actually, if there rly is an infinite no. of universe, then there is an infinite no. of universe that u will not click and an infinite no. that u will click
Unfortunately, in at least one of those worlds I took the challenge of uploading an enormous number of shitty videos named "Christmas Microtonal Lo-fi hip-hop" and sending you the links. Enjoy, William-Pfeiffer-sub-x!
fine, lets make one a. everything works as normal b. you never find this channel c. you find this video once d. your device resets as you click on it e. it isnt saved to your watch history f. you forgot the channel name and the video title so you cant search it up g. you die without ever clicking on this video
@@killmepls7865 no, the "and" between 12tet and 17tet makes the comment say that 12tet isn't the standard. To further clarify my point, I've added a comma in the quote; "the bots are trained for standard tuning, 12tet and 17tet are out of their knowledge for now lol"
Lol I was thinking about that, and even further you could argue in court "it is literally not the same melody, it's literally all different notes and therefore different intervals being played, no matter how much it may sound the same to you". The convincingness of that argument all comes down to how good the lawyer is.
Fun fact: the minor third in 19EDO is so pure and close to it's just intonation 6/5 that you would need to chop the octave into 232 equal divisions to make an improvement on it.
actualy the 12tet minor third is very close to the 19th overtone which could also be considered "the perfect minor third" to me (my ears) that high sounding third 6/5 sounds horrible:P
no I meant I prefer the 19th harmonic 19/8 which is much closer to 12tet-minor (its sligthly lower) above the 19tet version which is close to the 6/5 the "undertone"-minor.. This difference can be heard comparing Arabic to Indian music as well. Where I have a training in Indian classical and in my style avoids playing the 6/5 as standing pitch although I would play it in a vibrato. the 19th harmonic is inbetween the 9 (the interval aswell as the harmonic 9/8) and the just intonated third (5/4). Dont get me wrong I love music that sounds horrible to my ears aswell:D I make micro(A)tonal black/deathmetal where I use all kind of disgusting intervals in 5,10,15,20,30 and 60tet
@@stein0niets Yep, heard you right the first time. I was just thinking it's funny that normal people who listen to normal music are used to listening to such an "alien" ratio 19/16 which is a 19-limit ratio (the highest prime factor in the ratio is 19 which should theoretically make the ratio very dissonant). On a different note, I didn't know 5EDO had any disgusting intervals lol. 1/1, 8/7, 21/16, 32/21, 7/4 all sound great to me.
Adam, you should seriously start doing lo-if. This shot sounds super legit, and with your ideas of music theory embedded in your compositions, it could bring a lot of freshness into the genre. Keep vibing Adam!
8:53 "Music making is influenced by technology" Oh my God! I've been trying so hard to make musicians understand that. I study acoustics and I'm interested in the properties of carbon fibers and its possible applications in violin making but all classical musicians are like "That's bullshit, a real violinist should only strive to buy and old Stradivari" and that's it, no arguments given. Imagine if Mozart would have said that the piano was bullshit and real musicians should stick to the harpsichord? The piano represents one of the big improvements in technology applied to music and without it, there wouldn't be a lot of the compositions we now love. The violin without the steel strings would be still playing Baroque music because Romantic music is just too fast and expressive that gut strings wouldn't be able to cope with the tension. Technology in music is GOOD.
Wanted to let you know this music helped me get my very sick, very fussy baby son to calm down and nap today. Thank you very much for making this. Truly it is a God send. Keep doing what you're doing.
For 24 tone equal temperament it would be cool if it was possible to set the sustain pedal to shift everything down or up 50 cents. That way you could keep it on the one keyboard and allow for possible slides. Class video
Yeah that'd be cool, and perhaps you could use a similar logic to the selective sustain so anything already sounding when you press the pedal stays in the old tuning system.
I'm actually in the process of building a Kontakt instrument (well 3 different ones) that allow you to play 24 TET on one keyboard. This is one of the methods I'm working on. It's going to be built in kontakt using scripts if you want to take a look at it once I'm done!
I don't understand how you're out in public and yet you make it feel like it's just you and us, your youtube viewers. Also how do you make the conversation so seamless in different places? Do you do the whole script in multiple places or do you just remember how you left off?
@@ElGruvo He was at Union Square (14th Street), Rockefeller Plaza (49th through 51st), and Bryant Park (42nd), all in Manhattan. Enjoy the nicer parts of the city, just plan your travel ahead of time!
The true queen of microtonality (Wendy Carlos) did the most amazing album of microtonal stuff back in 1986. I'm always amazed how she managed to produce a full album with that sort of technology. The back of the record has a Vincent van Gogh quote printed on it that seems relevant: "I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it."
I like that you tried 17 EDO. I think 17 is a very nice tuning, and I think it works great for jazz. It's also melodically superior to 12 because of its narrower semitones in the major scale which have a much nicer "leading" quality. They're very close to the just intonation ratio of 25/24. George Secor (a theorist who studies microtonality and tuning theory) thinks that we actually would be using 17 EDO today instead of 12 if we decided to emphasize the melodic properties of our music over the harmonic properties. As for harmony, quartal and quintal voicings are definitely a workaround, but there are other ways of actually getting the major third to sound good in 17. The major in 17 is much closer to 9/7 than it is to 5/4. You can make the 9/7 ratio sound less dissonant by using waveforms that emphasize odd harmonics and tend to deemphasize or even exclude even harmonics. Square waves and pulse waves make the major thirds of 17 sound a lot better than sawtooth-type waves. Thus, from an acoustic standpoint, clarinet and saxophone make 17 EDO chords sound better. Another way to mask the dissonance that sawtooth waves give is by using a rather wide unison or "chorus" effect on the notes. In addition, Major 7 and Major 9 chords can help to diffuse the dissonance if you still want sawtooth-like waveforms. The major third (really a "supermajor" third) of 17 is actually not a bad sound, but it's basically a ratio of two odd harmonics so it clashes a little with sounds that contain even harmonics. I will also point out that the minor third of 17 is less dissonant sounding, even with sawtooth waves, than the major third. There's also a "neutral" third, which is between the minor and major. It can sound major or minor, depending on context. It can also sound like neither one. It sounds a bit weird on its own, quite alien. I've found it can sound interesting when used as the third in a 6 9 chord. Thus, C Neut 6/9 sounds nice. As for 19 EDO, it's an almost perfect version of 1/3 comma meantone temperament, which divides a just major sixth (5/3) into three perfect fifths. If you want 1/4 comma meantone, 31 EDO is almost perfect on that front, a fact which was discovered by physicist Christiaan Huygens.
interesting insights! i am wondering how i would be able to produce microtonal music in an intuitive way, like adam says, (in for example ableton or FL)? is there a way to change the piano roll or bend the pitch of individual notes?
