Create your own song style

[rdvreugd]

Hi all,

I am the proud owner of a PSR-SX700 and love it. However I searched the internet for creating your own song related styles. I am not looking for a download for a specific song but for a generic way to produce your own style based on a specific song. There is a lot of info about styles and even a great bunch of (windows) software to help you creating or modifying a style but I could not find a tutorial or good example that shows me how to start and what to do to create a good song based style for a specific song.

So lets say I start with finding a song on spotify that I like and I want to replicate that creating or modifying a style with an intro, verse, bridge and outro how should I do that??

Ruud

[DrakeM]

I make song specific custom styles all the time and then post the song here at the forum of me using the style. Check out the performance section of this forum for the examples I have recently posted.

Each time I posted a song, I also explain the artist and version of the song I created the style to match. So, you can go hear the song at YouTube and then hear my version of the song. I have a much lower voice than many of the pop singers, so I do lower the KEY in order for me to sing the song.

You also can check out in my SIGNATURE below of this posting for a link to my "MP3 Library" which contains hundreds of songs that I have recorded, all of them are performed with Custom Made styles.

You can also check out my YOUTUBE channel and there I have posted TWO beginner videos for you to learn how to move parts of the styles around in order to start making your own custom song styles.

To answer your question:
First download the song from YOUTUBE in MP3 format so you will be able to play it on your keyboard's MP3/Wav player.

Next you have to figure out the key the MP3 is recorded in and its tempo. I have an old program that I use which works about 90 percent of the time to figure that part out called "Digital Music Mentor".

You need this information in order to play the style along with the MP3 to HEAR how closely the two match up. For example you will turn down the MP3 and have the just the DRUMMER part playing, just a bit louder than the MP3.

Set your keyboard to that TEMPO and find the Drum pattern to match the first of THREE sections of the song. Every pop and country song has 3 different drummer parts. One pattern the drummer does when the singer is singing the VERSE, the second when the singer sings the CHORUS and the third is used during the INSTRUMENTAL section of the song. You have 4 MAINS (which gives you 1 extra MAIN in most cases) on every style, so you won't need to use a registration for setting up a custom song style.

The second part to find is the BASS pattern part for each of the 3 sections.

In about 8 hours on average (or less) over a 3 day period, you will have a perfect song style.

Regards
Drake

[DrakeM]

Here is an example for you to hear.

This is the artist version I copied to make the custom song style.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-LVXR6rjXs

Here is my cover of the song using the custom style.

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/740382217831


Here's a second one that I recently posted.

Here is the artist version I copied of the song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtOFKrCggLw

Here is what I came up with to match the above artist's recording.

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/775690800437

Regards
Drake

[Colin D]

Here is an example for you to hear.

This is the artist version I copied to make the custom song style.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-LVXR6rjXs

Here is my cover of the song using the custom style.

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/740382217831


Here's a second one that I recently posted.

Here is the artist version I copied of the song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtOFKrCggLw

Here is what I came up with to match the above artist's recording.

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/775690800437

Regards
Drake

Brilliant Drake,  I wish I could sing too

[rdvreugd]

Drake,

Thanks for your thorough reply. I'll check out your channel and YouTube links.
I am really excited to start creating my own styles. Creating from scratch is beyond my capabilities for now

[rdvreugd]

.....

Set your keyboard to that TEMPO and find the Drum pattern to match the first of THREE sections of the song. Every pop and country song has 3 different drummer parts. One pattern the drummer does when the singer is singing the VERSE, the second when the singer sings the CHORUS and the third is used during the INSTRUMENTAL section of the song. You have 4 MAINS (which gives you 1 extra MAIN in most cases) on every style, so you won't need to use a registration for setting up a custom song style.

The second part to find is the BASS pattern part for each of the 3 sections.

In about 8 hours on average (or less) over a 3 day period, you will have a perfect song style.

Regards
Drake

Drake I listened to your examples and saw the video's on YouTube. Very informative and your playing and singing is super 👍

I can imagine you do have several thousand of styles gathered over time. How do you find the right style for the right part of the song? Are you scanning all your styles or do you use some tools for that purpose. To me it looks like a hell of a job to do not only checking a style but all the variations as well 🙄

Ruud

[DrakeM]

For the type of music I like and perform Country and Pop songs, I have the Styles on my keyboard plus another 329 styles from the older keyboards. I also look at some of the new Genos styles for parts on occasion.

