Sonoran Music Devices releases Monsoon: a chord track and much more for Ableton Live

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jbone1313
Posts: 578
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2007 2:44 am

Sonoran Music Devices releases Monsoon: a chord track and much more for Ableton Live

Post by jbone1313 » Fri Sep 01, 2023 3:33 pm

Monsoon is an Ableton Max For Live solution which provides control over the harmony of an entire composition or Live set via live input or recorded notes. It uses a single MIDI track and the notes that track receives through either live MIDI input or recorded MIDI notes to control – in real time – the scales, modes, chords, etc. of all or some of the MIDI tracks in a composition or Live set.

Monsoon offers an ultra-smooth workflow. The user interface is minimal, as it leverages Ableton Live’s native interface and tools to manage user input. In other words, “it just works.”

What can you do with Monsoon?
  • Employ a “chord track” to control the entire harmonic content of a composition or Live set via live input or recorded notes.
  • Decouple the rhythm and harmony of an entire composition or Live set.
  • "Conduct" the harmony of a composition or Live set.
  • Effortlessly, playfully, and with limited knowledge of music theory explore western harmony.
  • Effortlessly employ modal interchange, chord substitutions, relative major/minor, chord inversions, voice leadings, and more.
  • Transpose an entire composition or Live set by mashing buttons like the endless sequencer transposition feature of a popular Swedish hardware device.
What are some specific examples?
  • Channel your inner John Coltrane. Drop in complex jazz changes like “Giant Steps” and improvise over them like a virtuoso jazz musician.
  • Immediately change the entire harmony of a composition by simply replacing the Live clip of the control track. For example, you can instantly make your composition or Live set use the harmony of, say, Madonna’s “Borderline” or the jazz standard “Autumn Leaves.”
  • Connect MIDI triggers to a drum kit or modular MIDI generator and route those triggers to individual tracks. One track might receive the bass drum trigger and control a bass instrument while another track might receive a snare drum trigger and control a chord instrument. Monsoon will superimpose harmony over the rhythms coming from the drum kit or modular MIDI generator.
This device is available for purchase here:

https://sonoranmusicdevices.gumroad.com/l/monsoon

Video manual here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji6jJfZd-K8

jbone1313
Posts: 578
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2007 2:44 am

Re: Sonoran Music Devices releases Monsoon: a chord track and much more for Ableton Live

Post by jbone1313 » Wed Jan 10, 2024 5:25 pm

Monsoon has been updated. The update is free for all existing users. The change log is below.

I am really pleased with the update. I did not think it is possible to have Monsoon run on individual tracks, but after a month of research and coding, now it is. I think this brings Monsoon as close to a native Ableton Live experience as I can get.

Monsoon 1.2 change log:
  • Monsoon is now automatically latency compensated at the following buffer sizes: 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, and 8192. Other buffer sizes are supported via a config file.
  • Monsoon's setup has been simplified.
  • Monsoon no longer requires multiple tracks per instrument.
  • Monsoon no longer requires Reduced Latency When Monitoring to be off.
  • Monsoon no longer requires setting track delays.
  • Monsoon Humanizer's Sync mode arpeggiator's Retrigger parameter is now set to None.
  • Updated manual.
https://youtu.be/Vk7z3RGRyog?si=92ompddOdhgYB7B_

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