@@broor There are lots of ways to make microtonal stuff, I'm very much into it. I use FL and via the back end of - for example - Kontakt, you can map your midi-keyboard to equal temperaments and just intonation systems. There are a couple of ways to do so in Kontakt, all done via a back-end tab called 'script editor'. Then Serum allows for .tun files. When you import them your midi keyboard also maps to the temperaments or just intonation tunings the .tun is coded for. You can code these (relatively simple process) via for example sevish.com/scaleworkshop, or via a program called SCALA. Then online you can find lists of which other vsts are microtuning friendly. I think Zebra is too. Also one native to FL is, Harmor if I'm correct. There are also some free vsts you can find online specifically made for micro-tuning. Actually, try this one, it's just a simple rhode kind vst but you can instantly shift it to any equal temperament. th-cam.com/video/bhRGsiYCsMs/w-d-xo.html Then regarding the intuitive aspect of making microtonal music. It's a bit difficult to get there, there are lots of developments towards easy-going workflows in these areas but in general you just gotta deep dive and be willing to invest. Then at a certain point you get your insight going and you get accustomed to new intervals. You'll also learn more about all kinds of tunings and develop preferences etc etc. The beauty about this area of music is there are lots of people willing to help out. For example the dude that started this thread, we've had discussions about microtonal music and all these perspectives from people help a great deal. Hope this helps!
@@broor In my opinion, Reaper and Bitwig are the best DAWs on the market for microtonalists. Reaper lets you redefine the piano roll by changing note names, but it doesn't come with any (usable) built-in synths. Bitwig comes with a lot of built-in and really cool features and it lets you redefine pitches in very interesting ways using built-in synths. However, it doesn't (so far) let you rename the notes on the piano roll or anything like that. I use Reaper and synth plug-ins that have microtuning built into them. My favorite is Zebra 2 by u-he. Almost all u-he synths have built-in microtuning. Here's an incomplete list of synth plugins which allow microtuning: en.xen.wiki/w/List_of_Microtonal_Software_Plugins I've been messing around with Bitwig's demo for a little while as well. There are really neat features it has, but I don't like the piano roll. Apart from renaming notes, FL Studio probably has the best piano roll of all, but Reaper's is definitely easier to use than Bitwig's.
Oh, and Adam picked the best "beginner" scales. 17, 19, and 24 EDO are the nicest tunings to work with for someone coming from a 12 EDO background. I recommend starting with one of those.
YES! I've wanted piano rolls to intuitively allow for different tunings for so long, it's such a pain to be limited and slowed down when you're already stepping into new territory
It makes me wonder what Miles Davis would do with microtonality if he was still alive, I mean he was always pushing boundaries, I'd love to hear what he could come up with using microtonality.
I thought he DID use microtonality, didn't he? He worked a ton with John Mclaughlin, the King of microtonality in Western music. That was the whole thing with them inventing jazz fusion together
@@duffman18 I'm not a Davis expert so possibly lol, but I thought the whole Jazz Fusion thing was more about blensing tbe rock and jazz worlds rather than utilising microtonality?
@@-1subswithoutuploadingavid621 I'm not an expert either, that's why I asked it as a question lol. I do know that John Mclaughlin is famous for using microtonality though so that's why I wondered.
Good point. Classical Indian music has always been microtonal. That's why the Sitar has moveable frets. And I remember hearing about an Egyptian trumpeter who had added a key to his instrument to play quarter tones - because that's how they sing in Egypt. There is also a microtonal piano - it's in TH-cam somewhere- where you can "detune" each individual note with a slider. Though I noticed the only people who really had a use for it were Indian musicians. The other thing is, I don't quite see how you can play e.g. 31-note scales on 2 piano keyboards, which only gives you 24 notes!
@@ThermAquaGaming I think you're right. I heard an interview he did (assuming it was him) for France Musique radio... Anyway the point is, something that is only discussed in the West by uber-nerds like Adam (and violinists, to be fair) seems to be known and loved by everybody in the arab world - not that I am an expert, but in France we do have quite a bit more contact with that world than they do in the US. See also Debussy, who was fascinated by indonesian Gamelan; the Impressionists, who were inspired by Japanese prints...
I think the best way to get microtonal music to work is to use it in a context where it "makes sense" and isn't jarring. I agree with Adam, using microtonal systems in lo-fi hip hop makes sense and if you don't tell people that it's a microtonally tuned piano, they would never feel there is something out of place. That means it works!
You mention wanting to change piano rolls to have a microtonal key layout. But that's exactly something Sevish has a tutorial on to do for Ableton's piano roll! I also want to mention that I'm super excited to hear you also dig 17-EDO. It's easily become my favourite tuning to write in, over 12-EDO too, and you really did it justice. There really is no other way to get into microtonality than just, *doing* it, at least for now. And I think, if you know your way around sound in general, that's a good thing. I had no doubt that you would "invent" your own way to play microtonally hahaha. I'll say that, even though I usually don't play with MIDI keyboards (don't have one myself), when I do use one for microtonality, I usually don't try to map tunings to 12 keys, I just remember where all the steps are, and for 17-EDO, that means that the octave+fourth is the new octave. I definitely hope that there will be (affordable!) layout-adjustable/-flexible MIDI keyboards/systems in the future.
