This is a guest blog by Bob Habersat of ShedTheMusic
Intro
In an era where new AI tools for generating art are announced almost weekly, concerns about the future of creativity in music education are understandable. While generative AI is impressive, it can sometimes overshadow the artistic intent and perspective crucial for developing musicians. However, some recently introduced tools lower the entry barrier for students while preserving the essence of the creative process. One such tool is Soundtrap’s new chord triggers.
The Creative Triangle
I like to think of the creative process as a triangle: inspiration, creation, iteration. Whether you’re writing a book, drawing a picture, or composing video game music, this triangle is always at work. The process can begin at any point on the triangle, but it usually starts with inspiration. Inspiration might strike like a bolt of lightning from nowhere. However, it doesn’t necessarily emerge from a magical source. It can be sparked by a songwriting prompt in a music technology class or with professional opportunities like commissions for a musical piece or a deadline for a rock band’s next album.
From inspiration, we move to creation, which involves using a tool. The first tools that come to mind for songwriting are typically a guitar or piano. These instruments require years of practice to truly express the composer’s intent, but they forge a pathway for the imagination. Once an idea has formed and is captured, either in a recording or on paper, the next step is iteration. This involves listening back to the captured idea, modifying it, or adding to it. Iteration generates inspiration and the process is then repeated.
There are tools that require less skill to create, but some of these do not accommodate creative intent. For instance, dragging and dropping loops is a low-lift way to create music, but it limits what the creator can achieve. If someone has an idea for a sound, and the necessary loop does not exist, they are unable to complete their triangle. What results is only an approximation of the creative process, where students engage in some mechanics of creativity without fully capturing their intent or perspective.
The Soundtrap Chord Trigger Tool
It is easy to use a sequencer to generate drum patterns with intent, but crafting chords and bass lines usually requires more skill. Understanding harmony and developing an ear for chord progressions involve a lot of hard work. DAWs like Ableton Live and Logic offer solutions to these challenges, but there has never been a tool that is accessible to everyone. Soundtrap’s chord trigger is a tool that allows students to create chord progressions and bass lines in an organic way, keeping the creative triangle intact.
How the Chord Trigger Tool Works
Step 1: Creating a Progression
I like to think about the chord trigger tool as an accordion. The “buttons” are laid out in a grid. Users can click on the buttons to play the chord and press the plus sign to add the chord to the project window. To access the triggers, create an instrument track (electric piano works well) and click on the chords tab in the instrument panel. Find a good tempo and turn the metronome on. Use the metronome as a rhythmic backdrop to experiment with different chord triggers.
Alternatively, a drum sequence or loop can be used to create more of a musical context. Different chord voicings can be accessed by selecting different sets. Once you have found a sequence of chords that you like, you can add them to the project by clicking on the plus sign. It is so easy and fun to create different chord progressions! The rhythm of the chordal part can be altered by selecting a different playing style. This workflow allows students to make the sonic connection between their intent and what they create. They can learn what different sequences of chords sound like and how chord qualities change the mood of a progression.
Step 2: The Bass Line
The bottom note of each chord voicing in the trigger tool is the root of the chord, and these notes can be isolated to create a bass line. To create a bass line from an existing chord progression, merge the piano part regions by highlighting them all and clicking ‘Edit -> Merge Regions’.
Duplicate the track by clicking the three dots in the track header and selecting ‘Duplicate Track’. Change the instrument sound by clicking the piano icon in the track header and then clicking on the instrument button. Choose a bass sound you like, then enter the piano roll by selecting the piano roll tab in the instrument panel or by double-clicking on the newly copied region. Highlight the top notes of each chord and delete them, leaving only the roots.
For a more interesting rhythm, change the grid size to eighth or sixteenth notes in the grid settings. Shorten the root notes to the smallest rhythmic value and fill in the subdivisions by copying and pasting or by penciling in the notes for the rest of the measure. Listen to the metronome (or drums), chordal part, and bass line on cycle mode, and devise a rhythm for the bass by deleting or extending notes in the piano roll.
Step 3: Adding Rhythm
The chord length in the trigger tool defaults to whole notes. When improvising chords over a metronome or drum groove, you might find yourself playing varied patterns or altering the harmonic rhythm (the timing of chord changes in a progression).
