Transition Essentials - LiveKeyboardist

30Jun 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

3 Ways To Transform Audio to Midi in Ableton Live

1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, 1UsingAbleton, Blog, Transition Essentials

In today's post, I am going to show you three ways you can transform Midi into audio in Ableton live. Method 1: Resampling In Ableton, you can capture audio from any track you would like, and record it. Making use of that ability, we can record the output of a single track to a new track. Then if it is too our liking, we can delete the original. Step 1: Create A New Audio Track This can be done quickly by pressing Command-T Step 2: Set the Audio from, to receive audio from the track you wish to bounce in place ( Transform Audio to Midi). Step 3: Record the audio into your newly created track by record enabling that track, and pressing record. If the audio is to your liking,…

30Apr 2019 by Brett Pontecorvo

Three Ways To Build A Live Set Faster

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, Blog, Program Features, Transition Essentials

Preparing for a live performance using Ableton requires four things: A setlist so you know what sounds and effects you will needThe right sounds so your live set matches what you hear on recordingsA way to control patch switching so you can move through your set easilyA way to alter and adjust sounds for spontaneity, or to compensate for different sound systems, band member volumes, and anything else unexpected that sometimes happens. Look at the above list closely... ...Now ask this question How much is the same from set to set? If you're thinking, "Almost everything is the same from set to set", I would not only agree with you, but go so far as to say that is the case for most people. Start From A Template The number…

08Jan 2019 by Brett Pontecorvo

Writing Dummy Clips WIth The Two Click Method

1UsingAbleton, Blog, Program Features, Transition Essentials

Writing dummy clips is essential for working in Ableton, especially in session view. Dummy clips can have many functions. We can use them for patch changes like described in this post. You can use them to create that sort of "Jump to" functionality the way you are able to in Mainstage. You can also use them to adjust the range of keyboard splits, or other types of set up adjustments. No matter what way you cut it, you will be putting information into dummy clips within Ableton, and so it's really important that you are able to do it quickly and efficiently. The Two Click Method The two click method of writing dummy clips actually has four steps. It's a great work flow that is going to save you tons…

04Dec 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

Abletons Browser: Preset, or Default?

1UsingAbleton, Blog, Program Features, Transition Essentials

I recently had a friend in town who makes great music in Logic but has never touched Ableton before. As he was working on Ableton with me, one of the first questions he asked was, "Are there preset options?" And hence, this post. https://youtu.be/N69sUcHk348 Ableton's Browser Ableton's browser is organized by folders and is located on the left-hand side of your user interface. I think the browser actually makes it very easy to find things once you understand how it works. To the very top left is the show/hide browser triangle that lets you hide the browser when you don't need to see it. Just below that is your list of categories. I like to think of this section in plain English as things that can be added to your set by…

20Nov 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

Use Ableton Like Mainstage

1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, Blog, Featured, Transition Essentials

I need to start out by saying, Ableton is not MainStage. It does, however, have the ability to do all of the same things, and way more. MainStage is created to play patches. Ableton is created partially to play patches, and partially as a program for music production. You can think of Ableton as Logic Pro, but with integrated features that allow for playing and switching patches in real-time. I'm going to walk you through how to get Ableton Set up like mainstage here, but if you're ready for a deep dive into all the ways you can use Mainstage just like Ableton, Click here and buy a copy of my complete transition course The Six Stages Of A Patch List Phase One: Get Familiar with the song Pay special…

30Jun 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

Monitor, In, And Off

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, 1UsingAbleton, Blog, Transition Essentials

https://youtu.be/b_OhIDyURmk In, Auto, And Off. The three monitoring modes in Ableton. What do they do? What is it for? Why is it important? If I just ignore it, will it go away? Here is a simple break down of what they do, and how to make use of them. Monitor Status Let's start off by saying, these status effect signal entering Ableton from another device only. For example, monitoring status will affect when and how you hear the signal from a guitar plugged into Ableton, but will not affect when and how you hear the audio you recorded from the said guitar. Similarly, monitoring status will affect whether or not you can hear what you are playing on your midi keyboard, but not what you recorded from your midi keyboard, even…

26May 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

Track, Sync, Remote: Ableton Midi Preferences Simplified

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, 1UsingAbleton, Blog, Transition Essentials

The first time I tried to use Ableton with multiple sounds on a live gig was a nightmare. I was working with the Arturia Keylab 88 and mapped a few on the onboard pads to a dummy clip to change my sounds. After setting everything up, and getting it to work a few times, I thought I was done and ready to play. What I had failed to check was if my MIDI mapping’s worked correctly. This was a glaring oversight for sure. Anyway, I got my stuff all set up for the top of the set and I was doing just fine playing my piano sound. As the set started to progress and get more intense I thought it would be the perfect time to start up my Hammond…

23May 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

Adjustable Key Range: Without Suite

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, Blog, Transition Essentials

You can set up a keyboard split by creating instrument rack and adjusting the key range. That would 100% work. The challenge comes when you need to have a split that can be adjusted. I find that more often than not, my instrument ranges do need to be adjusted throughout the set. I used to use a sort of clunky Max for Live device to accomplish this, however recently I have taken up using Ableton's built-in "Pitch" plug-in to create an adjustable key range split. It's a native, concise, and reliable way to accomplish the task. https://youtu.be/r0Bc1O_xptc Pro's of the "Pitch" Plug-In The Pitch Plug-in is completely automatable. What that means for you is using dummy clips, you can make one pitch plugin set many different ranges. When I've used it…

18May 2018 by Brett Pontecorvo

5 Things I Wish I Could Have Found When I Started Using Ableton

1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, 1UsingAbleton, Blog, Transition Essentials

When switching to Ableton, especially from Mainstage or Logic, I've seen people really struggle with locating the tools they need to accomplish simple tasks. Of course, these are three different programs, all with different strengths. Ableton on a purely geographic level is not set up quite the same way Logic and Mainstage are, and that is exactly what we are going to tackle today. Make sure you grab a copy of the "Fast Track Patch List Guide" as well so that you can start making great live sets in Ableton even faster. WHERE IS EVERYTHING!?! Years ago with my first serious music project, we recorded an album in logic and started performing live using mainstage. The trouble was, with the number of sounds we were using, and the full backing…

15May 2018 by Brent

Ableton Chord Memorizer Without Max for Live

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1Switching From Mainstage To Ableton, Blog, Transition Essentials

Playing keyboards live, or honestly, performing anything where you are trying to fill the sound out often requires that you play more notes then you have fingers to play. That is why the chord trigger in mainstage is so useful. You are able to use one hand to play pads or chords that you choose and play a melody with your other. Setting up an Ableton chord memorizer is ABSOLUTELY DOABLE. Here is what you will need to get the job done. Midi Effect Rack Chord Plug-In Instrument Rack Luckily, these are all included with Intro, Standard, and Suite versions of Live, so no matter where you are at, we are in business. If you need just a standard keyboard split with no chord triggers, you can check out my…

Category: Transition Essentials