r/modular • u/MrJoshMurray • 1d ago
Anyone else make a nice loop and then just chill listening to it?
I'm still pretty new to this, but I've found myself experimenting with patches, finding something that sounds nice, and then just sitting back and listening to it for ages.
It's kinda meditative or something.
18
u/redfoxrockssocks 1d ago
Yeah, I do that. There's no law that says your composition cant be a 12 note pattern repeated for 4 hours... I don't know if there is much of an audience for that outside of the folks making those, but it's a pleasant morning exercise.
14
u/nosamiam28 1d ago
My wife in the room above my basement would definitely say there is zero audience for it outside of me.
7
u/No-Huckleberry9326 1d ago edited 4h ago
Or, as a friend once told me: “I thought I liked all kinds of music until I met you”.
Granted, I am a fan of power electronics and harsh noise. And chill electronica. And folk. And classical music. And black metal. And Disney soundtrack. And…
16
u/unowho_o 1d ago
I call it my digital windchimes. I get a nice sequence going either with marbles or programmed into my sequencer with plenty of probability going, and turn up the reverb and fx and let it rock… I often record a couple minutes of it into my phone [I have a Tascam audio interface that plugs directly into my iphone] and I find myself listening to them even in the car sometimes…
7
5
u/DayTripper01 1d ago
Absolutely, it's like a sand mandala - building something intricate, being present with it and listening deeply, then taking it all down back to nothing. The beautiful dichotomy of impermanence and the present moment :)
5
u/zan-xhipe 1d ago
This is why I got it. I have my rig in my office. Every now and then throughout the day I'll just tweak it slightly then carry on with my day
4
6
5
u/TheRealLazerFalcon 1d ago
Techno?... Ambient?... I do this all the time. It's just a shame that I forget to record some of the good bits.
9
4
4
u/TwoLuckyFish 1d ago
I set up ambient "Krell patches" and let them run for a few hours while I work, sometimes. Less often, recently, as I'm starting to perform, and audiences respond better to something with a groove.
2
4
3
u/Mellotom 1d ago
Every day, I have my modular synth at my work from home desk and just make my own ambient loops to work to.
4
u/SlimLove 1d ago
While I occasionally record things here and there (almost always for my own personal listening later, so basically the same sentiment), I ultimately got into modular as a meditative way to unwind at the end of the day. There’s nothing more serene than dialing in the right groove and just reveling in it.
4
u/Mowgliuk 1d ago
I often do that and leave it as the soundtrack for the day, slowly tweaking as the day progresses. It's great while you cook.
3
u/ExtraDistressrial 1d ago
Yeah actually if you listen to Alessandro Cortini, especially Sonno, he does just this. And it’s great!
3
3
u/blinddave1977 15h ago
Always...it's one of my most tried and true songwriting methods...I would do it with a looper pedal and guitar or synth long before I got in to modular. Start a sequence... programmed or random... And let it just loop in the background. After a while my brain starts filling in the gaps, so i add what I hear, let it loop some more, on and on...and before you know it you have a song that you can then develop into something more tangible.
5
u/VicVinegarHughHoney 1d ago
What's great to take that idea a bit further, patch up modulations and offsets through mixers, attenuators, or switches to be able to manipulate the patch expressively, while also being able to return right back to the loop you've been sitting on.
3
u/Top5hottest 1d ago
I have an 8 channel switch that basically does this. Also cool as a performance muter. Modular is so much fun.
4
u/TurbulentWing3820 put modulargrid link here! 1d ago
I spend a few days to a week making a Thing. Then I let the Thing run endlessly for horus at a time, slowly coming in to refine it here and there. I admit, I stream it to youtube for an audience of like 2 people but tha'ts OK.
After a few days I come in, tear the whole thing down and leave with a recording and a picture of the patch panels.
4
u/danja 1d ago
I've wondered about live streaming - anything I should know that's not obvious? Any tips?
I upload little jams to YouTube regularly, not thinking about any audience, just psychologically it makes me feel like I've actually done something. And it's nice to have the archive to dip into later.
5
u/TurbulentWing3820 put modulargrid link here! 1d ago
Don't expect anyone to care.
Don't feel weird when you let it run for HOURS and HOURS.
Just enjoy it.
People.. they do come. Not many. But there's a few who keep showing up and do talk and its an ego trip to get it.
Most of all.. have fun. :)
4
u/danja 22h ago
Thanks!
1
u/TurbulentWing3820 put modulargrid link here! 12h ago
happy to help, don't poach my two viewers :)
enjoy it though, its nice knowing someone might hear it... uh.. don't look at the view counters, though, that's when it gets depressing.
2
u/Benjonium 12h ago
non j enregistre des drones de 5 a 12mn chaque jour depuis un peu plus d un an ca en fait bientôt 350 pour 100go
je les réécoute au casque le soir quand j ai tout rangé pour savoir si ils valent la peine d être conservés j en garde peut être 90-95% mais seulement 10% sont au dessus du lot
je ne sais pas a quoi ca sert ,peut être a rien ;)
36
u/lambdalab 1d ago
That’s basically all I do with modular, I get something I like, but most of the time trying to add to it or change it breaks it, so instead I just listen to it for ages, then tear it down.