Computer Music

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5. Didgeri-tuba-bass

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1

Start by loading the sample into your sampler (we’re using Live’s Sampler). It plays the note A2, so set that as the root key on the keyboard. Edit the Start point to remove any silence. The sample is rather quiet, so add some gain. Flipping to the amplitude envelope, we pull the Sustain right down and set the Decay to about 180ms for an almost percussive hit.

2

Our long, smooth tuba note now sounds much more like a hammering bass monster, so we load the beat LWK_123_Before_Full (courtesy of Loopmaster­s’ Leftwing & Kody Depp House Tools collection) and play in a grooving bassline. Single sampled notes can include odd harmonics, so we filter them out using EQ Eight and roll off the bass below 30Hz.

3

The riff still lacks a bit of edge, so we add some subtle chorusing, providing extra body and shape, then top it off with a little tape saturation. We apply strong compressio­n with a slow Attack to let the punch come through, and add a limiter for more weight (the tuba is simply not as fat as a synth bass otherwise). Finally, a gate gives even tighter control of the envelope. (Audio: Tuba bass)

4

Now to add some didgeridoo to fill the gap in our tuba bassline. Load the sample 85780__sandyrb__didgeridoo-05.wav into a sampler and listen for a good snippet. We choose one from around the 21s mark, draw in a MIDI note, then tune the sample so that it fits the bassline. We then tweak the sample start point to get the right timing at this pitch/speed. An EQ boost at 70Hz fills things out, and reverb gives space. (Audio: Didgeri-tuba)

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