P33

Objectives

By the end of this chapter you will be able to:

  • Set the PO-33 to Disco mode (120 BPM, swing 1).
  • Write a four-on-the-floor drum pattern.
  • Layer a disco-style bassline (root, every beat).
  • Recognise house and disco drum patterns.

What is house / disco?

Disco is a genre of dance music that emerged in the 1970s. It is built on four-on-the-floor drum patterns (kick on every beat), disco string stabs (orchestral hits), and syncopated hi-hats. Disco is the foundation of house music.

House is a genre of dance music that emerged in Chicago in the 1980s. It is essentially disco sped up slightly (120 BPM is typical) and stripped of the orchestral stabs, replaced with synthesised basslines and piano chords. House is the most popular genre of dance music in the world.

Hewitt (Music Theory for Computer Musicians) characterises house rhythm as steady and metronomic — the kick is on every beat, the hi-hat is on every off-beat. There is almost no syncopation in house. The music is steady so that dancers can count it.

Sidebar — 4/4 vs. 3/4. Disco and house are in 4/4 time. Waltz is in 3/4 time. Most popular music (pop, rock, hip-hop, house, techno) is in 4/4. The PO-33’s 16-step sequencer is a 4/4 sequencer — it doesn’t have a 3/4 mode. To make a waltz, you’d have to use the 6/8 quantize effect (FX 5 on the PO-33), which is rarely used in modern music.

The four-on-the-floor drum pattern

The four-on-the-floor is the most important drum pattern in dance music. It is built from:

  • Kick on every beat: steps 1, 5, 9, 13.
  • Snare on beats 2 and 4: steps 5, 13.
  • Hi-hat on every eighth-note: steps 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15. Or every off-beat (3, 7, 11, 15) for a more open feel.

To write four-on-the-floor:

  1. Set BPM to Disco (120).
  2. Set swing to 1 (almost no swing).
  3. Press WRITE, PLAY.
  4. Step 1: pad 9 (kick), pad 11 (hi-hat).
  5. Step 3: pad 11.
  6. Step 5: pad 9 (kick), pad 10 (snare), pad 11.
  7. Step 7: pad 11.
  8. Step 9: pad 9 (kick), pad 11.
  9. Step 11: pad 11.
  10. Step 13: pad 9 (kick), pad 10 (snare), pad 11.
  11. Step 15: pad 11.
  12. Press WRITE to exit.

This is the four-on-the-floor. Notice how steady it is. The kick lands like a clock: step 1, 5, 9, 13, 1, 5, 9, 13, … forever.

The disco bassline

Disco basslines are usually one note per beat (root of the chord). In C major, the bassline plays C on every beat. The kick and the bass play together — a four-on-the-floor with a bass kick.

To write a disco bassline:

  1. Record a bass sound into slot 2.
  2. Press WRITE, PLAY.
  3. Step 1: pad 1 (C, root).
  4. Step 5: pad 1 (C, root).
  5. Step 9: pad 1 (C, root).
  6. Step 13: pad 1 (C, root).
  7. Press WRITE to exit.

The bass plays four times per loop, on every beat. Combined with the kick, this gives the “thump-thump-thump-thump” feel of disco.

A simple house chord progression

House music usually uses simple chord progressions: I-vi-IV-V or I-IV-V-I. In C major:

  • I = C major (pads 1, 5, 8).
  • vi = A minor (pads 10, 13, 1).
  • IV = F major (pads 6, 10, 13).
  • V = G major (pads 8, 12, 15).

To write a 4-chord progression in slot 3:

  1. Record a sustained sound (a synth pad) into slot 3.
  2. Press WRITE, PLAY.
  3. Step 1: pads 1, 5, 8 (C major).
  4. Step 5: pads 10, 13, 1 (A minor).
  5. Step 9: pads 6, 10, 13 (F major).
  6. Step 13: pads 8, 12, 15 (G major).
  7. Press WRITE to exit.

This is I-vi-IV-V in C major — the “50s progression” (doo-wop), also the basis of countless house records.

Voice management for house

A typical house track uses 4 voices:

  • Kick (slot 9).
  • Hi-hat (slot 11).
  • Bass (slot 2).
  • Chord (slot 3).

That’s 4. No snare? Many house tracks have no snare — they just use hi-hat and kick. The hi-hat provides the backbeat (steps 3, 7, 11, 15 give the “tick tick” that dancers use to count).

If you want a snare, drop the chord (use only bass + kick + snare + hi-hat). The PO-33 cannot play kick + snare + hi-hat + bass + chord simultaneously. Choose.

For our exercise, let’s drop the snare and use: kick + hi-hat + bass + chord.

Guided exercise: a complete house loop

Success criteria: a beat with kick on 1+5+9+13, hi-hat every off-beat, bass on 1+5+9+13, chord progression I-vi-IV-V. Plays at 120 BPM.

  1. Record kick (slot 9), hi-hat (slot 11), bass (slot 2, pad 1), chord pad (slot 3).
  2. Set BPM to Disco (120). Set swing to 1.
  3. Write the four-on-the-floor pattern, but remove the snare.
  4. Write the disco bassline (pad 1 on 1, 5, 9, 13).
  5. Write the chord progression (steps 1, 5, 9, 13).
  6. Press PLAY. Listen for 1 minute.

You should hear a clear house groove. The kick and bass lock together. The chord progression cycles underneath. The hi-hat ticks off every off-beat.

Creative challenge: the disco string stab

Add a “string stab” — a short orchestral hit — on steps 3 and 11. Record a “BRAMM” or “BWAAAM” sound into slot 4. On step 3 and step 11, trigger pad 5 (any pad — it will play the slot 4 sample).

This is the classic disco string stab: a short orchestral hit on the off-beats. It gives the track the “disco” feel.

Sidebar — voice management, again. Adding a string stab is a 5th voice. You need to drop something. Drop the chord progression, or drop the bass. A disco track with kick + snare + hi-hat + string stab (no bass, no chord) is also valid.

Listening assignment

Listen to:

  • Donna Summer, “I Feel Love” (1977). Pure four-on-the-floor. No snare. Just kick, hi-hat, and a synth bassline. This song changed dance music forever.
  • Daft Punk, “Around the World” (1997). Four-on-the-floor. Single-note bassline. I-vi-IV-V chord progression (transposed). The textbook house song.
  • Frankie Knuckles, “Your Love” (1987). The track that gave house music its name. Four-on-the-floor, sustained chords, simple bassline.
  • Disclosure, “Latch” (2012). Modern house. Four-on-the-floor with a swung hi-hat. Notice how the swung hi-hat makes the beat feel more “human”.

Summary and checkpoint

Key takeaways:

  • House and disco are 4/4 dance music at 120 BPM.
  • Four-on-the-floor = kick on every beat.
  • Disco basslines are simple: root, every beat.
  • Many house tracks have no snare — just kick, hi-hat, bass, chord.

Self-check:

  • [ ] Can you write a four-on-the-floor at 120 BPM?
  • [ ] Can you layer a disco bassline (pad 1 on every beat)?
  • [ ] Can you write a I-vi-IV-V progression?
  • [ ] Do you understand why four-on-the-floor is “danceable”?

If you answered “yes” to all four, move on to Chapter 13.