In a year that offered many people more time to learn, we wanted to share as many inspirational articles, tutorials and videos as possible to help push your creativity further – from performance demos and insightful interviews to instructional how-to’s, here are seven of our favorite pieces from 2020.
Our Favorite Features, Videos and Tutorials of 2020
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From live looping and field recording manipulation to hardware techno and instrument-led jamming, our new Made In Ableton Live movies showed how a wide range of artists go about making a track from start to finish.
STLNDRMS
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One of our most popular features this year was an illuminating interview with MPC maestro STLNDRMS. As well as digging into his nimble-fingered sampling process, he also offered up a free demo of his Slappy Drums pack.
Vibrations
As part of our ‘Making Music at Home’ offerings, we shared the playful loops of ModeAudio’s Vibrations pack for free download – a versatile selection taking in nostalgic synths, textured ambience, guitar licks and processed field recordings.
#LoopAtHome: Sebastian Mullaert
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Sebastian Mullaert was a perfect addition to our #LoopAtHome program in April. After a short live performance, the Circle Of Live figurehead presented an overview of the tools he uses to explore improvisation in electronic music.
Watch Sebastian’s performance and presentation >
One Thing: Ayako Okamura
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Ayako Okamura’s contribution to the One Thing series was one of the most popular this year. Watch how she manipulates field recordings using EQ and effects to create unique-sounding tuned instruments.
Inventive effects using Live’s delays
There can be more to delay than just echoes and feedback. ELPHNT put together this fascinating tutorial demonstrating six ways to use Live’s native delays for useful and creative effects you may not have thought of.
HANA
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Nothing captures the mood of music-making in 2020 like HANA’s album HANADRIEL. She streamed the entire creative process over four weeks via her Twitch channel, offering fans an unparalleled insight into her craft from the first note to the final mixdown.