Audiobus: Use your music apps together.

What is Audiobus?Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.

Download on the App Store

Audiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.

After the Rain (Bome Network, Zebra2, ZebraHZ, Nucleus, Solo, Alchemy, Werckmeister scale)

This is a music track that I improvised on two MIDI keyboards connected to an iPad.

I used Bome Network software to send the iPad's MIDI notes to Bitwig Studio running on a desktop PC. There the MIDI was routed to Zebra2 and ZebraHZ for the core synthesizer sounds, as well as Nucleus, Solo, and Alchemy for the background instruments.

Zebra2 and ZebraHZ were tuned to a Werckmeister scale, while the other instruments were tuned to a standard equal-tempered scale.

After bringing the audio recording into Vegas Pro, I applied the Lurssen Mastering Console plug-in to the audio mix.

It's titled After the Rain.

Comments

  • As usual, great track. This one has a contemplative feel to it. I could imagine watching Polar lights while listening to this. Thanks for sharing !

  • It's quite incredible (in the sens amazing) that all these tracks are improvised. I couldn't stop listening instead of writing my own music.

  • Thanks, @JanKun and @jo92346 . Much appreciated.

    @jo92346, I improvise because that's the only way I know how to do it. I'm amazed that people can just write it down and have great results that way.

  • I'm very curious what your process is (not the technical thing that I totally won't get)?
    Do you "just" sit in front of the keyboard(s) hit record and got it in one take?

  • edited November 2022

    @jo92346 said:
    Do you "just" sit in front of the keyboard(s) hit record and got it in one take?

    So far, it has always been one take for playing the notes.

    When I hit record, I really don't know where it's going. When improvised music soars, you can feel the joy and hesitation in the flow of the notes. It's that subtle interplay between uncertainty and exploration that I hope to achieve somehow.

    Even though none of the notes are changed, there are ways to shape and mold other aspects of the MIDI recording. I can slow down the MIDI playback, swap out synth sounds or effects, or possibly fade in from the middle instead of starting at the beginning. I might take out the piano and have those same notes drive a cello instead. I might add an ethereal pad to echo the piano notes. Or I might stretch everything out from four minutes to six minutes, so the background synths have a better chance to breathe.

    If I'm able to stack the sounds successfully, you might hear different instruments peek in-and-out, even though they're being driven by the same notes.

  • edited November 2022

    @jo92346 said:
    I'm very curious what your process is (not the technical thing that I totally won't get)?
    Do you "just" sit in front of the keyboard(s) hit record and got it in one take?

    While I don't change any notes, I do frequently discard takes that haven't work out.

    I'll generally explore different stacks of sounds until some combination seems promising. I'll then hit the record button to see if I can do something with it. If I mess up, I'll erase it and try again. If nothing turns up after a few tries, I'll move on to search for a better stack of sounds.

  • @DavidEnglish Thanks for the answer.
    When you say you explore different stacks of sounds, do you mean sounds that will be played all together, like hitting A# will play all these sounds, or is it layered on the keyboards?
    Sounds like sound sculpture or painting. fascinating process.

  • @jo92346 said:
    do you mean sounds that will be played all together, like hitting A# will play all these sounds?

    Yes, if you hit an A#, all the sounds will play together.

    That said, the individual sounds will come in at different times, according to how hard you strike the note or how long you hold it. Audio effects can also help to isolate or blend the sounds together. The overall goal is to create a stack of sounds that allows for expressive improvising.

    Sounds like sound sculpture or painting.

    It is, in a way.

    For me, the quality of the sound is more important than the notes themselves. The notes are there to explore the richness and possibilities of that particular combination of sounds. At least that's what I'm trying to do.

  • I think you master that process

  • @jo92346 said:
    I think you master that process

    I wouldn't go that far, but I am getting better at it. Lots of room for improvement.

  • +1 what @JanKun said but I’d have my eyes closed for this one ☺️ Very relaxing…

Sign In or Register to comment.