Recording Band out of the Box - Arranger Keyboards

[ghostler]

There is another thread, Software - Band in a Box

Although the question asked is open ended, however, its leaning by title was for advice on purchasing Band-in-a-Box software.

Therefore, thinking outside the box, 😉 thought it best to diverge and create a new topic to discuss use of MIDI arranger keyboards for creating backing tracks for saxophones and other instruments.

There is another thread started, Keyboard backing , however, it is 24 years old, hence this new one.

I have gravitated toward Korg keyboards, because their styles tend to be more like a combo or small band. Purposefully I have not gone toward Yamaha, because their styles tend to be more like full orchestrations and large bands. This of course is not totally true for all their styles, but is my overall impressions having played them in music stores and earlier on owning a few.

Being a pensioner, I decided to splurge and got myself a Pa1000 Arranger Keyboard . This is not to say others ought to go this far. I have found that less expensive keyboards, home entertainment systems can also fill the bill. In the past I have owned some of these. Compared with years ago, they have come a long way.

Some state that purchasing BiaB for example is cheaper, but I gather it also depends on what options selected, can get pricey, too. Then, one needs a playback audio system, recording to capture the sax, sound editing software, etc. A systems approach will be truer to actual investment costs.

Why I like an arranger keyboard? It is a true musical instrument, too. So considering investment costs, this second utility lends it to more use than simply creating "Karaoke" tracks. Do you consider the cost of your sax as part of your home production costs?

 

[ghostler]

The following is my reply to posts from the Software - Band in a Box thread.

An arranger keyboard is good (if the styles are OK) but costs way more than BiaB. iReaPro costs less than BiaB, and one price gets you Windows, Mac, iOS and Android versions. For jazz I actually think it’s better than the box item - though others have argued that Band In A Box with the “real” musicians is more authentic. But the “real” samples cost more, and to get the best styles with BiaB there is even more extra cost.

Regarding costs, I view obtaining an arranger keyboard as a true musical instrument and an investment. With this in mind, one would look a step or two above the so-called entry level arrangers, with better digitisation of sounds, better rythms.

One does not get such an instrument with boxed software. Also to make the software more useful, one may want to purchase a controller keyboard, which is an additional cost. The better arrangers can be used as a controller, too.

Occasionally one may see a keyboardist with one of these stacked above his main keyboard for that one sound that he/she doesn't have otherwise. An arranger allows an artist to develop and experiment with ideas, due to its Karaoke like nature.

On arranger keyboards - they can be great for live arranging and if you're pretty decent with piano as @ghostler says, but I should also highlight some downsides. Firstly, while they tout hundreds of styles (especially the higher end models), but if you don't play a lot of genres and narrow things down to just a few that you play, they can get a little bit same-y after a while.

With the lower entry level keyboards, this can be true. The better ones allows one to create their own style or modify an existing one. These also have options to modify existing by muting or swapping out instruments on tracks. These also allow one to upload additional styles to it. Sources exist which are free and also pay. Some of these sources have excellent professional level written styles.

I have done this with an older GeneralMusic PK7, WK2HD Arranger; Roland WG7, Korg EK50, etc.

Additionally, time signatures can be a bit restrictive. I don't know how the other brands are in regards to this, but my Yamaha PSR-SX900 has a ton of 4/4 styles and a few 3/4. If you want to play something a little less common, like 5/4, you're SOL. Though one great thing about my keyboard is that it has some pretty decent sounds; I like to send MIDI to it and record it's output. It also has a built-in internal sound recorder so I don't need to route cables around and do the recording onto a separate device.

I found a description of your keyboard at Sweetwater:
Yamaha PSR-SX920 61-key Professional Arranger Workstation
At $2,300 US, it is similarly priced to my Korg PA1000, which is a touch more.

I steered away from Yamaha, because its style orchestrations tend to be more like big band / orchestra whereas Korg tends to be like a small combo or small band. Plus, it has a wide variety of 3/4 styles. My PA600 has a few less styles, but the lower price of lends it to being used in other venues.

Thinking outside the box, I like to spice up backing tracks by chosing other. I can also turn off instrumentation or modify it, to alter the sound of the style.

For example, recently I have been playing around with the Song of the Month for November, There Will Never Be Another You, using Disco Cha-Cha at 109 BPM. One thing I do not strive for is with say a pop song, is to make it sound like the radio. This is too muzac like.