1Creating A Keyboard Set Up

19Aug 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

Best Live Performance Software? (Mainstage Vs. Ableton)

Mainstage and Ableton have both earned their rightful place as the go-to performance software for playing live. Neither software is perfect, and although I believe Ableton is the superior piece of software for playing keyboard live, there are use cases for Mainstage, and so if you are trying to decide between the two, you must carefully consider your needs and the pros and cons of each. Today, we are going to breakdown where each piece of software really shines, and some of the pitfalls of each. Surface Level Differences Price Point: Ableton has three price tiers starting at $99 doing all the way up to $740, while Mainstage is humbly priced at $30Ableton is a fully functioning DAW, while Mainstage Is really meant more for live performance.Mainstage is a lot…

26May 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

The 4 Steps To Midi Map Any Controller In Ableton

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1UsingAbleton, Blog

In this video, I break down the four simple steps to Midi mapping any controller in Ableton live. What You Need In order to map a controller in Ableton, you will need the following things Ableton liveAll versions of Ableton Live will workA midi controller or KeyboardMy favorite keyboard is the Keylab 88My favorite controller is the Novation Launch Control XLUSB or MIDI connectionConnecting directly to your computer will work fine, but if you are like me and need to connect many devices, I highly recommend the USB hub made by Anker Step 1 (open settings) The fastest way to do this is to use the shortcut Command - ,You can also choose Live → Preferences Step 2 (set up midi preferences) In order for your controller work, we need…

02Apr 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

Using The Roli Seaboard With Jeremy Sauber

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, Blog

The Roli Seaboard has been on my radar for quite some time now. Its ability to create an extremely detailed expressive sound from a keyboard-like instrument is unlike anything in its category. As much as I was intrigued from a distance by this device, It far surpassed my expectations and imagination seeing it in action. What Is The Roli Seaboard? Roli's website defines it as The Seaboard is a renowned reinvention of the piano keyboard. Smooth, touch-responsive, and super-sensitive, its surface lets you bend, deepen, and modulate sounds in ways that make a standard keyboard feel two-dimensional. More musical expression is right at your fingertips — only on the Seaboard.Roli Website A traditional midi keyboard responds only to Pitch, Velocity, and Aftertouch. Modwheels sometimes provide additional modulation abilities, but at…

25Feb 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

Akai MPK Mini Review

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up

On your hunt for the perfect mini keyboard, is the Akai MPK Mini right for you? Product links on this page are affiliate links! They are at no extra charge to you, but I will make a small commision. It's an easy way to support the work I do. As with most things, that really depends on exactly what you are looking for in this keyboard. Here are some key features: 2 Octaves of Synth Action Keys8 Knobs8 Pads (Program changes or Notes)Joy Stick for Mod Wheel/Pitch BendBuilt-in Arpeggiator with 6 Modes and swingNote Repeat Function For Drumming This is n action-packed little controller. If I was doing some traveling where I needed to be creating, this would definitely come with me. It's shorter then the width of my 15"…

18Feb 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

Yamaha MODX and Ableton Set up

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, Blog

An interview with Live Keyboardist community member, Glenn Kahn We've got a really special interview coming at you with Live Keyboardist community member Glenn, and he is going to walk us through how he uses Ableton alongside his MODX. What powerful about his set up is that he's got a nice mix of onboard and Ableton based sounds. And he is able to really easily navigate between them all. This post speaks better in video, so I am going to let Glenn do the talking below! If you haven't already, make sure you pick up a copy of [thrive_2step id='2477']the quick synth map[/thrive_2step]. It's a really great way to wrap your head around the basics of synthesis and understanding some of the universal principles that apply to creating great sounds.…

09Jan 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

How To Get A Great Keyboard Mix

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1Sound Design

Having a great set up and excellent patches are only step one of playing great live keyboard. We must also have an excellent Keyboard mix. As I see it, in a live context there are three tools we can use to help up get a great keyboard mix. Patch VolumeEQCategory Bus Control Patch Volume As simple as it is, getting all of your patches at the same volume is step number one. If you are using a dynamic patch list, this can be done by using the channel fader. But so long as you are adjusting the sounds one by one to get them to the right level in an isolated way, you are in business. Adjusting the volume in this manner helps your sounds to start to sit together…

04Jan 2020 by Brett Pontecorvo

Is Arturia Pigments Worth It?

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1Sound Design, Blog

Is Arturia Pigments worth it? This is a question I often ask myself before making any purchase. Is what I will get in return for my money, better than having the money itself? Deciding whether or not to purchase Arturia Pigments was no exception to this. For many years I have been of the school of thought that Ableton Suite comes with EVERYTHING you need to make great music. This includes synths, audio effects, you name it. Ableton on its own is MORE THAN ENOUGH. What caught my eye about Pigments wasn't necessarily that it was a flashy new synth, but that it was made by Arturia. And I am a huge fan of their products, so when I saw they were doing a free trial for Pigments 2 over…

29Oct 2019 by Brett Pontecorvo

How To Prep And Run Tracks In Session View

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1UsingAbleton

If you are using Ableton, then running tracks is something that is easily accessible to you; Either in session view or arrangement view. As a keyboardist, however, it takes a little bit of intentionality to keep your patches, tracks, and controls organized. It is completely possible to do this successfully, and use only one controller. In the past, I have talked about running tracks in arrangement view using only the Novation Launch Control XL. Today I will focus on running tracks in Session View. Session View Or Arrangement View? Over the years I have gone back and forth with running tracks using session view and arrangement view. What I have come to determine is that they both really do similar things, and it just depends on what feels right to…

08Oct 2019 by Brett Pontecorvo

What’s a Part Of My Live Rig

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up

The Gear I Use And Why Setting up a live rig takes a little bit of thought. It's not the most difficult thing to do once you understand the parts of a live rig set up. I've written more about the elements of a live set up on this post, but today I am going to walk you through my live set up, and give you some insight to why I use what I do. The top three things I look for in gear are: Great software (to customize settings) Great feel (because you should love what you play) Durability. Invest once. Use for a long time. Everything I use in my live set up fit these criteria first. Everything else is icing on the cake. My Live Rig Keyboard…

01Oct 2019 by Brett Pontecorvo

Sound Better Now With Instrument Busses

1Creating A Keyboard Set Up, 1UsingAbleton, Blog

Instrument busses really helped me out of a playing rut. I had just switched from Mainstage to Ableton and I was on cloud nine because it was stable and allowed me to really create anything I could imagine. But of course: With great power, comes great responsibility.Uncle Ben Although Ableton's stability (power) provided me a breakthrough in some areas, it created a new problem for me. It hosted more sounds than I could individually control. After struggling with this problem for a while, using instrument busses came to the rescue It allowed me to control my instruments by type of sound rather than by individual patch. This meant that I could use the same single knob to add or take away reverb from any piano patch. Creating Instrument Busses Most…

Category: 1Creating A Keyboard Set Up