Continuous Smooth Rising Tone with Any Ableton Instrument (Risers or Downlifters)

I’ve asked for suggestions for video tutorials you’d like me to make. Some time ago someone requested that I make one on how to create a continuous smooth rising tone over at least eight bars. I’m happy to oblige, so that will be the subject of this video tutorial.

Risers are a fundamental tool for transitions, creating energy curves and tension, as well as setting expectations for the next musical part. Tension builds as the riser rises (e.g. in pitch or volume), and when the riser reaches its peak and fades away, the tension is released.

There are many ways to create risers: filter sweeps, glissandi, tempo or automation, or the main method we’ll be looking at in this video. You’re welcome to use one or more of the other options to add interest and depth to the riser.

Watch the Video:

In this video, I will walk you through how to set up the basic trick. Once you know how to do it, it’s actually a remarkably simple and quick way to achieve this with almost any instrument in Ableton Live. This also means that you get a huge variety of sounds that you can use for your risers. Then we’ll look at the specific parameters of each Live instrument to achieve this rising effect and tweak it to our satisfaction.

Of course, the same principle can be used to create a falling tone. The way it works is essentially the same for all instruments.

One exception is the new synth introduced in Ableton Live 12 – Meld. Of course, you can use the same method with Meld, but it also offers a special oscillator shape that is made for exactly this kind of task. So we’re going to take a look at this oscillator shape and how its parameters and others can be tweaked to get a great riser out of it.

The theme you can see in the video is part of the free Live 12 Theme Set No. 2, which I’ve linked below.

Let me know if you have any questions or anything to add in the comments below. You can also request video tutorials on other topics you’d like me to cover.