How to create a long MIDI timeline with arranger

Elektron Gear Octatrack
#1

Hi,

I´ve been messing around with the arranger ´cause I´d like to create a biiiiiiig pattern to improvise and record MIDI notes on it.

What I´d like to do is to have the longest MIDI timeline possible to jam on, or to play something live over an existing song and “steal” :yum: maybe it´s harmony, structure or whatever.

Imagine an Ableton´s arrangement view. The loop would be the whole reference song (or mayble my own bassline, chord progression, etc. but long enough to avoid “MIDI overdubbing”). Then I´d try to simplify everything and reduce to the least and shortest patterns possible.

If I chain or arrange all needed patterns to last, let´s say, a 5 minutes song at 120bpm, I´d need more than 2 banks of 64-step patterns.

How would you face this to make it usable?

Playing live with only OT - Questions
#2

As you said…

Or buy a linear sequencer. :content:

There’s no midi overdubbing but replacing.
You can change eventually pattern scale to x1/2, if that 8th resolution suffice.

#3

I want to try this on the Octatrack for some reason, I could do it more easily on Ableton as well.

When I´ve tried with slower pattern scales I need to set the master to INF and I haven´t tried if this is usable with the arranger. Another thing that I don´t understand very well is pattern chains, I´d like to have 128-step patterns :sweat_smile:.

Will I have to copy-paste again and again and again?

#4

You don’t have too.

Just hold first pattern to chain patterns, nothing special.

Your common tracks in patterns?
You can resample some tracks and play the sample looped, without copy / paste.

#5

But if the master lenght is 64 and the pattern is 64 x 1/2 it will restart at the middle, isn´t it?

I´ve only tried with MIDI. I want to try this with resampling and/or pickup machines but for the moment I´m thinking about how to do it with MIDI notes to send to the Digitone and make further sound tweaks.

#6

I didn’t get what you want to copy paste.
Long midi recording = enough patterns. :wink:

Nope. Steps are longer.

#7

Imagine I have a four-pattern bassline (nothing fancy, four notes, one on the first trigger of each bar). These notes are looped, but not the sound, ´cause this way I can change the pattern on the Digitone and change the sound character or whatever. So if I have, let´s say, 40 patterns chained, I´d have to copy-paste the first pattern on the fifth, nineth, etc., the second on the sixth, tenth, and so on.

Then I don´t know what is happening

#8

No more ideas except another sequencer with the looped patterns!

#9

Another sequencer you mean external gear?

As far as this is a way to create song sketches on the fly, maybe I should complement this with resampling / pickup machines, to simplify that.

#10

Yep. OctaEdit would help to copy / paste I guess.

#11

I just bought it last week!

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