Sampling in Ableton: Pitching Without Changing Tempo

Sampling
Pitching without Changing Tempo

Photo Used Courtesy of Plat'Num World ProjeX

So, I have been producing pop, hip-hop, dance, and R&B music since the mid 80’s. Professionally, I have been engaged since the mid 90’s. However, last week I sat in as a guest lecturer at the Music Industry Workshop in Chicago. The panel was on making beats in Ableton Live. Normally, my production is completed in Protools, Logic, or Reason, but I got stumped on a basic sampling question on how to sample in Ableton. Well, I am here to dispel that confusion.

Suffice it to say, I rarely use sampling in my production. However, it has been a game changer for the face of popular Hip-Hop music. According to Thorn Holmes, author of “Early Synthesizers and Experiments,” in 1944, composers at the Groupe de Recherchés Musicales at the Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF), originally created looping and sampling on magnetic wire. The Primary intent was to be utilized for compositional pieces of electronic music. Additionally, Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk (NWDR) and the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in New York, contributed to some early findings (Holmes).

Once digital samplers went into full production, Hip-Hop evolved by regurgitating old hits into newer generations via sampling and looping. This opens a totally different issue of copyright infringement-not for this blog post. However, a sample clearance form is in place to rectify those potential disasters. Some of the pioneering sampling manufacturers are Mellotron, Synclavier, Fairlight Instruments, Emu, Akai, Roger Linn, and Roland. In my early days, I used the Asr-10, EPS 16+, Akai MPC 60, Akai MPC 60-II, Roland W-30, Akai S-900, Akai S-950, Akai S-1000, Linn Drum Machine, Emu SP1200, Synclavier, Akai MPC 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000.

Here is a really great interactive look at a timeline on how music has been recycled: http://jklabs.net/projects/samplinghistory/

Lastly, I did not realize James Brown was the number one sampled artist in history (The-Breaks.com).

                                                                                          

Here is a video tutorial I put together specifically for this blog. It demonstrates how to pitch a sample without changing its tempo within a software-based application called Ableton Live versus the external physical hardware samplers:

Ableton Beat Making_Sample and Pitch in Time (Pt 1)

 Ableton Beat Making_Sample and Pitch in Time (Pt 2)

Ricco Lumpkins

Reference:

The-Breaks.com http://www.the-breaks.com/stats.php - http://www.the-breaks.com/stats.php

        

Holmes, Thom (2008). "Early Synthesizers and Experimenters". Electronic and experimental music: technology, music, and culture (3rd ed.). Taylor & Francis.

JK Labs (2004). Retrieved January 22, 2012 from http://jklabs.net/projects/samplinghistory/

Photo Used Courtesy of Plat'Num World ProjeX

Song Used Courtesy of Plat'Num World ProjeX-“Sample and Pitch,” Produced by Ricciano Lumpkins aka the Vet Boi™ for PWPX, LLC and Written by Ricco Lumpkins and Nate Butler, Published by Archives of RachelJames Music (SESAC) © 2000 and 2012, Vocal performance by Olethia Ritchie.

Autotune vs. Melodyne

Autotune vs. Melodyne

Has singing Become a lost art?

Artists such as T-Pain, Cher, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna, Akon, Aphex Twins, Chris Brown, Miley Cyrus, The Dream, Jason Derülo, Jamie Foxx, Jeremih, Ke$ha, Sean Kingston, Avril Lavigne, Lil Wayne, Drake, Madonna, Maroon 5, Nicki Minaj, New Boyz, Owl City, P. Diddy, Daft Punk, Taio Cruz, B.o.B, Jennifer Lopez, Colby O’ Donis, Sugar Land, Justin Timberlake, FAR EAST Movement, LMFAO, Pit Bull, Timbaland, Usher, Rebecca Black, Natasha Bedingfield, Kanye West, Faith Hill, Alice Cooper, Billy Joel, R. Kelley, Rascal Flatts, etc. use Autotune to their advantage (Ason). As you can see, Autotune makes millions of dollars in various genres of music.

Nowadays, there are stories circulating around the music industry that many recording artists can’t sing. Since the invasion of Autotune, many artists have relied solely upon its automatic pitch correction parameters to make superstars. Well, I am here to dispel that myth. There is actually a sister tool, Melodyne by Celemony, which auto corrects artists that can sing but may be slightly off pitch. It is a hidden gem in the industry. However, I have been using both for many years. Each has its own distinct characteristics. Simply put, Autotune the News, are adjunct instruments. One must still be able to manipulate parameters or presets in order to get desired effect. There are also many spoof videos such as the Gregory Brothers Autotune the News, which has penetrated into YouTube’s popular culture with over 385 million hits (Youtube). They definitely understand how to connect with their target audience.

Albeit, the artist must have some form of talent. If one cannot sing at all, it would be very difficult to fix. In fact, Autotune works better on an artist that sings slightly flat. Bottom line, a song has to be catchy before it can become a hit-Love it or hate it. Fact still remains; the song must come before the artist.

 Autotune vs. Melodyne Pt. 1

Autotune vs. Melodyne Pt. 2

                                                                              

Gregory Brothers. Autotune the News. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hMtZfW2z9dw

Jones, Ason. (January, 2012). Rate Your Music.com Retrieved from  http://rateyourmusic.com/list/Thrashisawesome/artists_who_have_used_auto_tune

Mic Courtesy of MXL