Lows: The kick drum. The kick anchors the beat and what happens in the rest of the drum pattern is based off of what happens with the kick. The kick and the snare combine to form the base drum beat of a song.
Mids: Snares/Claps/Tom-Toms. The most well-known mids are the snare drums and claps, but tom-toms and other mid-range percussion like the congos/bongs are a part of the mids as well. The mids are the other half of the basic beat (along with the kick), and the mids either accent what is occurring in the kick drum or it accents different beats than the kick in order to give the song a syncopated feel. It is the interaction between the kick and the mids that establish the main beat of a song.
Highs: Hi-hats, shakers, maracas. The highs link the lows and mid together and gives a sense of timing and movement to the beat.
Perfecting the drum tracks are of the utmost importance in hip-hop. Often, the drum track is what distinguishes and amateur sounding beat from a professional one. The two main skills to learn in drum programming are sound selection and programming the actual drum pattern. Serious beat makers should devote time to building a drum library. The two sources for drum sounds are:
Self-Made: Sampling drum hits from existing records, recording your own samples, or using a synth to generate electronic sounds are one method of developing drum sounds. The internet has a ton of information on how to make your own drum sounds. The advantage to this approach is that your sound is guaranteed to be unique. However, sound design is a craft within itself that requires practice and patience in order to get good at it. However, applying effects or editing existing sounds can also add new flavor to existing sounds.
Sample Libraries/Companies: There are now companies dedicated to providing drum sounds to producers. Going this route, you'll have quality sounds without having to design them yourself. However, other producers will have these same sounds. Modern Beats and Bangin Beats are good places to start.
The route you choose is a matter of choice. Whatever you choose, I encourage you to move beyond the stock sounds in your synth as they are generally almost always out of date.
To close out this section, I want to leave you all with one last concept today. Often, the hi-hats get overshadowed by the kicks and snares. However, after a while in beatmaking, you'll learn the value of the hi-hat. The hi-hat can alter the perception of time in a track even though the tempo stays the same. In your sequencer of choice, lay out a basic rock beat pattern with a kick on beats 1 and 3, a snare on 2 and 4, and the hi-hats playing 8th notes. Now, change the hi-hats to 16th notes. Finally, change them to 32nd notes. Notice how the track seems faster as the hi-hat notes get smaller. You'll notice that a lot of beat makers will change the hi-hat subdivision in moving from verse to chorus. Experiment with this. Also, by nudging the hi-hats slightly behind the beat or before it, you can give the song a delayed or rushed feel even though the tempo is the same. Try this on 8th note hi-hats.
Drums are the most important part in a hip-hop beat, so take your time to perfect them. Next week, we'll talk about the pads and their role.
Mids: Snares/Claps/Tom-Toms. The most well-known mids are the snare drums and claps, but tom-toms and other mid-range percussion like the congos/bongs are a part of the mids as well. The mids are the other half of the basic beat (along with the kick), and the mids either accent what is occurring in the kick drum or it accents different beats than the kick in order to give the song a syncopated feel. It is the interaction between the kick and the mids that establish the main beat of a song.
Highs: Hi-hats, shakers, maracas. The highs link the lows and mid together and gives a sense of timing and movement to the beat.
Perfecting the drum tracks are of the utmost importance in hip-hop. Often, the drum track is what distinguishes and amateur sounding beat from a professional one. The two main skills to learn in drum programming are sound selection and programming the actual drum pattern. Serious beat makers should devote time to building a drum library. The two sources for drum sounds are:
Self-Made: Sampling drum hits from existing records, recording your own samples, or using a synth to generate electronic sounds are one method of developing drum sounds. The internet has a ton of information on how to make your own drum sounds. The advantage to this approach is that your sound is guaranteed to be unique. However, sound design is a craft within itself that requires practice and patience in order to get good at it. However, applying effects or editing existing sounds can also add new flavor to existing sounds.
Sample Libraries/Companies: There are now companies dedicated to providing drum sounds to producers. Going this route, you'll have quality sounds without having to design them yourself. However, other producers will have these same sounds. Modern Beats and Bangin Beats are good places to start.
The route you choose is a matter of choice. Whatever you choose, I encourage you to move beyond the stock sounds in your synth as they are generally almost always out of date.
To close out this section, I want to leave you all with one last concept today. Often, the hi-hats get overshadowed by the kicks and snares. However, after a while in beatmaking, you'll learn the value of the hi-hat. The hi-hat can alter the perception of time in a track even though the tempo stays the same. In your sequencer of choice, lay out a basic rock beat pattern with a kick on beats 1 and 3, a snare on 2 and 4, and the hi-hats playing 8th notes. Now, change the hi-hats to 16th notes. Finally, change them to 32nd notes. Notice how the track seems faster as the hi-hat notes get smaller. You'll notice that a lot of beat makers will change the hi-hat subdivision in moving from verse to chorus. Experiment with this. Also, by nudging the hi-hats slightly behind the beat or before it, you can give the song a delayed or rushed feel even though the tempo is the same. Try this on 8th note hi-hats.
Drums are the most important part in a hip-hop beat, so take your time to perfect them. Next week, we'll talk about the pads and their role.
About the Author:
A part of the Jam Sonic production team, "The Architect" has been producing and composing music for over 10 years. He currently produces music full-time for artists and small businesses. Please check out his website to view beat making articles and videos and hip hop beats for sale.
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