This blog is a collection of posts that I have accumulated into one place which have assisted me in understanding how to go about writing music predominantly for Deep and Tech House.
I could have bookmarked the various sites but then I have loads of bookmarks and can't find what I want when I need it.
Hope the nuggets are useful to you if you happen to stop by.
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Making the Beat: Afro-Cuban Drums
Welcome
to the second drum based tutorial in the series that will show you what
the beats are and how to make them sound good. In this tutorial we are
going to cover drums in the Afro-Cuban style. Afro-Cuban music is one of the two main categorizations of Latin
music; the other being Brazilian. The drums are one of the key
components in this style of music and knowing which beat to insert is
crucial. If you ever wondered what the difference was between a rumba and son
clave, or just want to add some Afro-Cuban flavor, this tutorial will
enlighten you in all regards. Since our previous discussion involved how
to construct various beats from smaller elements, this tutorial will do
so as well; albeit in a slightly different way. So my friends, lets
mambo!
1. Setting Up
What You Need
If you have read my previous tutorial
then this section will not be anything new to you. If you have not read
it, then by all means do so! It is important to have an initial game
plan on how you want to approach programming your drum beats, and this
section will outline your options for you. This tutorial is aimed to be predominantly DAW and plugin
independent; you work with what you feel most comfortable using.
However, some tools within the DAW or plugin are necessary to have in
order to effectively complete this tutorial. You will need:
Either a step sequencer or a piano roll in order to place the rhythms.
A well rounded sample library for all drums and cymbals (you can use a
drum synth if you so choose but make sure you can create a lot of
different sounds with it).
The ability the change the volume of various hits throughout
the drum pattern. Make some cymbal hits softer or louder than others,
etc. Some may do it via MIDI, other might just change the actual volume
of the hit.
What to Use
There can be features of a particular editor that make more
advantageous over another when it comes to making drum beats on the
computer; but it may have disadvantages as well. Here we will go over
the different approaches to constructing drums on the computer and you
can decided which methodology is works best for you. Individual Sampler This method involves loading samples into a sampler that can only
play one sample at a time. Why use it? Usually these samplers have a lot
of tools that allow you to manipulate the sample far beyond other
samplers. Usually when using these samplers you either have piano roll
access or a step sequencer. The disadvantage to this however is that
most likely you will not be able to see the whole rhythm of the kit and
will need to know exactly how the different instruments fit together. Pre-constructed Kits Some programs offer pre-built kits and usually have the kit laid out
across a piano roll so that you can see the whole kits rhythm. You
usually will have finer control over the placement of each hit over a
step sequencer. The disadvantage is that you may or may not be able to
edit each individual sample to the fullest depending on the program. Multi-sample Sampler These samplers are designed usually with drum sets in mind. They
allow for multiple samples to be loaded in and sometimes multiple
samples per instrument. Why would you want multiple samples per
instrument? So that as you program volume changes the sampler will load
different samples. This way you don't need five different hi-hats
channels, five different rides, etc. You just program volume changes. Be
careful though, sometimes these samplers can be very CPU intensive and
can easily bog down your system if you're not careful. In regards to
rhythm placement, some use piano rolls and others use step sequencers;
it will depend on the plugin. My Recommendations I personally am an advocate of having the most versatility at my
finger tips, but maintaining ease of use. I like the multi-sample drum
samplers with piano roll access and mixer track access because I will
have the most control over my sound without overloading myself with
controls. If you are not looking for a lot of fine tuned control then
try for a pre-constructed kit. If you are looking for glitch kit design
or a lot of manipulation you might need the utmost intensive control and
opt for the individual samplers. The choice is yours, and remember that
these are general guidelines; there can easily be other approaches or
different combinations of the above.
2. Learn the Dance
What the Steps Mean
Afro-Cuban music is at its heart dance music. It's full of life,
vigor, and groove. Most of the beats all have a particular dance
associated with it and often its roots are in a particular area or town.
Many of the basic concepts to Afro-Cuban music started in Africa but
were brought to Cuba and other parts of the Caribbean. However, do not
confuse Afro-Cuban based Latin music with Brazilian based which
perpetuates most of the other islands in the Caribbean. Afro-Cuban on the drum set is not a new concept but it is far from
old. Many of the original beats were played by multi-piece ensembles
with different players on different drums. Even to this day you can
still find traditional ensembles that play this way! Since each beat and
drum had their own specific purposes, the individual drums and beats on
the drum set do as well. Let's first take a look at the function of the
different drums on the drum set and how it relates to the overall
Afro-Cuban feel. The Kick The kick drum in Afro-Cuban, unlike in most styles of music that
incorporate a drum set, is not the pulse and heartbeat of the music. The
kick is more of an ornamental addition and should be treated as such.
