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Try shuffling between 2, 3 and 4 chord progressions. each has its own unique flavour. All your chords need not be the same duration. Watch the below clip to see what I mean.

#2 Rhythm - pauses & repetition

Sometimes, silence can make things better. This idea is even in music and especially in chord progressions. Also, every chord needn’t always start on the beat. Try breaking and repeating your chords with pauses. Some of the most memorable riffs or chord progressions use this idea. This is illustrated in the clip below.

#3 Slowing chords and creating dynamics

Slowing down just chords can sound beautiful, the way it interacts with the rest of your music. Digital instruments can respond to velocity, altering it across the notes can affect the tonal balance. We can also affect dynamics by including inversions and voicings. Check the below clip for some examples.

#4 Different chord types for more flavors

Beyond these basic triads, we have seventh chords, suspended chords, augmented chords, and so on, which can add a twist to the sound. Chords like this, when placed adjacent to the original triad can sound flavourful. See how expressive your music can be in the below clip.

#5 building a library

Midi clips can be reused in a new project or even in a different DAW! Having a library of MIDI chord progressions organized according to key & scale is a great way to get unstuck, find inspiration, or speed up your production process. Watch the below clip to see how you can save and export midi clips for later use.

Got more ideas?

The above techniques should help you kickstart writing good chord progressions. Sharing is caring, so if you got any interesting ideas I've missed here, do share them in the comments below! We’ll be doing a part-II of this soon.

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Nikhil in Music Production With Ableton Live With Nikhil

11 months ago

Hey guys, here's an overview of my masterclass!

Pre-requisites:

You can get started with Nikhil for free by following his course - https://platform.djpmedia.in/discussions/posts/ableton-live-with-nikhil-bejai-course
You should have Ableton Live installed on your computer, if you don’t, here’s a link to a free download - https://www.ableton.com/en/trial/
Understanding of basic music theory. Check out this lesson on music theory before you proceed.

Course Outline:

Structuring your Song
Understanding Sound Choices & Instrument Articulations.
Understanding and Application of Song Structure
Layering Sounds - Use of Instrument Rack
Advanced Workflow Tools
Fine Tuning in Arrangement View, Recording, and Editing Workflow
Editing features for faster workflow
Optimising CPU usage
Workflow advantages - Session v/s Arrangement View
Advanced Clip properties & Resampling
Recording Techniques for Audio and MIDI - Comping, Punch Recording, Capture
Advantages of Double Track recording
MIDI Protocol & Effects processing
Understanding and Application of MIDI Effects
Serial and Parallel Processing
MIDI Controllers for Parameter Manipulation
Designing Sounds - Part 1
Deep dive into Synthesis Fundamentals
Breakdown of Synthesizer functions using Operator
Wavetable Synthesis - MPE & MIDI Features using Wavetable
Designing Melody, Harmony and Percussive Sounds
Designing Sounds - Part 2
Introduction to Sampling - One Shot and Loop Based
Manual Sampling Techniques
Breakdown of Sampling functions using Simpler
Slice Mode Sampling Applications
Mixing : Gain Based Effects
Working on Volume & Stereo Balance
Managing Dynamics - Compressor, Gate, Limiter
Parallel Compression and Group Processing
Side-chain Processing
Mixing :Time Based Effects
Spatial processing with Reverb and Delay
Creative Processing with Reverb and Delay
Send and Return chains
Finishing your Mix and Exporting project

Need some help? Click here to talk to our founder...

Learn more about Nikhil - https://platform.djpmedia.in/posts/d1623a7d-fe8e-4298-8832-ae04d0aeea62/show

Have a question? Leave a comment below or contact us:

Email: info@djpmedia.in

Phone: +91 7795523530

DJPMedia

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Nikhil in Ableton Live With Nikhil Bejai - Course

11 months ago

Ask me anything!

Hey guys, I’m Nikhil and I’m your friendly neighborhood Ableton support guy. Apart from teaching, I’d love to help you with any questions you have on Ableton Live and music production in general!

Make sure to follow this thread on everything Ableton Live and Music Production -