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The guys at Sampleson are back at it.
Have you ever had a really good chord progression, but can’t seem to write a melody for it? I know I have. While writing melodies and chords are among my favorite parts of the creation process, I do know that it’s hard to come up with creative, harmonically-pleasing, and sensical melodies sometimes.
This is why Sampleson has just launched Predictor. By taking information from existing MIDI files (whether they were shipped with the plugin or provided by a user), it comes up with melodies at the click of a button. You can create melodies in three different ways; by using a MIDI keyboard, your computer’s keyboard, or the click of your mouse.
There’s one thing that the team says about this plugin that I like a lot: it admits that it isn’t perfect, right from the start. “Some [melodies] will work, some won’t — and that’s part of the process,” they say. “The point isn’t perfection, it’s exploration.”
Right from the start, this plugin doesn’t promote itself as an end-all-be-all melody creator, but as a way to jumpstart your creativity and get moving. Some of my favorite music-making memories are of me just sitting on my keyboard, exploring, and discovering what would eventually turn out to be the chord progression to one of my tracks. So, if this plugin can help me feel explorative in a way that’s even remotely close to that, then I think this might be something special.
Let’s see what Predictor can do!
Many Ways to Play
Essentially, this is a full-blown VST that just plays random notes based on a key and chord progression that you give it. You can play in 3 different ways – click mode is active in this screenshot, and you play that by just clicking where it says “click for triads” or “melody.” It’ll spit a new note or triad out every time you click. QWERTY play uses your computer keyboard; every time you hit a key or several keys, it’ll spit something back out at you. It’s useful for people who don’t have MIDI keyboards.
I do have a MIDI keyboard, so I mostly used MIDI mode here. With that, you can just play your keyboard as normal and it’ll spit notes in the given key back to you.
The rest of this plugin’s controls are stupidly easy to figure out. Transpose changes the pitch of the notes you’re playing, and veloc handles the velocity. The three instruments – a piano, a synth, and a string – are there for you to play around with all of them. The mix knob handles how much of those instruments you’d like to hear in the final sound if you’ve got all of them active. There’s also reverb built in with the “hall” knob, and a BPM and metronome selector at the bottom.
The bottom left is wildly important: if you want to save the MIDI file you create, you need to hit record. It’ll store it there. If you record the instrument into your DAW and expect to hear the same melody when you play it back, it’ll change it every time a note is sensed, so that won’t work. You need to record notes into Predictor, then drag your new melody into a new track.
Lastly, to teach Predictor a MIDI, you just have to drag in a file or select one of the dozens of progressions that Predictor ships with. There are a bunch, all in different keys and hitting different notes, and they’ll all help you create different melodies. There are also three different predictive engines included in the plug-in that’ll process your melodies slightly differently.
Time to Play!
It’s a really simple plugin, with all the hard work happening behind the scenes. So, I just slapped on a MIDI keyboard, turned up the piano and string instruments, and just started having fun on my keyboard. And, for what it’s worth, I had a LOT of fun with this. Everything I played, obviously, was in the key that I provided the machine with; even if I hit wildly different keys (or even just started smashing random ones), it’d all stay within the same range. I also think the actual instruments they sent in the plugin are outstanding – so much so that I want that string in its own VST so I can use it in my tracks!
Here’s a little snapshot of my improv session. These were just random notes that I hit, turned into a semi-cohesive melody and chord progression. There are parts here that I love and wish I had saved – I was recording in my DAW and not in the plugin, so unfortunately, the exact MIDI is lost forever. But, definitely check this out!
I could definitely see myself using this in my projects. I’d just load up an instance, drop in the chords I’m using, and play around until I find something I like. The journey is absolutely the fun part of Predictor, and it’s satisfying when you find something you like.
Pros and Cons
Pros
It’s smart, fast, and does its job well.
The algorithm being used by the Sampleson team in this plugin is excellent. It’s quick, it’s easy to use, and, most of all, it’ll definitely spit some good ideas out of you. Plus, it’s a lot of fun to just play around with; even if it takes a while for it to get you a good melody, you’ll definitely enjoy the process.
It’s totally usable for any producer in any situation.
You don’t even need a working keyboard to use it thanks to the click function. Whether you’re on the road or in a studio, you’ll be able to generate melodies easily. This isn’t a tool you need extra gear for: if you have the bare minimum (and 50$, which I honestly think is a fair price for this), you can get a lot out of Predictor.
Cons:
I’d like to see some kind of “memory recall” feature.
Similar to the feature that Logic Pro just rolled out, it would be cool if you could recall a certain amount of previously played notes even if you weren’t recording. Inspiration may strike at any time – even if the record button isn’t enabled.
It’d be nice to use this on any instrument I own.
You know what would be really cool? A MIDI FX version of this. That way, I could play my own instruments while Predictor’s algorithm does its job. I love the piano, string, and synth, but it would be really cool to give people the option to use Predictor while simultaneously playing an instrument they’re actually using in their track.
Conclusion: Should you get it?
This one really depends on whether or not you struggle to create melodies. If you’re stuck in creative burnout or writer’s block, this may be the perfect tool for you. But, if melody-making comes to you easily, then this might not be worth a purchase.
Personally, melody-making has always come easy to me, and I had a ton of fun playing with Predictor, so I’d at the very least give it a try. It’s definitely a joy to explore. And, after all, who knows what you’ll end up writing with it?
Buy Predictor here.
Ben Lepper is a music producer and journalist from Boston, Massachusetts.
