Layering euclidean patterns in one track (drum track)

Pyramid
1

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to layer euclidean patterns in a track to generate various drum ostinatos. Here’s my current workflow that’s not working correctly.

  1. Select the note in live mode for first euclidean pattern (kick drum)
  2. Enter euclidean mode in step mode and choose euclidean pattern
  3. Hold 2nd and track and navigate to consolidate
  4. Click consolidate and choose track to apply on. In this case I choose the existing track I’m working on.
  5. After this part I assume that the euclidian pattern has been “printed” to static midi notes on track one. Then I can move on to the next drum part (hi hat).
  6. I select the hihat note in live mode
  7. Enter euclidean mode in step mode.

Here’s where it gets weird. After entering euclidean mode I get a hi hat pattern, but it’s double time AND I lose the original kick beat. Not sure if this is a bug or if I’m doing this incorrectly, or both. What I want is the original “printed” static drum pattern and then layer the next euclidean pattern (hi hat) on top of this. Then eventually I want to layer the rest of the kit. Any ideas/suggestsions?

Oliver

2

Perhaps this from the Manual is relevant:

EuclidMode

Again, similar to your other recent post, perhaps if you write each subsequent generation of Euclidean patterns to separate Tracks, and then Copy/Paste from Step Mode.

There might be an easier way - if someone has a similar workflow they might chime in.

3

The only way I can think to work this around in my head is using a separate Euclidian track for each element recorded in to something external and then reimported again from something external… As an example;

I have a separate Pyramid track each using Euclidian in Step mode all sent to a specific track number and then a DAW recording all of those tracks by listening to a specific midi output and a channel. Say 4 different Pyramid tracks all being output to USB01. After recording in the DAW; trimming to size and then exporting as a midi track which is then loaded on to the Pyramid through the SD card.

In this way you could get the euclidian patterns of all of them to your liking and then just load on Pyramid once without having to do a bunch of consolidations.

To my understanding… the Euclidian mode is a sort of live performance sub mode of the step mode. Yes, my suggestion is a bit of a work around but depending on setup and the requirements of your end result… It may save you some time… or not…

4

euclidean mode is separate from midi track entry… so they do not combine.

the ‘issue’ you have with trying to consolidate and doing something like copy n’ paste to a different track, is that consolidation of a euclidean pattern is not just about ‘printing’ notes, its also setting the length and time signature of that track - this is vital due to the polyrythmic nature of the euclidean pattern.

as a thought experiment… (consider the polymeter case…its easier )
consider what time signature and track length would you use, if you had a 7 step pattern already ‘printed’ and you wanted to chuck a 9 step pattern on top
… so, you see, you cannot just ‘mix’ the two, you’d have to find a new common denominator, and many combinations would lead to very long patterns (as they take a very long time to actually repeat… err, some are essentially never :wink: )

(some sequencers ‘cheat’ in this area, with something like a master reset, where even though the pattern is not repeating, it realigns them … and so the pattern length is always fixed … but this can be pretty jarring to the ear)

tl;dr; its not as simple as it might seem at first to combine multiple euclid patterns.
I suspect consolidate, copy/paste wont work in all cases you need (but perhaps ‘enough’?)
really, what you would need is for the pyramid to support multiple Euclid seq on one track, but then the question is… why not just use another track instead?

so… I take it for what it is, I use different tracks for different euclidean sequences - with 64 tracks, I never run out, so thats not an issue (for me) - and you can do so some fun/creative stuff with FX to do things like switch notes. once I get something I like I quite often then record the results to audio (on an Octatrack)

if you have ideas on how to improve… suggest it to squarp via their contact page , and can explain all the above better than I can :slight_smile:

(and of course, they are smart and may be able to overcome some of my ‘percieved’ issues)

5

Thx everyone for you help. I’ll try some of these suggestions.

Recording to daw then transfer back to pyramid is what I was looking for, but is a bit of a chore and wouldn’t work in a live scenario. I was hoping to accomplish this without having to touch a mouse. The polymeter concept makes sense (odd number patterns that could potentially never align, therefore cannot be “printed”). Maybe a feature could be added that could “reset” other euclidean patterns based on a “master” pattern/track (or simply on the number of bars). The jarring effect could be mitigating by lengthening the master track or extending bar numbers followed by playing with velocities.

The idea was to come up with random patterns on the fly and then simplifying them to one track, which I know can be done with midi fx rather than euclidean patterns. But I haven’t gotten to learning those yet.

Oliver

6

You could also loop back to the Pyramid for recording. It’ll save you from the mouse but has its own issues.

7

Got it, here’s what’s working for me

  1. Select the note in live mode for first euclidean pattern (kick drum)
  2. Enter euclidean mode in step mode and choose euclidean pattern
  3. Hold 2nd and track and navigate to consolidate
  4. Click consolidate and choose track to apply on. In this iteration I choose the existing track I’m working on (track 1).
  5. Make a new track (track 2)
  6. Repeat steps 1-4 (for hihat pattern)
  7. Go to step mode, 2nd copy
  8. Go to track mode, select track 1
  9. Go to step mode
  10. 2nd paste
  11. Repeat for other notes/drum parts

thx everyone for your help!

5 Likes
8

This topic was automatically closed 21 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.