There are a few basic rules to setup any compressor with any number of different parameters.

To set up a compressor

1. start with knowing the two basic uses of a compressor
2. decide which use you want for your job at hand.

Using the Compressor as a Limiter

If the ratio of the compressor is made high enough, the output signal level can always be reduced and prevented from getting past the threshold.

This way of limiting the signal to the threshold values is known as limiting.

A limiter will require a theoretical compression ratio of infinity:1. Any input signal above the threshold is reduced to zero, preventing the output signal to move past the threshold value. But in real life, any ratio above or around 10 is close to true limiting.

Compressors are often referred to as compressor/limiters because most compressors have enough ratio range which will allow us to use the compressor as a limiter.

Why use a compressor as limiter?

The main reason to use a compressor as a limiter is to control excessive peaks. To do this, you need to set the threshold fairly high and use a high ratio in the vicinity of 10:1.

Setting the threshold fairly high means that the signal will not kick the compression into action, most of the time. But, when a peak occurs, it will be reduced firmly based on the high ratio we set.

When using a compressor as limiter, a fast attack and release time is best, so that the peaks are acted upon fast while once the signal goes below the threshold, the compressor immediately disengages. If the sound appears to reveal level pumping, lengthen the release time until the pumping does not sound like a problem.

Using the compressor to 'thicken' the sound

If you use the compressor to bring up the level of the low sounds, it will sound as though the input signal has been thickened a bit, made a bit more solid, substantial, strong and present.

If you want to use a compressor to thicken up a sound:

1. set a low ratio – 2:1, or even less. This means any signal above the threshold will be cut to half while setting a higher ration of 6:1 would have cut the signal by 1/6th.
2. set the threshold quite low so that you still get between 6 and 12dB of gain reduction showing on the meters. We want most of the peaks to be affected. Even small peaks can activate the compressor, cutting the signal over the threshold by a mild ratio of 2:1 or so.
3. A longer release time gives you a smoother sound, but decide based on what you feel most appropriate for the situation you have.

Setting up the compressor

Ratio Decide on whether you want to thicken or limit and set the ratio accordingly. Around 10:1 for limiting, around 2:1 or lower for thickening. In the case of pop mixes, many of the instruments or vocal groups may be given a higher ratio of compression.

Threshold Adjust the threshold control to show 6-12dB of gain reduction on peaks. This is a good starting point.

If you want audible pumping, bring the threshold even lower to bring more gain reduction. Else if you want to be subtle with your compression, back off the threshold, raise the threshold value, have less gain reduction.

Release Always adjust the release time to be as short as possible, while avoiding pumping. We want the compressor to stop acting on the input signal as soon as the signal goes below the threshold.

Attack Start with a fast attack. Lengthen the attack if you are working with percussive sounds or other sounds which will benefit from the initial hit or strike passing through. Listen to the result. Set the attack just long enough to let the sound have the percussive quality while the high-frequencies don't sound like they undergone gain modulation.

Vocals and other smoother sounds can have a faster attack setting.

Try the above settings on your compressor. Also try the use of a compressor as a limiter. If you use a software compressor, next time you open your project, add a compressor to an audio track, try its effect with smooth and percussive kind of sounds. Once you have some good initial settings, adjusting to your needs becomes an easy task and the sound of your mix will show obvious improvement.

Check out the report on effective equalization and reverbs.

Related posts:

1. How to use compression for better mixes?
2. Start recording your drums – Basic drum recording equipment and preparation

Here are a few more things about diatonic chords: how we can use relative minor and major relationships to easily remember the safe chords of a song, and a bit about deriving minor scales from the major scale.

Relative minors to help

The diatonic chords of the C major scale are: C Dm Em F G Am Bdim

Can you spot the 3 relative minor major pairs among the first 6 chords?

What is the relative minor of C major chord? The A minor chord.

Relative minor of F? D minor chord

Relative minor of G? E minor chord.

So, if we know that C F and G are chords within the C major scale, finding the minor chords is just about knowing the relative minors.

C F and G are chords from the first, fourth and fifth notes of the major scale.

How to find the relative pairs of a major scale?

This is the process:

1. Write down the first, fourth and fifth notes of the major scale we need the chords for.
2. the first, fourth and fifth chords are major chords (fact. remember it)
3. Find the relative minors of the major chords
4. now you have the 6 major minor pairs. 7th note will have a diminished chord.

The relative minor pairs of C major scale:

C → Am, F → Dm, G → Em

Practice

Find the relative minor major pairs in the D major scale diatonic chord set.

1. write or find on your instrument the first fourth and fifth notes
2. write or play major chords for each of those
3. find the relative minors for each of those major chords.

How to find relative minors fast

Fifth + 2

Find the major 6th note of a major scale or chord. That is the note from which the relative minor for that scale or chord starts from.

The major 6th note is the fifth note + 2 notes on the note sequence. The second note after the fifth note gives us the major 6th note.

Example 1, if you have found out the D major chord, you will know that the fifth note is A.
The 6th note of the D major scale is a major 6th note, which is

• a tone away from the fifth
• two half steps away from the fifth
• two frets to the right of the fifth on a guitar
• two keys to the right of the fifth on a keyboard.

