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SKEEZER | Remix Contest

5/19/2016

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One of the early producers to really break out of his shell internationally from Canada at the turn of the century is Alan Lam, better known as Stranjah, and more recently Skeezer. With over 15 years of experience behind the boards, the savvy veteran is still currently churning out some of his finest material to date. His early production endeavours were clearly influenced by house, low-end hip hop production and various other forms of earlier bass music. Splashing onto the scene initially with then-partner-in-crime Gremlinz, his music found its way into the hands of legends like Goldie, L Double and Doc Scott, all of whom were keen on playing his music out in their sets and ultimately signed him to their respective imprints Metalheadz, Flex and 31 Records. 
​A favourite here at Off Centre Alan inspires students in Ableton Foundation and our Full Producer Program.


"Don't Cha" wanna give this remix contest a try? ;) Follow this LINK for a chance to win some fantastic prizes including a $250 OCDJ gift card. DEADLINE IS MAY 28th
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Producer Tips: Scale Effect in Ableton

5/17/2016

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​Ableton’s Scale is a powerful MIDI effect that allows you to constrain every note on your keyboard to a specified scale. For example, if you wanted all of your keys to play only notes within an A minor scale, Ableton’s Scale can do this.

In this tutorial we’ll take a look at how Scale works and map out some of our own scales.

More info about Ableton and Electronic music production courses at Off Centre: http://www.offcentredj.com/certificate-programs.html
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Producer Tips - Global Quantization in Ableton

2/18/2016

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​This video is a brief explanation and demonstration of exactly what Global Quantization is and what it can do to in Ableton.

More Ableton course info: http://www.offcentredj.com/ableton-li...

Global Quantization is a powerful Ableton feature that can be used in session view. It's one of the elements that really sets Ableton apart from other DAWs and can change your workflow and  overall engagement in your music making experience. It can be used on stage for live shows and can also bring that performance feel in to your beat making process in the studio.
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Producer Tips - Intro to Sound Design with Operator in Ableton

1/27/2016

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[Introduction]
Ableton's Operator is a little intimidating at first, but it's often overlooked for more commercial plugins. It's a versatile instrument and with a little time you can be on your way to making your own patches and basslines. Operator is an FM (Frequency Modulation) Synthesizer with subtractive and additive synthesis. 

The Operator has 8 individual sections called ‘Shells’ and 1 display section at the centre. Depending on the shell you have selected, the centre display will show you a more detailed set of parameters from which you can modify your sound.  

For info on Off Centre's Producer Programs: http://www.offcentredj.com/producer-programs.html

Oscillators : The noise makers inside the Operator. There are 4 oscillators (ABCD) which have their own parameters that can be tweaked in the centre display.

Waveform : Essentially waveforms are a representation of sound and can be complex or simple. In Ableton we can choose from a 22 types of waveforms, design our own or choose from the fundamental waveforms, sine, saw, square and triangle. We’ll choose a sine wave as it has a prominent presence in the lower frequencies.  

Algorithm : In a nutshell Operator’s Algorithms are different routing options for the oscillators (ABCD). You can see that depending on which one you choose, algorithms can drastically alter your sound.  

[How to make the Bassline]
1. Generally, the sine wave registers the best in the lower frequencies so, to create our bass sound, we’ll go to our oscillator 'A' and leave the waveform to run a sine wave. 

2. We’ll then change the Algorithm to the last configuration so that our oscillators will run independently. 

3. Add another oscillator with the same sine wave to boost the fullness of the sound. You could also add a third oscillator and run another waveform on top of the sine waves to add some tones to the sine wave. 

[Additional Tweaks]
Filter : The filter sections controls the Operator’s built-in filters. You can choose from a range of Filter-types (LP,HP,BP,Notch) and then adjust the cutoff with the Frequency knob which sweeps the band with whatever Filter-type you chose. The display will also allow you to change the envelope of the filter and also add curves to your waves with the Shaper Types. Choose from Soft, Hard, Sine or 4Bit to had that little bit of grit or guts to your sound.  

LFO : By default, The Low Frequency Oscillator (LFO) shell will modulate the pitch of your oscillators ABCD, but can also modulate the filter cutoff depending on which ones you have turned on in the LFO centre display. 

Release: In the Oscillator display you can adjust the Release to extend the tail end of the signal. Doing so will lengthen or shorten the amount of time for the signal to decrease after the key has been released.
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Making Beats in Ableton - Sampling Techniques Part 2

4/7/2015

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Off Centre DJ School's Instructor Circles & Squares breaks down the intricacies of Sampling in Ableton Live with Part 2 of this multi part series.  This video takes you deeper into methods of extracting samples (in this case melodies) and making quick use of them in your midi note editor to build upon your existing rhythmic foundation.  

Take virtually any audio file and manipulate the selected source to create something new.

Learn more about music production with Ableton:

http://www.offcentredj.com/full-producer-program.html
http://www.offcentredj.com/ableton-live.html
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OCDJ - TV Episode 4: The Pushy Salesman

4/2/2015

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In Episode 4 of the OCDJ - TV series, Slowpitch along side Circles & Squares have some fun (as usual) breaking down some strategies for how to deal with one of the most important issues for new and/or seasoned DJs & Producers: The Equipment Purchase. It's easy to get pushed in the wrong direction, especially if you're not exactly sure what the best piece of gear may be. Tune in for some interesting and helpful commentary on how to protect your wallet!

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Making Beats in Ableton: Sampling Techniques Part 1

2/12/2015

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Off Centre DJ School's Instructor Circles & Squares breaks down the intricacies of Sampling in Ableton Live with Part 1 of this multi part series.  This video focusses specifically on the technique of "slicing" which is a streamlined method of extracting samples (in this case drums) and making quick use of them in your midi note editor. Take virtually any audio file and manipulate the selected source to create something new.

Ableton Live is used to create, record, produce, and even perform music. Learn about linear and improvisational approaches to producing electronic music as we take you through the software’s unique interface. Browse through our latest course offerings HERE


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  • Home
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    • Certificate Programs
    • DJ Programs >
      • Full DJ Program
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