Downloads A Gift for the Holidays from Ableton & Sample Magic We consider ourselves lucky here at Ableton HQ; that’s because we’ve spent a year being inspired by the innovation and creativity of the Ableton Community across the globe. Whether it’s producers, artists or developers pushing technology into unexpected realms, or musicians and teachers supporting and educating one another, there’s a...
Artists Videos of 2014: Five of our Favorites Our final roundup for 2014 features five videos which struck a chord with us this year. Coming from contexts as diverse as Yale University and the forests of Sweden, this suite of films are equal parts inspiring and illuminating. See how the power of the human voice and technology can...
Tutorials Tutorials of 2014: Five of our Favorites One of the things you can count on in music production is that there’s always something new to learn. The knowledge that you can never know it all is a vital guard against complacency. No doubt, it’s hard to keep up but there’s a lot of help out there. We’ve...
Artists Artist Interviews of 2014: Five of our Favorites If 2014 has taught us anything, it’s that sound knows no borders. Music has a habit of breaking the frame and exceeding our expectations. Producers, musicians and DJs constantly burst into unfamiliar sonic contexts and shed new light on the profound possibilities of working with audio. In celebration of the...
News Heavy Analog Character: New Packs from Flatpack Two new packs from Flatpack offer up the chance to inject the juicy warmth and character of analog into the binary world of digital. With a potent balance of versatility and down-right weirdness, Analogik Waves and Analogik Drums bring immaculately sampled boutique synths and modular drum sounds to Live. Analogik...
Artists F.X.Randomiz: Stockhausen, Push and the Cybernetic Code The aura that surrounds Karlheinz Stockhausen is tempered in roughly equal measure by admiration and misunderstanding. However controversial he may have been at times, Stockhausen’s groundbreaking electronic compositions, gigantic opera cycles, orchestral, choral and instrumental works, as well as his contributions to the theoretical understanding of electronic music, spatialization of...
Downloads Download a Live Pack from Little People It’s been two years since Laurent Clerc aka Little People released his intimate hip-tronic odyssey We Are But Hunks Of Wood. The record takes acoustic string recordings, chiming bells and tight beats, placing them around the stereo field like finely-hung ornaments. A lot of this pristine processing comes from a...
News Cinematic New Packs from AAS Two new packs from AAS are perfectly suited to widescreen sonic drama. Whether you’re looking for spine-tingling electroacoustic atmospheres, or serene pads that tug at the heart strings, AAS have collaborated with two composer / sound designers to create two sets of presets for a wide range of moods. Entangles...
Artists James Holden: In a Modular Mind James Holden is just about the best guy to talk to about all things modular. Max for Live and a modular system are integral parts of his music, yet he’s constantly emphasising the organic, human qualities latent in the machines. James is one of the few artists daring enough to...
Downloads Free Stuff Friday: Earthen Flutes, Classic Stabs and Video Game Hits For this edition of FSF we have a grab-bag of sounds ranging from the unusual to the familiar, that are perfect for adding a dash of color to your productions. These flute samples, house stabs and video game sounds work great on their own, but they really come to life...
News New Pack from Skinnerbox: TIME & TIMBRE Berlin-based duo Skinnerbox have earned their reputation as a thrilling live act at raves and clubs thanks to their infectiously ecstatic, and completely improvised performances. Sometimes playing for up to 12 hours at a stretch, Skinnerbox have cultivated quite a few strategies and custom solutions to keep their rhythm-centric live...
Artists Watch Baauer’s Documentary “Searching for Sound” and Download His Sample Pack for Free Music has existed for thousands of years. The variety of sounds, instruments and music cultures around the world is staggering in it’s diversity, yet often, we tend to stick to what we know. There’s something to be said for shaking off your habits and looking beyond the familiar; the world...
Tutorials Watch Three Tutorials on Mixing-down Dance Music Using Live Live excels at all sorts of different tasks, from performing to recording and arranging. It’s perhaps lesser known as a tool for mixdowns, a process that demands a fine balance of technical nous and creative care. Mixing dance music in particular can be a daunting task, one that requires controlled...
Artists Watch a Video from Santuri Safari Project A few weeks back we looked into the inspiring work being carried out by the East African project Santuri Safari - if you missed it, it’s certainly worth a look. The project was setup to support and facilitate artists looking to experiment across genres, and between indigenous culture, and the...
News Digital Synthesis Meets Field Recordings in Spectral Textures As a musician, Uwe Zahn made quite a name for himself under the moniker Arovane – his Tides album from 2000 is considered something of an IDM classic. After a lengthy hiatus, Zahn resurfaced recently with the release of – rather intriguingly – a sound library. That his artistic sensibility...
Artists Input/Output: Glenn Kotche & Kronos Quartet Chicago-based percussionist and composer Glenn Kotche has been called one of the most exciting, creative and promising composers and performers in modern music, having been singled out for attention by the Chicago Tribune for his “unfailing taste, technique and discipline”.Alongside a busy schedule as drummer for the band Wilco, he...
