TC-Helicon VoiceWorksPlus User Manual page 26

HARMONY BACKGROUND AND TIPS
A Comparison of the Harmony
Modes
The following table gives an overview of the plusses
and minuses of each harmony mode.
Harmony Mode
Scale Set Key and Scale of song
Chord Play chords on a MIDI keyboard
Combi Set Key and Scale then use MIDI
chords where needed to correct
harmony/chord change errors
Shift Set shift amount with the Voicing
parameter or choose Shift-based
preset
Notes Perform harmony melodies on
MIDI keyboard or use MIDI track
playback
Notes 4 Channel Perform harmony melodies on
four MIDI channels/tracks using a
MIDI keyboard and/or sequencer
Which is the best harmony mode for
you?
From the chart above you can see which harmony
mode is likely to become your favorite. Shift is not
described as it's not a true harmony mode.
"Are Chords presets the best for me?"
If you play keyboards, presets based on Chords are
likely to work best for you.You just select a preset with
the arrangement of intervals above or below your
voice and get down to playing your instrument.All you
do when you require harmony is to un-mute the
harmonies with the Harmony Mute function on your
footswitch and then play the chords in your song.
A new TC-Helicon feature has been added to
VoiceWorksPlus that greatly improves Chord mode
flexibility and it's called "Improvise" mode.This is found
in the Setup menu (press the SETUP button) at menu
U2 and once set, it will affect all Chord harmony
presets. Improvise mode configures Chord mode
presets so that only 3 note chords will trigger a chord
change, instead of each note as is the case with
"Classic" mode.This allows you to play your keyboard
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Input
Most natural sounding with mini-
mal input. Can be the fastest way
to produce harmony.
Works for nearly every chord
change accompaniment.
Optimal blend of natural sounding
Scale harmonies and Chord
mode arrangement flexibility
Easiest to use
Complex harmonies can be creat-
ed that move independently of
sung voice melody.
Any harmony melody can be cre-
ated for each voice. Unique pitch
bends on each channel add real-
ism. Pan and Gender assign-
ments locked to voice
Benefits
Diatonic harmony doesn't work
with all chord accompaniments.
Requires that you know how to
choose Key and Scale correctly
Limited harmonic movement not
always most realistic sounding
Requires that you know how to
choose Key and Scale correctly
Fixed interval less useful for
musical harmony
Requires keyboard skills. Wide-
panned voices may swap sides
due to voice allocation.
More time required to input
melodies. Sequencing knowledge
required.
arrangements more naturally, allowing runs, bass riffs,
and chord partials while you sing and create harmony
simultaneously.
"Are Scale presets the best for me?"
If you are a guitar player in a live act, Scale mode will
work best because there is no requirement for
ongoing musical information during the song as there is
with the MIDI modes. All you do is set the Key and
Scale or load a preset you've saved with the song's
information before you start your song.This only takes
a moment and then you can get on with playing. During
the song when you need harmony, you can use the
Harmony Mute button on your footswitch to turn
harmonies on and off. Some songs where the
combination of vocal melody and your music may
produce odd harmony notes may occur, but the songs
where you can create harmonies handsfree will
completely impress your audience.
"Are Combi presets for me?"
For someone who uses a sequencer to help with
backup music live or to at home to record their own
music, Combi mode can give you the excellent
combination of natural-sounding note to note
Challenges
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