Two notes from A is B. relative minor of D is Bm

Example 2. Relative minor of C# major

What is the 6th note in the C# major scale?
1.    you can count to get to the 6th of C# as A# (count notes through the sequence till major 6th)
OR
2.    remember 6th of C is A, so 6th of C# should be A#
OR
3.    use relationships as shown below :
a)    What is the fifth of C : G
b)    What is 6th of C : G + 2 notes : A
c)    C# is C raised by one half step
d)    Fifth of C# will be 6th of C, raised by one halfstep : raise A by a half step to get A #

Know a few fifths and 6ths and other relationships.Then you can extend them to their flats and sharps etc.

If the root moves by a minor 3rd, the 7th also moves by a minor 3rd. Move the root by a 4th, the 6th or 7th or 2nd also moves by the distance of a 4th.

Cycle of fifths

Use the circle of fifths to get familiar with the 5th notes.

Why minor scale chords from the major scale?

Finding the minor scale chords from the major scale chords makes the process easier.

It is a natural connection between the major scale chords and the chords of the relative minor. The A minor scale has the same chords as its relative C major. We don't have to learn the chords of the minor scale separately.

When we want the chords of a minor scale, we remember the relative major scale and write down the chords for the major scale.

Example: Want to play the chords of a song in Cm?

C minor scale and chord are the relative minors of Eb major scale and chord.

What are the diatonic chords of the Eb major scale?

All major scale diatonic chords can be found out by writing down the scale notes of the major scale and remember the sequence of chords – major, minor, minor etc. – that each of the notes will form.

Use the diatonic sequence of the C major scale to remember which kind of chord – major minor or diminished – is formed from each of the notes as starting point.

Here is the process of finding diatonic chords in detail:

1. What are the diatonic chords of the C major scale? C Dm Em F G Am Bdim C
2. So we see that the chord
   1. from the first note is a major chord
   2. from the second and third are minor chords
   3. the fourth and fifth are major chords
   4. the sixth note chord is a minor
   5. the seventh note chord is a diminished.
3. This is the sequence in which you get the minor major and diminished chords from the major scale: Major, minor, minor, major, major, minor, diminished (7 chords for each of the 7 notes of the scale)
4. Now write down the notes of the Eb major scale for which we need to find the diatonic chords for. Eb major scale: Eb F G Ab Bb C D Eb
5. Now use the sequence from (3) on the notes of Eb to get the chords of Eb major scale

The diatonic chords of Eb major scale: Eb major, F minor, G minor, Ab major, Bb major, Cminor, D diminished.

Chords of C minor from Eb major chords

All the chords listed for Eb major can be used for Cm songs.

One extra note you may find when playing Cm songs is the G major chord.

The diatonic chords of Eb major has the G minor chord and not the G major chord. But for the G to Cm motion which is a perfect cadence, we need a G major chord and not a minor chord.

That will be one additional chord.

Whenever you use the major chord's diatonic chords to play songs in the relative minor scale, remember to include the major chord of the 5th chord. The 5th chord of the minor scale.

e.g. If you are playing a song based on the Cm chord, include the G major chord. If you are playing based on the the Am chord, include the E major chord.

More about the major chord addition

Practice

Take your favourite minor chord songs, find their relative major scale, find the diatonics of the relative major scale, see how you can use those chords over the minor song.

Learn to decipher any chord with the chord code.

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Related posts:

1. Diatonic chords for the major scale – The ‘safe chords’ for a large number of songs
2. A minor in relation – relative minor scales and chords
3. The ‘root’ case : a major, his relative, a sharp object and a minor

When C is the root G is the fifth. How?
1. We can either count from the root through minor 2nd major 2nd etc till we reach the 5th note of the scale – which is the 8th note in the note sequence (C C# …F# G)
or
2. We can remember what is called the Cycle of Fifths.

The circle of fifths

Since the relation of 5ths appears frequently in harmony and chord construction, the circle of fifths is a basic study material for students of music theory. The circle also has relevance associated with the number of sharps and flats in a scale when writing notation.

It visually shows the 5th note relationships when moving clock wise. Fifth of C is G Fifth of G is D etc

The circle of fourths When moving counter clockwise, the relation is one of fourths – F is the perfect 4th of C, Bb is the perfect 4th of F etc.

Related posts:

1. A minor in relation – relative minor scales and chords
2. Kamavardhini and the Blues scale – just one step and one note away
3. What is in a name – chord naming – triads – major, minor, dim, aug

What is a compressor?

Simple definition

A compressor is a processor designed to reduce the dynamic range of an audio signal by applying gain reduction when the input exceeds a certain level.
In other words, when the sound gets too loud, the compressor turns it down.

What does a compressor do?

We set a threshold, we set a ratio. The signal level is continuously compared with the threshold that we set, and when the signal reaches or exceeds the threshold, the level of the signal is reduced according to the ratio.
Threshold is just a upper limit we set for the signal. When the signal goes higher than that, compression takes place. The signal above the threshold is divided by the ratio before sending to the output.

Why compress?

Compressor is like an automatic level rider. Instead of a human manually controlling the volume fader to level out the volume fluctuations, the compressor does it, easier and at a more minute level.

