Here are the two finished Shepard tones, now laid out into 32 bars. Top tip: experiment with different types of oscillators and effects to create unique Shepard tones. We end the chain with a Waves CLA-76 compressor to help blend in with the other Shepard tone. We used the same effect chain as before, again using MDMX Overdrive and Valhalla Vintage Verb, although we again reduced the moisture / dryness to allow more of the Operator's character to emerge. Remember to set the Pitch Bend range to +12 semitones each. We love the movement in Broken Mono Synth. Duplicate the entire group, but this time replace each Operator instance with one set for a different preset. You could stop there, but let's try to double Shepard's tone. This will make simple sine waves coarse and give Shepard's tone character. You can also add distortion to the channel before reverb (or after if you're adventurous). We are using Valhalla Vintage Verb but everything will work.
Group four note tracks into one bus and place the reverb plug-in on a channel with a set mix amount at full moisture. This is because the phases of the sine waves do not match between the start and end of a note. It sounds like Shepard's tone now, but there is probably an annoying click at the loop point. Do the opposite for track A1 so that it ramps up smoothly from -infinity to 0.00 dB.įinally, turn on the loop and listen to it. On track A4, do the automation so that the gain is reduced over eight bands from 0.00 dB to -inf. Select Utility from the first drop-down menu and Gain from the second. Press the Gain knob, then activate automation by clicking the automation logo in the upper right corner of the DAW.
While you can automate the volume, we prefer to work with the Utility plugin as it leaves the volume fader free in case you need to make changes later.Īdd a copy of the Live's Stock Utility plugin to the A4 and A1 annotated channels. This way, the highest and lowest points of the sound will be hidden, and the middle notes will always be heard. Next, we're going to add volume automation to the first and fourth (or highest and lowest) notes. In the end, you should have the following notes playing: A4, A3, A2 and A1. Duplicate the track three times, and lower the note by one octave each time. We’ve gone with four, as it gives it a fuller sound. Now when you play a note, you should hear it rise an octave every eight measures.įor the Shepard tone to work, we need at least three notes. Increase the pitch under the Pitch Bend to +12 s. Click in the lower right corner of the panel to open the global controls. To make this correspond to 12 semitones (or octaves), we need to change the pitch range in Operator. Note that this is MIDI information, not semitones. Draw the automation so that the pitch increases from zero to 8191. Double-click the MIDI area, click the automation tab inside the MIDI track, and then select MIDI Ctrl and Pitch Bend from the drop-down menus. Then we want to automate the pitch so that it rises a full octave every eight measures. We chose A because it is the root note in A minor, the most common key in dance music, but any note will actually work. Create an eight-bar MIDI region and draw an A4 note that plays through all eight measures. Shepard's tones are traditionally done with sinuses. Start with an instrument that can play a pure sine tone. As usual, click on the image for a larger view.Ĭreate a new project in your DAW. We use Ableton Live, but the theories used apply to any DAW.
In this tutorial, we'll show you how to program Shepard's tone on a techno track to get the most out of it. It's a favorite film of composers and sound engineers (check out Hans Zimmer's soundtrack for Dunkirk to hear it in action), but it also works on the dance floor. This is a sonic illusion achieved by overlaying several rising tones with some clever volume decays to hide the stitches. In fact, the pitch does not rise indefinitely. But what if this release doesn't happen? What if the field height continued to grow forever? They are often made by slowly raising the pitch, reaching a crescendo at the moment of release. They are usually used to transition from one part of a song to another, or to help the breakdown reach a peak of excitement before falling. Risers are a tried and tested way to increase track tension. Harness the power of Shepard's tone to create a stance that never peaks.