Just a keyboard for diminished or full-tone scales would already do us good. That'd be a keyboard with only white keys or fully alternated between whites and blacks. The piano layout is not only meant for the Major scale, but for the C Major scale, more specifically.
It would be a rainbow, actually. The best way to make keyboards for other tuning systems is to make them have no black notes. Just a rainbow where each color represents one of the tones
th-cam.com/video/aRw9fCQIn6Q/w-d-xo.html here’s a video of someone playing a polychromatic composition on a polychromatic keyboard. The keyboard is standard layout but with extra rows on top and bottom in shades of grey for the microtones
terrible representation of a 19tet keyboard (for a 17tet keyboard remove the [#] from in between E & F and B & C) [d] [d] [d] [d] [#] [#] [#] [#] [#] [#] [#] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [A] [B] [C]
@@yeasstt actually that would kinda be impractical. but instead of a rainbow you would need the colors to be more scattered. So instead of a smooth hue transition from red to hot pink you will need the colors to be kinda scattered. (imagine for example 313-edo like how tf are u gonna distinguish 2 notes from each other lol) But a more practical way would be to just number the notes. Or maybe add an option to make a custom keyboard.
That was unexpectedly really cool. It feels that the use of those temperaments here has compositional value beyond just being an effect. It is most noticeable in the comparison which starts at 7:39
let's do some more -Ab13 # with some MICROTONAL things in 7 and 9 ...... and call it ultra jazz .... .no no..it will be arrogant ... let's call .... Lo fi! Ohhh..Looooo fiiiiiiiiiii......yes!! And...do some....acapella! Ohhhhhhh yeeezzzz......and..... orchestra!!...ohhh ohhhh....and 8 string tapping picolo bASS....yes yes...and shredding guitar!!!yeeesss please!!.....and 3 MOOG one!!! OHHHHHHHH ( JAZZ ORGASM SOUNDS)😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐
an add-on that changes the DAW piano roll to a different temperament and already has the frequencies and ratios mapped out would be a wet dream for all lofi artists
I love this video because it demonstrates how a deep understanding of theory can lead to the creation of something more original and unconventional than anything the « fuck theory » crowd could ever conceive of.
Hey Adam, just a word of gratitude: I've been playing classical piano for years and years. I was always afraid a bit intimidated by theory, and didn't know much about chords. But thanks to your videos (and some other YT'ers) I am finally getting into music theory, playing from fake books, improvising, etc. It's still super awkward and uncomfortable, but also exciting and sure to make me a better musician! So, thanks a bunch for your videos. You have by far the best explanations and style of presentation, and have made me genuinely interested in all this stuff.
So there actually ARE keyboards made for playing microtonal music. You have instruments like the Tonal Plexus and archicembalo which follow a traditional linear keyboard layout with multiple 1-dimensional manuals (exactly what Adam is doing with 2 keyboards here). String instruments are in this same category. Then, you also have "isomorphic keyboards", that have notes in a 2-dimentional lattice like on a button accordion. Ones that have a lattice in a hexagonal shape based on major and minor thirds are popular and can be microtuned to any division of the octave, but most are flexible and can be set up in 4ths or 5ths or however you want to finger your voicings.
@@agibson9928 Touchscreen monitors are affordable and there is plenty of free and commercial software that can do the job. The only problem is the lack of velocity, but maybe pressure sensitive monitors will solve the problem in the future
Yes, and downvote my submission that has only microtonal vocals rather than the whole song being microtonally composed. Let’s see how low we can get it! It’s the song “I Wanna Be“ from Soul Eater
0:21 Y'all know Adam Neely thought that was the coolest shot ever. That's going straight to his Tinder profile. by the way this intro is fucking fire. when the bass comes in it's heaven. This microtonal lofi stuff you're doing is gonna take over the scene.
This is awesome! I think you are right about the movement towards wonkyness. This also goes along with Christians thought that imperfect samples are better than perfect ones. Thanks for doing this!
Adam, I have an idea... The calculation for the distances between frets is 12 x sqrt2 for 12 tone equal temperament. If you could find a luthier with similar interests with you could change that equation to make a microtonal guitar/bass.
It is actually the twelfth root of 2, or equivalently 2^(1/12). But you are absolutely right, it can be done with other numbers. To find the fret positions for 19tet, for example, you take scale length of the instrument, L, double it, and divide by 2^(x/19), where x is the fret you want. This gives you the distance to the bridge, so for measuring from the nut, you have to also subtract this length from the scale lengh.
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard did a whole album with microtonal instruments in 2017 as part of a 4 album run. Called the Flying Microtonal Banana. Worth a listen!
THANK YOU for making this video! I've been sending messages to a few companies requesting that they create more accessible ways to get into the wonderful word of microtonal music. I've currently got colored dots on my 12 TET keyboard letting me know approx how sharp and flat each pitch would be in 22 TET and that's my work around. Having big voices like you advocate for this is amazing! Keep up the great work :)
Oh, Adam. I've been enjoying your channel for a while now, but what you did here is phenomenal. Thanks for putting in all that effort into bringing 17TET and 19TET to life and to math and to some possible historical context as well. Keep on doing what you're doing. Heck, my friend just recommended your channel to me (not knowing I'm already listening!) so way to go x2.
One thing I love about your videos is that they often want to push forward Western (well, all... TBH) music to be more harmonically-inclusive. A space where harmonicas in the key of B might one day feel as loved and as celebrated as the mouth organs in G half-sharp. **** On slightly less serious note: I’m new to music theory, so this is all fascinating. The perfect intervals are so buttery. We love the sound of the equal tempered 5:4. Most of us love the equal tempered 3:2. Using both... okay. But just off the official recipe are those “melt in your mouth” perfect thirds and fifths that... uh... well..... (...) uh, melt in your mouth. It’s so pleasant to taste a variety of them throughout a chord progression in 17 TET, especially with a lot of quartals (sp?). It *sounds* incredible, as well. I hear how the western ear might pick up and learn to appreciate a scale based on thirds. With sustained exposure. Sustained, forced, exposure... perhaps.... I think it’s possible 😆 Great video. We’re super thankful for your content.
