build a song structure that isnt just looping endlessly in one key like so much modern music does.
So - since I have a good ear - I just duplicate the scene and go in manually to harmonically transform any melodic or chordal clips to the exact new harmony I want.
Now there are many MIDI tools in LIVE now which crudely get you "there" but they are just that - crude. What we need is something like a good arranger where any harmonic transformation process gets done intelligently.
We often hear a lot of negative talk by producers and podcasters - who poo poo hardware arrangers - or/and also software ones like Band In A Box.
But given the ableton is more about starting ideas from scratch - simply to be able to make - say a scene - into an ableotn "Style" where the scene - one made by oneself - not a style-vendor - and then use fingered modes to experiment with harmonic ideas would be so liberating.
Modern DAWs and MPC type tools allow enormous amounts of experimentation in the sonic and rhythmic space- and they dont shy from creating marketplaces for pre-made content, like loop collections or NI MASCHINE Expansions... so the "made elsewhere" thing already exists. - just not in a very musically harmonically intelligent manner.
Imagine if NI MASCHINE expansions came with every melodic and chordal WAV loop having an equivalent MIDI file/pattern for it?
The world of arrangers whether hard or soft - would become more "hip" and useful - if content such as NI expansions were available in a form - along with the necessary software - that could be played as an arranger would.
It would expand possibilities not close them down.