Compressor on vocals

Compressors are useful to smoothen out the vocal level fluctuations.
There could be obvious level differences when the when the high level parts are not sung with control, making it sound much louder than the rest of the song.
The vocal performance can fluctuate in levels from word to word where some sung words and phrases come out as obviously loud while others get drowned in the instrument tracks.
Some words and phrases are just easier to sing and they come out louder than the rest. Some vowels and consonants come out naturally louder, due to the way the mouth forms when they are pronounced.
 Using compressors makes the vocal more intelligible, and avoids unintended changes in level, thus making the recording more comfortable to listen to.

The pop mix

A degree of routine compression can make the vocal sit more comfortably at the correct level in a pop mix, because pop music dynamics are not as wide as other genres like classical music.
In addition to vocals, most acoustic instruments, electric guitars and basses work better in a pop context where the dynamic range is deliberately restricted.
How to connect the compressor?
A compressor is an insert effect. A compressor should be patched into a mixer via an insert point, or connected in-line between one piece of equipment and another or used in the insert slot of your software sequencer
Compressors should not normally be used with aux sends or as send effects (in software sequencers).

The next section explains the parts of a compressor.

Threshold

The threshold is the level above which the compressor starts to cut down the signal.
We get more compression as we turn the knob down.
With the threshold set to maximum, there is a lot of room for the signal to get loud, very little is considered too loud, so very little compression occurs. But when we reduce the threshold, the higher limit is brought down and most things will be too loud.
Bring the threshold really low and only the softest sounds are left untouched.
The simplest compressor would do this: if the signal is below the threshold set by the user, nothing happens to it, but as soon as it reaches the threshold, it is turned down by a specific amount.
In the case of a 'hard-knee' compressor, the threshold level is well defined, but in a 'soft-knee' compressor, the gain reduction is introduced more gradually.

Ratio

The ratio decides by how much the signal should be reduced once it crosses the threshold.
The higher the ratio, the more gain reduction is applied and the stronger the compression effect.
Ratio is defined as the number of dB by which the input level needs to increase to cause a corresponding 1dB rise in output level. If, for example, a compression ratio of 5:1 is set, an input signal exceeding the threshold by 5dB will cause only a 1dB increase in output level
Suppose the input signal goes up by 4db above the threshold, and the ratio is set as 4:1. Then the 4db extra signal is divided by 4 (ratio being 4:1) and a signal with 1db above the threshold is passed to the output.
If the ratio was 2:1 and the input signal has gone 4db above the threshold, the 4db is divided by 2 (2:1 ratio) to get 2db. The output signal would have 2db above the threshold instead of the 4db in the input signal.

Knee

Hard knee

The hard-knee is also called the hard-ratio compression. The compression is sudden and occurs as soon as the signal reaches the threshold level.
A compressor with a hard knee setting has no effect on signals that are below the threshold, but as soon as they reach the threshold, gain reduction is applied at the ratio set by the user.
Hard-knee compressor can sometimes sound abrupt and the compression can be very obvious, to avoid which, the soft-knee compressor was developed.

Soft knee

With the soft knee type of compression, gain reduction starts a few dBs below the threshold, but at a very low ratio. As the signal gets close to the threshold, the ratio increases, until at the threshold the ratio is that set by the user.
This kind of compression is useful in some situations because it can sound smoother and more musical.

Using soft or hard knee

Soft-knee compression is often used when the compression needs to be 'invisible', such as when you're keeping a mix level under control.
Hard-knee compression is used when the sudden onset of compression being heard is not a problem. The audible side-effects of hard compression are often used as production devices to make vocals or specific instruments stand out in a mix.

Attack and release

A conventional compressor can't start to pull the signal level down until it has reached the threshold. In some cases we would like to let the signal to overshoot.
There are cases where an occasional overshoot may sound better than a perfect compression.
And there are instruments which need the initial part to pass through and not be compressed. Percussions, drums, any instrument with a clear strike or hit need the attack time set carefully.
The attack and release settings give us control over how fast the compression takes effect.

Attack

The attack setting lets us choose how fast the gain is pulled down once the threshold is reached. In other words, how much of the signal is allowed to pass through without compression even after the threshold has been reached.
This is particularly important in the case of percussive instruments, as mentioned before. Letting the signal overshoot the threshold by setting an attack time of several milliseconds, emphasizes the sound of the percussive instrument, its percussive nature.

Compressor on snare drum track

The snare drum is an example of an instrument where the attack settings have to be set carefully in order to get the best out of the signal.
When applying compression to a snare drum, you want the initial hit to pass through without compression, while compressing the tail of the snare drum sound to reduce it from adding to the mix as noise.
By setting a slow attack, letting the initial hit to pass through and then using the compression, the hit is heard with all its punch while the remaining unwanted part of the snare signal is compressed and kept from affecting the overall mix.
Setting the best attack and release values for a given type of material can take a certain amount of skill and experience. More about settings in the setting up section.

Release

The release settings determine how fast the compressor stops acting once the signal falls back below the threshold. In other words, how much time before the gain raises back to normal.
Too short a release time can result in level 'pumping', where the compressor taking immediate action is obvious in the output.
If the release time is too long, the compressor takes time to stop its effect even after the signal has fallen below the threshold.
If a loud sound causes the compressor to take action by crossing the threshold, and if the release times are long, the compressor will take time before it stops acting on the signal and reducing the gain of the signal. This makes the quieter sounds following the loud sound also to be compressed, making them even quieter.
To avoid this, make sure that the release times are not too long, so that the compressor stops acting on the quieter sounds once the signal has gone below the threshold.

