What microtuning is all about - well you did ask about how microtuning is used in "real life"?
2005-12-22 by Charles Lucy
Yes.
LucyTuning your music gives you a more precise harmonic palette to compose and play with.
It takes you the next step in your musical evolution; for instead of restricting yourself to 12 note equal temperament,
(as 99.9% of Western musicians did during the 20th century); you can create your own tonal language using any exotic tuning you choose or fancy.
As you get more experience with alternative tuning and "stretch" your ears, you'll appreciate the benefits, and be able to benefit musically.
It's like riding a bike; you have to do it to experience it, and the more you experiment, the more you'll learn.
Here's how to use the technology:
Have fun with it!Download the .sit file from:
which is linked from:
You construct your midi tracks as you would normally in your usual tuning with virtual instruments or synths.
Or use an existing song file, which uses synths or virtual instruments (EXS24 etc.)
Then experiment by playing them back using various different tuning as selected in the Song Settings window.
See page 630 of the Logic Pro 7 reference manual for details.
As you try different tunings you will be able to hear the differences in the harmony and pitches.
Some tunings will sound dissonant others more consonant; you choose whichever results you fell enhance your song.
The way that microtuning works in Logic Pro 7 limits you to a maximum of twelve different pitches per octave.
This works perfectly for harmonically straight-forward Western music; you just select the appropriate number of sharps and flats of the key.
(see list of tunings below)
For more complex harmony, "ethnic" music and harmonically exotic music, you may wish to use different tuning for different parts of the songs.
Assuming you want your music to sound more "harmonious"
e.g. One section may require the chord E major (E-G#-B) (2flats3sharps)(2b3s);
yet in another part of the same song you may require the chord F minor (F-Ab-C) (3flats2sharps) (3b2s)
Since in the first example the black note between G and A is tuned to G#; and in the second example you need the note between G & A be tuned and sound as Ab.
you use the different tunings as listed in the details below and apply the following principles:
For monophonic audio files e.g. Vocals, acoustic (one note at a time instruments)
you will find that using pitch corrector or melodyne will pull the audio into the same tuning.
Having got the general idea of making your tracks more consonant; you can then get even more adventurous by experimenting with dissonant tunings,
and use them as you would a "plug-in" effect to enhance the emotional impact of your musical composition or song.
If one part of the song sounds perfect to you; yet another part sounds wrong.
Bounce the sections that sound right;
then experiment with the other parts; select other tunings until the previously "wrong" part sounds right.
Now bounce just the second "previously wrong" part; and put the bounced together.
Here is the text file that is included in the download:
LucyTuning Codes for Logic 7.
To make life easy for users who wish to use LucyTuning with Logic 7 on Apple Mac OSX,
to retune their virtual instruments, I have constructed a number of alternative tuning files,
which can be added to the supplied tuning tables.
Download the .sit file from:
decompress and follow the directions in this readme file:
Move all the .scl files in this folder into the folder
Library/Logic/Tuning Tables/ If you find that this folder is locked
Click on the folder and hold down left Apple Command Key and letter I.
(This will allow you to unlock the folder, and may request your master
password.) Move the .scl files into the folder and fire up Logic 7. You
will now have some extra tunings to play with, which will follow a
simple consonance/dissonance pattern. Notes closer on the sprial of
fourths and fifths will be more consonant than those which are separated
by more steps of fourths or fifths. All notes will be retuned from the
reference pitch A4 = 440Hz.
To use these tunings in Logic 7 go to File/Song Settings/Tuning in Logic
7 and select them.
For more information and how to create and use other tunings see:
and
to understand which notes are used and the reasoning behind the sequence
of the choices of tunings.
These tunings using Logic 7 have been sucessfully tested with EFM1, ESM, ES1, ES2, ESE,
ESP, EVB3, EVD6, EVOC 20 PolySynth, EVP88, GarageBand Instruments, Sculpture and EXS24.
For Cameleon .tun flies may be selected and loaded by clicking on the small red button
near the lower left corner of the control window.
