Fast Song Switching - A Video Walkthrough

[Corky]

I also do most of the vocals and find myself confused sometimes with so many songs. I have been trying to transition to a single keyboard, but really feel lost without the 2nd. My show notes, on song load, now show switches, pedal uses, and layering, along with song key ( my memory crutch) on first page for every song. I have been incorporating many of @Torsten ideas into my setup. It is rare for me to kick back and just be a keyboardist, or guitarist. Maybe an occasional instrumental would help…do they even make those anymore? I was requested a Booker T song recently, and I played it with a huge smile on my face !

[Neil_Durant]

@Torsten

For those “ornamentation” patches, you might actually experiment with my layering technique (and maybe one of @dave_dore 's utility racks) - sometimes it is easier to simply use a momentary footswitch to turn your “ornamentation sound” on and your normal right-hand zone off and leave your playing hand where it is.

That’s not a bad idea, especially using a momentary footswitch, so I don’t have to worry about physically fading something in/out. I just need to set up bindings to reroute from sound A to sound B and back again. I’m going to give it a go.

I think the reason I tend to have split zones for that, even just 5-6 keys somewhere at one end of the keyboard is historic, dating back to when I didn’t have the flexibility of Cantabile, and using a split was my only option.

On the other hand, the audience sometimes like to see something happening - there’s a certain charm with those keyboard players of old with 10 keyboards, diving between them, or stretching to play two distant keyboards. Crazy from a performance quality point of view, but fun to watch. So maybe if I reach up 2 octaves to play something, it might make someone in the audience think, “Oh…he is doing something after all!”

Neil

[Torsten]

@Neil_Durant

So maybe if I reach up 2 octaves to play something, it might make someone in the audience think, “Oh…he is doing something after all!”

Nah, they’re distracted by the lead singer’s (or guitarist’s) antics…

[Neil_Durant]

@Torsten

Nah, they’re distracted by the lead singer’s (or guitarist’s) antics…

Too true!

Neil

[dave_dore]

@Corky

I was requested a Booker T song recently, and I played it with a huge smile on my face !

Spoken like a man from Memphis!

[bartok2112]

What throws me off while playing is not so much zones and splits, but using my pedals. I am playing a set this weekend with a lot of state changes and I find myself getting mixed up with using a sustain pedal with the right foot and a foot switch to change states with my left (which is definitely not my dominant foot).

• Paul

[Torsten]

@bartok2112

I find myself getting mixed up with using a sustain pedal with the right foot and a foot switch to change states with my left (which is definitely not my dominant foot).

Similar problem here - even more so since I play standing up: I need at least one solid foot to stand on

My solution for state changes is the friendly “red button” in the middle of my keyboard. Easy to hit between notes with whatever hand has less to do… I only use a pedal to switch states when I play guitar.

Cheers,

Torsten

[Neil_Durant]

@bartok2112

What throws me off while playing is not so much zones and splits, but using my pedals. I am playing a set this weekend with a lot of state changes and I find myself getting mixed up with using a sustain pedal with the right foot and a foot switch to change states with my left (which is definitely not my dominant foot).

My solution to this is to have an obvious “piano style” sustain pedal right under the keyboard, like a piano, and a Boss “footswitch” style switch off to the side. The physical separation, and difference in pedal types means I never get mixed up. In fact I have another pedal and footswitch off to the other side for other stuff too. As long as they’re physically separated, I find it’s easy to avoid getting them muddled.

Neil

[terrybritton]

Since I play standing up also, and pressing two pedals simultaneously is a bit “unbalancing”, I’ve been working on adapting this age-old solution to my needs (or, er, “knees”…):

Terry