The kick in Afro-Cuban might seem minimal and sparse by rock or club
standards so listen carefully! The kick is usually an addition to the
traditional beat and was not originally there; however there are cases
where the kick supplements as the bombo drum. The Snare The snare drum actually commands a lot of attention in a Afro-Cuban
context. Since we cannot play the claves while playing the drum set, we
simulate the clicking of the claves by playing rim clicks on the snare.
The two primary clave patterns are the metronome for Latin music and
need to be locked in tight. In fact the word clave translates to "key"
from its Spanish roots. The Cymbal The ride cymbal and hi-hat each also have their own special place in
Afro-Cuban music. The hi-hat generally acts as a pulse for the
syncopation to act against, however there are times when it just adds to
the complexity. The ride plays what are known as the "bell patterns"
that help differentiate between the various styles of Afro-Cuban. In
particular, it mimics the mambo bell that would be found in the center
of a timbale players setup. We also use it to give a modern edge on
patterns known as palito which traditionally would be played on a hollow
piece of wood known as a gua-gua. The ride can also replace playing the
side of a timbale drum; these patterns are known as cascara. The Toms The toms serve as the drum sets replacement for conga drums. When
played on a drum set it gives us more color to the groove and another
layer of syncopation. The palito and cascara patterns mentioned earlier
can also be played on the rim or side of the floor tom when we want a
slightly more authentic sound.
Pick a Clave any Clave
The most essential aspect of Afro-Cuban music is the clave.
Understanding its patterns and how they are constructed is fundamental
to the genre. Lets first take a look at the 3-2 son clave pattern.
Remember, for the drum set the clave pattern will be played by stick
clicks on the snare. The format throughout the rest of the tutorial for presenting the
actual rhythms will list each instrument and which notes the instrument
plays on in a 16 note measure. A 16 note pattern assumes that your
smallest note subdivision is 16th notes in a four beat pattern. HOWEVER,
unlike our previous tutorial, two 16th note patterns will be used since
Afro-Cuban beats are typically two bars long. The bars will be
separated via a | and then restart the note count. Each pattern will be
listed from top to bottom so that cymbals are on the top and kick are
on the bottom just as you would see if reading musical notation. Each
will be accompanied with a picture to help visualize the pattern. 3-2 Son Clave Snare: 1,7,13|5,9
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Now you may have noticed that the clave pattern feels like it should
fit in one bar not two. While you certainly can feel it this way, in
fact you are feeling the half-time feel. Afro-Cuban music moves very
fast and while you could write it out in one bar phrases, it would be
hard to read and would throw off the musical phrasing. If you in fact
did feel each individual quarter note, try to feel the half-tempo beat
since this is how it is meant to be felt. Now let us take a look at the variation on the 3-2 son, the 2-3 clave. 2-3 Son Clave Snare: 5,9|1,7,13
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You may have noticed that the pattern is simply flipped so that the
second bar is now the first and vice versa. So what is the big deal?
Everything! By simply switching which bar comes first you can completely
change the feel of Afro-Cuban music. Try this to see if you can really
feel the difference. Play the 3-2 Son and really lock in the downbeat of
the two bar phrase. Once you have that, playback the 2-3 Son pattern
and DON'T lock on the second bar (the beginning of the 3-2 Son). It can
be very tricky!
For those of you may or may not have noticed, the reason we refer
to the clave patterns as either 3-2 or 2-3 is to reflect which bar has
two notes and which has three. Simple! Moving on, let's now take a look at the 3-2 rumba clave 3-2 Rumba Clave Snare: 1,7,15|5,9
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You may have noticed that the rumba clave is not really different
from the son clave. It is only shifted by one eighth! So what is the
point? Out of context it might seem very pointless, but once you start
adding the other patterns around it, the difference becomes much more
apparent. Also, certain styles of Afro-Cuban use different clave
patterns and you need to know which to use. Here for your reference is the 2-3 rumba clave pattern. Like before,
make sure you can distinct as to which bar in the phrase is first. 2-3 Rumba Clave Snare: 5,9|1,7,15
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Review
While this section might seem pointless, it is very key to
understanding Afro-Cuban music. The drum set functions differently in
Afro-Cuban music in regards to what is the most important part of the
set. Also, where the clave pattern falls in context to the rest of the
drum set can greatly change how you might perceive the beat. Also, the
clave pattern dictates how the rest of an ensemble will behave depending
if it is 3-2 or 2-3 and which style of clave it is, son or rumba.