Hold

Hold time is a short delay that prevents the compressor from going into its release cycle until a certain time has elapsed.
A very fast attack and a very fast release time make the compressor work on individual cycles of the input signal rather than on its overall envelope. This can result in an audible distortion in addition to the ‘pumping’ of the output signal level.
In the case of bass instruments, this can be very obvious since the cycles are long enough (bass frequencies, longer the wavelength, longer the time to complete the cycle) for the compressor to start acting on each of the individual cycle.
Increase either the compressor's release time or its hold time to solve this problem.

How to set the hold time?

Set a hold time longer than the wavelength of the lowest audio frequency and the problem of distortion and pumping is solved.
With a long enough hold time setting, the compressor will be released only after the individual cycle of the lowest frequency has passed through, thereby not making the compressor to work on each of them individually.
If distortion is audible at fast attack and release settings, and you don't have a hold control, increase the release time until the distortion stops.

Practice

Get familiar with the controls available on a modern compressor. If you work with a compressor, try changing the parameters to listen for yourself what has been written in this article.

If you are using a software sequencer, chances are there is a compressor that came along with it. Start a project, add a channel, record something, add the compressor plugin as insert effect, work with the parameters and see how the sound changes.

The image of the compressor shown above in this article is of Sonalksis, which is an excellent softward compressor effect plugin. Waves CLA Classic Compressors Native Bundle& Waves Gold Native Bundle have among the best software compressors. The Gold native bundle has other effect plugins too.

As an additional exercise, reading through the descriptions of any of these compressor effects will tell you what makes a good compressor good and what they are constantly working on to make it better.

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Major scale and harmonic minor scale forms the basis of most popular songs. Knowing the 'safe chords' of the major scale lets you play chords for ragas and songs in the minor scale too.

Let us start with the diatonic chords and how it applies to the Raga shankarabharanam, the Indian raga which has the same note positions as the Major scale.

The safe chords – the diatonic chords

Diatonic means 'within the scale'. Chords formed by notes from the scale.

Using chords formed entirely of notes from the scale naturally means that you are safe that the sound won't be completely wrong.

Even if you play a chord which does not have the melody note, if you are playing a safe triad chord, chances are you can bail yourself out because the triad chord + melody note will form a four note chord from within the scale.

Melody note outside the safe chord

For example, the E minor chord (E G B) is part of the D major scale harmony.

If you play the E minor chord and the melody note happens to be D, then are playing an E minor seventh chord (E G B D).

If the melody not is C#, then you are playing the E minor 6th chord, which shares much of the notes and sound with the A7th chord which is the Vth chord of the D major scale, the most obvious choice when going back to the root, for a perfect cadence.

Diatonic chords of the major scale

We will use the Diatonic chords of the major scale as the basis for our chord finding tasks.

Diatonic triad chords of the C major scale are: C Dm Em F G Am Bdim (Dm = D minor. Bdim= B diminished)

Diatonic triads of the D major scale are: D Em F#m G A Bm C#dim

Similarly you can transpose and find the diatonic chords for each of the root or pitch.

One more example: The diatonic chords from the root E: E F#m G#m A B C#m D#dim

Using the major scale chords for Raga Shankarabharanam

Raaga Dheerashankarabharanam and the major scale share the same notes.

Singing the Ragam Shankarabharanam from the root C (shruthi 1) will give us the notes C D E F G A B C.

Try using the diatonic chords of the C major scale over phrases of C Shankarabharanam.

All the swaras in each diatonic chord

The C major chord

C major chord notes: C E G (Sa Ga Pa)

The notes of the C major chord correspond to Sa, Ga and Pa of the raga shankarabharanam.

If you have a phrase that emphasizes on the Sa, C major chord is an obvious choice. But since Ga and Pa are also present in the C major chord, you can try the C major chord over melody lines which emphasizes the Ga or Pa too.

Try them, though you may be able to find other chords within the diatonic chord group which will fit better for Ga or Pa.

All the chords for each swara

Chords for Ga – the other way round

Em chord notes: E G B (Ga Pa Ni)

Am chord notes: A C E (Dha Sa Ga)

C major chord notes: C E G (Sa Ga Pa)

Each of the chords above have Ga swara in it, making them candidates to be tried over parts of the melody where Ga is emphasized.

In the section above we saw which swaras each chord has. Understand the chords from the swara perspective also, like we did in this section. We found all the possible Ga chords. Similarly find which all chords are possible for each swara.

Practice

Find the swaras involved in each of the diatonic chords of the C major scale. For example, find the notes in the Dm chord (D F A) and find the corresponding swaras (Ri Ma Dha).

Now group them to show all the possible chords for each of the swaras.

Knowing what swaras are present in the each of the chords and knowing all the diatonic chord options for each swara, gives you three choices of chords for each of the swaras of Shankarabharanam, freeing up the field for you to vary and improvise.

Chords for Janya Ragas

What are Janyas?

Janyas are derived from the parent melakarta raga.

