Welcome to the webpage for chapter 5 of my book “Performing Electronic Music Live”, which is about incorporating acoustic instruments and vocals in electronic live music. You can watch the accompanying tutorial video for this chapter here. In this video, the band Emb:Re generate live vocal harmonies via MIDI from the main vocal, using a TC Helicon voice processor. This performance is accompanied with a live synth performance and violin.
About the chapter:
The majority of Western popular music is created in DAWs and consists of vocals and electronic elements. Electronic pop, EDM, dance, hip hop, trap, grime and many other electronic genres are all produced around a lead vocal. A large number of electronic artists also involve traditional instruments and there are many fusion genres that combine acoustic and electronic elements.
This chapter showcases interesting artist examples where vocals, instruments and electronic elements are blended. Records do not need to be performed in the same way as they were created – sometimes, added instruments can create visual interest and make the performance feel more “live”. Other times, bulky and difficult-to-transport instruments that form part of a record are performed on samplers. The chapter also discusses microphones, DI boxes, effects and sound manipulation for vocals and popular instruments.