Yes!! I had the same experience. 19TET didn't sound that off to me, while 17TET sounded very out of tune, like every note was just a bit too sharp. Glad to read I wasn't the only one.
This is my kinda lo-fi hip hop. I'm not into normal lo-fi, but I legit want to get into making things like this. It's also great to hear a less abrasive use of microtonality!
@@shitmandood The song is good to go. "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" is known to have been published by 1760. It is older than the US. So it is public domain. I just realized you said "samples" but I doubt that's the case as it is on TH-cam and Band Camp and copyright doesn't care about platform.
There does not exist a world where I won’t click on a video called Christmas Microtonal Lo-fi hip-hop
William Pfeiffer Same my dude
actually, if there rly is an infinite no. of universe, then there is an infinite no. of universe that u will not click and an infinite no. that u will click
And Adam, clearly was counting on 158,000 people just like you.
Unfortunately, in at least one of those worlds I took the challenge of uploading an enormous number of shitty videos named "Christmas Microtonal Lo-fi hip-hop" and sending you the links. Enjoy, William-Pfeiffer-sub-x!
fine, lets make one
a. everything works as normal
b. you never find this channel
c. you find this video once
d. your device resets as you click on it
e. it isnt saved to your watch history
f. you forgot the channel name and the video title so you cant search it up
g. you die without ever clicking on this video
This is What Jacob Collier listens to when he’s studying
Lmao
nice pfp
Jaden Phan him or me?
@@Calz20Videos me
Jordan Miller
th-cam.com/video/XsVy4ImgM0o/w-d-xo.html
Jazz musicians now have even more wrong notes to play
No twoset jokes allowed
Wrong notes, pshh. Next you are gonna tell me Santa exists after all, aren't you?
😳
Legendary
20 times 0 is still 0
"now if you want to be a nerd about this..."
Haha you only have 2 likes
@@melonbals5512 and you only have 0
@@oscwavcommentaccount lol
What is JAYNE DOING HERE WTFF???
@@melonbals5512 he has 100000x more subs than you
I never realised Christmas Microtonal Lo-Fi Hip Hop was my jam. 😎
It's kinda a bummer because nobody else is doing it
@Fast Pablo1 Haha, I wish I could write like this!
Ah my favourite Coltrane joint: "Small Step"
hah lmao
How about Mikrojazz? soundcloud.com/philippgerschlauer/1-miro-steps-philipp-gerschlauer
Wouldn't it be Micro Steps?
Nothing better than Christmas Lo-Fi Hip-Hop before Christmas
Ay lmao what are you doing here? xD
@@prachetasnayse9709 He exists everywhere. He is beyond time and space.
Literally everything is better.
As is traditional.
Man ur just kinda everywhere huh
Imagine making an entire album featuring wonky hip-hop beats, microtonality, alternative tunings, jazz harmony, mellow low-fi soundscapes...
Imagine making it and then being noticed by sempai Adam
Check out sevish
And Hulk
@Adam pls get on it
And still get copyrighted
Missed opportunity to say snow-fi
Noah J. MacKean underrated comment
Me who knows nothing about music theory: *Ah YeS i UnDeRsTaNd*
Wow thats literally me
Literally, me
Tl:dr: Composers now use non-countably infinite amounts of pitches...
No copy right strikes because the bots don't even understand ahaha
@W0Y4K the bots are trained for standard tuning
12tet and 17tet are out of their knowledge for the time being lol
@@mihkel3296 they're calibrated for 12TET, that's the standard.
@@NuclearHeadshot thats what they said tho
@@killmepls7865 no, the "and" between 12tet and 17tet makes the comment say that 12tet isn't the standard. To further clarify my point, I've added a comma in the quote; "the bots are trained for standard tuning, 12tet and 17tet are out of their knowledge for now lol"
Lol I was thinking about that, and even further you could argue in court "it is literally not the same melody, it's literally all different notes and therefore different intervals being played, no matter how much it may sound the same to you". The convincingness of that argument all comes down to how good the lawyer is.
Fun fact: the minor third in 19EDO is so pure and close to it's just intonation 6/5 that you would need to chop the octave into 232 equal divisions to make an improvement on it.
actualy the 12tet minor third is very close to the 19th overtone which could also be considered "the perfect minor third" to me (my ears) that high sounding third 6/5 sounds horrible:P
@@stein0niets Hilarious isn't it? We've been enjoying extremely xenharmonic 19 limit music this entire time.
no I meant I prefer the 19th harmonic 19/8 which is much closer to 12tet-minor (its sligthly lower) above the 19tet version which is close to the 6/5 the "undertone"-minor.. This difference can be heard comparing Arabic to Indian music as well.
Where I have a training in Indian classical and in my style avoids playing the 6/5 as standing pitch although I would play it in a vibrato. the 19th harmonic is inbetween the 9 (the interval aswell as the harmonic 9/8) and the just intonated third (5/4).
Dont get me wrong I love music that sounds horrible to my ears aswell:D I make micro(A)tonal black/deathmetal where I use all kind of disgusting intervals in 5,10,15,20,30 and 60tet
Its fun to see how Adam's switches make 12tet seem weird and xenharmonic aswell
@@stein0niets Yep, heard you right the first time. I was just thinking it's funny that normal people who listen to normal music are used to listening to such an "alien" ratio 19/16 which is a 19-limit ratio (the highest prime factor in the ratio is 19 which should theoretically make the ratio very dissonant). On a different note, I didn't know 5EDO had any disgusting intervals lol. 1/1, 8/7, 21/16, 32/21, 7/4 all sound great to me.
Can’t copyright the melody if it’s in 24 tone equal temperament
Hybrid Atom Well boys, we did it. Copyright music is no more.
Nice pic bro
Gustavo Andrade Nice pic bro
@@nataliemaebauer nice pic
@@dunkaccino6606 nice pic
Adam “I really enjoy the sound of 17 tone equal temperament” Neely
What’s the next step Adam? Christmas microtonal progressive jazz fusion lo-fi hip hop?
in 21/22 432 hz
@@richardrolison9932 but it's actually "All Star" by Coultrain
Microtonal pantfunk sockjazz fusion.
