How to build a basic trap build and drop

THIS VIDEO WILL GIVE YOU A GOOD IDEA OF HOW TO DO THAT DOESN'T MATTER WHICH DAW YOU USE.

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Tips to write melody

Some Melody-writing Hints

So you know a little about music by now. You know about key signatures, maybe about scales too. But every time you try to write a melody, it ends up sounding random and confused. Well, here are some guidelines that you can learn to help make your melodies sounds less random.

NOTE: Whenever I use a word like "better" or "best," this means "HWC Cori's opinion is that this is better/best." if you disagree, that's fine. :) However, these the guidelines have been developed over the centuries, and even if you don't use them you should at least know them.

First, background: In a basic one-octave scale, there are 8 notes. If you take, for example, C major, these are the notes:

(=)C D E F G A B (/)C

Now, each of the notes is given a number, so you can tell people which note you're referring to. Roman numerals are used. In this case: (don't mind the underscores, I just used them to make the letter names line up with the numbers properly)

C D_ E__ F_ G A_ B(+)C
I II III IV V VI VII VIII (a.k.a. I)
C is 1, D is 2, etc. Since the C note is used twice, it can be considered either 1 or 8.

If you were in a different key, say, F major, the scale would go like this:

F G_ A__ B.(+)C D_ E__ F
I II III IV__ V VI VII VIII
In this key, F is 1, G is 2, and so on. In this scale, F can be considered both 1 or 8.


Now, with that background, here are some basic rules...

1) Most melodies start on either I/VIII or V.

There are exceptions to this rule, but don't worry too much about that now.

1b) All melodies end on I/VIII

There are exceptions to this rule, but I've liked very, *very* few that I've heard. Ending on I gives a sense of finality, which is usually what you want at the end of a piece.

2) Stepwise motion is preferred.

What that means is that moving by an interval of 1 note (motion like this called "moving by step" or "stepwise motion") is considered to be better, in most circumstances, than leap-wise motion (moving by an interval of more than 1 note).

For example, doing a melody that goes like (I-II-III-II-III-IV-V) is better than something like (I-VI-II-V-III-VI-VIII).

Using stepwise motion will reduce the random-sounding nature of your melodies.

3) Stepwise motion gets boring fast!

Of course, if composers used nothing but stepwise motion, songs would get old VERY quickly. So use leaps judiciously, but not too frequently. For example, something like (I-II-III-II-V-IV-V) is better than (I-II-III-V-II-IV-V)

4) Run away from leaps!

Okay, I tried to make the title more interesting than the rule actually is. Basically, if you are going to make a leap, try to have stepwise motion in the *opposite* direction either before or after the leap. On both sides is even better.

For example, if you look at (I-II-III-II-V-IV-V), I prepare for the II-V leap by starting on III, using stepwise motion down to II, leaping up to V, and finally stepping down to IV.

You don't need to do this for every leap you make, but it makes the larger leaps sound better. But what is a large leap?

5) 'Allowed' leaps

I think I should stop here to point out that the word "rule" should mean, in this context, *this and only this*: A guideline, generally agreed upon by musicians/composers since the 1800s, about how to make decent-sounding music.

Similarly, in this context, "Allowed leap" means this: A leap that will (usually) not sound out of place in most songs.

That aside, there are two types of leaps: small and large.

Small leaps are leaps of 2 (or sometimes 3) notes. For instance, I-III, IV-VI, V-III. You don't really need to do prepare (see rule 4) for small leaps if you don't have to, but it usually sounds good.

Large leaps are leaps of 4 or more notes. For example, I-V, IV-VIII, I-VIII, VI-I. You should try to prepare for large leaps, at least on one side. It helps quite a bit.