Raga Mohanam – janya by omission

Mohanam is a janya of Shankarabharanam, got by omitting ma and ni from the scale notes of Shankarabharanam. Songs and phrases of Mohanam are formed from the same notes of the Raga shankarabharanam (notes of major scale), but the Ma and Ni (fourth and seventh notes of the major scale) won't be used at all.

Raga Mohanam has the same notes of the major pentatonic scale.

Neelambari – Janya by the order of note usage

Raga Neelambari:

Arohanam: S R2 G3 M1 P D2 P N3 S

Avarohanam: S N3 P M1 G3 R2 G3 S

When ascending, N3 is approached from the Pa and not the Dha. When descending, from N3, the Pa is sung or played without touching the Dha.

These are almost like compositional rules set in the ascend and descend of the raga itself. Playing the notes SNP will have a different sound from if we played SNDP.

The harmonic implications of the phrase is also different. The SNP would  make me think immediately of the major7th chord, while the SNDP would need more consideration before trying a chord.

Janyas of Raga Shankarabharanam

Nilambari, mohanam, bilahari, hamsadhwani are all janya ragas of Raga Shankarabharanam. They all use the same notes as the major scale. Only, some of the janyas will not use all the notes of the major scale. The notes will be skipped in the ascend or descend or in the entire raga. e.g. mohanam, bilahari, hamsadhwani

Some janyas may use all the notes of the major scale, but the rules of which notes precede and succeed each other are predecided and set in the arohana and avarohana definition. e.g. Neelambari as discussed in the previous section.

Chords for nilambari, mohanam, bilahari, hamsadhwani etc…

These ragas being janyas of Shankarabharanam, the diatonic chords of the major scale can be tried on their phrases. Use the logic discussed in the previous section about finding which all major scale diatonic chords are possible options for each of Sa, Ri, Ga etc. Then look at the phrase of the given raga, guess which swara the emphasis is on, and try the chords which have the particular swara.

Fitting chords in practice

First see if there is a chord which has one more swara from the phrase. If you have two swaras from the phrase in one of the possible chords, try it and listen to decide. (Of course if you have all the three notes of a triad chord in the phrase, that is an obvious choice you could try, but then that could be rare.)

Before finalizing the chord sequence, listen to the whole phrase. A phrase moving from Ni to Sa could use G|C as the chords (when Sa is C). But if the Ni moves to a Dha, you could use Em|Am instead. The swara Ni is the same, both G and Em has the note B (Ni when C is the Sa), and based on the next note, we choose which could have a better sound for the current situation.

The final decision is subjective, genre dependent, and a choice of the creator's mind.

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Related posts:

1. Diatonic chords for the major scale – The ‘safe chords’ for a large number of songs
2. How to play chords for Indian ragas – Chords from specific scale notes
3. How to play major scale patterns using raga app – any string, any root, 3 fingering patterns

1. The second mode of the melodic minor has a flat nine interval in it, which is present in many of the popular indian sounding ragas: Mayamalavagowla, Kamavardhani, Chakravakam etc.
2. The melodic minor is a much used scale in modern jazz improvisation, that much authoritative study has been done on the scale for us to use with confidence.

We will look at the different minors to be clear about what notes and intervals they have. Then we look at the second mode and find the chords. Then we see how to apply this knowledge on other ragas and scales to form chords that represent the characteristics of the parent scale.

Natural harmonic melodic

The three main minor scales we will encounter are the natural minor, harmonic minor and the melodic minor.

Comparing the minors with the major scale

• C major scale: C D E F G A B C
• C melodic minor: C D E♭ F G A B C
• C harmonic minor: C D E♭ F G A♭ B C
• C natural minor: C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C

Starting with the major scale, the three minor scales are got by flattening the appropriate notes:

1. melodic minor:    flatten the 3rd
2. harmonic minor: flatten the 3rd and 6th
3. natural minor:      flatten the 3rd, 6th and 7th

Second mode of the melodic minor scale

The second mode of the melodic minor scale would start from the second note of the melodic minor scale.

C melodic minor: C D E♭ F G A B C

2nd mode will start from D, through the notes of the C melodic minor to the D one octave higher.

2nd mode of the C melodic minor: D E♭ F G A B C

Chords for the second mode

The notes (bottom to top):

• B♭ note (played in two octaves)
• C♭ – ♭9 note (minor 2nd interval)
• E♭ – perfect 4th
• G – major 6th
• B♭ – root

These notes form the B♭ sus ♭9 chord.
The sus ♭9 chord comes as part of the second mode of the melodic minor scale.
B sus ♭9 chord is derived from the 2nd more of A melodic minor scale harmony. The second note of A melodic minor is B, from the where the 2nd mode of the scale starts.
The characteristic notes
The 3rd and 7th notes are the most important notes for most chords. But in the case of Sus ♭9 chords, the characteristic notes are the ♭9, 4th and 6th notes.

Playing the Chords for each of the 7 modes of the melodic minor scale

Chords for flat nine ragas

sus ♭9 raga

The sus ♭9 chord discussed above can be directly used for any raga or scale with:

• ♭9 interval: R1 / small Ri
• perfect 4th: Shuddha madhyamam / M1 / small Ma
• major 6th: D2/ big Dha
• any Ga, Ni because those notes are not used in the chord.

