W. A. Production CHORDS Pro + NOTES User manual

User manual for CHORDS Pro + NOTES (version 1) | 2
Welcome to CHORDS Pro + NOTES!
CHORDS Pro is a MIDI plugin that generates looped chord and note
progressions, targeted primarily (but not exclusively) at producers of
electronic dance music. It is the next evolutionary step in the LOOP.engine
framework, with a set of powerful features like a dynamic chord sequence
randomizer. This version of CHORDS Pro includes the feature extension
NOTES.
CHORDS Pro, like its little brother CHORDS, is a composition assistant
designed to create fresh musical ideas. For that reason, it is most effective
if used at the beginning of a music production chain. The plugin was
designed with simplicity, speed, and a free flow of creativity in mind.
In contrast to musical structures on the usual forward-oriented timeline,
loops are ‘circular’ objects, meaning that their last element leads to their
first. In other words, a proper loop has no real beginning or end. One gets
lost in its whirl. CHORDS Pro reinforces that peculiar property with its
unique circular graphic representation.
A loop in CHORDS Pro can contain up to eight chords, each consisting of
up to four notes, i.e. a triad plus a tension note like a 7th or 9th, or
polyphonic note patterns from two to eight steps.
The easiest way to learn the features of CHORDS Pro is by taking the
guided tour through all its functional elements explained in this manual.
System Requirements
Operating systems: Windows 10 and later (64-bit only), macOS 10.15 and
later (64-bit only)
Available interface types: VST, VST3, AU, AAX
Installation and Unlocking
Unpack your software, start the installer for Windows or Mac, and follow the
instructions. By default, all available version formats will automatically be
installed. You can also choose which versions you want to install in the
process. See the options in the installer window display for custom
installation on macOS.
To unlock the plugin with your serial code, click on the info button (G1) and
follow the instructions.
DAW Connection
CHORDS Pro must be assigned to a MIDI track or instrument track on your
DAW via MIDI In. For the required routing setup, follow the instructions in
the manual of your DAW, or visit our online Help Center for instructions in
most major DAWs.
Graphical Interface and Features
The plugin display can be toggled between three logically interconnected
control interfaces: Loop Control (L), Chord Control (C), and Note Control
(N). In general, actions in Loop Control have an effect on the entire loop.
Chord Control lets you zoom in on single chords and chord notes, and Note
Control on note patterns.
Black dots indicate control elements, i.e. knobs, selectors, or toggles.
To resize the plugin click-and-drag the bottom left corner (G2).
For a step-by-step tutorial to guide you through the features of the software,
follow the numbers on the image tags from Lto Cto Nin ascending order.

Loop cursor/playback (L1): PLAY and STOP in the DAW starts and stops the
loop playback, respectively. The loop can be altered while it is rolling. The loop
cursor indicates the sounding chord and shows the exact time positions within
each segment.
Chord information display (L2): Provides the chord symbol of the sounding
chord, i.e. root note, key, and added note (interval above the root, e.g. 7th).
Key (L3): Defines the general key of the loop. This function transposes the loop
between keys.
Inversion (L4): Inversion Up pushes the lowest notes an octave up. Inversion
Down pushes the highest notes an octave down. This is like turning the entire
loop outward or inward in overall pitch. There is no visual feedback for different
degrees of inversion.
Length (L5): Defines the length of the loop, i.e. the number of bars (or fraction
thereof) on the MIDI track. Length is correlated to Speed (L6). The setting '1 bar'
at a speed setting of '1 bar' corresponds to 1 bar on the MIDI track in your DAW.
The default setting is 2 bars, with a playback speed set at 1/2, which results in
one full loop cycle across 2 bars on the MIDI track.
Speed (L6): Determines how fast chords are played back. Speed is correlated to
Length (L5).
Loop presets (L7): By default, the plugin provides a selection of loop presets as
a starting point to work from.
Saving loops (L8): Loops can be saved for further editing at a later time.
A/B toggle (L9): This feature lets you switch between and work on two different
loops for immediate comparison. Copy state A to state B and vice versa.
Drag to export (L10): Click-and-drag the MIDI notes of the loop to the MIDI
timeline in your DAW.
Chord segments (C1): Chords are represented as segments of the loop. A loop
can be composed of up to eight chords of equal duration. The minimum loop size
is one chord.
Adding and deleting chords (C2): Click on ‘+’ between two chord segments to
add a new chord at that position. Clicking on ‘-‘ will delete chords. The respective
chord segment to be deleted is indicated on mouse rollover.
Loop Control: General (L tags)
This is the editing interface for the entire loop. Click on the black dots in
the chord segments to switch between chords you want to edit (C). The
selected chord is highlighted.
Switching from Loop Control to Chord Control (C) to edit individual
chords follows the same logic:Click on one of the black dots on a chord
segment (C1) to switch to Chord Control and to select that chord to be
edited (see next page).
The features chord randomizer feature (R) and NOTES (N) are laid out
on the next pages.
User manual for CHORDS Pro + NOTES (version 1) | 3