The tricky part is that some large leaps sound good, while others sound abysmal. Avoid leaping from IV-VII or the reverse. That interval is called a 'tritone' (a.k.a. augmented 4th, diminished 5th, and The Devil's Chord). It sounds icky. Bad bad bad. It becomes absolutely great when used properly, but you'll want to keep it out of your melodies when you're starting. If you get a hankering to write blues, we'll talk. ;)

Anyway... leaps of 4 notes (I-V) are generally good. Leaps of 5 notes (II-VII) are pretty good too, but some are better than others. Leaps of 6 notes (I-VII) are Not Allowed. That is, they sound bad. Try it sometime. If you decide you like it actually, write a song using them. I tried that once. :)

Leaps of 7 notes (I-VIII) are a special case. Jumping an octave (I-VIII, etc.) sounds pretty good, but you almost *have* to prepare for such a large leap in your melody.


Anyone reading this who is a real musician is probably yelling at me now. Musicians have their own way of counting the distance between notes (the "interval") that I'll talk about now. The interval between a note and itself is a first, 1st, or unison. The interval between a note and its neighbor (for instance, C to D) is a second. The interval between a note and a note not quite next to it (for instance, C to E) is a third. Do you understand the pattern now? So, the interval between a note and itself an octave above (for instance, =C to /C) is an 8th. Of course, musician counting is kind of strange, because 5 + 4 = 8! You see, a fifth above =C is =G, and a fourth above =G is /C.

So, anyway, if you're used to musician counting, what I've said in the last few paragraphs is:
- Seconds are the most common interval since they're stepwise motion
- Thirds and Fourths are 'small' leaps, and are used commonly. Anything above a fourth is a 'large' leap.
- Fifths and Sixths are also used, but fifths are more common than sixths
- Sevenths are quite uncommon, and you should only use them if you know what you're doing.
- Octaves can sound good, but you absolutely must preceed and follow them with stepwise motion in the opposite direction from the leap.
- Anything larger than an octave is tricky. Use at your own risk. :P


6) Double jumps

Whew, all that and we're only up to number 6?

Basically, if you're going to do two leaps in a row, there are a few rules.

If you're leaping two times in the same direction: (i.e. I-V-VIII):

The lower leap has to be bigger than the upper one, otherwise your piece will become unbalanced, tip over, and you'll have to pick up the pieces. Get it? Pick up the piece-es? ha ha ha I'm so funny. [sigh] Sorry, it's late. :/ But it *is* true that making the lower leap larger will sound better, in most cases. (the main exception is if the notes create a broken first-inversion triad... if you don't understand that, don't worry about it too much. Or ask me about it.)

Do the contrary-stepwise-motion thing (rule 4) on BOTH ends of the double-leap. Again, it helps a lot.


If you're leaping in two different directions: (i.e. III-I-V)

The contrary-stepwise-motion thing isn't quite as necessary, but it still sounds good.


And no matter which one you use, try not to use any leaps larger than 4. When I try, it feels like I've stuck a random note in the middle of my melody.


7) Important Notes

This one assumes a knowledge of chord progressions, so if you don't know about those this won't make terribly much sense.

Basically, whenever you leap to or from a note, you're giving that note emphasis and making it important in the melody. A way to give your piece cohesion is to make the important melodic notes the same as the important harmonic notes. What that means is that your melodic leaps should begin or end (or both!) on notes of the current chord of the chord progression.

For example: If you're in D major and the current chord in the progression is V, you should make any leaps in this part of the melody begin or end on the notes A, C#, or E; say [\gb=d]8Bag[\gb=d]8/D8

When you have a leap just when the chord progression is changing from one chord to another, you should start the leap on a note from the first chord, and end on a note from the second chord.

For instance; If you're in A minor and the chord progression is switching from iv to V, you should start the leap on either D, F, or A and end on either E, G#, or B; say =ab+cdE[\dfa]/F[\eg#b]8=B8

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10 essential reverb tips 10 Essential Reverb Tips

10 essential tips to help you steer clear of the pitfalls and build a more effective reverb workflow:

1. Long and Short Reverbs

A good general piece of advice would be to use short reverbs in busy mixes, longer reverbs in music with more space. What can be deceiving though is to judge the validity of reverbs by name i.e Halls and Chambers as long, plates and rooms as short – if you think you need short reverbs you could find exactly what you want from a short Hall and you could find just the tail your after in a mix using a long plate. Rather than thinking purely in terms of long and short, think in terms of the quality of the tails, longer tails can disguise the presence of reverb where short ones can draw attention to it.

