How does a sequencer work music

Best of Techopedia weekly. News and Special Offers occasional. Music Sequencer. Techopedia Explains Music Sequencer. What Does Music Sequencer Mean? A music sequencer is also known simply as a sequencer. Techopedia Explains Music Sequencer A software-based musical sequencer is a program that composes several sequences of digital audio together from a number of operations.

Synonyms Sequencer. Same goes for the other steps. Each note has it's keyboard. So you are not limited to using the knobs. Once you have a sequence of notes to step through you can play them at a certain tempo. The tempo bpm. Setting the Velocity Velocity is dynamics. On a sequencer, velocity of measured on a scale from 0 to This is not arbitrary, it is based on the MIDI scale. Sending the Gate The easiest way to understand the gate is as an on-off signal.

When you play the sequence, it sends a gate on each of the notes on the steps playing the notes. Gates have lengths. You can have the gate on or open for a very short time, or for a longer time. The gate value is from 1 to The default is Looping the Steps So far, we've only set the first four steps. There is a function called last step. When you hit play, our little will start looping over and over again.

This is a very basic example. You see how it starts getting easy make music with very little information. You can also change the subdivision of the rythmn from a 16 note to an 8th note, and so on.

Recording To record, all you have to do is hit record when you hit record. You can see how easy that was. Types of Sequencers To round this off, let's briefly look at the most common types of sequencers. Numerical Editors These are mostly found in trackers. You can tell the steps in these through numbers and letters. Score Editors These look like you're writing sheet music.

These are traditionally used by composers who are classically trained. Examples of these would be Dorico and Musescore, another notable example here is Sibelius. You have to know how to write and read music to use one of these. Step Sequencer Here, each unit of time is represented by a step.

This are exactly like we covered before. Ask yourself what your main goal is in production — do you want to be a complete studio -head? Or do you also want to get out there and perform live? Others like the larger choice of options and controls they get with software programs.

I think both have their place in the right environment, and can be used for their own particular strengths. But if possible, give both approaches a go and see what you prefer. The range of MIDI controls you get will vary between sequencing devices and programs, but you will find the same basic functions across all of them:.

There are many different applications for sequencers; it depends entirely on the music you want to make. Here are a couple of common examples:.

Check out our full range of sequencers here. If you enjoyed reading this piece, check out the rest of our super-handy learn content right here. Thanks for stopping by! You must be logged in to post a comment. How To Use a Sequencer To Make Music Synthesizers are often associated with keyboards - many people think you need to be able to play keys to enjoy a synth.

View Sam's Profile. What is a sequencer? How do sequencers work? How do I connect a sequencer to my synth? A simple male to male DIN cable will do the trick, carrying everything from pitch to articulation info in one go. CV — if you fancy getting a little more adventurous with your hardware, controlled voltage can be useful. Usually in the form of a 3. USB — naturally this is mainly for connecting sequencers to your computer.

It allows you to send info to your DAW via your hardware, giving you a more tactile approach. You can sometimes send info the other way, like pitch and tempo to keep things in sync.

Are all sequencers compatible with other hardware? How can I synchronise my sequencer with other hardware?