TATAT is a VST/AU plugin recently released by K-Devices (following their previous Max for Live-only version). In the developer’s words, TATAT is an (un)stable MIDI notes generator plugin, for both melodic and percussive material: it’s a creative tool to assist and help producers and musicians to generate new ideas, becoming a great starting point for writing melodies and beats, and a perfect controller for virtual instruments and hardware gears alike.
TATAT has been designed for 3 main purposes: to create always-changing sequences, to quickly sketch and store music ideas, to add unexpected events to fixed patterns.
Funnily enough, TATAT came out just as I was looking for some kind of MIDI note generator, as I was running out of ideas for a project I was working on.
How Does It Work?
Notes generation in TATAT is based on a multi-chance concept: user sets up for multiple rhythms, multiple notes, intervals, and other parameters value. Using dedicated multisliders the user can then adjust the chance a note and/or a time resolution are adopted on next trigger, creating complex streams of events. The generated notes are then processed by several operators: Velocity, Less, Delay, and Length.
TATAT produces then a stream of notes based on settings and probabilities: we call these settings “mood”.
Once the user got the right mood, he can do different actions:
- to enjoy the always-changing stream of notes
- to enable “thru” to add the generative stream of notes on the top of a fixed MIDI clip/file or live MIDI input
- to inject stability by using LIV/MEM horizontal slider, to mix between the live generated stream and a frozen pattern
- to use the export icon (the triangle) to drag on a timeline, clip slots or folders, different MIDI files, generated by TATAT according to its mood
Hands-On Impressions
I tried TATAT in two different contexts, with some slow ambient stuff and some pretty high-energy house stuff.
In both cases, TATAT proved to be really helpful. As I was expecting, It’s a great match for evolving, generative music, for it can easily create infinite note variations and suggest new ideas during the writing process. But it’s equally at home with more pattern-based music, like techno, house, etc.
Let’s say you’re stuck on the creation of a synth riff for your next dance masterpiece. Just feed TATAT some notes (and possibly play some live keys to try further variations) and start exploring the various parameters mentioned above (for instance, playing with the LIV/MEM slider to alternate between two kinds of patterns). If you got the right synth sound for your track (don’t forget TATAT can also drive your hardware synths!), I bet you’ll have a great riff ready in a minute or two.
Do you like what you hear? Just export the MIDI file using the dedicated icon and keep working on your song!
What I like in TATAT is the mix of a very intuitive, modern interface and some clever extra features (such as bichord, thru, live MIDI input, the LIV/MEM slider, etc.)
This makes the plugin capable of being more or less stable and predictable, according to your needs.
If you would like to see TATAT in use, I suggest the quick tutorial videos created by K-Devices on their YouTube channel – they’ll get you up and running in minutes!
Pricing and Availability
TATAT is available on the K-Devices website for €39. Considering the time it might save you, I think it’s money REALLY well spent!
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