What is the problem?
When creating a midi sequence, in a selected scale, using the chord mode, the chords that are not in the scale are highlighted with a [-] after the chord name. When the user sets a root note and an accompanied chord, which is in the selected scale, the chord doesn’t change when the note is changed. This leads to a note/chord combination that is not in the desired scale, often creating unpleasant chords in the overall composition.
The wish is to add an option to quantize the chord to a chord that exists in the scale, keeping the same root note.
An example of the current situation, with C Minor scale set in the project settings:
- Navigate to the midi sequence page
- Set a note that is in the scale (or quantized to a root in the scale), using the Note knob or a midi keyboard. For the C Major scale example, enter note C4.
- Convert this into a chord that is in the set scale via the Sample Start button. In the C Major example, the Major chord.
- Play another note on the keyboard (on the Play or a midi keyboard) that doesn’t have the Major chord in the C Major scale. Let’s say an E is played.
- The Major chord is still applied to the E note, even though E Major is not in the set scale. This is also shown when the Sample Start button is touched, showing Major [-].
Ideal situation for this wish:
In step 5, when playing the E note, the chord get quantized to an E Minor chord, as this chord exists in the C Major scale.
TL;DR when selecting a note, the chord should change to a chord that is in the selected scale.
What should this feature achieve?
- Creating faster chord progressions, since it eliminates the need to enter both a note and a chord. Only entering a note is enough (at least for basic chord types like major and minor chords). Especially when playing notes on the onboard keyboard, onboard piano roll or when using an external midi keyboard, it eliminates the need to have one hand on the Sample Start knob.
- Creating chord progressions in a more muscially pleasing way, by being able to only hear chords that are in the desired scale.
- Easier way of seeing which chords a scale has. If the user keeps the chord type screen open, the user can just run through notes in a scale to see the containing chords. Handy for people that do not have that much music theory knowledge but do want to know if a certain scale fits the “mood” they are looking for.
Are there any workarounds?
- The user can first create a progression using only the root notes, then selecting the accompanied chord for each note.
- The user can set a chord type, then enter the notes, and alter the chord types for the notes that have a chord which is not in the scale.
- Do not use the chord mode but use more midi lanes to set alle the notes of a chord individually. This required more understanding of scales and which chords they contain, and eats up more midi lanes as well.
Any links to related discussions?
Not that I am aware of, but please let me know if I missed anything.
Any references to other products?
There are a ton of quantizers in Eurorack of course, but I have little to no experience with chord quantizers. The Instruo Harmonàig is a quantizer focused on chords, the ACL Sinfonion as well but that seems to be way more complex than a simple chord quantizer.
The Arturia Keystep Pro has a chord mode, however I believe this works a little differently. The user enters note to create a chord, and the Keystep Pro tries to quantize these notes to the scale as good as possible. So I assume this quantization is on a per-note basis instead of a chord.
There are two things to keep in mind here (or like after thoughts).
- I am no music expert, I understand scale / chord constructions but I mainly make music in major and minor scales. I don’t know if moving to a more exotic scale with more or less notes per octave makes it musically more complex to make a chord quantizer.
- Implementation-wise, I assume that it is desired to keep the option to set a chord which is not in the scale. This is why I suggest that the chord quantizer only works when the user changes the root note, and is not active by default when the user keeps the same not but wants to change the chord type. Although both options (always quantize chords, only quantize chords on note change) would be nice to be able to choose from.