3. Bell Beat Baby
This next section will revolve around bell beats; essentially what
the drummer would play with his other hand. Now not all of these are
technically bell beats as some are meant to be played on the rim of the
floor tom or perhaps the side of the drum like in the case of the palito
and the cascara. However, for the sake of simplicity and giving you a
little more freedom to work with the rhythms, I will explain them all
here. I will clearly mark which ones would normally be played on something
other than the ride. However, I will give an audio example of the ride
or hi-hat to give you some ideas. Also keep in mind Afro-Cuban does not
need rhythms for the kick drum and hi-hat. There are times that you will
want those however and we will cover those additions later. For now
know that the beats presented to you can be used as is without kick.
Palito And Cascara
As I stated earlier, palito patterns are traditionally played on hollow stick like instruments known as gua-guas.
As such these patterns normally will be played on the rim of the floor
tom but you can place them wherever you feel appropriate. Palito
patterns also are usually played with the rumba clave. With the Cascara, we infact play the same pattern as the palito, but
instead on the shell of the floor tom to mimic the side of a timbale.
Cascaras are normally played on timbales and during salsas for those of
you going for a more authentic flavor. The major difference between the
cascara and the palito is that the CASCARA USES SON CLAVE not rumba! BIG NOTE! Only the first pattern is considered a cascara and a palito. The rest
of the patterns are strictly palito. However, we will greatly expand on
the cascara in a later section. Palito and Cascara #1 Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Snare Rumba: 1,7,15|5,9 Snare Son: 1,7,13|5,9
Any of these patterns can be flipped like we flipped the 3-2 to 2-3
so that they match the flipped clave beat. Try experimenting with which
feel you like better.
Mambo
The mambo is a very lively dance with a lot of syncopation. This is
traditionally played on a bell known as a mambo bell hence why they are
known as bell patterns. Keeping with our references back to the clave
pattern, the mambo patterns will use a son clave. These patterns are
also played on the timbales but we will worry about adding the timbale
sound later. Examine the following beats and get to know them... Mambo #1 Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Snare: 5,9|1,7,13
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Mambo #2 Cymbals: 3,5,7,9,13,15|1,5,11,15 Snare: 1,7,13|5,9
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Mambo #3 Cymbals: 3,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Snare: 1,7,13|5,9
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You may have noticed that the first pattern is 2-3 son the rest are
3-2 son. Most often the first beat is played in the 2-3 style but again
it can be flipped whenever; same goes for the other mambo patterns. The
mambo tends to have bit more syncopation which helps give it that drive
and energy.
Songo
The songo is infact our first beat that was designed for the drum set
and is not adapted! There is only one pattern that we will concern
ourselves with for the songo. However, this pattern will easily lead us
into the more advanced section. The cymbal part is traditionally played
on the side of the floor tom. Here is the core songo beat... Songo Cymbals: 1 and 9|1 and 9 Snare: 5,11,15|3,5,11,15 Kick: 7|7
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The big change we have here is the addition of the kick drum to our
pattern. The kick is essential to this beat and is a great addition to
some of our other beats. In the next section we will closer examine this
one lonely kick note and how important it really is.
Review
You may have noticed that some of our patterns are very similar but
just not quite there. That is what can make Afro-Cuban so tricky! If you
are going for a more authentic flavor keep to the beats I have
presented to you. However, most of us instead will use these varying
ideas and beats together to add a nice Latin flair. In this next section
we will advance some of our beats with tom and kick drum additions as
well as briefly touching on beats that necessitate toms and kick. This next section assumes you have a working knowledge of these base
concepts. If you don't understand the previous concepts read them and
test them out until you have a firm grasp over them; that includes the
3-2 vs 2-3 claves! This tutorial builds upon itself and understanding
the concepts as we go will render you the best results.
4. Add the Flair
With the rhythmic basics in our minds how about we discuss some ways
to create more active and full Afro-Cuban patterns. One of the most
important things you can add is the kick, in particular the bombo
pattern. You can also add toms, mainly high tom, to fill in the sonic
space of a groove. However, Let us start with the elusive bombo note!
Bombo
The bombo note at its core is simply a low drum hit on the second
eighth note of a bar; usually the bar with the three clave hits, not
two. The bombo note comes from an accented beat traditionally played on a
bombo drum. This is a very low drum which is why we are able to
substitute it with the kick drum. For starters we will look at how the
bombo fits into our basic cascara beat...
