Chord Track Tool (and big Thank you! to Mike from drumbot)
Due to requests for a "Chord Track" feature, I sent an email to Mike from drumbot.com asking if it would be possible to offload MIDI data from his "
Key Chords" page. He was very gracious in responding to this request, and in only a few days has updated that page to kick start Chord Track generation for SONAR users. I first want to extend a HUGE "Thank you!" to him for this, since this has been an incredible act of kindness for us.
Overview of the tool - The tool was designed for guitarists to noodle around with song creation, and a screenshot is included below. The green box is where a key is chosen, and the blue box will update accordingly. Inside the blue box, the top row aligns to the main key chords, the second row is most common variations of the top row, and the third row is special voicings of the root chord (useful for construction).
A chord can be auditioned by clicking on it either in the blue box or the red box (chord progression area). Chords are easily dragged from the blue area into the red area (maximum of 8). The duration of each chord in the chord track/progression can be specified via the box below each chord (in quarter notes). Per initial design, the red area loops when played to allow a feel for the chord progression being created.
As originally designed, the tool allows for a strum pattern to be used (at the bottom), but this is an
independent loop from the red box. Since the tool runs from a "generic clock," this can be problematic for offloading MIDI as it generates timing issues. The strum feature inserts humanization into the playback, but running on a separate loop created offloading issues.
Modifications made - Mike enabled an "Export MIDI" button, which exports the contents of the Chord Progression (red) area as a *.mid file. Additionally, he added a "Structure Only" checkbox which offloads
only the contents of the red area so that timing is now "Chords only" to the duration specified in the box below each chord. In the above screenshot, this will offload Dsus2 (whole notes), Dm (whole notes), Asus2 (whole notes), and Am (whole notes) - much like a lead sheet in essence. Unchecking "Structure Only" will also insert strumming elements if desired, but this is not ideal at this time (you can try it and see what it does).
Use for Chord Track generation -
The tool will not replace PRV work 100%, especially for slash chords, inversions, or other playing nuances (timing, velocity, etc.), but it will allow for up to 8 chords to be offloaded as MIDI and imported for work in PRV. The red area is independent of the blue area, so if working in say the key of GMaj, and you want an Asus2 chord, simply shift key (green box) to A so that the Asus2 chord appears in the bottom row.
For actual musical creation with this tool, PRV editing is required for velocity adjustment, timing, inversions, etc., but this tool allows for a nice "jump start" to this work. As many chord progressions are repetitive, this tool easily allows for pulling key chords into SONAR as a MIDI file for editing and subsequent use of SONAR's MIDI pattern tool or groove clips to extend regions as needed.
post edited by mettelus - 2015/10/02 17:16:07