In the video above, you can here my arrangement of Dirtmouth, from Hollow Knight, in Pico-8 . Composed by Christopher Larkin. Listen to the original here.
Thanks to Retrisma for the suggestion!
Attached are:
Because of the simple composition and instrumentation, this was fairly easy to arrange in Pico-8. One of the...
2020-08-05 14:01:02 +0000 UTC View Post
A Pico-8 cover of Tee Time by Vulfpeck, from the album Mr Finish Line. Thanks to David Meslin for the request!
Check out the original here.
Attached are:
As usual, the sheet music is mostly accurate, but there are always mistakes and typos. Let me know if you find any!
Unique to this arrangement is my "side-c...
2020-07-20 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
This tutorial was inspired by this tweet.
How can you get more variety in drum sounds? The answer is to use the instrument editor!
In this tutorial, I show a basic workflow for creating your own “drum kits.” In Pico-8, you can easily loop a music pattern and edit the sounds simultaneously. This creates the tightest possible feedback loop, so you can seamlessly cre...
2020-07-13 14:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
If you follow Pico-8 development, you may have seen BoneVolt's Sonic remake.
We're currently working on squishing as much music as possible into this game, which led me to listen to some music from Sonic 2.
Hoping I could use them in the game, I transcribed the music from Emerald Hill Zone and Chemical Plant Zone (sheet music, Mp3's, and Pico-8 carts are attached!). In the video above, you can...
2020-07-06 14:00:02 +0000 UTC View PostHey everyone!
TL;DR: Are there any songs you’re interested in hearing in Pico-8 or MilkyTracker? I'm open to suggestions!
I’m postponing Music Masterclasses until there’s more demand. In the meantime, I’m still here to help, answer questions, give feedback - whatever you need to support your practice. Send me a message, leave comments, be in touch!
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First of all, hi! Hope yo...
2020-06-25 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
This is a quirky, polytonal(ish) arrangement of another Charlie Parker tune called Visa. In the video above you can hear a piano version, and then a version in Pico-8.
Attached:
A few interesting notes:
This was inspired by the idea of practicing "spatial independence" between t...
2020-06-08 14:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
In this tutorial, I take you through my entire process of listening, transcribing and porting tunes into Pico-8. In this case, music from a C64 game called Cybernoid 2. Skip to 2:15:40 to hear the final version. (Also attached is the sheet music and Pico-8 cart)
This was recorded during a music masterclass, so I’ve roughly edited out stream chatter. It...
2020-06-01 14:01:02 +0000 UTC View Post
In the video above you can hear my piano arrangement of Donna Lee by Charlie Parker & Miles Davis, followed by a Pico-8 version.
As you know, I've been practicing and writing about improvising counterpoint at the piano. After creating and practicing exercises for so long, I find writing formal arrangements is the next step to internalizing these relationships. The goal isn't necessarily to play it like this every time, but to use them as starting places for improv...
2020-05-11 16:04:49 +0000 UTC View Post
A Pico-8 cover of the title music from Animal Crossing, New Horizons. Composed by Kazumi Totaka.
Attached is:
I have some more sheet music and Pico-8 arrangements I'd like to make, but I'm also open to requests. Let me know!
2020-05-05 13:54:44 +0000 UTC View Post
In the video above you can hear my piano arrangement of Quasimodo by Charlie Parker, followed by the Pico-8 version. This is the result of working on counterpoint, hand independence, and some polyrhythmic accompaniments (dotted quarter notes in 4/4).
Attached, you'll find:
Let me know if you have any questions!
2020-04-27 15:16:06 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey everyone!
I found another fun cart on the Pico-8 forums called A Hat on Time
This is kind of a continuation of the previous tutorial, where I discuss composition as an exploratory process – playing and listening to individual parts, then playing and listening to them in relation to other parts.
These ideas have been on my mind for a while now, and I’ve been thinking about designin...
2020-04-06 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey everyone, I hope you’re doing well in these crazy times.
I’ve set new masterclass dates. If you’re working on any projects, music or otherwise, come and share!
Be well, stay safe!
Chris / Gruber
2020-03-30 14:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey everyone!
This tutorial/feedback video features a hilarious cart on the forms called “Can’t Win With Cats.” It also reflects some fresh ideas I’ve been having about composition (which may eventually form a new tutorial series).