Try the chord, then listen to it and decide if the chord suits. Maybe the Ga and Ni of the specific raga you are trying may ask to be included in the chord to represent the characteristic sound of the raga. Try them

Sus♭9 with M2 instead of M1

If you have a raga with Prathimadhymam / sharp fourth/ M2 while all the other note remain the same as sus ♭9chord, then try shifting the perfect 4th note to a sharp fourth, listen to the resulting sound and decide if the chord suits the new raga. The chord will have the following intervals: root (Sa), ♭9(R1), #4(M2), Major6th (D2). The raga can have any Ga or Ni, put decide the final chord based on the sound.

Chord for Mayamalavagowla / Malahari

There are two ways we can apply chords on a raga

1. exact scale notes only included in the chord
2. triads and sevenths and other chords approximated to play over the raga.

Here since we are dealing with finding chords from the scale notes, we will talk about finding chords with only the scale notes of Mayamalavagowla.

C Mayamalavagowla: C D♭ E F G A♭ B C

By usual logic of finding obvious chords, we can take the root, 3rd, 5th and 7th notes: C E G B, which is the Cmajor7th chord.

C major seventh could be the chord for any major scale with a major 7th note, while the ♭9 and ♭6 of Mayamalavagowla gives it a distinct sound different from a major scale or lydian scale.

In order to find a chord for mayamalavagowla that truly represents the sound of the scale, try includiing the ♭9 interval to the chord. Start with the simple triad: C E G

Adding flat ninth

1. to the major chord (C E G) gives C E G D♭. You can play the ♭9 instead of the root in one of the octaves. (Usually when you play a c major chord on guitar or keyboard instrument, you will double the root. to play the ♭9, just change one of the doubled roots to a note above.)
2. to the major 7th chord (C E G B) gives C E G B D♭. On the guitar, playing all those notes maybe physically impossible, in which case you can actually omit the root, if there are other instruments playing or once you have sufficiently established the root or pitch of the song.

Try adding the ♭6th instead of the ♭9 to the triad and the major 7th. You may want to omit playing the 5th in this case, decide for yourself.

Practice

Take your favourite ragas. Using the process explained above, form basic chords, then try adding more characteristic notes to make the chord represent the sound of the parent raga you want to play it for.

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p.s. The title 'Natural Melodic Harmonic' reminds me of

1. Tinker Tailor Soldier (spy)
2. Blue sperm killer (whale)
   

Related posts:

1. Notes notes everywhere, where to play the C Major scale notes on guitar – string, fret and modes
2. How to play major scale patterns using raga app – any string, any root, 3 fingering patterns
3. Diatonic chords for the major scale – The ‘safe chords’ for a large number of songs

Take the major scale:  C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C

Build a triad starting from each note of the major scale taking two more notes from the scale, skipping a note in between. These chords are called diatonic chords – meaning ‘within the scale’

Example: forming a triad from the C note

Form a triad chord from C by choosing notes from the scale:
1.    Start from C
2.    skip D
3.    take E
4.    skip F
5.    take G
We get the notes C E G which forms the C major chord.

Diatonic chords from the C major scale

 I    C-E-G
1-3-5    Cmaj

ii    D-F-A
1-b3-5    Dmin

iii    E-G-B
1-b3-5    Emin

IV    F-A-C
1-3-5    Fmaj

V    G-B-D
1-3-5    Gmaj

vi    A-C-E
1-b3-5    Amin

vii    B-D-F
1-b3-b5    Bdim

The Safe chords

Since each of the chords C Dm Em etc found above has notes from the C major scale, these chords are the ‘safe chords’ which you can play for songs in the C major scale.

Of course you have to check if the chord goes along well with the particular melody notes and if that is the sound you want. But these chords narrows down the options which we have to parse through, helping much in on the fly chord improvising situations and improving our understanding of arranging and harmonizing.

Why are diatonic chords useful?

For example when singing a song in C major, and the main melody note for which you want to play chord be E:

1. The E note is present in C major, E minor and A minor chords.
2. You have three chord choices, none of which will be 'wrong' while you can choose which one you want.
3. If you are playing C for the bar before this change to E note, try Em or Am and decide which sound you want.

Being able to restrict choices based on the diatonic chords saved you from having to consider the vast number of possible chords which had E in it.

Diatonic chords of the minor scale

The A natural minor will have the same set of diatonic chords as the C major scale since both of them have the same notes in them.

A minor scale: A B C D E F G A.

C major has: C D E F G A B C

When you choose three notes from the A minor scale skipping one note in between, you will get the same chords from both the A minor scale and C major scale.

Knowing the diatonic chords for the major scale lets you try them on the songs of it's relative minor too.

The harmonic minor scale detail

Most often, songs in the A minor scale will have the chord E major. This is the Vth chord with respect to the root A. The diatonic chord of A natural minor scale is E minor, and not E major, but the chord E major is used for harmonic importance.

The V to i motion is important for harmony. The fifth chord has to be a major (E major) and not a minor (E minor) for the 'perfect cadence' to work out, giving the beautiful tension that is an integral part of why music is enjoyable. Therefore, the G# note is introduced in the A minor scale notes to form the E major chord.

Em: E G B

E major: E G# B

Just remember that, when you are using the diatonic chords of a major scale on the relative minor scale, you may want to use the V major chord along with the others.

