Song Mode
Getting Started with the Sequencer
12-1
Chapter 12
Song Mode
Getting Started with the Sequencer
The K2500’s sequencer is a powerful and versatile tool for songwriters, composers, and anyone
else who needs to record and play back songs. As with any tool, however, it’s best to start with
the basics. This section begins with a tutorial where you will record a song, then shows some of
the mixing capabilities of the sequencer. If you are familiar with other sequencers, you will
have no problem using Song mode in the K2500. Read through this section, however, to learn
about the features that make the K2500’s sequencer unique.
What is a Sequencer?
A sequencer is similar in some ways to a multi-track tape recorder: you can record and play
back all sorts of music and sounds, layer sounds on top of other sounds, and change or
manipulate things that you’ve previously recorded. Unlike a tape recorder, however, you do
not actually record sounds with a sequencer. Rather, you are recording commands that cause
sounds to be played. Nonetheless, we will sometimes explain sequencer features by drawing
analogies to familiar tape recording techniques such as splicing and overdubbing.
There are several advantages to recording a song by sequencing. For one thing, sequencer
commands take up much less disk space than digitally recorded music would, so you can get a
lot of information (i.e., music) on a single floppy disk. Furthermore, you can easily make
changes to your sequences. For example, you can change individual notes, transpose parts, or
change instrumentation. Lastly, you can share the sequences you create with other musicians.
A Word about the Local Keyboard Channel
Before you being sequencing, we’d like to remind you about the Local Keyboard Channel
parameter on the MIDI Receive page (described on page 10-6). Local Keyboard Channel is
especially important for sequencing with the rack mountable K2500R, since it enables you to
record on different tracks without constantly switching transmit channels on your controller.
Therefore, you should do the following before you begin sequencing with the K2500R (or any
K2500 model, when using an external controller):
•
Set the Local Keyboard Channel on the MIDI Receive page to a specific channel (1-16).
•
Set your controller (e.g., keyboard) to transmit on the same channel.
Performing the above two steps means that you’ll be able to hear the individual channels (each
of which is assigned by default to a separate record track) as you scroll through the different
record tracks in the K2500’s Song mode. Local Keyboard Channel performs a "re-channelizing"
function that makes this happen.
Patch Through
There’s one more use for Local Keyboard Channel. With any model of the K2500, the Local
Keyboard Channel parameter lets you "patch through" (also known as "soft through") to
external sound modules. When Local Keyboard Channel is enabled, the K2500 takes the
rechannelized information and sends it out the MIDI port. This lets you hear an external
module while you are recording a track assigned to that module.
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