First Sound
Sixty seconds from silence to a chord
Connect a controller and MIDIpad makes sound. No DAW, no routing, no patch to choose: it opens in C Major with the Chords instrument on stage and a voice already selected, so the next thing you do is play it.
Arm a chord, then strum it
Push the left stick Left stick in any direction. Nothing sounds yet; you've armed a chord. Six chords from your key sit around the stick like a wheel, and wherever you point, that chord is ready under your right thumb.
Now strum it. On a Sony pad, swipe across the touchpad Touchpad: the chord plays string by string under your finger. Swipe slowly and it's soft; flick and it rings out loud. On any pad, push the right stick Right stick out to the rim and sweep around it - that's the strum stick, the same strings laid around the stick.
Let go of everything. The notes keep ringing and fade on their own, like real strings - low notes linger, high notes fade sooner.
Three things to try
- Point somewhere else and strum again. Every direction is a chord that fits your key; there are no wrong notes anywhere on the wheel.
- Hold R1, strum, then release it and strum again. You just played a tension chord and resolved it home. L1 flips the armed chord's colour the same way - major to minor, minor to major.
- Pull L2 while notes ring. That's a palm mute under your hand. Strum while holding it for short, chugging chords.
Change how it sounds
The Voice picker in the control bar chooses what MIDIpad plays the chords with. There are twelve voices; the dials beside the picker shape whichever one is selected. Point the cursor at any dial and the help line at the bottom of the window tells you what it does for that voice.
Set the picker to MIDI Only and MIDIpad goes quiet while the MIDI ports carry on. See Sound and MIDI.
Try the drums
Click Chords at the left of the control bar - the name of the instrument on stage - or press Options on the controller. Either one switches to Drums.
Tilt the left stick Left stick and a hi-hat pulse starts; the further round the stick points, the busier it gets. Tilt the right stick Right stick for the kick, and push it all the way to the rim for the snare on the backbeat. It's covered properly in the Drums chapter.
Where next
- The whole surface in one screen: the Chords chapter opens with a map of every control, and each row links to the page that teaches it.
- Playing through your own instruments: set up your DAW.
- ⌘, opens the settings.