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How would one integrate synthesizers into their music?

Jean Rodriguez

Jean Rodriguez

Guest
Aug 19, 2015
236
186
30
San Juan, Puerto Rico
#1
I've been playing guitar and bass for 8 years and I've stuck to genres that use "real instruments" (you know, rock, jazz, blues, reggae, etc.). Lately though, I've started listening to bands like "Foster the People" and "Metric" and I've noticed that they integrate a lot of synthesizers and similar instruments into their song. I've always wondered how they do it and I would certainly like to learn (I'm not really one for learning from scratch. But, if you give me a youtube video or web article, I can take off from there). During my 8 years playing, I've never really used effects (Hell, I don't even use pedals except for distortion or reverb) and also, I've never played anything like a synthesizer, before (I can play piano and a bit of organ but that's about it). If you want an example of what I mean, here are two songs that sparked my interest in synthesizers and familiar instruments.




 
#2
Not really sure how to answer a question like that. I assume you're talking about in an originals group. If you hear a space in your music that wants a sound in it, get that sound and put it there. If it's not a sound that a guitar or drum or voice would make, create it with a synth. If you're going to do a lot of it, get a keys player whose attention would be focused on it.

Most modern keyboards have banks or preset sounds and you can just scroll through and select the one you want. You can still customize them with a good synth, though. I remember back in the 80s when they were still pretty new and my high school music department got one, it was ENTIRELY customizing with no presets at all and you had to learn what the Attack and Decay and all the other parameters actually did to set it to get a sound.
 
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#4
Yes it is a proper instrument.
Here is a band I'm in and we have two keyboard players. As for me playing one. I've got a couple in the music room that occasionally I track with if the song calls for one. Big Moog fanatic here.

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#6
The closest that I've ever gotten to creating something with a synth would be this recording that I made a few weeks ago (The first minute and 30 seconds are basically a loop that I played over and over and thought about leaving the idea there. After a few days, I came back to it and added something else)

 
#7
I like to throw in some vst synth plug ins from time to time. I find some nice synth pads can set a good atmosphere and fill space nicely. Pads are a good way to start infusing synths to organic music since they are more mellow. If you want a more bold lead synth I try and approach like any lead pattern find a melody and then find the right synth sound....Which I can easily spend hours doing.

Big synths like moogs or mono for example get trickier. I think of them like a bold spice like cumin or pepper too much or used wrong can ruin a dish but when it's used right it's great. Really just practice writing music and incorporate synths.
 
#8
One thing to keep in mind about synthesizers is that they can easily fill up the entire sonic spectrum, so you have to be careful to leave room for other instruments (assuming you are going to be adding guitars and whatnot). You might find a rip-roaring synth tone that sounds awesome and fat, but then find you can't get it to mix well with other instrumentation.
 
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#9
I agree with ImNotJoel, pads are a nice way to start out and test the waters, so to speak. You can use them to flesh out chords to complement the guitar, or even have them be the only chordal instrument while the guitar gets to do other things.

Then you can maybe add a synth hook or two, but be careful not to have synth and guitar step all over themselves, or maybe try some lines that guitar and synth play in union, or maybe do the same with bass and synth an octave apart from each other while the guitar plays higher notes. Having bass and synth in the same octave can be problematic, however. The key is to always leave space so the instruments don't sound like they're fighting each other.
 
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#10
Luke19Boarder said:
One thing to keep in mind about synthesizers is that they can easily fill up the entire sonic spectrum, so you have to be careful to leave room for other instruments (assuming you are going to be adding guitars and whatnot). You might find a rip-roaring synth tone that sounds awesome and fat, but then find you can't get it to mix well with other instrumentation.
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Yes, I would be adding guitar and other instruments. The synth would be used for maybe a lead line or something, not the entire song. I don't want my songs to be exclusively made with synths.
 
#11
synth ... is a word that means different things to different aged folks ... i think of the father of synth's , as in the analog Moog Synthesizer ( Bob Moog ) when i hear it . Which were 1 note at a time ( monophonic ) instruments with No Velocity or Aftertouch ... most newer synths are VA ( Virtual Analog ) which is a digital model of the old analog synths ... they will most often play more notes ( polyphonic ) an example i recently had would be the Roland GAIA ... check it out .

Synths are a subset of " keyboards " ... like Workstations ( i have a Korg Kronos 88 ) it does lots o stuff ... sampling , recording , midi sequencing , has 9 sythn engines in it ...

at this point and time ... i find 1 note synths fairly useless ... no matter how analog and nostalgic ... i am firstly a piano player , so i like lots of notes to be able to be played .. ! ( high polyphony rates ) and i want large samples/recordings of Real instruments at my disposal ... where the Moog had a few analog wave forms ( square , saw , sine ) that could be ran thru various analog filters ... giving it very cool . but limited sound variety ...

Synths can sing like a guitar or sax ... they ad interesting layers and textures ... but require some learning for sure ... !! each manufacture kinda has their own programming , but the basics are the same .!
 