Cascara with Bombo Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Snare: 1,7,13|5,9 Kick: 7|none
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It is a very simple addition but it adds so much more feel! It
accents the second clave note from the 3 note bar which really
accentuates the syncopated feel. If you remember the songo, each bar had
a bombo note; just a simple variation. Here is another variation of the
bombo to try... Cascara with Bombo #2 Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Snare: 1,7,13|5,9 Kick: 7 and 9|none
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Once again, simple but effective. The mambo actually uses this pattern fairly regularly so here it is in mambo form... Mambo with Bombo Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Snare: 5,9|1,7,13 Kick: none|7 and 9
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There is another way to use the bombo that needs mentioning for a
more mainstream sound. This other concept is not traditional and is
actually miming the upright bass but it is definitely cool. Just
remember the bombo and recognize it in other beats and be creative with
it if authentic is not your thing. Cascara with Bombo Alteration Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Snare: 1,7,13|5,9 Hi-Hat: 1 and 9|1 and 9 Kick: 7 and 13|7 and 13
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Toms
The last essential piece we need to add to really set off our
Afro-Cuban beats are the toms. Afro-Cuban traditionally has congas,
bongos, and timbales being played along with everything else. To
substitute that we will use the toms. Most of the time it will be the
high-tom unless otherwise specified. Now keep in mind, we will need to
drop the clave pattern in the snare in order to make it fit. Don't
worry, we will bring it back soon enough! Here is the cascara pattern
with bombo and toms... Cascara with Bombo and Toms Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Toms: 13|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Kick: 7|none
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Now we got some serious drum beats going on! The addition of the toms
really add a new dimension to the patterns and work great on both loud
and soft passages if you want movement in your drums. Here is a mambo
version... Mambo with Bombo and Toms Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Toms: 13,15|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Kick: none|7 and 9
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It is worth mentioning that there is one more variation for the toms
that is simply hitting beat four on each measure. Any of these three tom
variations will work great.
Reinstating the Clave
With the addition of the tom hits we had to remove the all important
clave pattern. But what if you don't want a clave player in your song?
You make the hi-hat do it! Instead of a simple four beat hi-hat like you
would have in rock music, you can a lot of complexity and groove by
using the clave in the hi-hat. Remember, doing this assumes you are not
playing your bell beat on the closed hi-hat. Here is the hat put back
into the cascara: Full Cascara Cymbals: 1,5,7,11,15|1,5,9,11,15 Toms: 13|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Hi-hat: 1,7,13|5,9 Kick: 7|none
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This cascara is about as full board as you can get with different
beats going hand in hand. Here is the full mambo so you can hear how
that works Full Mambo Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Toms: 13,15|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Hi-hat: 5 and 9|1,7,13 Kick: none|7 and 9
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Review
All the additions we have added really help make a full and highly
syncopated Afro-Cuban beat. Remember you can use any of the bell
variations with these additions; so keep it interesting! Keep this in
mind also, you will not need to use these complex beats all the time.
Use more or less additions to the basic beats to reflect the music. If
you are going to be less on the authentic end, then go ahead and mix and
match the different styles of Afro-Cuban; be creative!
5. Sound Color
Up until now we have focused on creating the beats in the Afro-Cuban
style. However, we need to make sure we are getting a good sound out of
each drum. If you read my previous tutorial then you know that some people are
on a perpetual quest for the perfect drum sound. Once again, if you are
one of these people let me tell you that it does not exist. When dealing
with programmed drums trying to sound real, you need to have the best
samples you can get a hold of; end of story. Process all you want, but
good samples are key to good drum sound. Now, you still will need some processing regardless so do not count
yourself out yet if your samples are not godly. What we will focus on is
making the kit as a whole sound more live and real and what you need to
do in order to achieve that end. As I said in the beginning of this
tutorial, you will need a lot of samples in order to get a good feel out
of your programmed kit. Now we will go in depth on how to use them.
The Kick
A good kick is key to the creation of a quality drum sound regardless
of genre. With Afro-Cuban you have a few choices to pick from when
working with the kick; however not as much the rock genre like last
time. You most likely will have kicks that sound natural, full, or
cushioned; sometimes crossbreeds between two of them but not very often
How do you decide which to use? Think of how you want your kit to sound.
A traditional Jazz/Latin album will have a very natural sound and you
will want to hear the sound of the drum itself, not some processed pop
tone. Keep this mind as well, sometimes this sort of tone will remove
some attack from the kick and give it that cushioned quality. Generally
these are considered more traditional for an Afro-Cuban sound.
If you want a fuller more Hollywood style sound then you will want a
kick that has a nice bottom end with some attack. It should not be
completely pop sounding, but not the natural tone either.
These of course are just guidelines but it hopefully gives you a sense of direction when trying to figure out your kick sound. When actually programming of the kick you should probably have two,
but definitely no more than three kick sounds. Why so few? Because the
kick tonally generally stays the same most of the time when being
acoustically played. You will probably want a kick sound for quiet
passages and another for louder passages. The bombo tends to have a
heavier hit to it thanks to the fact is a quick off-beat hit. (Trust me
as a drummer myself I know the tendency to make that hit louder.) Also,
the bombo note on the drum set is just the accented note played from a
bombo drum; its meant to be heard! If at any point you use the two note bombo then pick either the first
or second note to be more forceful than the other. The change should
not be very drastic but at least felt. Well placed accents can really
set off your Afro-Cuban beats and draw attention to the syncopation. In this section I am going to show you a previous beat that we made
and then the changes I made to it so you can hear the difference:
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Mambo with First Kick Accented Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Toms: 13,15|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Hi-hat: 5 and 9|1,7,13 Kick 1: none|7 Kick 2: none|9
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Subtle and not immediately noticeable but it works great as a psychoacoustic effect.
