# Sounds

> Every sound a track can name. Drum kits and their drums, instruments by role, singers, oscillators, recorded instruments, percussion and textures.

A track makes sound by naming it. Each stem names its sound after its colon: `stem kick: club` for a drum kit, `stem bass: pulsebass` for an instrument. This page lists every name the model is told about. All of them work in the [code view](https://docs.songco.de/app/code/) and in the stems view's inspector.

The tables are read from Songcode's sound catalog, so they match the app.

## How sounds are named

```ode
stem kick: club {
  kick [x... x... x... x...]
}

stem bass: pulsebass {
  rhythm [x... x... x... x...]
  notes  [c1 c1 eb1 g1]
}
```

- A **kit** is the sound of a drum stem.
- A **drum** is a row inside it, named for the drum: `kick`, `snare`, `hat`. The same name gives a different drum in each kit.
- An **instrument** is the sound of a stem that plays notes.

A name that is not in the catalog fails the check, and that stem is left out. See [errors](https://docs.songco.de/app/code/#errors).

## Drums

A kit stem holds one row per drum. The 14 row names are the same in every kit.

| lane | drum |
|---|---|
| `kick` | kick (bass drum) |
| `snare` | snare |
| `clap` | clap |
| `hat` | closed hi-hat |
| `openhat` | open hi-hat |
| `rim` | rimshot |
| `cowbell` | cowbell |
| `lowtom` | low tom |
| `midtom` | mid tom |
| `hightom` | high tom |
| `crash` | crash cymbal |
| `ride` | ride cymbal |
| `shaker` | shaker |
| `tambourine` | tambourine |

Not every kit has every drum; the tables below list what each has. A kit asked for a drum it lacks plays its nearest one, and the check says so once.

## Drum kits

Songcode's own kits: 4 synthesised, 3 recorded. A synthesised drum is an instrument: `decay 150ms` shortens it, velocity changes its tone, and a kit stem that holds one drum can tune it with a `notes` row.

| kit | made of | character |
|---|---|---|
| `analog` | synthesis | round analogue drum machine: punchy sine kick, noise snare, tight metallic hats. House, disco, synth pop, anything classic. |
| `hard` | synthesis | driven and clipped: long distorted kick with a hard click, cracking snare, harsh hats. Hard techno, industrial, gabber, hardstyle. |
| `sub` | synthesis | long tuned kick that works as a bassline (give the kick lane notes), snappy snare, short crisp hats made for rolls. Trap, drill, phonk, dubstep. |
| `fm` | synthesis | glassy digital FM percussion: knocking kick, metallic snare, bell-like hats and toms. Electro, IDM, hyperpop, chiptune. |
| `live` | recordings | recorded acoustic drum kit, several takes per drum ordered soft to hard (take picks one). Funk, boom bap, lo-fi, jazz, reggae, disco. |
| `rock` | recordings | recorded rock drum kit, played with sticks: big 24 inch kick, cracking snare, three toms, crash and ride. How hard a hit is played picks a softer or harder recording, so ghost notes sound like ghost notes. Rock, indie, alternative, metal, punk. |
| `brush` | recordings | recorded jazz kit played with wire brushes: soft kick, brushed snare, ride and hats. How hard a hit is played picks a softer or harder recording. The shaker lane is the brush stirred round the snare head, the sound under a ballad: each hit is one long soft sweep that takes over from the last, so write one a beat. Jazz, ballads, bossa nova, folk, country. |

Every kit here has all 14 drums. The **drum kit** control in [advanced](https://docs.songco.de/app/advanced/#rhythm) asks for one of these or one of the kits below by name.

## More kits

18 more kits, each with its own set of drums. Every drum is synthesised by Songcode, and no recording of any drum machine is used.