2. Pre Delay

Pre-delay is the single most powerful feature in most reverbs, setting a pre-delay allows for a certain amount of dry signal to get through before it is washed in reverb, this means greater intelligibility. It is particularly useful for keeping the attack of words from a lead vocal upfront and clear. In this sense it is much like how you use a compressor, setting a slower attack time or in the case of reverb – pre delay, lets vocal information through which is re-assuring to listen to. Anything from 20ms to about 80ms will be the area you need to work in – beyond this you will create a distinctive slap back effect that could be cool in the right circumstances but less suitable for most.

3. 3D Reverb

For a far more dimensional reverb and richer spaces you should try using multiple reverbs together. For example, using three you can create a much more convincing ambience.
To get you started – first find a small room reverb, this to give a little air around the source, second use a plate reverb and blend it as you might pour sauce into pasta, adding flavour. Third use a hall with a long tail to add ceiling, be careful not to overdo it. How do you know when you’re overdoing it? Read on…

Successful reverb should enhance the mood you are aiming for; it is not just about adding size, but embellishment of your central theme.

4. How much?

It is a taste thing of course, if the reverb is a big feature of your production ala Phil Spector, you’ll use a lot more than if you were just using it to blend, glue and create a believable ambiance. Remember that a little reverb goes a long way. When it comes to applying reverb, solo the instrument or voice, then bring in the reverb until you can hear it, then back it off a smidge until you sort of feel you want a bit more. That’ll probably be about right.

5. High Pass Filtering

Hopefully you are aware of the benefits of high and low pass filters, and you’ll have been applying these to instruments in your mix already to keep low end rumble and other toxic frequencies at bay. The same wisdom works on reverb, high passing reverb with an EQ – i.e. rolling off its low end will keep the space open. Leaving the low end in, could mean you lose definition as you add more reverb to more channels.

6. Brightening with Reverb

Reverb can be especially useful for brightening vocals where you might feel that EQing the vocal directly is working against you. This same approach can of course be used on any instrument, the trick is to identify the presence EQ range and then boost that in the reverb. For example, vocals usually have a strong presence around 3K, so, rather than EQ the vocal audio, instead, insert an EQ after your reverb and push that in the 3K area to get a more airy, transparent lift.

7. Impact with Reverb

Snare drums can regularly benefit from gated reverb, whereby a half second or so pre-delay followed then by a reverb that is gated, i.e. cut short abruptly – creates an un-natural, but useful artefact that might be described as smashed glass. The effect if used proportionally and blended well will give dimension to the snare without adding body. Used heavily it is a very distinctive effect brought to popular consciousness by Phil Collins and David Bowie, however, despite how dated it can make a drum sound, it is still used a lot for sound re-enforcement even in today’s most cutting edge productions.

8. Grouping Reverb

A useful tip for gauging the effectiveness of your reverb, especially if you are using multiple reverbs is to group them together so you can then solo or mute them with a single mouse click. Being able to A/B processing in this way can be very informative and help you reign in your levels or feel confident about adding more. Having control of all your reverbs on a single fader will allow you to fine tune how you want them, plus you can of course apply EQ as mentioned in tips 5 & 6.

We often think of reverb being stereo but there is huge benefit to setting up mono reverbs.

9. Springs and other ‘Dirty’ Verbs

Certain instruments take better to reverb than others, some don’t play so nicely. Often we like electric guitars to feel upfront, but regular reverb tends to soften their impact. Spring reverb and certain other lo-fi processors work especially well, the harshness of them can add body and presence to the audio, don’t discount cheap sounding processors and springs for use on vocals either, for a vintage lo-fi vocal reverb springs are extremely fashionable right now.

