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-- Can somebody explain the difference please?
Can somebody explain the difference please?
I'm new to this so I'm confused from all of the names.
What is the difference between a Pad, Lead and Sequence?
When is a Pad used?
When is a Lead used?
Also, what is an Arp? And, when do I use it?
think of an orchestra
a pad would be strings that have a slow attack and are meant to underpin everything else.
A lead would be something that is meant to be noticed. First violins and flutes playing the melody.
And arp is anything arpegatted. Strings in every hollywood film after Batman Begins. It is just a chord broken up horizontally.
They don't really describe much other than purpose or aesthetic.
From my experience I've found it worthwhile to note that some of these words, especially the term "lead" can be confining.
It's a good exercise to think about this stuff in terms of "figure" vs. "ground". Figure is what your listener is paying attention to at any given moment, the ground being everything that has been assimilated as known material by the ear.
If you're sitting outside and a bird flies into your view, your eyes may dart to it for a second as your brain figures out what the object is. After a moment your brain recognizes the figure object, and shunts it into the subconscious as "ground" information.
Just because a patch is labeled as lead in your soundbank, doesn't mean it's what the listener is paying attention to.
Nice responses, guys.
How could you not know the difference. You must be a total newb!
| quote: |
| Originally posted by DrunkenSamurai How could you not know the difference. You must be a total newb! |
In EDM, a lead is described as the main melody almost all of the time. Lead is almost always described in terms of the most important melodic part that tends to play frequently throughout the track, or at least after the breakdown. Other tracks can have leads that aren't melodic in nature but are still in the same frequency range that main melodies are. C4 or C5. Leads tend to be a track's "hook", especially in stuff like trance music. This is the part of the track when SHM makes all the panties drop, because their melodies and leads are so fucking epic.
A sequence is not really a term used often in production because it has to do with sitting down in front of a synthesizer and programming it with patterns of notes. These are great for making huge acid basslines!
Pads. Like L4C said, a string with a slow attack. Usually a chord and drenched in reverb, it tends to anchor down harmonics. It does not have to be a violin, but the sound itself resembles a string sound. These are great for cheesy breakdowns.
An arpeggiation is playing a chord in arpeggio. You are basically playing the separate notes on a staff, either up or down, but it does not have to be exactly up and down the staff. The notes can be changed in terms of the order and still be considered an arpeggio, and still be parts of the chord. Any instrument can function as arpeggio, but in dance music it is usually played by a plucked instrument, or piano. These are great to giving a chord feeling and bringing it to life. You can also mesh in melody and counterpoint with your arpeggio, even though it is described as just a chord being played.
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