Ableton Forum

fallX, what you are describing is auto-accompaniment, also called band-in-a-box. this type of "arpeggiating" has been around for some time.

in the hardware world, the easiest way to get what you are after is to use a midi-sequencer that has auto-accompaniment. for example the yamaha qy70.

in the software world, i'm sure there are many options BUT live can do this built-in although its a little tricky.

check it out:

http://www.ableton.com/forum/viewtopic. ... 87a5646f8f

as you can tell i'm a Usine fan,i was before a Max/Msp fan.
one of the differences is that Usine free can be ideal for this purpose.
this is not a war,i'm also an Ableton fan
if the Live arp could do that i cetainly say nothing except:greetings!

you should have a look at the arp in nexus it has a basic pattern sequencer that least you pick/input patterns the you just hold a sing note and it plays.

really handy for basslines... means you can get the pattern right once and can just switch notes.. its also lockable so you can switch synth patches but keep the same patterns.

philter wrote:really handy for basslines... means you can get the pattern right once and can just switch notes..

that's also possible in Live btw, no need for Nexus. Just assign a midi note range to a midi clip and off ya go.

If I've understood correctly, that's exactly what I used to use EnergyXT for.

Using the step sequencer, you program a sequence of notes/rests etc.

As you play a key on a connected MIDI keyboard, it triggers and shifts the sequence up or down dependent on the note you are playing. If you play in a chord, it does the same thing but obviously polyphonically.

Is that it?

not sure if i totaly understand your needs, but zebra2 vst has a very interesting arp... checkmit out at www.u-he.com

Thanks for all the replies, I'll check everything out once I find the time.

In the meantime, here's a WIP screenshot of my little tool :



Four bars, each with 8 steps, and each step has a pitch number, a velocity number, a mute and a hold button. There are randomize buttons as well (which will be configurable, ie between X and Y), and an evolve button (which will gradually randomize steps, using the same configuration).

I already managed to get the Midi Clock from Ableton and synch to it, but it doesn't actually do anything yet...

Couldn't this be achieved with scale and chord?

Don't think so, but I don't know them very well. At least, I don't think it would be easy to do so, and it wouldn't have the randomization and evolving features I have here, nor the capabality to store and call patterns or even single bars on-the-fly.

Machinate wrote:

philter wrote:really handy for basslines... means you can get the pattern right once and can just switch notes..

that's also possible in Live btw, no need for Nexus. Just assign a midi note range to a midi clip and off ya go.

Really? how would you go about doing this... it would be really useful

philter wrote:

Machinate wrote:

philter wrote:really handy for basslines... means you can get the pattern right once and can just switch notes..

that's also possible in Live btw, no need for Nexus. Just assign a midi note range to a midi clip and off ya go.

Really? how would you go about doing this... it would be really useful

ctrl+m, select clip, hold two midi notes to define range, ctrl+m

Cool, It works to an extent i don't think its as practical as nexus for writing purposes but is defiantly a cool feature for live performances.

If I get right what you want, you can achieve this with Live Arpeggiator. It looks different to what you had in mind but is fully functional, quite elegant and very powerful.

See the new thread here:

http://forum.ableton.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=113137

Marc for Azure Feast.

www.AzureFeast.com