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Listen To Synth X Chill Out Song By Promenade2239 At Looperman.com

31st Jan 2016 18:44 - 9 years ago
Description : Written 31/01/2016. My intention was to make something that will sound like a religious hymn. For this piece I used Akai Rhythm Wolf (some drums), Waldorf Blofeld (pads, background sounds, keys as well as drums and percussions), Roland Juno Di (keys and some other few things in the background). No samples - everything made entirely from scratch using synthesizers. Overall the track is based on 2 quite simple but contrasting harmonically keyboard riffs. Comments are welcome, as always. Thank you for listening.

Comments (5)

If you have time take a listen and give promenade2239 some feedback.

Spivkurl
Spivkurl 18th Feb 2016 17:00 - 9 years ago
This was a wonderful listening experience, and I'm going to press play again, as I was reading the other comments while listening through the first time. I think that the background noise that others mentioned gives very live expression feel to the track. Additionally, if you ended up with 30 tracks when making this song entirely with hardware sources, then it is nearly unavoidable without some severe post-processing. The first time, I listened at a more normal "online" volume, and didn't notice much noise, this time I've turned it up. The "all over the place" arpeggiations are perfectly tuned to my ears, and I know that this is no small feat. Beautiful atmosphere throughout the piece! You are right about this patch which reminds you of a traditional e-piano, it does for me as well. I've been multi-sampling my Concertmate C-1000 for electric piano and harpsichord sounds lately, but the sound you achieved is definitely more authentic. I like the minimalist drums you provided. I know there are some people who give hate to REAL analog drums, in which the high end is comprised almost entirely of noise, but I find it to be comforting. Reminds me of some of the more modern jazz I listened to obsessively, and I appreciate the reminder. All in all, a very pleasing experience to hear. Faved!
promenade2239
promenade2239 replied 21st Feb 2016 - 9 years ago
Thank you so much for a nice review!

I came up with this musical piece after practicing gospel sheet piano arrangements and there are some progressions here inspired somehow by those arrangments, I think. The main 'e-piano' is a particular preset of Blofeld called 'Yamlitzer' but it is still a synthesized piano sound. Those piano upper additions at the end of the piece are from Roland synth which has some really fine e-piano sounds (but quite shitty keyboard action in my opinion). Overall I couldn't help but just 'color' the track by adding all that candy arpeggios.
I am glad you liked the overall atmosphere as it was my main focus truly! - I really spent much time adjusting things very carefully here and I am happy you found the connection with the proper 'tuning' aspect! I always play everything from a keyboard (here by using the Roland to trigger the Blofeld sounds) - it is almost an 'intuitive approach' to music I present here. Also I want to incorporate more true analogue drums and synth sounds in the future!

I played some videos to get the idea of a Concertmate synth and I really liked it's sounds and the lovely microkeys. Although apparently this can't be compared to the Roland sound-engine quality but still the 'key' is in actual 'playing', I think. I do not know much about the mechanics of a sampling software but I think I achieved some relatively satysfying results when using a particular Boesendorfer multi-velocity sample-based piano in 'Kontakt'. It works to me somehow when connected to the Casio keyboard with weighted keys - at least when using some very special 'velocity' settings. Blofeld's e-piano sounds can react really weirdly when pressing keys unproperly. Same Roland patches. It almost feels lika a new instrument to learn and practise each time for me.

I am glad I could provide some enjoyable moments for you. Thank you for nice words!
Tumbleweed
Tumbleweed 3rd Feb 2016 02:14 - 9 years ago
You likely know that I am not much of a synth/keys player as for me its just a way of finding the backing music so I really appreciate what you have going here...any of the real synths I have owned over past years came with their own character and often included whatever noise was included with the actual sound generating process so I kind of automatically listen past that stuff...and I appreciate that you did the music the real way musicians have done it and brought their own special brand to or ears over the years...Keep doing it...its what makes the music you do unique...enjoyed the listen....well done...Ed
promenade2239
promenade2239 replied 5th Feb 2016 - 9 years ago
Hello Ed

Thank you for kind comment and I am happy you enjoyed listening!

I am academically trained keyboard player (classical, not jazz - still struggling to go beyond classical) so it is very natural to me to just play everything on keyboards. From that very special perspective, I would say, basically I hate creating music using just a mouse pad tweaking different virtual programms (which I used to do a lot anyway). Probably it is because I still believe that there is something (magical?) in real instruments, I do not know. Real instruments offer an instant reaction and they are realistically resonating objects ultimately...

I occasionally take a chance to record church organs in their natural environment (which is not always easy) and also want to record acoustic piano soon as well as maybe do some more realistic and progressive music sometime. It would be great to talk to you and discuss some details then!

