Percussion tips needed.

[dark_virus]

maybe its your choice of sounds? clavs, tablas, shakers, rimshots, should do the trick, really short plonks, no big reverbs.

Try what djanthony said plus play with velocity/volume of each hit.
Also, don't make it too complex. Very often with funky house all you need is the hits to be off beat.

In truth I agree 100% with Himalaya. Very good tips!

Maybe you're using too much percussion? Rather than focussin on filling in the silence with as much sound as possible, instead focus on using only a few patterns to compliment the groove.

Compliment the groove.

Compliment the groove.

yes. Yes. YES!

Exactly. Remember that rhythm isn't found in the hits, it's in the spaces.

Man, this CHANGED MY LIFE!

I love this forum!

[jopy]

House music (especially funky House) often features rhythmic percussion; it seems minimal yet effective. However, when I sequence (Latin) percussion, it sounds like a ferocious African tribal gathering, not funky at all.

It might help to get some references that provide actual Latin or funk based percussion lines. Most of the house grooves are created by fusing these traditional techniques with newer instruments. There are lots of books that cover this; for about $20 you can get a number of great resources (assuming you can read music; if not, the newer books have CDs and you can learn from those).

FWIW: Latin percussion is African. The instruments and many of the base rhythmic concepts are remarkably similar. I know, that wasn't your point.

[stimresp]

You may find this tutorial useful?

[Batucada]

Thank you all for your replies,
B.