| kit | lanes | character |
|---|---|---|
| `club` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim lowtom midtom hightom crash ride | the techno and house kit: hard kick, crisp hats, sharp clap |
| `boom` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash shaker | boomy kick, snappy snare, ticking hats and a clanging cowbell; electro, hip hop, trap |
| `tight` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash tambourine | thin, tight and digital; early house and italo |
| `sharp` | kick snare hat openhat lowtom hightom crash | small and sharp; acid and electro hats |
| `lofi` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride | cheap, flat and digital; lo-fi house |
| `arena` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | the 1980s pop kit: big snare and toms; synthwave, synth pop |
| `round` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | rounder and punchier than arena; 1980s pop and funk |
| `funk` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | punchy 1980s machine; electro-funk, synth pop, early hip hop |
| `grit` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride | gritty and dark, like drums through an old 12-bit sampler; boom bap and golden-era house |
| `warm` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim lowtom midtom hightom crash ride | warm and a little dusty; hip hop and house |
| `clean` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell crash ride shaker tambourine | clean 1990s pop and rock kit |
| `studio` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | polished 1990s kit with realistic toms |
| `bright` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | bright 1990s kit with a clicky kick |
| `rave` | kick snare clap hat openhat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride shaker tambourine | hard, compact 1990s kit; rave and hardcore |
| `crunch` | kick snare clap hat rim cowbell lowtom midtom hightom crash ride | crunchy, dark 8-bit kit |
| `laser` | kick snare hat openhat rim lowtom midtom hightom | electronic drums with falling toms, the 1980s pew sound |
| `soft` | kick snare hat openhat cowbell tambourine | soft preset rhythm box; lo-fi, krautrock, dub |
| `wood` | kick snare hat openhat | 1960s rhythm box; soft and woody |

## Instruments

53 instruments built by Songcode. Each is a finished patch with a range it sounds right in. Notes outside the range still play, with less character. Velocity is expression, and a `~` after a pitch slides into the next note.

### bass

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `subbass` | c1-c2 | pure sine sub with a trace of second harmonic so it reads on small speakers |
| `reese` | c1-c2 | detuned saws beating over a sine sub, slow filter drift; the drum & bass and garage bass |
| `acid` | c1-c3 | saw through a screaming resonant filter; velocity is the accent, slide glides between notes |
| `acidsq` | c1-c3 | the square-wave acid line: hollower and more nasal than acid |
| `pulsebass` | c1-c2 | short plucked pulse-and-saw bass for rolling 16ths under a kick |
| `fmbass` | c1-c3 | FM bass with a hard knock on the attack; the house and electro workhorse |
| `fatbass` | c1-c3 | three-oscillator analogue bass, round and funky, filter snaps on each note |
| `wobble` | c1-c2 | tempo-synced filter wobble; take sets wobbles per bar (4, 6, 8, 12, 16) |
| `boombass` | c1-c2 | the long tuned kick bass: sine with a pitch drop and enough drive to be heard; slide glides |
| `organbass` | c2-c3 | percussive organ bass, the bouncing garage and house bassline |
| `fingerbass` | e1-g3 | plucked electric bass (string model): real attack and decay, notes mute on release |
| `upright` | e1-g3 | plucked double bass (string model): dark, woody, short |
| `hoover` | c2-c4 | the rave hoover: pulse-width saws in octaves that scoop up into the note |
| `donk` | c2-c4 | hollow FM knock with a pitch snap; the bounce and hard-dance offbeat bass |
| `growl` | c1-c3 | vowel bass: saws through moving formants (ah to oo) and drive; the talking dubstep bass |
| `logdrum` | c1-c3 | the amapiano log drum: a tuned, knocking sine that is both bass and percussion |

### leads and stabs

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `sawlead` | c3-c6 | two-saw analogue lead with delayed vibrato; sings in the upper mids |
| `hypersaw` | c3-c6 | seven detuned saws spread wide, phases free-running; the trance and rave chord wall |
| `squarelead` | c3-c6 | hollow square lead, slightly detuned, with late vibrato |
| `chip` | c3-c7 | raw 25% pulse, no filter: the console chip lead and arpeggio |
| `synthpluck` | c3-c6 | bright pluck: filter snaps shut in a tenth of a second; arpeggios and melodic hooks |
| `stab` | c3-c5 | short driven chord stab, three saws and a sub-octave square; play it as chords |
| `synthbrass` | c3-c5 | analogue brass: filter swells open on each note with a slight pitch scoop; fanfares and big chords |
| `fmbell` | c4-c7 | inharmonic FM bell with a long ring |
| `glass` | c4-c7 | glassy FM tine with chorus; delicate high melodies |
| `gfunk` | c5-c7 | high whining portamento lead; use slide between notes |
| `whistle` | c5-c7 | breathy sine whistle with vibrato |
| `zap` | c4-c6 | pitch-diving laser zap; electro punctuation |
| `blip` | c5-c7 | tiny FM blip; glitch melodies and percussion |