Christmas microtonal Shakuhachi lo-fi fusion Konnakkol hip-hop djazz in 4/20.
Nah, microtonal djent
4:56 “if you wanna be a nerd about this...” WHY do you think we clicked on this video bruh
Adam, you should seriously start doing lo-if. This shot sounds super legit, and with your ideas of music theory embedded in your compositions, it could bring a lot of freshness into the genre. Keep vibing Adam!
@life Yeah I know.
Hell yeah
lo if
PRO TIP: Make sure the synth and the vocals are in the SAME KEY.
In all seriousness, very cool, Adam.
Or at least, the same tuning system.
I keep seeing this joke everywhere on Adam's channel. What video is it from?
@@ieuanphillips4963 I believe it's from his video about jazz reharmonization
8:53 "Music making is influenced by technology" Oh my God! I've been trying so hard to make musicians understand that. I study acoustics and I'm interested in the properties of carbon fibers and its possible applications in violin making but all classical musicians are like "That's bullshit, a real violinist should only strive to buy and old Stradivari" and that's it, no arguments given. Imagine if Mozart would have said that the piano was bullshit and real musicians should stick to the harpsichord? The piano represents one of the big improvements in technology applied to music and without it, there wouldn't be a lot of the compositions we now love. The violin without the steel strings would be still playing Baroque music because Romantic music is just too fast and expressive that gut strings wouldn't be able to cope with the tension. Technology in music is GOOD.
Wanted to let you know this music helped me get my very sick, very fussy baby son to calm down and nap today. Thank you very much for making this. Truly it is a God send. Keep doing what you're doing.
Microtonal baby epic
Your baby has good taste.
He do be vibin doe 😳😳
Ngl he kinda vibin doe frfr 😤😩😳🔥
stop
@@milest3560 They're being cringe. They think this is instagram
@@INeedAttentionEXE u cant say he not vibin doe😳😳😳
@@INeedAttentionEXE instagram cringe normies, don't even like big chungus ugandan knuckles keanu reeves wholesome 100 elon musk liked that reddit
Adam walks in front of a cab: "Hey!! I'm teaching micro-tonal music here!!"
"If you want to be a nerd about this". As if anyone who is not totally nerding out already will reach that point in the video...
I was going to say that too
Adam Nerdy
The crowds behind him make for a very surreal realization as Christmas comes up in this weird time
For 24 tone equal temperament it would be cool if it was possible to set the sustain pedal to shift everything down or up 50 cents. That way you could keep it on the one keyboard and allow for possible slides. Class video
Yeah that'd be cool, and perhaps you could use a similar logic to the selective sustain so anything already sounding when you press the pedal stays in the old tuning system.
I'm actually in the process of building a Kontakt instrument (well 3 different ones) that allow you to play 24 TET on one keyboard. This is one of the methods I'm working on. It's going to be built in kontakt using scripts if you want to take a look at it once I'm done!
@@josie_mshrm that's dope as hell. I don't have kontakt, but I'm interested to see how it turns out!
You can also shift around in meantone this way
You can buy a keyboard with a pitch mod wheel
I don't understand how you're out in public and yet you make it feel like it's just you and us, your youtube viewers. Also how do you make the conversation so seamless in different places? Do you do the whole script in multiple places or do you just remember how you left off?
because it's new york, everybody is in their own head
Yea this video is so beautifully shot, now I wanna visit NY
@@ElGruvo He was at Union Square (14th Street), Rockefeller Plaza (49th through 51st), and Bryant Park (42nd), all in Manhattan. Enjoy the nicer parts of the city, just plan your travel ahead of time!
He cute when he does this kind of video edit, ngl.
His voice is actually tuned microtonally, just sounds like ringmodulated shrieking to everyone around him.
Jesus Lord this video is good
"Don't look at me, man, all glory goes to Adam." -- Jesus
That note that’s held out at 0:25 I felt that note on a cellular level
The true queen of microtonality (Wendy Carlos) did the most amazing album of microtonal stuff back in 1986. I'm always amazed how she managed to produce a full album with that sort of technology. The back of the record has a Vincent van Gogh quote printed on it that seems relevant: "I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it."
I like that you tried 17 EDO. I think 17 is a very nice tuning, and I think it works great for jazz. It's also melodically superior to 12 because of its narrower semitones in the major scale which have a much nicer "leading" quality. They're very close to the just intonation ratio of 25/24. George Secor (a theorist who studies microtonality and tuning theory) thinks that we actually would be using 17 EDO today instead of 12 if we decided to emphasize the melodic properties of our music over the harmonic properties.
As for harmony, quartal and quintal voicings are definitely a workaround, but there are other ways of actually getting the major third to sound good in 17. The major in 17 is much closer to 9/7 than it is to 5/4. You can make the 9/7 ratio sound less dissonant by using waveforms that emphasize odd harmonics and tend to deemphasize or even exclude even harmonics. Square waves and pulse waves make the major thirds of 17 sound a lot better than sawtooth-type waves. Thus, from an acoustic standpoint, clarinet and saxophone make 17 EDO chords sound better. Another way to mask the dissonance that sawtooth waves give is by using a rather wide unison or "chorus" effect on the notes. In addition, Major 7 and Major 9 chords can help to diffuse the dissonance if you still want sawtooth-like waveforms. The major third (really a "supermajor" third) of 17 is actually not a bad sound, but it's basically a ratio of two odd harmonics so it clashes a little with sounds that contain even harmonics.
I will also point out that the minor third of 17 is less dissonant sounding, even with sawtooth waves, than the major third. There's also a "neutral" third, which is between the minor and major. It can sound major or minor, depending on context. It can also sound like neither one. It sounds a bit weird on its own, quite alien. I've found it can sound interesting when used as the third in a 6 9 chord. Thus, C Neut 6/9 sounds nice.
