← Music Production · Sounds · about 25 min
MIDI: notes, velocity, and a first beat
Build a drum pattern and a melody on a grid.
The grid
MIDI notes live on a grid called the piano roll. Up and down is pitch. Left to right is time.
Drawing notes with the mouse works just like placing dots on a drum grid.
A beat on the grid
This looks just like a DAW's drum grid. Press play, change some squares, and listen. In your DAW, this is a drum rack (Ableton) or Drum Kit Designer, a Drummer track, or step sequencer (Logic).
| Drum | 1 | & | 2 | & | 3 | & | 4 | & |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hi-hat | ||||||||
| Snare | ||||||||
| Kick |
Velocity
Velocity is how hard a note is played. Higher velocity is louder (and often brighter). Lower is softer.
Real drummers don't hit every note the same. Vary the velocity on hi-hats and ghost notes and your beat will feel human.
Quantize
Quantize snaps your notes to the grid so they land exactly on the beat.
Use it when you play a bit off the beat. But a little looseness is what makes music feel alive, so do not overdo it.
Make your first loop
Drums
Make a two-bar drum pattern. Kick, snare, and hi-hat.
Bass
Add a MIDI bass track. Play just one note per bar, the root of each chord.
Chords
Add a keys or pad track. Play a simple chord progression like C – F – G – C.
Loop it
Loop the section and listen to it a few times. Adjust until it feels good.