#13
socialleper said:
With a sledgehammer and then integrate the pieces into my trash bin.
I don't truck with no keyboards or drum machines.
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That's how I used to think up until a year ago. After a while, I started to crave new sounds and got curious about synths and here I am, now. I didn't like drum machines until I started using the built in drummer that Logic Pro has. Boy, does that help with the creative process
 
#14
DavC said:
synth ... is a word that means different things to different aged folks ... i think of the father of synth's , as in the analog Moog Synthesizer ( Bob Moog ) when i hear it . Which were 1 note at a time ( monophonic ) instruments with No Velocity or Aftertouch ... most newer synths are VA ( Virtual Analog ) which is a digital model of the old analog synths ... they will most often play more notes ( polyphonic ) an example i recently had would be the Roland GAIA ... check it out .

Synths are a subset of " keyboards " ... like Workstations ( i have a Korg Kronos 88 ) it does lots o stuff ... sampling , recording , midi sequencing , has 9 sythn engines in it ...

at this point and time ... i find 1 note synths fairly useless ... no matter how analog and nostalgic ... i am firstly a piano player , so i like lots of notes to be able to be played .. ! ( high polyphony rates ) and i want large samples/recordings of Real instruments at my disposal ... where the Moog had a few analog wave forms ( square , saw , sine ) that could be ran thru various analog filters ... giving it very cool . but limited sound variety ...

Synths can sing like a guitar or sax ... they ad interesting layers and textures ... but require some learning for sure ... !! each manufacture kinda has their own programming , but the basics are the same .!
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Where could I learn to use a synth? I can't seem to find any videos or books on the subject and it's not exactly something that your average music teacher covers in their curriculum
 
#16
Young bands are all going nuts for vintage synths from four decades ago, gotta be analog ya know...so now mfrs are churning them out again, esp. in the under $500 range. That's almost cheap enough to make them impulse buys.

Playing the synth is not the issue, it's creating the sounds. Although a lot more players just use presets than you might think.

I hear a lot of simple 70s-cliche monosynth (one note at a time) sounds on those vids, along with some pads that might be played on a polysynth (can play multiple notes).

Head over to Vintage Synth Explorer or Invalid Link Removedfor more info than you can handle on starter synths.

For a tutorial: Sound On Sound's Synth Secrets
 
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#17
Jean Rodriguez said:
That's how I used to think up until a year ago. After a while, I started to crave new sounds and got curious about synths and here I am, now. I didn't like drum machines until I started using the built in drummer that Logic Pro has. Boy, does that help with the creative process
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I'll use pre-recorded drums for writing, but never for production.
 
#18
socialleper said:
I'll use pre-recorded drums for writing, but never for production.
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If it takes talent to operate it and it makes noise it's a real instrument.

If you just push play on a drum machine and let it roll, then I'd agree with your philosophy.
But drum machines are becoming more advanced and theres a new breed of drum machinist emerging.
A person who might program a basic beat live in the first few seconds of a song, but then goes on to manipulate the rhythm with sound filters and stutters and effects and alters the beat live without anything being pre programmed.

It's kind of like when DJs stopped simply letting records play and then started scratching and switching and combining tracks from different songs.

I don't know about you, but that is something I can respect and would be down to jamming with.
 
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#19
Hands on is everything in music. Fortunately, the entry ticket to start working with modern synthesis technology isn't that high anymore if you have access to a halfway decent computer or laptop..

I'd suggest you get yourself an inexpensive USB midi keyboard and play around with the supplied synth software that usually accompanies them. Alesis and other manufacturers all market some very affordable keyboard softsynths to get you started. You can pick up something like an Alesis V61 or an iRig KEYS Pro for less than $200 to get started exploring synth sounds. Once you get familiar with what's included in the package, trot over to Synthtopia to check out some additional Invalid Link Removed and read the reviews and check out the demos of commercial synths as well. After that, you can go acquire whatever you think you need.

If you have an iPad you're home free. There are dozens of synths you can install through the AppleStore. Most cost between $5 and $20 for pro quality packages. You can also do it all on an iPad and (optionally) some inexpensive external hardware from companies like iRig. Here's one example of the sort of thing available for $20 on the iPad:



As you can see, it's not the tech so much as it's the player.

Just like bass! :thumbsup:
 
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#20
As with any instrument, there's no real right or wrong way to implement it. You can incorporate the synth however you feel is appropriate for your music, whether, as some have said, as nice atmospheric pads, or as individual melody lines or hooks, or anything in between. Totally up to your vision of the music and your imagination. Myself personally, when I'm trying to write with my synth (I have a Roland sh-201), I'll put my bassline down into my looper and just let it go while playing with the synth overtop of that, until I get some voicings/pads that I like and then ill write those down or record them. Doing this really helps me feel out a part and explore all of my different options, sound and composition wise.

Also, listening to music that incorporates the instrument in ways that you enjoy or would want to emulate is a good idea. Music, unlike most other academia, can, mercifully, be learned via osmosis, so surround yourself with music that uses synths to your liking and it'll bleed into your writing. Personally, I love the keys work of old prog bands like Hatfield and the North, Gong, Yes, and so on, which have helped inform my tastes regarding synthesizers, and compositions involving them.
 

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