Teach me to make arps

How to do this, that and the other. Share, learn, teach. How did X do that? How can I sound like Y?
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The title is quite self explanatory.

I know, it's about harmony n stuff but I still feel like a noob with my simple arping.

Go!

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Use arpeggiator.

Oh, it's you :D If you could tell us what exactly fo you need to improve in arps...
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Tricky-Loops wrote: (...)someone like Armin van Buuren who claims to make a track in half an hour and all his songs sound somewhat boring(...)

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Is a 2 note arp a trill?
:hyper: M O N O S Y N T H S F O R E V E R :hyper:

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Cthulhu :P
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spunkmuffin wrote: Wed Dec 05, 2018 8:10 pm Is a 2 note arp a trill?
ostinato?

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highkoo wrote: Wed Dec 05, 2018 8:11 pm Cthulhu :P
gezundheit!
/passes tissue.

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I am pretty sure I got this link from this forum, but anyway:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAPph7- ... 3XnaWYMq6Q

Already used this technique in 2 tracks, essence of trance!
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Tricky-Loops wrote: (...)someone like Armin van Buuren who claims to make a track in half an hour and all his songs sound somewhat boring(...)

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I tend to start by painting in a simple rising, descending or rising+descending pattern following the main chord progression of the song, then it's just a matter of moving some notes around until you've got something that sounds cool. Make sure only one note plays at a time, and use a monophonic patch to avoid muddiness.
A tempo synced delay can help you "fake" a more complex rhythm :)

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I usually make something like 3 notes arp where bot 2 plays for example A2 and A3 and top note is wandering around the chosen scale. And it's boring.

*edit*

Of course those bot notes change during the song instead of even more boring eight and a half minutes of A :lol:

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Learn some music theory, specifically how different chord types are built off of scales, and why and how harmonising the chords in the keys works, and away you go. You'll need to put some time and effort in though, there's no quick answer to your question. All the stuff is out there, go and teach yourself!

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An arpeggio is anything that resembles a harp technique on another instrument (the 'arp and harp are related words for that reason).

An arpeggio can be a sequence of notes going up, going down, going up and down, doing a melodic line (ostinato) in either direction, or be individual notes of chords run through their inversions up or down. An arpeggio can be a single note shooting up or down by octaves. It's a broad category of techniques and strategies, not a specific technique in itself.

Sadly, the previous post is correct: this is a big (but easy) music theory question, and ultimately it'll be you putting the time in and practicing on your instrument of choice. But, as our previous poster said, there's a ton of stuff out there. I'd stick with the basics of doing it on a real instrument, and less on technological solutions. I say that because the technology makes it easy to do--but if you don't have the basics down, your technology will only be limited by what you know about arpeggios. Once *you* can do it on a real instrument, the technology solutions will be far more powerful for you.
Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and even Deezer, whatever the hell Deezer is.

More fun at Twitter @watchfulactual

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Arps respond well to good harmony and well written chord progressions. To talk about good arps we may as well discuss good harmony, but I won't.

The note ends are just as useful as the note starting points. Human beings don't play one note directly into another, it takes time to move the fingers to the next note, and that rest period is pleasing to the ears and can have a very interesting effect when using an arp.

Somebody else already mentioned polyrythms.

There are things that can be achieved more easily doing arps by hand than using an actual arpeggiator. Different note lengths for example. Also, arps tend to be monophonic by nature, but doing an arp by playing or by pencil, you can prolong the bass note for a two note harmony, or counterpoint.

You can also take advantage of the way electronic instruments respond to overlapped notes - whether it's portamento between the notes, or single trigger so that all the notes share one envelope (until there is a gap long enough for a new note to trigger a new envelope), and so on.

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Distorted Horizon wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 7:37 am I usually make something like 3 notes arp where bot 2 plays for example A2 and A3 and top note is wandering around the chosen scale. And it's boring.

*edit*

Of course those bot notes change during the song instead of even more boring eight and a half minutes of A :lol:
Can I order the medication you're talking online or do I need a prescription?

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not all arpeggiators are created equal. I have a much easier time coming up with interesting results in cthulhu and cream than just about any onboard arp.
if you don't have a strong chord progression, you can rely on extra modulations and fx instead to make an good arp. it doesn't have to be more complicated than a slow filter ramp and putting the right delay.

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Are you sure these extra modulations and fx aren't too complicated? What do you mean?

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