The Snare
More important than the kick, your snare will need a good sound for a
good overall kit. The snare is the center of your clave clicks for
Afro-Cuban drum set so a clear "knock" sounding click would sound very
nice. You can also go with a rim click sound that literally sounds more
like a "click" but make sure it has enough body to it. The snare clicks
maintain almost a constant volume since getting a good tone requires
using the same stroke for a drummer. This in turn gives essentially the
same volume. While we have not yet talked about the actual snare, pick a good
rounded hollow tone as if the snares were off. You can have a snare tone
with the snares on, but keep in mind it will not be traditional and
will add a more modern edge to your sound. Also pick out a good rimshot
sound that works with your hollow tone since rimshots are a key part of
fills in a Afro-Cuban feel. I recommend starting with a good snare click that compliments the
kick and does not conflict with the hi-hat or cymbals. Whenever you do
pick your snare tone, make sure you start with your primary snare sample
and build off that. If you have a harmonically rich snare you sometimes
can EQ off other parts to create your additional snare sounds instead
of sample hunting. Generally the softer hits are slightly higher in
pitch/tone than the heavier hits. You should however have more contrast
in your snare samples than your kick samples. Since most of the snare sample variation occurs during fills for
Afro-Cuban drums we will look into that later during the fills section.
The Cymbals
Cymbals tend to fall into two categories when it comes to the cymbals
actual timbre; dark or bright. Dark cymbals tend to have a rounder,
warmer, and heavy tone to them while the bright cymbals are cutting,
sharper, and higher toned than their darker counter parts. Also, you can
have a combination of both dark and bright cymbals and get what some
call a rich cymbal. This applies not just hi-hats and rides, but crashes
as well. While these might be the way we categorize the actual cymbals,
we also have to consider how the cymbal is played. You are going to want a tight set of hi-hats that when closed
together will not leave any extra ringing and leave you guessing on the
beat. Your ride cymbals for Afro-Cuban should have a little bit of stick
noise from the initial impact if you want a slightly more authentic
sound. How do we use cymbal samples? This will by far be the biggest pain in
the entire tutorial but one of the most essential. Your cymbal samples
should be fairly similar, closer to the way we did the kick. Why?
Because most people do not actually sit there and intently listen on the
tone of the cymbals. There is always variety but it is usually subtle
and so your samples should reflect this. You usually have to randomly assign your cymbal samples to get that
psychoacoustic effect of knowing it is there but not noticing it.
However, if you are lucky enough to be using a multi-sample sampler,
then see if your plug-in can randomly playback your samples for you in
your cymbal channel. (See what I mean when I said I love multi-sample
samplers?) You generally will need about 3-4 samples to get the effect.
There is no need to show you the programming I used for the cymbals
since it is random and the point is for you to listen, not follow random
programming. Have a listen, the first example is before and the second
is after...
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Another trick you can use if you are having troubles finding good
matching cymbal samples is to pitch shift one sample by a few cents. Try
shifting your sample down by 2-4 cents and shift another up by about 2
cents. Don't make your shifts drastic so that its readily perceivable
just enough for a psychoacoustic effect.
Toms
Toms are much more important in Afro-Cuban and other Latin feels than
most other forms of drum set music. Since they are integral to the
beats you need to pick a good set of toms that fit well in your kit.
Regular tom hits should be full and round with a clear attack. You will
also want a good rim click sound for the floor tom if you wish to
continue the authentic route. Also, you will also want a good tom
rimshot sound in case you wish to accent a particular tom hit; whether
it is in a groove or fill. I would not worry too much about having different tom samples for
contrast as a good drummer usually can keep the tone even on the tom
hits. Instead, use the low pass filter trick to fake softer toms by
removing some of the higher harmonics when the music gets softer. Take a
listen to these accented hits...
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Mambo with Tom Accents Cymbals: 1,5,9,11,13,15|3,5,7,9,13,15 Tom: 13,15|none Tom Accent: none|13,15 Snare: 5|5 Hi-hat: 5 and 9|1,7,13 Kick 1: none|7 Kick 2: none|9
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Review
As a hole you will need more samples in this tutorial than in the
Rock tut since we have a bigger sound palette. Make sure each sample
fits well with the others and if you have to over process to make it
fit, get a better sample. If you have the option of being able to
randomly assign samples from a multi-sample sampler then by all means go
for it; it will make your life a lot easier.
