Using your keyboard as an 8×1 pad controller.

Practice your rhythm and timing on your keyboard with Melodics^™ pads lessons.

Keyboards are percussive instruments too.

Traditional pianos make sound by hitting a hammer against a string. Because of this hammer action, the piano/keyboard also falls within the realm of percussive, rhythmic instruments. While this is just technically how a piano works, this is also a great way to approach playing this instrument.

Much of your time spent playing keys is focused on developing your melodies and harmonies. Usually not enough time is spent working on your timing and rhythm. For most forms of music, timing is crucial, and it’s not solely up to the drummer to provide the rhythm.

Of course, it can be hard to focus on your rhythm when you’re playing a complex melody or chord progression. Why not practice your timing by playing drums on your keyboard?

Map your keys as pads.

That’s where the beauty of MIDI comes into play. Keyboards are no longer just used to play chords and melodies, they can be transformed into anything you can imagine. From synths and samplers, to electronic drums.

Mapping your keys as pads.

We’ve already got a huge range of lessons dedicated to rhythm training. Typically these would be played with a pad controller or electronic drum kit, but you can use your keyboard too. Here’s how:

• Switch your instrument to pads.
• Go to the settings screen and hit the ‘map your controller’ button.
• Choose the 8x1 pad layout.
• Follow the prompts to map your first 8 keys on your keyboard.
• Hit ‘save’.

That’s it! You can now play some pads lessons using the 8 keys you mapped. Head over to the lessons / courses tab to start working on your rhythm and timing.

Access 200 more lessons!

With a Melodics^™ subscription, you’ll already have access to over 300 keys lessons. Now that you’ve mapped your keys to pads lessons, you can play 200 more lessons and explore a world of new learning opportunities.

These lessons will develop your timing and rhythm. They will help you perform better and take your keyboard skills to the next level. Keep up the practice!

How about an example?

Here’s a friend of Melodics, Koji Kobura, with a cover of Future’s ‘Mask Off’ playing drums on his keyboard!