Logic Pro 11 Session Drummer (Complete Tutorial)

Today, we're diving into the exciting new Session Player Drummer in Logic Pro 11. I'll walk you through everything you need to know about this feature, from its functions to customizing drum sounds to fit perfectly within your project. 

Getting Started with the Drummer Track

First, let's open a project and load a drummer track. Click the little plus button to add a track. Here, you'll see all the different session players available. Select the Drummer track, and you'll find various styles, including acoustic, electronic, and percussion. For this tutorial, we'll go with a pop rock style. Click "Create" to set up your drummer track, and let's move it to the chorus section where we'll focus today.

Customizing Your Drummer Track

1. Resize the Region: Start by resizing your drummer region to fit your chorus. Click and drag from the bottom left corner to adjust the length, adding more drums as needed.

2. Presets: Explore different presets by clicking on the preset menu. Each preset changes the vibe of your song. Try a few and see what fits best with your project.

3. Drummer Style: If you're unsure about the style, you can always switch it up. Click on the current style and browse through different options. Remember to toggle off the "Change Patch" button if you want to keep your current drum kit but try a different style.

4. Complexity and Intensity: Adjust the complexity to control how busy the drummer is and the intensity for how hard the drummer hits. 

5. Kick and Snare Patterns: Choose from eight different patterns, previewing the placement of drum hits. Select a pattern that complements your track’s rhythm.

Advanced Customization

1. Follow Rhythm: You can set the drummer to follow the rhythm of another track, like the bass. This ensures your drums sync perfectly with your song’s groove.

2. Manual Patterns: Create your own patterns by switching to manual mode. Add and remove drum hits as needed to achieve your desired pattern.

3. Fills: Adjust the fill amount and complexity to control how often and how complex the fills are.

4. Swing Feel: If your song has a swing feel, use the swing controls to match the drummer’s rhythm to your track.

Detailed Tweaks

1. Ghost Notes: Add subtle ghost notes for a more intricate drum pattern.
2. Snare Hit Types: Choose different snare hit types like center, rimshot, or side stick.
3. Percussion: Add tambourine, shaker, or claps to enrich your drum track.
4. Hi-Hats: Control how the hi-hats are played, from closed to wide open.
5. Feel and Dynamics: Adjust the feel to control the placement of notes and the dynamics to vary the volume range of hits.
6. Humanize: Make the performance more human by loosening the quantization.
7. Tempo: Switch between standard, half-time, and double-time tempos.

Mixing Your Drums

1. Drum Kit Customization: Swap out individual drum sounds by clicking on each drum in the kit.
2. Multi-Channel Kits: Open the mixer to access volume faders for each drum. Adjust levels and add effects for a polished sound.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial on the new Session Player Drummer in Logic Pro 11. This powerful tool offers extensive customization to create the perfect drum track for your music. 

TIMECODES:
00:00 Intro
00:39 Loading a Drummer Session Player
02:23 First Listen
02:59 Presets
04:02 Changing Drummer Styles
04:59 Complexity & Intensity
06:27 Kick & Snare Patterns
07:23 Follow Rhythm of Chords & Track
09:28 Hi-Hat, Cymbals, & Tom Patterns
10:24 Manual Kick & Snare Patterns
12:00 Fill Amount & Complexity
13:09 Swing
13:59 Ghost Notes
14:27 Snare
14:52 Percussion
15:21 Hi-Hat
15:48 Feel
16:29 Dynamics
17:15 Humanize
17:50 Tempo
18:23 Chorus Listen
18:58 Adding Drummer Regions
20:17 Changing Drum Kit Pieces
21:12 Multi-Channel Kits
22:38 Final Thoughts