6. Fills, Fills, Fills
Once again we find ourselves in the final section of the tutorial:
fills! As a drummer I have told you and will tell you again that fills
are your chance to be expressive, and that the possibilities are beyond
what you could write in words. Therefore, to me it is probably the least
most important section for programming drums; also in my experience
most people don't want to be bothered to write out a drum fill so I
won't flood you with long winded fills that you would have to
painstakingly rewrite. Instead, I believe for Afro-Cuban music, if you
follow a few basic concepts you can easily start creating your own fills
in the Afro-Cuban style.
The Accent
Probably the most important aspect to fills and solos in the
Afro-Cuban style is the accented notes. When you look at the grooves, we
accent certain aspects (like the clave pattern for example) to draw
attention. By carefully placing accents in your fills you can make them
more melodic. As a general rule of thumb with Latin music, off-beat accents are
king. The off-beat is where the syncopation comes in and is how your
fills can sound less square. However, this does not mean you can abuse
off-beat accents all the time. Add some variety between on beat and
off-beat accents and do not forget to accent the 16th notes between the
big beats and off-beats as well. Here is a quick fill based around accents to get your creative juices flowing...
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By the way, did you notice I now added a hollow snare tone? Told you I would!
Lead In
This section is like the Rock tutorials since the premise is exactly
the same. However, if you read the last one, listen to the audio example
to get some Afro-Cuban flair ideas for your lead in fills. Not all fills are long intricate ideas, some are simple a few notes
long. These short quick fills usually lead into a big hit by the rest of
the band. Most of the time they are not flashy and usually are played
on their own without any moving notes from the rest of the band.
Essentially the band plays, cuts out, the quick fill is played, and
everyone comes back in full board on the last note of the fill. There
isn't much more to say about these fills other than look at what I have
come up with and get some ideas. You will hear one two bar phrase of
groove and the last bar of the second phrase will be the lead in fill...
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Patchwork
There is no real trick to creating these other than experimenting.
The only methodology you really have is to take one beat fragments and
patch work them together until you get a fill you like. Take the cymbal
variations from earlier but rearrange the notes amongst different toms
and other parts of the kit. This works very well in Afro-Cuban since the
cymbal variants have so much syncopation. Again, break your fill ideas
down into one beat fragments so that they are easier to manage and vary
where your notes land on the different drums. Another trick is to mimic the melody of the song but in the amongst
the tone of the drum set. If you go this route, try adding various
rhythmic flourishes to the melody and interject sections that are not
the melody and are strictly just drum fill. Here is a longer fill that encompasses different ideas so that you can hopefully get some ideas yourself...
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Review
There is not much to say about Afro-Cuban fills other than be
creative ad dont be scared to try something new. If you are a more
methodical person then try going the melodic mimic route. Either way
should expand your mind and be creative; think like a musician!
Afro-Cuban in Review
Once again that is an awful lot of material to cover I will admit.
Afro-Cuban is not normally something your average person comes across in
their daily lives so it can seem somewhat alien. Remember that
syncopation and the clave are the key concepts to Afro-Cuban music and
you will be able to build anything off from there. The drum set is
merely a reduction of a full drum section in Afro-Cuban music so it
should sound like a full drum section. Remember also that the off-beat
accent is integral to an Afro-Cuban flavor as well. I hope you have learned a lot from reading this tutorial and now have
more musical choices at your disposal. Afro-Cuban is dance, it is
rhythm, and it is fun!
In my previous post,
I wrote about the primary elements of drum beats: measured time, drum
sound selection, and the observable phenomenon of 2s and 3s. Truth be
told I wrote that article to get you thinking about rhythm in a
different way so I could follow it with this article. I will go over
some rhythmic devices that I’ve picked up over the years from working
with drummers and percussionists in a variety of live performance and
studio recording situations. Being that this is a series dedicated to
how music works (music theory), it is appropriate to include some
examples of recorded music that utilizes these techniques, which I will
do for you below. Once you’ve internalized these concepts and can
recognize their idiosyncratic sounds, you’ll start hearing them all over
the place. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them using the
comment section down below. Alright, let’s jump in.
Our Example
To start things off, check out this drum beat I wrote for the purpose of this article: Click image to enlarge [audio: http://dubspot.com/video/DrumBeatExample.mp3] Drum Beat Example This one example includes all eight rhythmic devices that we’ll cover below: the downbeat, the upbeat, the pickup, syncopation, polyrhythm, cross-rhythm, sesquialtera, and linear drumming.
The way to get the most out of this article is to read the segments
below and then keep referencing this example making sure that your
listening is focused on one device at a time.