Contents of Archive: 50 files of 49 tunings
[(1-52) less 7, 14 & 21 which would be dupes of 1,2, & 4 respectiveley)]
+ this readmefile
List of Tunings:
0A440Lucy01&07Tuned 0b5s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFF#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 11/0/ F to A#
0A440Lucy02Tuned 5b0s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFGbGAbABbB ModeCode = 11/0/ Gb to B
0A440Lucy03Tuned 4b1s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFF#GAbAB ModeCode = 11/0/ Db to F#
0A440Lucy04Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFF#GAbAB ModeCode = 11/0/ Ab to C#
0A440Lucy05Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFF#GG#ABbB ModeCode = 11/0/ Eb to G#
0A440Lucy06Tuned 1b4s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFF#GG#ABbB ModeCode = 11/0/ Bb to D#
0A440Lucy08Tuned 0b6s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EE#F#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 11/0/ C to E#
0A440Lucy09Tuned 0b7s RootKeyA = B#C#DD#EE#F#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 11/0/ G to B#
0A440Lucy10Tuned 0b8s RootKeyA = B#C#DD#EE#F#FxG#AA#B ModeCode = 11/0/ D to Fx
0A440Lucy11Tuned 0b9s RootKeyA = B#C#CxD#EE#F#FxG#AA#B ModeCode = 11/0/ A to Cx
0A440Lucy12Tuned 0b10s RootKeyA (resetAtoGx=-54.1) B#C#CxD#EE#F#FxG#GxA#B 11/0/ E to Gx
0A440Lucy13Tuned 0b11s RootKeyA (resetAtoGx=-54.1) plays B#C#CxD#DxE#F#FxG#GxA#B 11/0/ B to Dx
0A440Lucy15Tuned 6b0s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFGbGAbABbCb ModeCode = 11/0/ Cb to E
0A440Lucy16Tuned 7b0s RootKeyA = CDbDEbFbFGbGAbACb ModeCode = 11/0/ Fb to A
0A440Lucy17Tuned 8b0s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbDEbFbFGbGAbBbbBbCb 11/0/ Bbb to D
0A440Lucy18Tuned 9b0s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbEbbEbFbFGbGAbBbbCb 11/0/ Ebb to G
0A440Lucy19Tuned 10b0s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbEbbEbFbFGbAbbAbBbbBbCb 11/0/ Abb to C
0A440Lucy20Tuned 11b0s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays DbbDbEbbEbFbFGbAbbAbBbbCb 11/0/ Dbb to F
0A440Lucy22Tuned 4bGs RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFGbGG#ABbB ModeCode = 14/31314/ Gb to G# no AbF#C#
0A440Lucy23Tuned 4bDs RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFGbGAbABbB ModeCode = 15/4131415/ Gb to D# no EbF#C#G#
0A440Lucy24Tuned 4bCs RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFGbGAbABbB ModeCode = 13/213/ Gb to C# no DbF#
0A440Lucy25Tuned Ab4s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFF#GAbAA#B ModeCode = 13/212/ Ab to A# no BbG#
0A440Lucy26Tuned Gb4s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFGbGG#AA#B ModeCode = 16/234513/ Gb to A# no DbAbEbBbF#
0A440Lucy27Tuned Eb4s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFF#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 13/213/ Eb to A# no BbD#
0A440Lucy28Tuned 0b5s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFF#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 15/23413/ Db to A# no AbEbBbC#
0A440Lucy29TunedBbAbGbCsDs RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFGbGAbABbB ModeCode = 15/241315/ Gb to Ds no DbEbF#G#
0A440Lucy30TunedBbEbGbCsGs RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFGbGG#ABbB ModeCode = 14/2313/ Gb to G# no DbAbF#
0A440Lucy31Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFGbGAbAA#B ModeCode = 16/25131516/ Gb to A# no DbBbF#G#D#
0A440Lucy32Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFF#GAbABbB ModeCode = 14/31314/ Db to D# no EbC#G#
0A440Lucy33Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFGbGG#ABbB ModeCode = 15/341314/ Gb to D# no AbEbF#C#