As for 19 EDO, it's an almost perfect version of 1/3 comma meantone temperament, which divides a just major sixth (5/3) into three perfect fifths. If you want 1/4 comma meantone, 31 EDO is almost perfect on that front, a fact which was discovered by physicist Christiaan Huygens.
interesting insights! i am wondering how i would be able to produce microtonal music in an intuitive way, like adam says, (in for example ableton or FL)? is there a way to change the piano roll or bend the pitch of individual notes?
@@broor There are lots of ways to make microtonal stuff, I'm very much into it. I use FL and via the back end of - for example - Kontakt, you can map your midi-keyboard to equal temperaments and just intonation systems. There are a couple of ways to do so in Kontakt, all done via a back-end tab called 'script editor'. Then Serum allows for .tun files. When you import them your midi keyboard also maps to the temperaments or just intonation tunings the .tun is coded for. You can code these (relatively simple process) via for example sevish.com/scaleworkshop, or via a program called SCALA.
Then online you can find lists of which other vsts are microtuning friendly. I think Zebra is too. Also one native to FL is, Harmor if I'm correct. There are also some free vsts you can find online specifically made for micro-tuning. Actually, try this one, it's just a simple rhode kind vst but you can instantly shift it to any equal temperament. th-cam.com/video/bhRGsiYCsMs/w-d-xo.html
Then regarding the intuitive aspect of making microtonal music. It's a bit difficult to get there, there are lots of developments towards easy-going workflows in these areas but in general you just gotta deep dive and be willing to invest. Then at a certain point you get your insight going and you get accustomed to new intervals. You'll also learn more about all kinds of tunings and develop preferences etc etc. The beauty about this area of music is there are lots of people willing to help out. For example the dude that started this thread, we've had discussions about microtonal music and all these perspectives from people help a great deal.
Hope this helps!
@@broor In my opinion, Reaper and Bitwig are the best DAWs on the market for microtonalists. Reaper lets you redefine the piano roll by changing note names, but it doesn't come with any (usable) built-in synths. Bitwig comes with a lot of built-in and really cool features and it lets you redefine pitches in very interesting ways using built-in synths. However, it doesn't (so far) let you rename the notes on the piano roll or anything like that.
I use Reaper and synth plug-ins that have microtuning built into them. My favorite is Zebra 2 by u-he. Almost all u-he synths have built-in microtuning. Here's an incomplete list of synth plugins which allow microtuning:
en.xen.wiki/w/List_of_Microtonal_Software_Plugins
I've been messing around with Bitwig's demo for a little while as well. There are really neat features it has, but I don't like the piano roll. Apart from renaming notes, FL Studio probably has the best piano roll of all, but Reaper's is definitely easier to use than Bitwig's.
Oh, and Adam picked the best "beginner" scales. 17, 19, and 24 EDO are the nicest tunings to work with for someone coming from a 12 EDO background. I recommend starting with one of those.
I'm using 53 for that
Man i just opened youtube and was blessed
Pask congrats
YES! I've wanted piano rolls to intuitively allow for different tunings for so long, it's such a pain to be limited and slowed down when you're already stepping into new territory
It makes me wonder what Miles Davis would do with microtonality if he was still alive, I mean he was always pushing boundaries, I'd love to hear what he could come up with using microtonality.
why couldn't he have used microtonality even then?
@@prodbydarz Maybe he never thought of it.
I thought he DID use microtonality, didn't he? He worked a ton with John Mclaughlin, the King of microtonality in Western music. That was the whole thing with them inventing jazz fusion together
@@duffman18 I'm not a Davis expert so possibly lol, but I thought the whole Jazz Fusion thing was more about blensing tbe rock and jazz worlds rather than utilising microtonality?
@@-1subswithoutuploadingavid621 I'm not an expert either, that's why I asked it as a question lol. I do know that John Mclaughlin is famous for using microtonality though so that's why I wondered.
watching this video brings back so much nostalgia of life before covid for me
When you are from the East and people talk about microtonal stuff but it just sounds normal to your ears lol
Good point. Classical Indian music has always been microtonal. That's why the Sitar has moveable frets. And I remember hearing about an Egyptian trumpeter who had added a key to his instrument to play quarter tones - because that's how they sing in Egypt.
There is also a microtonal piano - it's in TH-cam somewhere- where you can "detune" each individual note with a slider. Though I noticed the only people who really had a use for it were Indian musicians.
The other thing is, I don't quite see how you can play e.g. 31-note scales on 2 piano keyboards, which only gives you 24 notes!
Gerard Vila I think you mean the Lebanese trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf. He's crazy!!
@@ThermAquaGaming I think you're right. I heard an interview he did (assuming it was him) for France Musique radio... Anyway the point is, something that is only discussed in the West by uber-nerds like Adam (and violinists, to be fair) seems to be known and loved by everybody in the arab world - not that I am an expert, but in France we do have quite a bit more contact with that world than they do in the US. See also Debussy, who was fascinated by indonesian Gamelan; the Impressionists, who were inspired by Japanese prints...
I think the best way to get microtonal music to work is to use it in a context where it "makes sense" and isn't jarring. I agree with Adam, using microtonal systems in lo-fi hip hop makes sense and if you don't tell people that it's a microtonally tuned piano, they would never feel there is something out of place. That means it works!
You mention wanting to change piano rolls to have a microtonal key layout. But that's exactly something Sevish has a tutorial on to do for Ableton's piano roll!
I also want to mention that I'm super excited to hear you also dig 17-EDO. It's easily become my favourite tuning to write in, over 12-EDO too, and you really did it justice. There really is no other way to get into microtonality than just, *doing* it, at least for now. And I think, if you know your way around sound in general, that's a good thing. I had no doubt that you would "invent" your own way to play microtonally hahaha. I'll say that, even though I usually don't play with MIDI keyboards (don't have one myself), when I do use one for microtonality, I usually don't try to map tunings to 12 keys, I just remember where all the steps are, and for 17-EDO, that means that the octave+fourth is the new octave. I definitely hope that there will be (affordable!) layout-adjustable/-flexible MIDI keyboards/systems in the future.
Just a keyboard for diminished or full-tone scales would already do us good. That'd be a keyboard with only white keys or fully alternated between whites and blacks. The piano layout is not only meant for the Major scale, but for the C Major scale, more specifically.