Example D major scale and B minor scale chords

Diatonic chords of the D major scale: D Em F#m G A Bm C#dim

Diatonic chords for the B minor scale: Bm C#dim D Em F#m G A

When playing the chords for a song in B minor scale, you may want to use F#major as the fifth chord, in the V to i motion: F#m to B minor.

(more details on harmonic minor and V to i in another post)

Chords for a large number of songs

A lot many songs are based on the major scale or the minor scale. You now know how to find the diatonic chord of a major scale from any root and use if for the relative minor scale songs too.

Practice:

1.    verify that D FA forms a minor chord. (check if the third note is a minor or a major 3rd)
2.    verify that B D F is a diminished triad
3.    write down the E  major scale (first write down the sequence from E to E, write down the intervals associated with each note, see the interval formula  for major scale, choose the notes based on the formula).
4.    Find the diatonic triads of the E major scale by starting from each note, taking two more notes in the scale skipping one note in between.
5.    Which major scale will have Em F#m and G as diatonic chords?
6.    Which major scale will have Dm C B flat and Am as diatonic chords?
 

Related posts:

1. The ‘root’ case : a major, his relative, a sharp object and a minor
2. What is in a name – chord naming – triads – major, minor, dim, aug
3. A minor in relation – relative minor scales and chords

The flat response

Any sound equipment aims to have a flat frequency response, trying to preserve the balance of frequencies of the original signal in the same proportion at the output.

An audio equipment with a flat response will let out a vocal sound preserving its qualities – boomy, nasal, muddy, sizzling or pleasant – as it entered the equipment through the mic and preamp.

For example, a cymbal naturally has strong high frequencies, and that emphasis towards HF (high frequency) will be preserved by a flat response audio device. If an electric guitar is muddy, that sound will be preserved perfectly by an audio device with a flat response.

An EQ lets us change the flat response

The figure shows a state of the art Equalizer plugin interface by Waves.

Place an Eq in the signal chain and work with the parameters of an EQ to design sound by changing the frequency responses.

Vocals recorded with SM58

Shure SM58 is the most popular stage vocal mic. It can be used in budget recording situations to give decent results.

When you are mixing vocals recorded with the SM58, you want to make it sound good individually while making it fit in the mix.

Use an equalizer to work with the frequencies. Vocal recordings with an SM58 mic needs

• cut in the bass frequency region
• modification in the mid area
• some work with the hi mid frequencies for clarity and intelligibility
• and raise in the higher frequencies to give it the 'air'.

How to start using the equalizer?

How do we make the changes? To begin with, know the parts of an equalizer.

The Three Parts of an Equalizer

There are three parameters we want to control:

Frequency

The frequency parameter is used to set the center frequency.

Once the center frequency is set, change the width of the frequency curve or change the gain keeping the frequency as the center.

We set the center frequency for each band of equalizer used.

For eg: we could have four bands with

• one centre frequency at 200Hz
• another at 2000 Hz
• one more at 8000 Hz
• and the last one at 16000 Hz.

The EQ band will have an option to change the Gain and Width at the particular center frequency.

Gain

We cut or boost the presence of a frequency using the Gain parameter.

Boost or cut according to the instrument and according to which characteristics you want to highlight.

We may cut down the vocals at around 600 Hz to reduce the muddy nature or room boom out of it. The mid frequencies can be carved away from the drum overhead mic tracks to reduce the clutter while using the highs.

Use the gain parameter to boost the 8000 Hz frequency in a SM58 vocal recording to increase the legibility of the recording.

Gain is the degree of boost, at the centre frequency (the frequency value that we set in the frequency parameter part). The gain is measured in decibels (dB),
A range of 12 to 15 db is maximum. The gain can be negative : -6db for example. Negative gain reduces the presence of a particular frequency.

Bandwidth Q

Bandwidth is a measure of the width of the bell-shaped curve. It is represented by the letter Q.

• A lower Q (a Q value of 0.3 is low, for example) will allow the equalizing to cover a wide range of frequencies.
• a higher Q (e.g. Q value of 5 or 7 is on the higher side) will allow you to home in on a particular feature of the sound.

Inverse relation: Q vs range

• Lower the Q value, more the range of frequencies you affect with your gain change.
• Higher the Q value, lesser bandwidth, less the range of frequencies affected.

Q is the extend – how wide or narrow the range of frequencies affected.

• Lower Q – wider curve – more frequencies affected
• Higher Q – narrow curve – less frequencies affected

When you want to remove a particular frequency with precision, use a high q, which makes the cut narrow.

When using additive equalization (boosting frequencies to make the change instead of cutting away unwanted), we need to be specific with the frequency so that the degradation of the original signal is kept to a minimum. So we choose a narrow band (higher Q value) when making additive frequency response changes.

Different kinds of equalization filters and curves

These are kinds of filters and curves available in equalizers

High pass filter

High pass filter section reduces low frequencies, allowing the higher frequencies to pass through.

For example, to cut away the bass frequencies in a vocal recording, use a high pass filter, which cuts off the lower frequencies.

You will be able to choose the frequency from where the cut is active, and the curve will slope down instead of an abrupt cut off.