0A440Lucy34Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFGbGAbAA#B ModeCode = 16/45131415/ Gb to A# no EbBbF#C#G#
0A440Lucy35Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFF#GG#ABbB ModeCode = 13/212/ Db to G# no AbC#
0A440Lucy36Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFF#GAbAA#B ModeCode = 15/4131415/ Db to A# no BbC#G#D#
0A440Lucy37Tuned 3b2s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFGbGG#AA#B ModeCode = 16/35131416/ Gb to A# no AbBbF#C#D#
0A440Lucy38Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFF#GG#AA#B ModeCode = 15/351315/ Db to A# no AbBbC#D#
0A440Lucy39Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFGbGG#AA#B ModeCode = 16/3451314/ Gb to A# no AbEbBbF#C#
0A440Lucy40Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFF#GAbAA#B ModeCode = 15/341314/ Db to A# no EbBbC#G#
0A440Lucy41Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CDbDD#EFF#GG#ABbB ModeCode = 14/2313/ Db to D# no AbEbC#
0A440Lucy42Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFGbGG#AA#B ModeCode = 16/2351316/ Gb to A# no DbAbBbF#D#
0A440Lucy43Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DEbEFF#GAbAA#B ModeCode = 14/31314/ Ab to A# no BbG#D#
0A440Lucy44Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFGbGAbAA#B ModeCode = 16/2451315/ Gb to A# no DbEbBbF#G#
0A440Lucy45Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFGbGG#ABbB ModeCode = 15/23413/ Gb to D# no DbAbEbF#
0A440Lucy46Tuned 2b3s RootKeyA = CC#DD#EFF#GAbABbB ModeCode = 13/213/ Ab to D# no EbG#
0A440Lucy47Tuned 4b2s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CC#DEbEFGbGG#BbbBbB 17/23561316/ Bbb to G# no FbCbDbAbAF#
0A440Lucy48Tuned 5b1s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CC#DEbEFGbGAbBbbBbB 16/2351316/ Bbb to C# no FbCbDbAF#
0A440Lucy49Tuned 6b0s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbDEbEFGbGAbBbbBbB 14/2313/ Bbb to B no FbCbA
0A440Lucy50Tuned 6b1s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbDEbEFF#GAbABbCb 13/213/ Cb to F# no GbB
0A440Lucy51Tuned 3b3s RootKeyA (resetAtoBbb=+54.1) plays CDbDEbEFF#FxG#BbbBbB 22/234611131719202122/ Bbb to Fx no FbCbGbAbGAC#D#A#E#B#
0A440Lucy52Tuned 4b1s RootKeyA = CDbDEbEFGbGAbAA#B ModeCode = 16/513141516/ Gb to A# no BbF#C#G#D#
Mode Code derived from Chain of fifths - Notes closer on the chain are more consonant;
hence the longer the chain the more dissonnant the extremes will sound
Number of steps in chain/missing note/
Bbb Fb Cb Gb Db Ab Eb Bb F C G D A E B F# C# G# D# A# E# B# Fx Cx Gx Dx Ax Ex
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
To learn about scalecoding see:
On 21 Dec 2005, at 21:59, Logic_Cafe@yahoogroups.com wrote:
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~-->Know an art & music fan? Make a donation in their honor this holiday season!--------------------------------------------------------------------~->There is 1 message in this issue.Topics in this digest:1. Re: Now that you're going to have some time to play and experiment;-)From: GAmoore@...________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Message: 1Date: Wed, 21 Dec 2005 03:36:09 ESTFrom: GAmoore@...Subject: Re: Now that you're going to have some time to play and experiment;-)In a message dated 12/19/05 8:55:28 PM, emagic@... writes:Since it's nearly year end, how about trying something musicallyadventuruous?Can you explain how the microtuning is used in "real life"?
Charles Lucy - lucy@...
------------ Promoting global harmony through LucyTuning -------
for information on LucyTuning go to: http://www.lucytune.com
for LucyTuned Lullabies go to http://www.lullabies.co.uk
Buy/download/CD from: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lucytuned2