I love that all these TH-cam musicians (Adam and Nahre) are experimenting with lo-fi
microtonal lo-fi christmas beats to unwrap gifts to
So awesome!! Merry Christmas Adam!! Where can I sign up for lessons with you??? 😁🙋🏻♀️
oMG NAHRE I LOVE YOU
you mean giving him lessons right?
"I don't have a traditional Engliss vocabulary"
- Adam Neely 2019
The piano sounds like a carnival. And the microphone smells like a cookie.
PUT THAT COOKIE DOWWWWWN
There's no metric modulation though...
what would a 17 or 19tet keyboard even look like? would you have another set of black keys per octave? i'd love to see a video on that, adam.
It would be a rainbow, actually. The best way to make keyboards for other tuning systems is to make them have no black notes. Just a rainbow where each color represents one of the tones
@@yeasstt lgbtq piano😳
th-cam.com/video/aRw9fCQIn6Q/w-d-xo.html here’s a video of someone playing a polychromatic composition on a polychromatic keyboard. The keyboard is standard layout but with extra rows on top and bottom in shades of grey for the microtones
terrible representation of a 19tet keyboard
(for a 17tet keyboard remove the [#] from in between E & F and B & C)
[d] [d] [d] [d]
[#] [#] [#] [#] [#] [#] [#]
[C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [A] [B] [C]
@@yeasstt actually that would kinda be impractical. but instead of a rainbow you would need the colors to be more scattered. So instead of a smooth hue transition from red to hot pink you will need the colors to be kinda scattered. (imagine for example 313-edo like how tf are u gonna distinguish 2 notes from each other lol) But a more practical way would be to just number the notes. Or maybe add an option to make a custom keyboard.
That was unexpectedly really cool. It feels that the use of those temperaments here has compositional value beyond just being an effect. It is most noticeable in the comparison which starts at 7:39
where’s the dm7b5
Lol
I came here for this
D#mmaj11(3b) (-50cents)
Vox is the best music channel. It knows so much and is very informative and educational on the topic of music and musicality
let's do some more -Ab13 # with some MICROTONAL things in 7 and 9 ...... and call it ultra jazz .... .no no..it will be arrogant ... let's call .... Lo fi! Ohhh..Looooo fiiiiiiiiiii......yes!! And...do some....acapella! Ohhhhhhh yeeezzzz......and..... orchestra!!...ohhh ohhhh....and 8 string tapping picolo bASS....yes yes...and shredding guitar!!!yeeesss please!!.....and 3 MOOG one!!! OHHHHHHHH ( JAZZ ORGASM SOUNDS)😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😩😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐😐
an add-on that changes the DAW piano roll to a different temperament and already has the frequencies and ratios mapped out would be a wet dream for all lofi artists
i dont understand anything about music theory, but when i see that adam has new video, i click
Adam taking shots at the Vox xmas episode and Nahree Sol's attempts at lofi all in one masterful video. I see you big dawg
I actually really enjoy this whole lo-fi movement in music. It opens up so many more possibilities for musicians.
I love this video because it demonstrates how a deep understanding of theory can lead to the creation of something more original and unconventional than anything the « fuck theory » crowd could ever conceive of.
*Lo-fi hip hop, but played in the "right" frequencies..*
It's played thru *Bad Frequencies*
A= 420
This comment chain is gold.
Hey Adam, just a word of gratitude:
I've been playing classical piano for years and years. I was always afraid a bit intimidated by theory, and didn't know much about chords.
But thanks to your videos (and some other YT'ers) I am finally getting into music theory, playing from fake books, improvising, etc. It's still super awkward and uncomfortable, but also exciting and sure to make me a better musician!
So, thanks a bunch for your videos. You have by far the best explanations and style of presentation, and have made me genuinely interested in all this stuff.
So there actually ARE keyboards made for playing microtonal music. You have instruments like the Tonal Plexus and archicembalo which follow a traditional linear keyboard layout with multiple 1-dimensional manuals (exactly what Adam is doing with 2 keyboards here). String instruments are in this same category. Then, you also have "isomorphic keyboards", that have notes in a 2-dimentional lattice like on a button accordion. Ones that have a lattice in a hexagonal shape based on major and minor thirds are popular and can be microtuned to any division of the octave, but most are flexible and can be set up in 4ths or 5ths or however you want to finger your voicings.
There is a huge lack of non-standard layout keyboards in the market that are also affordable.
@@agibson9928 Touchscreen monitors are affordable and there is plenty of free and commercial software that can do the job. The only problem is the lack of velocity, but maybe pressure sensitive monitors will solve the problem in the future
@@agibson9928 are there any in particular you'd recommend??
You know, honestly i don't understand a single thing about advance musical theories that you're saying--- i just genuinely enjoy it.
4:34 Actually in 19TET, the flats are sharper, and the sharps are flatter.
yeah, in any meantone that’s actually the case. flats being flatter and sharps being sharper is the case in a pyth or superpyth like 17edo
The camera work in beginning is honestly gorgeous
1:20 missed opportunity to put a half sharp as the hashtag
i’m in love with this
Playing the wrong notes in the right way.
Basically yeah
j a z z
jazz summed up in 8 words
Shit you hit 69 likes so here have this comment instead
This is the future of music in all styles and repertoires
You should check out r/microtonal on reddit. There are more people than I initially thought making microtonal music
@Joshua Sanchez Yes, I am an human I have emotions and speech.
Yes, and downvote my submission that has only microtonal vocals rather than the whole song being microtonally composed. Let’s see how low we can get it! It’s the song “I Wanna Be“ from Soul Eater
thank you for bringing this to my attention. i dont know how i didnt know about this sooner lol
@@The_SOB_II My man is a genious, how did you managed to sing in microtonal scales? I can upto 48ET but no much more :(
I didn't, it's from an anime and possibly unintentional
0:21
Y'all know Adam Neely thought that was the coolest shot ever. That's going straight to his Tinder profile.
by the way this intro is fucking fire. when the bass comes in it's heaven. This microtonal lofi stuff you're doing is gonna take over the scene.