By clicking on the dots placed on the outer ring, you lock or unlock chord
segments for randomization. You can have all chords of the loop randomized, or
just a selection. All chord segments are unlocked by default, i.e. their outer dots
are colored. Locked segments show black dots.
Locking chords: You can only lock chords in clockwise order, always counted
from the very first chord in the loop. I.e. when you click on the dot of the third
segment in a loop of seven segments (R1)—provided all segments were
unlocked before—only the chords ④through ⑦get randomized and chords ①
through ③remain unchanged (R2).
Unlocking chords: The same logic applies to unlocking chords: If you click on
the dot of an unlocked segment (R3), all chords from this chord to the last in the
loop are unlocked (R4). All chords before that segment in the loop are locked
and cannot be altered by the randomizer.
The possibility to add and delete chord segments to the loop changes
dynamically with the amount of locked/unlocked segments.
Create (R5): This ‘magic button’ activates the randomization process for the
unlocked chords. The animation effect provides additional visual feedback on
which loop segments get altered.
The randomization feature was designed to seamlessly interact with all the other
layers of control elements. Use the A/B toggle and shift to Chord Control to
extend the range of possibilities—all in real time.
Loop Control: Randomizer (R tags)
This feature was designed to support users in building up a loop gradually,
incorporating ‘elements of surprise’ to boost creative inspiration with a
maximum of control over the process.
The randomizer function follows voicing rules for a smooth transition
between notes, e.g. by inverting chords. It generates musically pleasant
chord progressions, over the complete loop or only parts of it.
User manual for CHORDS Pro + NOTES (version 1) | 4

When DAW playback is halted (STOP), every change applied to a chord—
including adding new chords—yields an acoustic preview of the result by the
assigned MIDI instrument.
Chord information display (C4): Provides the exact chord symbol of the chord
being edited.
Individual chord notes—mute and unmute (C5): The four curved lines of a
chord segment represent the four notes of the respective chord. The innermost
line indicates the lowest note, the outer line stands for the highest note. Clicking
on a note line mutes or unmutes the corresponding note. Activated note lines
appear brighter in color.
Chords are always initially arranged in their root position, i.e. their lowest note is
the root note. This is the most transparent and musically flexible approach. But it
sometimes results in audible ‘jumps’ between chords, which can easily be
“smoothed” by adjusting the inversion settings for individual chords.
Triads often contain octave-transposed notes to preserve the four-note chord
structure of loop segments.
Chord function and complexity (C6): Chords are arranged in a matrix of tonal
function (Tonic, Subdominant, and Dominant) and complexity (from bottom to top
according to the degree of their probability in the progression).
Major and Minor toggle (C7): The basis of major and minor harmony is the
major and minor scale, respectively. Chords are derived from those scales in the
range of major and minor. Very simply put however, major sounds ‘brighter’ or
‘more positive’, whereas minor feels ‘darker’.
Inversion (C8): Like in Loop Control but for individual chords: Inversion Up
pushes the lowest notes an octave up. Inversion Down pushes the highest notes
an octave down.
Velocity (C9): Adjustment of the volume of individual chords
Chord Control (C tags)
This is the editing interface for individual parameters of single chords.
Click on the black dots in the chord segments to switch between chords
you want to edit (C). The selected chord is highlighted (C3).
Switching to Loop Control (L): To end Chord Control mode and switch
to Loop Control click on the ‘x’ symbol.
Working with polyphonic note patterns in Note Control (N): see next
page
User manual for CHORDS Pro + NOTES (version 1) | 5

The NOTES Panel consists of the following components:
•On/off button (N1): Switch between the Note Control interface and one of the
chord control interfaces
•Playback mode (N2): With this symbol highlighted, NOTES will play the note
patterns through all modes. If it is deactivated, the playback mode is set to
chord progressions.
Partitions of chord segments (N3): Choose a number between 2 and 8 steps.
Individual notes (N4): Clicking on a note element mutes or unmutes the
corresponding note. Activated note elements appear brighter in color.
Repeat note pattern over entire loop (N5): When enabled, changes applied to
any segment will automatically overwrite all the other segments with the same
pattern. Use the A/B toggle feature (L9) to switch between different pattern
states for advanced editing.
Copy and paste feature applied to single note pattern segments
•Copy button: idle (N6), select note pattern segment you want to make copies
of (N7)
•Paste button (N8): overwrite this segment with the selected segment
Note pattern presets (N9): Load factory presets and save your own note
patterns. These note patterns tonally agree with the chord changes in the loop.
Have fun with CHORDS Pro + NOTES!
Note Control (N tags)
The NOTES feature splits chord segments into up to eight partitions and
plays back step patterns of chord notes, from varying melody lines to
polyphonic arpeggios.
This is the editing interface to control the behavior of note patterns within
a chord segment. Click on the button N1 to switch from Loop Control (L)
or Chord Control (C) to Note Control. With Note Control activated, the
button highlights in red. Deactivate this button to leave Note Control and
switch back to the modes for chord editing.
User manual for CHORDS Pro + NOTES (version 1) | 6