Drummer-generated time code (syncing midi to a live drummer)

Emp_Fab

Are we there yet?

Have they invented the gadget that will listen to the drummer and control the playback of sequenced synth parts or trigger samples?  In other words, let the drummer dictate timing and not the other way round (with a click track) ?

We can't be far off now surely?

bloodandtears

The only way I think this could be done is to have the playback speed tempo adaptive like the jamman stereo can do.. Maybe some sample pads behave like this and could take a drum trigger as input? 

mike257

Ableton 11 has this feature, although I don't know how well it works in practice. 

poopot

Logic can do this when you import a file…
it analyses the incoming audio and changes tfe tempo accordingly… but… it doesn’t do it on the fly.

tbh I can’t see how it’s possible to do it on the fly as the AI would need to anticipate the drummers every move and be bang on correct every time…

Our drummer has this:

https://www.roland.com/us/products/spd-sx/

it allows him to trigger samples when he needs to… obvs you still have to be playing at the tempo of the samples… but I think it’s as close as your gonna get…

Danny1969

What kind of backing are you trying to trigger ?

I get that some drummers find it hard playing to a click and there are other ways for them to trigger really effective parts without using a click. The most widely used gadget for this is the Roland SPD / SPDX. You can record keyboard pads, brass stabs or sustained blasts, vocal oohs, power chords etc into any of the 9 pads and just tell the drummer which one to hit and when. 

We have one song in our show where the drummer is playing to a click but the rest of the show he's triggering sounds by hitting the pads of the SPD.

If you need complete BT's and the drummer to be in time then there's no substitute for the drummer learning to stay on a click. Can't say I'm a massive fan of that though as it generally leads to more and more BT and less and less Live. There's a local band here there have everything on the BT's except the drums and some of the lead vocal. 

Bod

mike257 said:

Ableton 11 has this feature, although I don't know how well it works in practice. 

I came to this thread to say exactly that.  It can live track an input and adjust the global tempo accordingly.  It tracks quickly but not sure I'd be brave enough to use it live.