Chord Sequencer: am I using it wrong?

[robussc]

I really thought Chord Sequencer would be a great tool for a "play by ear" creator like myself. In the past I've generally fumbled around with notes and sounds until something gelled and I could turn that into some kind of composition. The downside of that approach has always been the wasted time fumbling around (and the all too frequent writers block that led me to leave a session which nothing much to speak of).

So Chord Sequencer, I thought, would open up a wealth of new creative options and give me some nice starting chord changes, but all too often I find myself not liking anything I get out of it. The chord options seem quite random and unpleasing. I think my ignorance is the issue here, but it seems weird to me that things like inversions aren't used more for the common transitions.

The good news out of this is that it's inspired me to knuckle down and learn the basics (which really aren't that complicated, silly me!) and that would more than cover my needs for the foreseeable future.

But I was just wondering if I'm completely missing the function of Chord Sequencer?

[ravasb]

I am not sure if there is a way of using it right. I wanted to like this player, but it is very strange and quirky. You cannot just pick a key and find the chords that would work with it. Instead the presets have strange names like Baroque Nouveax.

[PhillipOrdonez]

I like it a lot, provides lots of options i would never come up with myself. You can just pick a key and find chords that would work in that key within a stylistic framework.

[dvdrtldg]

I really thought Chord Sequencer would be a great tool for a "play by ear" creator like myself. In the past I've generally fumbled around with notes and sounds until something gelled and I could turn that into some kind of composition. The downside of that approach has always been the wasted time fumbling around (and the all too frequent writers block that led me to leave a session which nothing much to speak of).

This is pretty much how I work too. I initially got excited about Chord Sequencer and then had the same issue: the chord combinations either sounded predictable and uninteresting, or locked into the cheesiest version of whatever genre the player was making me work in. And the architecture of the device seemed very rigid and narrow

Have you tried Scaler 2? It's a much bigger, more flexible & more powerful take on what CS is trying to do, and imo vastly superior. The major downside is that you can't just plonk it on top of an instrument and have it work like a player - you have to do your work in Scaler & then drag the MIDI onto an instrument track in the Reason sequencer. But I'm finding that's more an inconvenience than a deal breaker (and if Reason ever goes with internal MIDI out, that will solve the problem). I'm getting excellent results from it, and updating my long-lost knowledge of music theory in the process

[joeyluck]

I've gotten a lot of use out of Chord Sequencer. I like that it isn't restricted to a key/scale. The suitability colors are helpful and I also like the unpredictability when just exploring and disregarding the suitability colors. The recent update was great! I really like many of the new chord sets. And you can put whatever chords you want in it. It's very easy to edit. Aside from built-in chord sets, it's a very solid chord memory device.

[moneykube]

This is pretty much how I work too. I initially got excited about Chord Sequencer and then had the same issue: the chord combinations either sounded predictable and uninteresting, or locked into the cheesiest version of whatever genre the player was making me work in. And the architecture of the device seemed very rigid and narrow

Have you tried Scaler 2? It's a much bigger, more flexible & more powerful take on what CS is trying to do, and imo vastly superior. The major downside is that you can't just plonk it on top of an instrument and have it work like a player - you have to do your work in Scaler & then drag the MIDI onto an instrument track in the Reason sequencer. But I'm finding that's more an inconvenience than a deal breaker (and if Reason ever goes with internal MIDI out, that will solve the problem). I'm getting excellent results from it, and updating my long-lost knowledge of music theory in the process

yes, agreed>
I love Scaler 2>
Even with the current required work around that I hope gets fixed on some unknown day> sometime> somehow.

[robussc]

Thanks for the responses. I’ll take a look at Scaler 2, but I think I’m also enjoying actually acquiring some knowledge. Currently having a good time decoding the chord sequences of favorite tracks, quite a lightbulb moment in fact.

[phobic]

Thanks for the responses. I’ll take a look at Scaler 2, but I think I’m also enjoying actually acquiring some knowledge. Currently having a good time decoding the chord sequences of favorite tracks, quite a lightbulb moment in fact.

I also recommend Scaler as you can use it on many different levels, from a teaching aid or a sketchpad to a full composition creator in genres that you possibly aren't too familiar with. It really gets you out of your comfort zone of a usual routine and quickly opens up new horizons. Well worth the asking price!

However if you're enjoying lightbulb moments decoding your favourite tracks, have a look at hooktheory.com, especially the trends section. You can either type in a track by name and look at the chord structure (common chord progressions link), or type in a key and start putting in a chord progression and watch as it populates famous songs that also have the same chord structures (trends). It's such an eye opener to see it all unfold before your eyes. Plus the way the site is laid out makes music theory seem much more accessible and easier to understand, to me at least. IMO it's a fantastic bit of web design.
https://www.hooktheory.com/trends
https://www.hooktheory.com/theorytab/co ... ogressions

[robussc]

Very cool, thanks I’ll check it out. I’ve seen David Bennett promote it on his YouTube channel, but not yet investigated.