Create a melody

Many producers can struggle with melodies and motifs. This can particularly be the case, if playing a keyboard or music theory is not your forte.

Many instruments and grooveboxes offer scale-dependent keyboard layouts. This makes sure that whichever note you strike always sounds "good" in the context of the song that is playing. So does your Woovebox;

• Switch to the lead (3/Ld) track.
• Scroll to the 'GLob' page.
• Press key 4 to verify set the state of the "FLW.C" ("FLLW Chrd") is set to "LGL" or modify the setting so that it is.
• Switch back to the "Seq" page.
• Press play.

Now jam along with your song. You will notice whichever key you strike tends to sound "good" in the context of the song. That is because "FLLW Chrd" is set to allow all notes that the key/scale permits. This helps you play "in key" no matter what.

However, your Woovebox can take this one step further and assist with finding melodies and motifs even quicker;

Because it knows which chords are playing at which moment in time, the device can dynamically modify the keyboard to play different notes at different times in your song's playback when you press them. It can do so in a way that fits the chord that is currently playing. To engage this mode, set "FLW.C" one of the "trs" modes.

This opens up a new way of playing and improvising melodies; improvisation and playing becomes rhythm and timing-based rather than having to know and anticipate the chords that are playing. Indeed, it is possible to create a complex melody from an "island" of just a few 1-16 keys. A very welcome bonus is that this way of playing is uniquely suited to live playing a small device like the Woovebox with just a few buttons.

To get a feel for how this works, set FLW.C to one of the trS modes, and then keep playing the same one or two (or more) keys while playing back your song. Find keys that sound good to you. As soon as the chord changes, you should notice the keys playing entirely different notes that similarly also tend to sound "good".

Recording live

If you have found a melody and wish to record it live while playing, rather than programming the notes, you can do so by holding write and pressing play.

Your Woovebox will start playing the current pattern chain, and any keys you press will be recorded. Any notes recorded will be automatically quantized to the nearest step.

There are two live recording modes available; overdub ("dub") and erase ("rec");

• Overdub keeps any steps intact as the playhead moves over them, only erasing previous step entries if they are being replaced.
• Erase starts erasing every step the playhead moves over, but only starts doing that once your play the first note. It is particularly useful for re-doing takes or portions thereof.