Introduction

Sometimes, when you work on different projects
simultaneously, the rhythm section can give you trouble if you are using
different virtual instruments for the percussion. The snare MIDI key on one
instrument might be the hi-hat of another. The MIDI maps of the instruments
might get all mixed up. 

Drum Maps help you to solve this issue by standardizing
the note values in a fixed format. This way, when you play the C1 for the kick
in an instrument, the same C1 key can be used for the kick in another virtual
instrument. In this tutorial, I will show you the basic set up and how to use
it in a project effectively.

The Drum Editor

The Drum Editor is a tool that helps you to create rhythms
like the way you would do for a MIDI score. Creating rhythm patterns and drum
sections will be really easy if you are creating them through the Drum Editor.
You can see the name of the notes, the tone of the note, the length, the
quantization, the velocity and many more aspects of the rhythm that you are
making.

For this tutorial, you have to create a VST track and a MIDI
track to link them together. First add the VST track using VST Instruments from the Devices menu or by pressing F11. I have added a new HalionOne
Instrument onto the project, you can select any other Drums Virtual Instrument
that you have.

Now create a MIDI track that sends its data to
the VST. In order to do that, create a MIDI track using the Add MIDI Track
option from the Project menu’s Add Track option or by selecting Add MIDI
track from the right-click context menu on the project. Once the MIDI track
has been created, select the Output Routing to the VST that you created, in
this case HalionOne. Now whatever you play on the MIDI track will be played
through the VST.

Add a blank field to the MIDI track using the Draw tool in
the Toolbar list. Now select the Drum Editor from the MIDI dropdown menu.

The Drum Map

The most common Drum Map is the GM Map, which stands for
General MIDI Map. It’s always wise to use this setting for your drum maps
because most of the producers use this setting as default. 

Select No
Drum Map to switch off the Drum Map feature for the track. Load the GM Drum
Map using the drop-down menu at the bottom of the Drum Editor window.

Once that is loaded, you will be presented with a view of
the sound list and the pitch assignments. You might have to adjust the width of
the window to see the full features. This is where you adjust all of the settings
except the pitch. 

Select No Drum Map to switch off the Drum Map
feature for the track. Here’s some detail on what these fields mean:

• Empty
  Column: This is the first column in the Map. It can be used to audition the
  sound and check if that is the sound that you want

• Pitch:
  This is the note which will trigger the sound. For example, the C1 on the MIDI
  keyboard will trigger the Bass Drum sound

• Instrument:
  This shows the name of the sound that is mapped to the key

• Quantize:
  This value determines the length and position the notes being entered on the Editor

• Mute:
  This feature helps you to mute the sound from being played back during the
  performance

• I-Note:
  This is the MIDI note on which the drum sound will be triggered. It means that
  when this note is being played on the MIDI keyboard, the sound associated with
  this note will be played

• O-Note:
  This is the MIDI note which is being sent out when that sound is being played.
  This MIDI note number will sent out through the device during playback

• Channel:
  This is the channel through which the drum sound will be played back. You can
  either select the Any option or any channel from 1 to 16

• Output: Here
  you can select the MIDI track or the VST tracks that is being used to play that
  specific sound. It is usually selected to be the default track, you can change
  it so that that specific note can be played back through another device

The Drum Map Setup Dialog

Before you venture into creating rhythm through the Drum
Maps, it’s a good idea to go through the Map Setup. You can access the Drum Map
setup through the drop-down menu from which you select the Drum Map. The same
settings that you found in the above heading can be found here as well. The
Functions drop-down menu is what’s different from the other one. In this menu,
you can find the following options:

•  New Map:
  This option helps you to create a new Drum Map from scratch. All the
  instruments will be renamed to Sound and the name of the map will be changed to
  Empty Map.

• New Copy:
  As the name suggests, it creates a new copy of the current drum map. You can
  create a new one and then edit the settings as you like, keeping the original
  one intact.

• Remove:
  This removes the current Drum Map.

•  Load:
  This is used to load external Drum Maps into Cubase.

• Save:
  This saves a .drm copy of the selected Drum Map.

• Edit Head
  Pairs: This allows you to edit the head pairs in your Drum Map.

• Init
  Display Notes: This reset all the notes to their default values.

How to Use It in a Project

If you have followed the above steps, you will be ready to
use the Drum Maps in a project. Now all you have to do is to enter the drum
notes in the Drum Editor window. You can either enter notes using your MIDI
interface or through the Drumstick button.

Select the Drumstick tool from the Toolbar and click on any
grid in the window. Make sure you have set your quantization grids according to
the rhythm that you are going to create. For common rhythm, it’s always wise to
set it to 1/8 or 1/16.

If you need to preview the sound, click the first column to
the left of the Drum Map window, right beside the Pitch column.

You can start by adding some Bass Drums and Hi-hats on the
lines on the grid, make sure that you listen to the rhythm as you progress. If
you are using a MIDI Controller, switch on the auto-quantization to prevent
timing problems or grid errors.

Once you are done creating your rhythm, save your project
and export it.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to use Drum Maps, try it on your next
project. This method will help you to fix all the issues that you face when
producing rhythm for a project. Different instruments with different instrument
maps will no longer be a problem for you if you stick on to using Drum Maps.
They are the solution for effective and efficient rhythm creation.

The next time you create a rhythm, assign a Drum Map to it,
and there won’t be any more cacophony while switching the instruments. Tell me about your experience with Drum Maps in the comments, below.