Total missed opportunity not putting the lick in Merry Gentlemen what with all the runs up the minor scale.
Maybe he's just tired of it?
Koettnylle ummm are you okay?
The lick does not “tired”
ain't no rest for the lick-ed
17 EDO actually has a really nice Dorian scale, so it would have worked well. ;-)
That bass descent at 4:20 is just 👌
this is so sick tho what a vibe
I will always be impressed by people who can confidently vlog in public
I never knew I needed Arnie telling me to put that cookie down in Lo-Fi
No sarcastic thumbs-up bait here. Awesome content as always, Adam. Can't wait to congratulate you on 1 million subs.
Always amazed how quickly 12-tone can sound out of tune after a few seconds of getting used to a different system
A blessing and a curse
This is awesome! I think you are right about the movement towards wonkyness. This also goes along with Christians thought that imperfect samples are better than perfect ones. Thanks for doing this!
“If you want to be a nerd about this.” Already here, dude...
I might not understand all that you're doing, but you're one of the most interesting and skilled musicians I've seen in a long time.
The word "microtonal" instantly makes me think of Flying Microtonal Banana
That level of production❤️ the king of youtube
Adam, I have an idea... The calculation for the distances between frets is 12 x sqrt2 for 12 tone equal temperament. If you could find a luthier with similar interests with you could change that equation to make a microtonal guitar/bass.
It is actually the twelfth root of 2, or equivalently 2^(1/12).
But you are absolutely right, it can be done with other numbers. To find the fret positions for 19tet, for example, you take scale length of the instrument, L, double it, and divide by 2^(x/19), where x is the fret you want. This gives you the distance to the bridge, so for measuring from the nut, you have to also subtract this length from the scale lengh.
Nice tracks. Thanks for taking the time; it's just what I've been wanting.
Visuals on the tracks were also pretty A E S T H E T I C .
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard did a whole album with microtonal instruments in 2017 as part of a 4 album run. Called the Flying Microtonal Banana. Worth a listen!
THANK YOU for making this video! I've been sending messages to a few companies requesting that they create more accessible ways to get into the wonderful word of microtonal music. I've currently got colored dots on my 12 TET keyboard letting me know approx how sharp and flat each pitch would be in 22 TET and that's my work around. Having big voices like you advocate for this is amazing! Keep up the great work :)
Opportunity missed in calling the large steps giant steps
3 g I a n t steps
Will never stop rewatching these video
I really like this subgenre
Now, that's a proper Adam post! Good old musical nerdy stuff, what could be better.
Silly question but what is 1 cent and how many cents make up a whole/half step in the 12 tone equal temperament? Many thanks!
A cent is 1/100th of a semitone.
A cent is a hundredth of a half step i.e. there are 100 cents in a half step.
A cent is 1/100 of a semitone.
A cent is 1/100th of a semitone.
a cent is defined as 1/100th of a semitone
It works cause Christmas music is so easy and sweet, so giving it some spice makes it just right and still familiar enough.
Protip: have yourself a merry little Christmas.
You're a genius Adam
I love pretending to understand music theory.
Grim
Nope
That's how it starts, then as time passes you find yourself actually understanding more and more
hahaha, word!
Oh, Adam. I've been enjoying your channel for a while now, but what you did here is phenomenal. Thanks for putting in all that effort into bringing 17TET and 19TET to life and to math and to some possible historical context as well. Keep on doing what you're doing. Heck, my friend just recommended your channel to me (not knowing I'm already listening!) so way to go x2.
this sounds damn odd yet so correct at the same time. my brain is melting
The rendition of "God rest ye merry gentlemen" in 17 TET sounds awesome!
4:55 "If you want to be a nerd about this"
As if we weren't nerds already just by watching this video
One thing I love about your videos is that they often want to push forward Western (well, all... TBH) music to be more harmonically-inclusive. A space where harmonicas in the key of B might one day feel as loved and as celebrated as the mouth organs in G half-sharp.
****
On slightly less serious note:
I’m new to music theory, so this is all fascinating. The perfect intervals are so buttery. We love the sound of the equal tempered 5:4. Most of us love the equal tempered 3:2. Using both... okay.
But just off the official recipe are those “melt in your mouth” perfect thirds and fifths that... uh... well..... (...) uh, melt in your mouth. It’s so pleasant to taste a variety of them throughout a chord progression in 17 TET, especially with a lot of quartals (sp?).
It *sounds* incredible, as well. I hear how the western ear might pick up and learn to appreciate a scale based on thirds. With sustained exposure. Sustained, forced, exposure... perhaps....
I think it’s possible 😆
Great video. We’re super thankful for your content.
The 17 TET really messed with my ears, but I really liked the 19 TET, for whatever reason
Yes!! I had the same experience. 19TET didn't sound that off to me, while 17TET sounded very out of tune, like every note was just a bit too sharp. Glad to read I wasn't the only one.
Same here!
Me too!
ye
It sounded like quartal harmony to me, it's beautiful in a way
Thanks for making those available for free, the Christmas spirit is definitely microtonal.
“If you want to be a nerd about this...” - Adam Neely
It's wonderful seeing the quality and production value of a channel improve with time.
after hearing the 19tet the 12tet sounds weird to me
same
Jop van de Kam it sounds chunky
This is my kinda lo-fi hip hop. I'm not into normal lo-fi, but I legit want to get into making things like this. It's also great to hear a less abrasive use of microtonality!
Put this on Spotify?
in the description he put a band camp link, so i think it is gonna be there
There might be some copyright disputes on those samples if he put it on Spotify perhaps?
@@shitmandood The song is good to go. "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" is known to have been published by 1760. It is older than the US. So it is public domain. I just realized you said "samples" but I doubt that's the case as it is on TH-cam and Band Camp and copyright doesn't care about platform.
@@shitmandood He played all of the songs as you can see in the video
@@IsYitzach Im referring to Schwarzenegger
also great job on explaining your music theory out in public during winter it's all got a great vibe over all.