10. Mono Reverb

We often think of reverb being stereo but there is huge benefit to setting up mono reverbs. Mono reverbs are great for spot lighting or where you want to draw attention to an instrument without swamping the mix. If you wanted to spot light a keyboard solo that was panned off to the right, setting up a mono dedicated processor and then the pan to match the pan setting of the keyboard, will really help retain the dynamics in your production.

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LB-Happy Progressive House (Unfinished Project)

An unfinished project by me made of all happy chords.

Enjoy.

I would love to know how you progressed this song further.

                                                       


                                                            Click using  pc only

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Keyboard & Mouse Shortcuts(Fl Studio)

	File Operations
Ctrl+O	Open file
Ctrl+S	Save file
Ctrl+N	Save new version
Ctrl+Shift+S	Save As...
Ctrl+R	Export wave file
Ctrl+Shift+R	Export mp3 file
Ctrl+Shift+M	Export MIDI file
Alt+0,1..9	Open recent files 0..9
Ctrl+Shift+H	(Re)arrange windows

	Pattern Selector (Numpad)
1..9	Select patterns 1..9
+	Next pattern
-	Previous pattern
Right arrow	Next pattern
Left Arrow	Previous pattern
F4	Next empty pattern

	Channel Rack & Step Sequencer
1...9, 0	Mute/Unmute first 10 channels
Ctrl+1..9,0	Solo/UnSolo first 10 channels
Up Arrow	Select previous channel
Down Arrow	Next channel
Alt+G	Group selected channels
Alt+Z	Zip selected channel/s
Alt+U	Unzip selected channel/s
Shift+Up Arrow	Move selected channel/s Up
Shift+Down Arrow	Move selected channel/s Down
Page Up	Next channel Group
Page Down	Previous channel Group
Ctrl+C	Copy channel Steps/Score
Ctrl+V	Paste channel Steps/Score
Ctrl+X	Cut channel Steps/Score
Alt+Del	Delete selected channel/s
Ctrl+Shift+C	Clone channel/s
Shift+Left arrow	Shift Steps Left
Shift+Right Arrow	Shift Steps Right
Alt+R	Randomize
Alt+P	Send to Piano roll
K	Show Keyboard Editor
G	Show Graph Editor

	Record / Playback / Transport
Backspace	Toggle Line/None Snap
Space	Start/Stop Playback
Ctrl+Space	Start/Pause Playback
L	Switch Pattern/Song mode
R	Switch On/Off recording (This also works during playback)
0 (NumPad)	Fast forward
/ (NumPad)	Previous bar (Song mode)
* (NumPad)	Next bar (Song mode)
Ctrl+E	Toggle Step Edit mode
Ctrl+H	Stop sound (panic)
Ctrl+T	Toggle typing keypad to piano keypad
Ctrl+B	Toggle blend notes
Ctrl+M	Toggle metronome
Ctrl+P	Toggle recording metronome precount
Ctrl+I	Toggle wait for input to start recording

	Window Navigation
Tab	Cycle nested windows
F8	Open Plugin Picker
Enter	Toggle Max/Min Playlist
Esc	Closes a window
F1	This Help
F5	Toggle Playlist
F6	Toggle Step Sequencer
F7	Toggle Piano roll
Alt+F8	Show/hide Sample Browser
F9	Show/hide Mixer
F10	Show/hide MIDI settings
F11	Show/hide song info window
F12	Close all windows
Ctrl+Shift+H	Arrange windows

	Mixer
Alt+Left-Arrow / Right-Arrow	Move selected mixer track Left/Right
Alt+L	Select the channels Linked to the selected mixer track
Ctrl+L	Link selected channels to selected mixer track
Ctrl+Shift+S	Save Mixer track state
Shift+Ctrl+L	Link selected channels STARTING From selected mixer track
F2	Rename selected mixer track
S	Solo Current track
Alt+S	Alt Solo - Activate Current track and all tracks Routed TO/FROM It
Alt+R	Render Armed tracks to .wav

