Looping Breaks
As hip-hop has evolved, so have the production techniques and technology used to make the beats rappers rhyme on. In the 1970s, the earliest instrumentals were made on turntables. DJs would search for rhythmic parts of a record without words called “breaks.” Using two turntables and two copies of the same record, they’d play the break over and over. When it finished on one turntable, they’d quickly switch the signal to the other to play it again. DJs went back and forth, creating a loop for MCs, or rappers, to rhyme on. This is an early form of sampling—using part of an existing piece of music to make something new.
Based on the passage, what inference can you make about hip-hop DJs in the 1970s?
A
DJs had to search through many records to find breaks to use.
B
DJs borrowed the idea of sampling from other genres like disco.
C
DJs didn’t use normal turntables to create instrumentals.
D
DJs didn’t like working with MCs most of the time.
A
DJs had to search through many records to find breaks to use.
Drum Machines
In the early 1980s, drum machines and synthesizers took over. The Roland TR-808 drum machine was a turning point. It came preloaded with drum sounds and a step sequencer. The step sequencer allowed beatmakers to program drums into a 16 “step” rhythmic loop. Each step represented a 16th note. Producers could add drum sounds at any step to create a repeating pattern. These patterns were often paired with melodies and bass lines played on synthesizers, an electronic instrument that generates sound.
As drum machine technology advanced, samplers took over in the late ’80s. Samplers like the E-Mu SP-1200 combined sequencing technology with the ability to record sounds. Producers could sample existing songs, manipulate the sample, and sequence it with drum sounds all in one machine. Perhaps the most famous sampler, the Akai MPC, offered even more flexibility. Producers began chopping samples into small pieces and rearranging them in imaginative ways. Eventually, techniques were combined as samplers, synthesizers, and traditional instruments were used together to make music.
Based on the passage, what inference can you make about drum machines?
A
Drum machines were too expensive for most producers to purchase.
B
Drum machines are no longer used to create hip-hop instrumentals.
C
Drum machines offered more flexibility and customization than turntables.
D
Drum machines were considered overly complicated and confusing.
C
Drum machines offered more flexibility and customization than turntables.