1) The Downbeat
If you’ve ever taken a DJ class at Dubspot, either online or at our
school in NYC, then you’d be familiar with the idea of “finding the 1″. The downbeat is the first beat of a measure, hence “the 1″.
Historically the term downbeat refers to the downward motion of the
orchestra conductor’s hand on the first beat of every measure,
regardless of the time signature. Here’s what you would see if you were
sitting in the orchestra:
Notice the highlighted line that shows where the one is. In my
example above, all of the downbeats are highlighted in violet – listen
again for the downbeats. The downbeat is the strongest and most
important beat of the measure so make sure you always know where it is
and give the listener a chance to find it / feel it themselves. Check
out this video of one of my favorite bassists, Bootsy Collins,
explaining the formulaic use of the one (the downbeat) in funk: Bootsy Collins Basic Funk Formula
2) The Upbeat
If the downbeat occurs when the conductor’s hands go down, then the upbeat occurs when the conductor’s hands go up. The upbeat is the last beat of a measure and is weaker than the downbeat. Notice the arrow from the 4th beat back to the 1st beat of the conductor’s 4/4 beat pattern:
In my example I’ve highlighted all of the upbeats in blue. To hear
the upbeat in action, check out Burial’s “Archangel” where the
side-stick hit can be heard on the 4th beat of almost every measure
(also, try to hear the boomy bass drum on the downbeat immediately
following the upbeat):
3) The Pickup (Anacrusis)
The downbeat is the main beat of the measure with the upbeat leading
us back to it – this makes sense when we hear it and the order makes for
a nice cycle. But what would it sound / feel like if more emphasis was
placed on or near the upbeat? Here in the US, it is tradition to sing as
a group “Happy Birthday” to someone on their birthday. This song is in
3/4 (three beats per measure, each beat is a quarter-note in length) and
begins on something called the pickup, also known as an anacrusis – one or more notes sounding prior to the first downbeat of a musical phrase.
The first word “Happy” does not start on the downbeat of the first
measure – it actually starts on the upbeat (beat 3 in this case) of the
lead-in measure. Then the word “Birthday” lands on the downbeat of the
first measure (after all, the birthday is the purpose of the song so it
makes sense that the word lands on the strongest beat of the measure).
In my example above, I’ve highlighted the pickup in teal, right where
the start marker is on the upbeat of the final measure. When you listen
to the example again, notice that you don’t hear the kick drum on the
downbeat right away – the first thing you hear is the pickup. Finding a true pickup in today’s music is a little bit difficult
since so much emphasis is placed on the downbeat, for example with “the
drop”. However, check out Joker’s masterpiece titled “Digidesign” where
the melody comes in at the 1:22 mark. Listen for the pickup, not landing
directly on the upbeat, but landing precisely in-between the upbeat and
the following downbeat (FYI, the bassline lands on the downbeat).
4) Syncopation
Click image to enlarge Before you read this section, do yourself a favor and go listen to
some afro-cuban music. Check out groups like The Buena Vista Social Club
and The Afro-Cuban Allstars. This should get your ears in the right
place. In a measure of 4/4 time, there are four powerful beats and one of
them, the first one, is the strongest beat. While those beats are cool
and important and all, it’s way cooler to bring out the in-betweens –
the subdivisions of the beats. Now, imagine a house track. What’s one of
the first things you will typically hear? The kick drum on all four
beats of the measure and the hi-hat directly between them highlighting
the weaker beats. This constant, regular shift of the accent from the stronger beats to the weaker beats is known as syncopation.
This house example is probably as simple as it gets. Things really
start to get interesting as you subdivide the beat into smaller, odder
increments. In my above example, notice that the hi-hat (highlighted in
brick-house red) is syncopated the entire time, always accenting weaker
beats. Syncopation is much easier to find in today’s music than the pickup
mentioned before. Here’s one of my favorite examples by Mount Kimbie
from their track “Mayor”. Listen closely to the vocal part while bobbing
your head on the beats. Notice that the voice tends to highlight the
weaker beats:
If that went by a little too quickly for you, I found this slower alternate version of the same track:
5) Polyrhythm (Rhythm against Rhythm)
Let me back up for a minute: The main reason that a true pickup was
difficult to find in today’s music was because it has been, like other
devices, a bit forgotten. This is not because these compositional
devices were not cool anymore, but because they required a higher level
of concentration and listening skills. I’ve been told by many producers
and composers – now get this – that you can’t write what you can’t hear,
and I think that’s what happened to these useful devices. One such
device that I would like to help bring back is polyrhythm. Literally “more than one rhythm”, polyrhythm is the term use to define the occurrence of two or more conflicting rhythms sounding simultaneously
(rhythm against rhythm). In my example above, the polyrhythmic,
conflicting element is highlighted in green. Down in the kick, snare and
hi-hat, everything sounds normal. With the addition of the toms, a
certain tension is created. Look closely and you’ll see that there are
five tom hits in the time of one beat that is essentially subdivided
into four 1/16 notes. The ratio heard is 5:4 and that’s where the
tension lies. It is important to note that this tension resolves almost
immediately after the said measure – more on this in the next section. As with the pickup, a good polyrhythm is hard to find. What usually
happens is the conflicting rhythm is heard while the more constant
rhythm is omitted, therefore easing the tension. Well, I say learn to be
comfortable with those tension and challenge your listeners a bit.