Low pass filter

A filter section that reduces high frequencies, allowing the lower frequencies to pass through.

Band pass filter

A filter section that reduces both high and low frequencies. We adjust the Q, the center frequency and the gain to use band pass as needed.

Shelf

A high or low frequency EQ where the center frequency is selected and the bandwidth can be varied to extend the effect of the EQ to any frequency in the whole audio spectrum.

A shelving filter can be used anywhere in the frequency spectrum, to boost or gain a band width of frequencies.

Gain and Q parameters change the shape of the shelving curve as you need:

• Choose the frequency
• set the width Q
• change the gain as needed.

Notch filter

A filter that cuts out a very narrow range of frequencies. We sweep (described below) and find out the frequencies and cut out the unwanted frequency with a very narrow band width. With this sort of precision, nearby frequencies are not disturbed while the sound is improved.

Peaking filter

A narrow band width filter that boosts a narrow range of frequencies.
All good equalizers will have the high pass, low pass and shelving or band pass filter.
Look at the shape of the curve when you choose each option and you will find what is best for the situation.

Parametric equalizers offer good control over all three EQ parameters. There are good parametric equalizer plugins with 2 to 10 number of equalizer bands. The first image of the equalizer interface is of the Renaissance EQ which comes with Waves Gold Bundle.

Get the complete short e-book Effective Equalization ($4.95). It is a 20 page downloadable pdf that starts you from the basics and then gives step by step best practices. It has sufficient density of information to keep a beginner practice for a few months at least. The information will form a good basis for all the equalization you will ever do. Emphasis given on Vocal EQ, SM58 vocals.

No related posts.

To the right is C Dorian scale played starting from the 5th fret of the 3rd string.

The next image shows the same C Dorian scale in terms of South Indian Carnatic classical notation or Sa Ri Ga Ma. C Dorian shares the same notes as the Raga Kharaharapriya, 22nd in the Melakarta system of Indian Ragas.

C Dorian / Kharaharapriya wider left

Below is the C Dorian scale in western notes and then in South Indian Classical notation.

Don't look for diagramns!

Use the Indian Raga on Guitar Fretboard mapping app instead…

you can drag and drop the root note to any fret / string of your choice.

How to find raga swaras on the guitar using the app

1. Suppose you want to play a geetam in malahari. Malahari is a janya raga of Mayamalavagowla. OR you just want to map mayamalavagowla on the guitar, with different fingerings possible.
2. Look for Mayamalavagowla in the Melakarta list of the app.
3. Which root to do you want to start from?
4. Which string should have the root?
5. Drag and drop the Red Sa button to the root and fret of your choice
6. Try the three fingering patterns.
7. to show the swaras, click on the Swaras button, to show the notes, click on the Notes button.

Sent to your email

The new version is not entirely public. The link to the new version will be sent to the email you enter below. (or you can subscribe using the box on the right and get the app along with the subscriber only bonus.)

Yet another pattern  

Here is one more fingering of same Kharaharapriya from the C root for you.

Related posts:

1. Mapping indian raga on guitar fretboard – Mayamalavagowla
2. How to play Indian raga compostions on the guitar using a swara sheet
3. A Tool to help you Play Indian Ragas on the Guitar – The Raga on Guitar app

If your midi keyboard has an USB interface that you can connect to your computer, you don't need a midi out (keyboard) – midi in (sound card or midi box) connection to get your midi data into the sequencer, or to play a VST instrument installed in the computer.

Midi keyboards these days come with the USB interface, so you won't need a sound card just for using them.

When do you need the sound card midi?

The sequencer has the midi track. You want to play the midi notes through an external sound module or synthesizer, using a sound patch in the external device.

Then you need to connect the sound card midi out to the midi in of the external device.

Would you like to record the sound produced by the external device? If so

1. connect the analog stereo out of the external device to a stereo in of the sound card
2. add a stereo audio track in the sequencer and choose the input as the stereo in to which the external device was connected.

Now when you run the sequencer, playing the midi notes through the external device, if you record the audio track you allotted for the external device, the sound produced will be recorded as 'wav' file in the sequencer.

Why would you want to change the midi to an analog wav file in the sequencer?

Now you can apply effects, equalize, work with the wav file just like any other audio file, while when it is just some midi notes, you can't do that.

Also, when you are doing the final mix down, you can't play the external device through the midi out – midi in technique and get the external device sound in real time to make the mix.

You have to convert the external device sound played by the midi notes in the sequencer, to a wav file in the sequencer. Then you can apply effects and mix it down along with the other audio and vst instrument tracks.

Any serious work

If you are considering doing some good work with the sequencer, planning do some mix of your music, do some recordings that you can maybe use as demo or publish, then it is a good idea to get a sound card. The most basic will do.

The sound really gets better with a good sound card. Good soundcards by focusrite and motu don't cost much these days, while giving you good recording quality when using mics, and good digital to analog and analog to digital conversion (mic to computer, computer back to speakers)

Below are three sound cards by focusrite: one under $150, another below $200 and one just above $200 at the time of writing. Focusrite is acclaimed for their preamps and soundcard quality while being in an affordable price range.

Related posts:

1. Buying a sound card for keyboard and vocals
2. How to use a VST plugin instrument along with a keyboard
3. 9 features to look for when buying a midi keyboard