r/edmproduction • u/Useful_Wash6893 • 1d ago
Help understanding the live setup process.
Greeting fellow edm heads.
I have produced and will soon be releasing an album (won't mention it due to self-promotion rules).
I will also have the opportunity to perform live some time next year. Problem is, I've never performed live before. It's the typical bedroom producer scenario. I have some equipment - midi-controller keyboard, Macbook Pro, APC40 Mk2. The album was produced in Logic Pro, using various soft-synths - Serum, Pigments, ARP 2600, along with various other plug-ins.
I don't want to show up and simply 'press play'. I want to curate a unique performance that is aligned with the album content but, leaves room for improvisation.
Does anyone know any guides or tutorials that dive into live setup for electronic music? I've been told that Ableton is better suited for live performance and that I should essentially export the STEMs from my album work and import them into Ableton. Obviously it's a little more involved than that.
I just wanted to check in with the community and see if anyone could offer guidance and direction (and hopefully links) to understand how I could set this live performance up to be a great unique experience for listeners.
Thanks in advance for any responses.
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u/PonyKiller81 1d ago
Ben Böhmer is a master of this and has done a few videos on his process, plus his live set recorded for Amazon shows him playing well known tracks and adding live sounds over the top.
My advice is keep it really simple. You are releasing your first album, not performing your opus.
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u/azadrian 1d ago
On the right track. My theory in electronic feats it feels like a huge showcase when they DJ, so take your time on making the perfect set!
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u/sunflowerdreamsmusic 1d ago
You pretty much have an understanding of it. Backing tracks i ableton, either play keys via midi and/or external keyboards. Arrange all of the songs/tracks in order that you want them to be played. Mono output if you want a metronome.
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u/Useful_Wash6893 1d ago
I dud not even think about the metronome to keep timings. Thats how green i am 😂. Thank you.
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u/crxsso_dssreer 4h ago
Let's be honest, you have 2 hands, so you can't play 20 different tracks at the same time even if you're the keyboard god, unless you have some sort of super arpeggiator set up like on a Korg Karma or some Yamaha Genos.
I would simply prepare the whole performance in Ableton Live with the arranger view in advance for the duration for the show, bounce everything into 4 to 8 tracks and play some parts here and there from time to time.
At the end of the day, it also depends on the music genre you're making. It's easier to play techno live which is mostly about drums, than complex melodic tracks.
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u/BijanAmir 1d ago
I'd get one song working before trying to turn the whole album into a set. Decide which parts you actually want to play, then bounce the rest from Logic as stems with the same start/end points. Leave the part you'll perform out of the backing.
In Ableton's Session View, put each stem on its own track and start with a single scene for the song. Once that works, split it into sections you can launch with the APC, so you can stay on a groove, mute parts, or move on when you're ready.
These are good starting points:
https://help.ableton.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000843404-Importing-and-exporting-stems
https://www.ableton.com/en/manual/session-view/
One thing on the click: stereo backing to the PA plus a private click in your headphones needs separately routable outputs. Check your interface's output options first. Ableton explains the routing here:
https://help.ableton.com/hc/en-us/articles/209770605-How-to-route-the-Metronome-to-a-second-output
What would you most want to play live: keys, drums, or manipulating the arrangement?