[linux-audio-user] Drum pattern creation.

[Dave Phillips]

isabellf wrote:

> I'm looking for information on the art of drum pattern creation. I 
> don't talk about "howtos" for various drum machines or sequencers, I 
> know how to use these, I just suck at creating good drum patterns ;-( 

You can find collections of MIDI files that are just drum patterns, they 
may be useful to study. Try Googling for "drum patterns MIDI files".

> One of the first thing I should probably do is study drum and get a 
> teacher or something, but I felt maybe some of you know some tricks: 
> what to avoid , what can be used at will, how to create fills... I 
> even though I could receive a pattern library full of examples. 

You really should take some lessons, if only to find out more about the 
instrument you're writing for. There are a gazillion playing techniques 
for percussion instruments.

Some simple advice: If you're designing a pattern for a drum kit and you 
want to make it sound "real", remember that a player can make a maximum 
of only four simultaneous sounds (two feet, two hands). Watch and study 
how drummers actually get around their sets: you'll be able to write 
things with a drum machine that of course are not humanly possible, and 
you'll have to decide whether you want to restrict your patterns to 
"playable" kinds or if you'll just write without considering playability.

Another thing to be aware of is panning. It sounds ridiculous to have a 
snare drum panned hard left and your high-hat panned far right. 
Visualize the kit's layout, set your pan controls to a rather narrow 
range if you want to create a convincing virtual set.

Use velocity and pitch variation. Yes, percussion instruments have a 
pitch component, and small variations impart much liveliness. Vary the 
velocity too: no player plays two notes in a row with absolutely the 
same articulation. If your software includes humanization controls (e.g. 
Hydrogen) be sure to use them, they can help loosen up a too-rigid feel 
to your rhythms.

Use effects sparingly. It's a bit of a "false" effect, but I've found 
that adding a little reverb to my high-hat lines really opens up the 
sound, even though the other instruments are not "effected".

And be sure to check out the demos for Hydrogen, you can learn a lot 
from them too.

> I currently use rosegarden4 sequencer, the matrix editor is nice for 
> drum part edition, but I also have hydrogen and tk707.

TK707 is a lot of fun, especially if you've owned a TR707. Hydrogen 
rocks solid, it's my drum machine of choice these days. I just put an 
article about Hydrogen on-line for the Linux Journal, check it out here:

    http://linuxjournal.com/article.php?sid=7846&mode=thread&order=0

I hope some of that helps. Good luck !

Best,

dp