Check out this beautiful example from James Blake titled “I Never Learnt
to Share”. The kick drum enters at the 1:51 mark followed by the voice
and keyboard. Notice the lavish keyboard fills that purposefully
conflict with the rhythm of the kick and the voice. This helps to bring
out the emotional, tension filled value of the lyrics:
6) Cross-rhythm (Rhythm against Meter)
Click image to enlarge Now that you have a working knowledge of polyrhythm, it makes it easier to explain other rhythmic devices. A
cross-rhythm is a polyrhythm that occurs in a longer span of time, not
only conflicting against another rhythm, but also against the given
meter of the music. This device has it’s roots in sub saharan
West African music and can be heard in almost every type of electronic
dance music genre. In my example, the cross-rhythm is provided by the 808 side-stick and
is highlighted in orange. What do you first notice about the distance
between the side-stick hits? Answer: They are all, with the exception of
the last two hits, three 1/16 notes apart from each other. It’s almost
as if this instrument is not in 4/4 time, but in 3/16 time. This rhythm
is not only conflicting against the rhythm heard as a composite of the
kick, snare and hi-hat, but also with the larger structural meter of
4/4. This exact same example of 3/16 conflicting with 4/4 can be seen in
an earlier post of mine about Parallel Harmony. Luckily, cross-rhythm has staying power and can be heard everywhere
in popular dance music. Here’s a recent example producer-extraordinaire
Zomby from his track “Natalia’s Song”. Right off the bat we here the
3/16 vs. 4/4 between the synth and drums:
7) Sesquialtera (3:2)
Don’t be afraid of the word. Sesquialtera is just the fancy term for the occurrence of a triple rhythm and a duple rhythm sounding simultaneously. Again, this is a type of polyrhythm but can exist in a short or long span of time,
and it can be seen in my above example highlighted in yellow. In the
polyrhythm example, the relationship was 5:4, and here the relationship
is 3:2 (when broken down as far as it can go). So there’s nothing really
different here, it’s just that the 3:2 rhythmic device was used so much
that they gave it a name. The real-life example I’m going to give you is by Jamie XX and the
late Gil Scott Heron titled “NY is Killing Me”. The thing about
producers (digital musicians) today is that we are all trying to find
our own sound. We listen to what other producers do in their tracks and
either copy them verbatim, resulting in a similar sound, i.e genre, or
try to do something completely different. Jamie XX is smart and I’ll
tell you why: he noticed that other producers haven’t been using the
rhythmic devices mentioned above and decided to incorporate them into
his own music. If you listen to a bunch of his tracks, then you’ll start
to notice a repeated use of 3:2 relationships, cross-rhythms that are
centered around a grouping of 3 beats, and 1/8 and 1/16 notes that are
so heavily swung that they almost sound like triplet rhythms:
Here’s another example from Jamie XX where he takes polyrhythm,
cross-rhythm, and sesquialtera to the extreme in his remix of Nosaj
Thing’s “Fog” (I hope you have some good speakers that can handle the
subs):
8) Linear Drumming
This last device I’ll mention is called Linear Drumming and is very
simple, fun, and effective. Popularized in the drum community
(seriously, YouTube it), Linear Drumming is where a core unit of sounds refrain from sounding simultaneously.
In my example, take a closer look at the kick, snare, and hi-hat
(highlighted in red, note that the snare is layered). You’ll notice that
none of those hits happen at exactly the same time – the result is the
Linear Drumming sound. Keep in mind that these are all shorter sounds
which helps achieve the desired effect, but that’s not to suggest that
longer sounds can’t be used. A style of music that has really embraced Linear Drumming is drum n
bass. Have a listen to Photek’s classic jam “Ni Ten Ichi Ryu” and pay
attention to the kick, snare, and closed hi-hat. If there ever was a way
to “get that sound” in drum n bass, then it’s using chopped up samples
and utilizing Linear Drumming:
So, there you go. Hope that was helpful and that it opened up your
ears to something new. In my example I used all of these devices in a
single four-measure clip. That does not mean that you have to use all of
the tricks you have at the same time. Yes, it could sound cool but it
could also have the reverse effect and take away from the track as a
whole. As always, use and trust your ears and you’ll make the right
decisions.