Thank you again for all support you're giving me

Alex
crucethus
crucethus 3rd Feb 2016 01:27 - 9 years ago
Nice mix of analogue synths and jazz sensibilities. It made some sweet background music as well. It's chill and avante-garde. takes the best of the boys from sheffield in the seventies and the brilliance of modern chill-jazz. good work.
Steve
promenade2239
promenade2239 replied 5th Feb 2016 - 9 years ago
Hello Steve

Thank you for your nice words!
This is a track I made last Sunday afternoon playing with 'colors' trying to expand the sound sonically so to speak (acoustically, electronically or whatever). Nothing much of a true melodic substance or a solid, evolving, dynamic-oriented song-writing work in here (but I am still struggling going definitely into that direction so do not worry). No metric modulations - just few jazzy chords and some basic drumming and simple structure alternating the elements.

Thanks for pointing some connections to older music - I absolutely love classic recordings.
Glad you enjoyed some of musical illusions I created intentionally or not

Best to you, Alex
SikNoiz
SikNoiz 1st Feb 2016 19:51 - 9 years ago
StaticNomad basically said everything I was thinking.
I love this type of atmospheric music.

Sorry for not writing more, but I don't want to repeat what was already said.

:)
promenade2239
promenade2239 replied 2nd Feb 2016 - 9 years ago
hello SikNoiz

thanks for nice comments. Yes, my focus was on the athmosperics mainly - it's all a Blofeld synthesizer. Making backgrounds busy was one way to push this composition sounding somewhere interesting as I can't contribute too much of anything satysfying in terms of keyboard playing.

Take care,
A.
StaticNomad
StaticNomad 31st Jan 2016 20:08 - 9 years ago
Yo.

This is some interesting far out stuff.

I watched your video of you programming your new drum machine and meant to make a particular point but never did. The point was that the kind dance style you were doing in that video sounds nothing like the kind of music you seem to make most of the time.

So I wondered if you were going to use the new drum machine to go in a different musical direction.

With this track, it seems you have incorporated the Akai Rhythm Wolf into your usual sound.

Anyway: nice chill intro and laidback slightly funky chords.

0:22 a fun little change and quirky synth sounds.

0:43 nice note.

1:01 we get a firmer drum groove. Sounds like an old 80s lo-fi drum machine. A little bit hip hop.

There seems to be quite a lot of noise on the track at various points. Is that intentional?

2:37 good high, shimmering keys

This is more if your lazy, chillout stuff that I hear as good background music. Not exciting or dynamic music but pleasant stuff.
promenade2239
promenade2239 replied 1st Feb 2016 - 9 years ago
Yo, Static

thank you for detailed review.

The main idea was to make everything on new synthesizers. I started with Wolf only and somehow wanted to see where this 'process' can eventally take me. Then adding more layers I finally ended up with around 30 tracks. I think the noise is coming from Akai Rhythm Wolf - by turning up the 'howl' distortion it always gerenrates a lot of noise. It might be also a result of bad cable connections - probably there was a sort of electrical interference happening. I am awaiting new equipment so I should get cleaner sound next time. I was aware of this but worked too quickly and couldn't fix the problem afterwards.

Regarding to the future perspectives on my music production I actually want to make everything in much simple ways than before. For example: all the ring-modulated background sounds in this song are mainly created using Waldorf Blofeld - new synthesizer I've invested in recently. Waldorf offers amazing sound-design possibilities. Some great textures can be made in just few moments (after mastering it's practical sound-modulation synthesis capabilities and learning how to manage it's menues of course).
Also I intend to record some keyboard music on my upright piano (I probably mentioned this many times before) but it probably will wait again few weeks - I work physically a lot so my hands are quite rough. Overall I still have a very little energy for music, mainly because of too many work commitments.
I worked online with Spivkurl a lot over past few months and wanted also to create some more raw, realistic and powerful electronic sounds. That may be the one of directions of developing my future sound.

The 2 chord progressions of the track are: Bb13 - Ebm9, Ab13 - Dbm9 so V (dominant) - I (minor) which sounds quite jazzy. The other is CM-GM, BbM - FM (all major chords) - a kind of IV-I bluesy/gospel sort of sound. First one recorded on Waldorf's 'Electric Organ' (which actually reminds a proper electric piano sound) - other on Roland's 'D-6 clavinet' preset ('outro' ending on 'electric piano' presets).

At 0:22 starts the 'major' progression, changing the mood. 0:43 was Roland's 'fantasy' sound with a little bit of sitar in it.

You're right about the 80's snare - the one I use (from Akai) is a kind of charecteristic noisy drum maschine sound and it really may reminisce some older recordings. The way I placed few simple snare fills produces quite 80's flavoured sound too.
There is extensive drum layering (Waldorf's bass drums and some other percussive sounds) and complex background (again Waldorf with some deep pads). I placed also some amount of arpeggiated quasi-melodies creating nice funky movement.

I am glad you liked the overall sound and my vision. Surely I want to make more spectacular and original music. We will see. I am still learning how to use new synthesizers so it may take some time.

Thanks again for good words.

Nice day to you, A.

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