I still need to iron out the language, but I believe every action while composing, in Pico-8 or otherwise, is a process involving these five areas: 2020-03-16 14:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
People ask me all the time – “What are you up to?”
I usually respond, “nothing much” or “same old stuff," to save them from a long conversation :)
Really, it’s been a crazy 2020 so far. Above is a video with some music and WIPs from a bunch of projects I’m involved in. Everything from Pico-8 composition, jazz piano, sound design and Wwise implementation.
I’ll be taking this week off, back on March 9th. I hope to ...
2020-03-03 15:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
April 10/20 Update – All transcriptions are complete and attached!
March 22/20 Update – Post now includes three solo piano transcriptions!
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Six tunes by Fred Hersch. Here's the album on Spotify
Attached are all the lead sheets and solo piano transcriptions:
I’m really enjoying this tutorial format!
Found a cute cart on the forums called Lunar Mission and spent 25 mins playing around with it. Time stamps below.
Are you working on any music/sound? Message me!
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Hey everyone!
For this tutorial, I picked a random cart from the Pico-8 forums. I spent about 20 minutes making a low, ominous, bass drone. Includes lots of ideas on using the instrument editor and different paths to explore when composing your own!
Apologies for the video quality, I forget to reset it from a previous recording.
In retrospect, one thing I wish I demonstrated better is using loop points to simplify workflow. Most of the SFX are really just a...
2020-02-17 15:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
This (hopefully) answers one of the most common questions about writing music in Pico-8. "How do you write triplets?"
Because Pico-8 SFX are 32 rows, it can be difficult to write music that uses triplets, or anything subdivided in 3. This tutorial is meant to help you:
I have two other tutorials on this subject that might help clarify these things:
Thanks to Pixenop for sharing this cart last masterclass! I got a bit carried away and ended up spending about an hour on it. But I covered a lot of topics.
Because this was done on stream, I edited out most of the chatting to focus on the music and tutorial content. Time stamps are below (which are best used on YouTube). Hope you enjoy!
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This is the LAST tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. In this tutorial, I take all the sounds I’ve created and put them together to form some drum beat.
The full video is about 23 mins long. Below are the time stamps, observations, resources, workflow ideas.
This is the FIFTH tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. Part 5/6 is dedicated to using the sample editor in ways I haven’t explored in previous tutorials – creating weird effects, sounds, and bits that MIGHT make it into our drum beat, but maybe not!
The full video is about 25 mins long. Below are the time stamps, observations, resources, workflow ideas.
Hey everyone, happy new year, hope you had a great holiday!
First of all, THANK YOU, as always, for being a part of this community. Whether you’re here for music tutorials, Pico-8 music, jazz piano articles, or good ‘ol community support, I appreciate it. Of course, I’m always happy to hear from you. Feel free to reach out anytime. What are you interested in? What are you working on?
A new year means updated goals and directions. Ther...
2020-01-06 15:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
This is the FOUTH tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. Part 4/6 is dedicated to tom sounds. The full video is about 20mins long. Below are the time stamps, observations, resources, workflow ideas.
This is the THIRD tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. Part 3/6 is dedicated to cymbal sounds (hi-hats, crashes, rides etc). The full video is about 15mins long. Below are the time stamps, observations, resources, workflow ideas.
This is the SECOND tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. Part 2/6 is dedicated to the kick drum. The full video is about 22mins long. Below are the time stamps, observations, resources, workflow ideas.
This is the first tutorial of six on creating a drum beat in MilkyTracker. I mean LITERALLY make a drum beat from scratch… every sound.
The purpose of these tutorials is to help MilkyTracker users get more familiar with the sample editor. The sample editor can be a scary, intimidating place, even for intermediate users. After these tutorials, you’ll have a better idea of how you can use the sample editor to create sounds, manipulate sounds, be creative, and ...
2019-11-25 15:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello! I hope everyone is well and having a wonderful November. Here are a few updates and plans for the rest of 2019. Above is a video of some WIPs for your reference.
Last month, I produced two MilkyTracker tutorials on panning and stereo effects (here and here). &...
2019-11-12 15:01:00 +0000 UTC View PostJuly 30/20 –
2019-11-05 15:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
This is Part 2/2 on Panning & Stereo effects in MilkyTracker! By the END of this tutorial, you should know how to:
MilkyTracker tutorial on panning controls and effects! There’s lots of expression here for creating space, depth, echoes, delays etc.
By the END of this tutorial, you should know how to: