How To Create and Insert Non-4/4 Drum Patterns with the Micro BR

[Ted]

The Micro BR has lots of metronome patterns for non-4/4 time, but no preset drum patterns for anything but 4/4 time.

Here is how I bounce 4/4 drum patterns, and convert them into non-4/4 patterns for my drum arrangements:

Micro BR Skills Required:

• Creating Drum Arrangements (Owner's Manual page 83)
• Bouncing (Owner's Manual page 50)
• Copying Tracks by Measure (Owner's Manual page 53)

The song (my contribution to the NEILFEST), has a few spots with 6/4 and 5/4 patterns.

I created a drum arrangement inserting patterns "316 Metro6/4" and "315 Metro5/4" into those spots.  (The rest of this particular arrangement is basically all pattern "272 Cnty2-V1.")

The tempo of the song is 84 BPM.  (Remember that.  It'll be important later.)

I decided what kit to use: Jazz.

I bounced a few measures of pattern 272 to a stereo pair of v-tracks, with no reverb.

From these v-tracks I created a 6/4 pattern by selecting six beats and copying them to another pair of v-tracks (Utility > TRK > CPY > MEA etc.)  I copied these beats to all of the measures where there was a 6/4 metronome pattern in the drum arrangement.  Then I selected five beats and did the same for all of the measures where there was a 5/4 metronome pattern.

Pattern 272 |1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|  = my 6/4 pattern
Measure     |    5   |    6   |    7   |


Pattern 272 |1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|  = my 5/4 pattern
Measure     |    5   |    6   |    7   |

(Since pattern 272 ends with an open hi-hat, I chose the last five and six beats, rather than the first five and six.  But you can choose any sequence of consecutive beats.)

When I played the song back, I would hear both the metronome patterns and the sliced patterns.

I then replaced every part that had "316 Metro6/4" with "327 BREAK."  However... "327 BREAK" is a silent 4/4 pattern and follows the tempo of the arrangement part.  In order to make the four beats of pattern 327 last as long as the six beats of pattern 316, I adjusted the tempo of those parts from 84 BPM to 56 BPM.  Voila: a six-beat silent break which allows the 6/4 patterns on the v-tracks to play through.

How, you ask, did I know what the tempo should be for the drum arrangement parts with pattern "327 BREAK?"

Here's the formula:

4 divided by [beats per measure] times [song tempo] = [tempo of your break pattern]

I then did the same thing for every part that had "315 Metro5/4" adjusting the tempo to 67.2 BPM (using the formula above).

When I mastered the song, I made sure that the level and reverb on the rhythm matched the level and reverb on the v-tracks with the sliced drum patterns.  That way it sounds seamless.

Attachments:

• A short MP3 that demonstrates the process.
• My drum arrangement worksheet for Old King indicating the parts with non 4/4 patterns and their tempos
• A MS Excel spreadsheet to help calculate the break pattern tempos

[galestermusic]

Ted this is pretty cool! I was just asking about this and 64 sent me the link. I have a song I want to cover and its bumming me out it switches From 4/4 to 3/4 a few times.

I may put Cubas LE back on the puter and program it because there are no "rim shot" patterns on Micro BR...just have to remember how to use Cue Base LE. LOL

I want to try this, I'll have to go through and see if there is something I can use.

[Ted]

I was just asking about this and 64 sent me the link.

Funny: For anyone who had spent less than a week on this forum, that sentence wouldn't have made any sense.

I have a song I want to cover and its bumming me out it switches From 4/4 to 3/4 a few times.

I may put Cubas LE back on the puter and program it because there are no "rim shot" patterns on Micro BR...just have to remember how to use Cue Base LE. LOL

I want to try this, I'll have to go through and see if there is something I can use.

The Reggae drum kit has an awesome snare sound that might work for your rim shot.

One thing I may try when I have the right song for it is mingling sounds from two different drum kits.

[Ferryman_1957]

Clever, clever Ted. Thanks for sharing.

Cheers,

Nigel

[hewhoiscalledj]

Genius. Sheer freaking genius...

[AndyR]

Cheers for posting that Ted.

I knew it could be done like this, but I hadn't bothered working it out yet because I haven't needed it so far - thanks for doing all the hard work of typing it in so I don't have to work it out myself

[hooper]

That's an ingenious insight and a very good explanation. Thanks for taking the time to share! 

[Mach]

This is very interesting, I am going to give this a try.

Is it possible to do 3/4 time anywhere on the measures also? 

Pattern (any)  |-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|
Measure         |      5      |      6      |      7      |


Pattern (any)  |-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|
Measure         |      5      |      6      |      7      |

...and, why do you need to put in the "327 Break"?  Is it because it is 4/4 time and to match up the other signatures you offset the tempo?  Did I just answer my own question?

               

[Ted]

Is it possible to do 3/4 time anywhere on the measures also? 

Pattern (any)  |-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|
Measure         |      5      |      6      |      7      |


Pattern (any)  |-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|-1-2-3-4-|
Measure         |      5      |      6      |      7      |

Yes.  Once you've bounced the drum pattern to tracks, you can copy from any position, not just from the first beat.

...and, why do you need to put in the "327 Break"?  Is it because it is 4/4 time and to match up the other signatures you offset the tempo?  Did I just answer my own question?

I think you did.

In order to make the four beats of pattern 327 last as long as the number of beats in your non-4/4 pattern, you adjust the tempo of those parts to lengthen or shorten that silent gap in the drum arrangement.