The 329 old styles are from these categories: 
Ballad – 52 styles
Country – 42 styles
Latin – 64 styles
Pop/Rock – 75 styles
R&B- 39 styles
Jazz & Swing – 57 styles

On my S950 keyboard in these same categories are a total of 225 styles.

So to answer you question: That would be 654 styles that I use to create my custom styles. The majority of the time I find what I need in the Ballad, Country and Pop/Rock styles.

I find the part I need by playing the MP3 on my keyboard and let the style play along with the song. But as I noted above, only ONE channel track on the style is played. When looking for the Drummer part, all the other parts of the style are turned off. I can then hear only the drums. I then do the same thing for finding the Bass part.

This is the way I scan through all the styles. Once you have the Tempo set and all the parts turned off, don't let the style STOP playing. You can then hear the next style you want to try out with out needing to set the Temp or turning off the part again.

Finding the correct Drum and Bass parts is the most important thing. The rest of the style is pretty easy to fill out.

There are 8 channels to a style and if you spend one hour to find each part, there is your 8 hours of work. When you find the correct RHY2 drum pattern, you generally use the RHY1 pattern also. 90 percent of the time I never use the PAD channel. So, that means I am looking for 6 hours for parts to fill out the style.

The most important tip I can tell you is:
What ever part/ pattern you are looking for is already on your Keyboard some where in one of the styles, or at least "close enough for country" (as I always say).

Regards
Drake

[HarmonyCore41]

You have to learn using the Style creator functionality on the SX700. You can create a style from scratch or search the factory styles for the closest style that your song sounds close to it and start from there by modifying the intro, variations, outro,..etc. It will take some time to get used to the Style creator. There are also PC software apps for creating PSR styles using your mouse and screen which I find it more workflow friendly.

[rdvreugd]

...
The most important tip I can tell you is:
What ever part/ pattern you are looking for is already on your Keyboard some where in one of the styles, or at least "close enough for country" (as I always say).

Regards
Drake

I think I start with some simple song and gonna try this workflow myself, thanks

regards
Ruud

[DrakeM]

As HarmonyCore41 suggests you ought to begin with a style that sounds close to the song already. I suggest you go through your styles and when you hear a style that reminds you of a song start with it.

If the part reminds you of the verse of the song then work on creating the chorus part of the song and then the break (if it has one). 
I was flipping through styles and heard this piano riff which I recognized was used in an Elvis song called "Mess of Blues". Here is a song link at YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJgQF_Xaxhk

This is what I came up with really quick:

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/653205946525

With this style I use my right hand to play the backup singers part.

Regards
Drake

[Argento]

As HarmonyCore41 suggests you ought to begin with a style that sounds close to the song already. I suggest you go through your styles and when you hear a style that reminds you of a song start with it.

If the part reminds you of the verse of the song then work on creating the chorus part of the song and then the break (if it has one). 
I was flipping through styles and heard this piano riff which I recognized was used in an Elvis song called "Mess of Blues". Here is a song link at YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJgQF_Xaxhk

This is what I came up with really quick:

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/653205946525

With this style I use my right hand to play the backup singers part.

Regards
Drake

Superb Drake, really really good job

[rdvreugd]

As HarmonyCore41 suggests you ought to begin with a style that sounds close to the song already. I suggest you go through your styles and when you hear a style that reminds you of a song start with it.

If the part reminds you of the verse of the song then work on creating the chorus part of the song and then the break (if it has one). 
I was flipping through styles and heard this piano riff which I recognized was used in an Elvis song called "Mess of Blues". Here is a song link at YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJgQF_Xaxhk

This is what I came up with really quick:

https://app.box.com/s/p4ry7iv191p6bupc1k7y/file/653205946525

With this style I use my right hand to play the backup singers part.

Regards
Drake

WOW I listened to it several times...Amazing 👍👏

[DrakeM]

So, you see all the parts that were used in that style, "Mess of Blues" came from existing Yamaha styles.

It just takes patience as you search through some Yamaha factory styles. In the case of this style, I had the main Piano rhythm I needed and since it is a BLUES number, I quickly found the rest of the pieces I needed in the "Swing & Jazz" category of styles.

Regards
Drake

[VilleGuy]

That Lone Arranger is one helpful cowboy!

[pedro_pedroc]

Hello, Ruud.

I have three tutorials about how to create styles with your keyboards.

Take a look at my YT channel: www.youtube.com/pedromseleuterio

The first tutorial is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQBeKyPmxs8

Enjoy,

Pedro