To adjust the rhythm of a chordal part, shorten the length of a region before merging them to create a bass line. Merge the regions, then enter the piano roll. The lengths of each chord will still default to whole note values. Highlight all the notes in each chord and shorten their length by clicking the end of one of the notes and dragging it to the desired length.
Step 4: Flipping the Triangle
Given the ease of creating chord and bass parts using the trigger tool, the creative process can start on different instruments. I encourage students to begin with just a metronome and use the chord triggers to create a progression. They can then listen to their chord part to inspire a drum groove or bass rhythm.
Students can also overlay melodies on their chord progressions by singing into a vocal track and copying the pitches and rhythms into the piano roll to create a synth line. They can start with a pre-made melody loop, write a chord part using the tool, add a drum groove, and then delete the melody line entirely to make space for their own creations. The simplicity of the tool enables a flexible creative flow.
Uses
The most obvious application of Soundtrap’s chord triggers is in student composition within a music production class, but it is versatile enough for many other use cases. Students can create backing tracks or instrumental versions of their favorite songs by finding chord progressions in lead sheets and recreating the chordal parts to practice improvisation.
They can also create karaoke tracks or make stems of songs that are not available elsewhere. The triggers simplify ear training as well; students can import a song into the Soundtrap studio by dragging and dropping a downloaded version onto its own track and then transcribe the chord part using a combination of their ears and the triggers.
Students can also compile a library of favored chord progressions for use in songwriting on other instruments outside of the digital audio workstation.
Take A Ways
The best way to become acquainted with the new chord tool in Soundtrap is to experiment with it. I’ve found myself composing music I wouldn’t normally create using the triggers, and it’s been incredibly fun. If you are experienced with a digital audio workstation, try a workflow that you’re familiar with or mix things up by following one of the alternatives from section 7. If this is your first time using a DAW to compose music, start with the suggested workflow from section 4. It’s enlightening to experience the initial uncertainty and subsequent enjoyment your students may feel when using something new. It is important to reflect on these experiences and keep them in mind when introducing new concepts in the classroom.
I’m collaborating with Eric Jao (MixMajor Music and former DJ for Madonna) to develop a new music production curriculum for elementary and middle school students called “Electronic Music Elements.” Soundtrap released the chord trigger tool during the course’s development, which was serendipitously timely. We’ve incorporated it into our course sequence, and it has proven very successful in testing. Three free lessons are available in the trial version of the course, two of which utilize the chord trigger tool. Eric has recorded student-facing videos to facilitate easy implementation of these lessons for educators with varying levels of experience in electronic music production. Learn more about the curriculum and access the free resources by visiting this page.
We will host a free professional development session this summer on non-performance-based music production. The session will offer access to the Electronic Music Elements curriculum and provide teachers a chance to get creative with the tools inside Soundtrap, preparing them for course implementation. Here is a link to learn more and sign up for the summer pd.
About the Author
Bob Habersat is an innovative music educator, co-founder of “The Shed,” a digital platform transforming music education through technology. As a guitarist, vocalist, and music producer, Bob merges performance with teaching, emphasizing digital tools in the curriculum.
He leads a commercial music program at his high school in Illinois, where he started the state’s first commercial music festival- offering production and ensemble students a place to collaborate and perform together. He offers courses for beginning and intermediate pop guitar, music production, and theory, making music education modern, relevant, and accessible for all. An acclaimed author and speaker, Bob’s work aims to serve the 80% of students who are not in traditional band, choir, and orchestra programs in schools
Want more resources for music tech teachers?
Hello! I’m Katie Argyle – an Australian music technology trainer and consultant with a passion for helping music teachers through my business Midnight Music.
I’m a qualified teacher but no, I don’t currently teach in a school. I help teachers through my online professional development space – the Midnight Music Community– where there are tutorial videos, courses, links and downloadable resources.
I like to focus on easy ways to incorporate technology into what you are already doing in your music curriculum through a range of creative projects. I also run live workshops and have presented at countless conferences and other music education events.
If you want simple, effective ideas for using technology in music education, I would LOVE to help you inside the Midnight Music Community.