	Playlist action
B	Paint tool
C	Slice tool
D	Delete tool
E	Select tool
P	Pencil tool
S	Slip edit tool
T	Mute tool
Y	Playback tool
Z	Zoom tool
Alt	Bypass snap (very useful when combined with other modifiers)
Alt+G	Ungroup selection
Alt+P	Open the Piano roll or channel depending on what's selected in the Playlist
Alt+T	Add Time marker
Alt+/* and Ctrl+Alt+/*	Jump to Next/Previous song marker (if present)
Alt+ Right-click	Audition the clip selected.
Alt+ Right-Shift	Engage snap free 'Slice Mode', release Alt after clicking on the Clip to use snapping.
Ctrl+A	Select All
Ctrl+B	Duplicate selection (or all Clips in zoom range if nothing is selected) to the right.
Ctrl+C	Copy selection
Ctrl+D	Deselect selection
Ctrl+P	Toggle Performance Mode
Ctrl+T	Add Time Marker
Ctrl+V	Paste selection
Ctrl+X	Cut selection
Ctrl+Alt+G	Grid Color
Ctrl+Alt+Home	Toggle Resizing from Left
Ctrl+Ins	Add space at the start of the timeline selection of equal length to the selection
Ctrl+Del	Delete space according to the timeline selection
Ctrl+Enter	Select time around selection
Ctrl+Left-Arrow/Right-Arrow	Select time before/after selection equal to the selection length
Ctrl+Left-click	Select
Ctrl+Shift+Left-click	Add to selection
Ctrl+Shift+Right-click	Zoom to selected Clip
Ctrl+Right-click	Zoom on selection / Drag to make zoom selection (zoom on release)
Del	Delete selected clip/pattern source data
Double Left-click on clip/pattern	Open clip/pattern properties (e.g. Channel settings, Piano roll)
Home	Move the playback marker to the start of the Playlist.
Insert Key	Slice Clip at mouse cursor position
Left-Shift+Left-click (on Playlist)	Add and resize clip/pattern (move mouse L/R after click and hold to resize). Must be in pencil mode.
Left-Shift+Right-click	Pan view
Middle mouse button	Pan view (hold & drag left/right)
PgUp / PgDown	Zoom in / Zoom out
Pencil tool + Shift	Swap to Brush
Right-click	Delete selected clip/pattern
Right-Shift+Left-click	Slice clip/pattern (click above/below clip/pattern & drag vertical)
Right-Alt+Right-Shift+Left-click	Vertical Slice clip. Release alt to engage snap.
Right-Shift+Right-click	Slice clip/pattern & delete smallest part (click above/below clip/pattern & drag vertical)
Right-Alt+Right-click	Quantize selected
Right-Alt+Left-click	Mute selected
Shift	Temporarily swaps between Paint & Draw modes
Shift+C	Select all Clips according to the currently selected Clip source
Shift+G	Group selected Clips
Shift+I	Invert selection
Shift+Q	Quick quantize Clip start times
Shift+Left-Arrow/Right-Arrow	Move selection Left/Right
Shift+Up-Arrow/Down-Arrow	Move selection Up/Down
Shift+Left-click (on clip/pattern)	Clone (drag while holding clip/pattern)
Shift+mouse-wheel (on Clips)	Nudge Clip position
Shift+M	Switch stretch mode
Shift+mouse-wheel (on Track label area)	Re-order Clip Tracks
Shift + 0 (zero)	Center Playlist to play-head position (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 1 to 3	Horizontal Zoom levels 1 (zoom out) to 3 (zoom in), (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 4	Horizontal Zoom, show all (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 5	Zoom to selection (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 6	Fit Performance Zone to Playlist (numbers above typing keys)

	Piano roll action
NOTE:	Some keyboard modifiers apply only to Draw mode ().
B	Paint tool
C	Slice tool
D	Delete tool
E	Select tool
F	Show next property in the Piano roll event lane (lower section)
M	Toggle Keyboard view mode
O	Toggle Portamento
P	Pencil tool
T	Mute tool
Y	Playback tool
Z	Zoom tool
Alt	Bypass snap (very useful when combined with other modifiers)
Alt+A	Arpeggiator
Alt+B	View note helpers
Alt+C	Change color of selected note/s (to selected color group)
Alt+E	Riff machine
Alt+F	Flam
Alt+G	Ungroup selected notes
Alt+K	Open Limit tool
Alt+L	Open Articulate tool
Alt+N	Switch waveform helper view (when available).
Alt+O	Open LFO tool when in lower Event Editor area
Alt+Q	Quantize
Alt+R	Open Randomize tool
Alt+S	Open Strum tool
Alt+U	Open Chop tool
Alt+V	Toggle Ghost channels ON/OFF
Alt+W	Open Claw Machine tool
Alt+X	Open Scale Levels tool
Alt+Y	Open Score Flipper tool
Alt+Mouse wheel	Change the selected note property of the note the mouse pointer is near or on.
Alt+Arrow keys	Nudge the position of the selected note/s OR all notes if no selection is made.
Ctrl+A	Select All
Ctrl+B	Duplicate selection, or all notes in zoom range if nothing is selected, to the right. Works also with time-line selections.
Ctrl+C	Copy selection
Ctrl+D	Deselect selection
Ctrl+G	Glue selected and touching notes
Ctrl+I	Insert current controller value
Ctrl+L	Quick legato
Ctrl+M	Import MIDI file
Ctrl+Q	Quick Quantize
Ctrl+U	Quick Chop
Ctrl+V	Paste selection
Ctrl+X	Cut selection
Ctrl+Alt+G	Grid Color
Ctrl+Alt+Home	Toggle allow resizing from left
Ctrl+Delete	Delete space equal to selection
Ctrl+Enter	Select time around selection
Ctrl+Insert	Insert space equal to the current time-line selection
Ctrl+Up-Arrow/Down-Arrow	Transpose selection UP/Down 1 Octave
Ctrl+Left-Arrow/Right-Arrow	Select time before (left) or after (right) current selection
Ctrl+Left-click	Select
Ctrl+Shift+Left-click	Add to selection
Ctrl+Right-click	Zoom on selection/Drag to make zoom selection (zoom on release)
Del	Delete selected
Double Left-click on note	Open note properties
Double Right-click or X1 button on Ghost note	Swap to Ghost channel to edit the note.
Left-Shift+Left-click (on Piano roll)	Add and resize notes (move mouse L/R after click and hold to resize)
Left-Shift+Right-click	Pan view
Left-Alt+Right-click	Audio preview
Middle mouse button	Pan view (hold and drag left/right)
PgUp / PgDown	Zoom in / Zoom out
Pencil tool + Shift	Swap to Brush
Right-click	Delete Selected Note/s
Right-Alt+Right-click	Quantize selected
Right-Shift+Left-click	Slice notes (click above/below note and drag vertical)
Right-Shift+Right-click	Slice notes & delete smallest part (click above/below note and drag vertical)
Shift+G	Group selected notes
Shift+Ctrl+V	Paste from MIDI clipboard
Shift	Temporarily swaps between Paint & Draw modes
Shift+C	Select by color
Shift+D	Discard selected note lengths
Shift+G	Group selected
Shift+I	Invert selection
Shift+N	Turn off selected chord
Shift+Q	Quick quantize
Shift+R	Select at random (multiple presses will select more notes)
Shift+Ctrl+V	Paste from MIDI Keyboard
Shift+Left-Arrow/Right-Arrow	Move selection Left/Right
Shift+Up-Arrow/Down-Arrow	Move selection Up/Down
Shift+Left-click	Clone (drag while holding clip/pattern), release Shift after dragging to unlock vertical movement
Shift+mouse-wheel (on Clips)	Nudge Clip position
Shift+mouse-wheel (on Track label area)	Re-order Clip Tracks
Shift + 0 (zero)	Center Playlist to play-head position (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 1 to 3	Horizontal Zoom levels 1 (zoom out) to 3 (zoom in), (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 4	Horizontal Zoom, show all (numbers above typing keys)
Shift + 5	Zoom to selection (numbers above typing keys)

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