### keys

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `epiano` | c2-c6 | FM electric piano: soft tine at low velocity, bark at high, stereo tremolo |
| `reedpiano` | c2-c6 | reedy, overdriven electric piano with tremolo |
| `organ` | c2-c6 | drawbar organ with percussion and rotary speaker |
| `houseorgan` | c3-c5 | percussive organ stab for house and garage chords |
| `clav` | c2-c5 | funk clavinet: thin pulse with a snapping filter |
| `celesta` | c4-c7 | soft FM music box |

### pads

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `warmpad` | c3-c5 | slow pulse-width pad with ensemble chorus and a drifting filter |
| `ensemble` | c3-c6 | string machine: stacked saws through a three-voice ensemble chorus |
| `glasspad` | c3-c6 | slow FM pad, bright and bell-like at the top |
| `choir` | c3-c5 | synthetic choir: saws through vowel formants opening from oh to ah |
| `ooh` | c3-c5 | closed-vowel choir, soft and dark |
| `darkpad` | c2-c4 | low detuned saws and noise behind a slowly breathing filter |
| `airpad` | c3-c6 | tuned breath: noise resonated at the note, almost no oscillator |
| `dubchord` | c3-c5 | the dub techno chord: a short filtered stab built to be drowned in delay |

### plucked strings

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `nylon` | e2-e5 | nylon-string guitar (string model) |
| `steel` | e2-e5 | steel-string guitar (string model), bright with a long ring |
| `koto` | c3-c6 | koto-like string plucked near the bridge: sharp and metallic |
| `pizz` | c2-c6 | pizzicato string: short, round, damped |
| `mutegtr` | e2-e5 | palm-muted guitar: the funk and disco sixteenth-note chick |
| `harpsichord` | c2-c6 | harpsichord: two bright strings an octave apart |

### transitions

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `riser` | c3-c4 | noise and saws sweeping upward for exactly the length of the note; hold it for 4 or 8 bars before a drop |
| `downer` | c3-c4 | the reverse: a bright burst that falls and fades across the note; place it on the first bar after a drop |
| `impact` | c1-c2 | low boom with a noise tail; marks a downbeat or a drop |
| `subdrop` | c2-c3 | sine diving two octaves over a second; the bass drop |

## Singers

6 singing voices built by Songcode. A singer is a sound like any other, and it also sings words: a `lyrics` block puts words on its notes, one syllable to a note. Without words it sings "ah". See [lyrics](https://docs.songco.de/ode/language/#lyrics).

| singer | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `soprano` | c4-c6 | a high, bright singing voice with a quick vibrato; the top line of a chorus |
| `alto` | g3-e5 | a warm, low female singing voice; the default lead vocal |
| `tenor` | c3-a4 | a clear, high male singing voice; lead vocals and hooks |
| `baritone` | g2-e4 | a deep, rounded male singing voice; low leads and the bottom of a harmony |
| `robot` | c2-c5 | a flat machine voice: every note dead on pitch, no vibrato, no breath |
| `whisper` | c3-c5 | a whispered voice with no pitch of its own: the words as breath, for intros and breakdowns |

Each voice is formant synthesis: a pulse at the note's pitch stands in for the vocal folds, noise stands in for breath and consonants, and five moving resonances stand in for the mouth. It is computed in your browser, like the other instruments. No recording of a singer is involved and no model was trained on one. It sounds like a synthesizer singing, in English.

## Oscillators and noise

Raw waveforms, for when a patch is built by hand from filters and envelopes.

| sound | character |
|---|---|
| `sawtooth` | bright and buzzy |
| `square` | hollow |
| `triangle` | soft, flute-like |
| `sine` | pure |
| `pulse` | nasal, narrow |
| `supersaw` | detuned saw stack; shape with voices 5 and detune 25cents |
| `white` | bright hiss |
| `pink` | softer, even hiss |
| `brown` | low rumble |
| `crackle` | vinyl crackle |

## Recorded instruments

Sampled instruments: short recordings of single notes. Some sounds, here and among the General MIDI instruments, were recorded played more than one way (plucked, bounced, tongued short, muted). A word in a line or the `technique` setting picks one: see [ways of playing](https://docs.songco.de/ode/rows-and-settings/#ways-of-playing).

| sound | range | character |
|---|---|---|
| `piano` | a0-c7 | sampled grand piano |
| `upright_piano` | a0-c7 | recorded upright piano played softly: mellow, close and a little worn, the piano in the corner of a room. Lo-fi, ballads, folk, indie, ragtime |
| `fm_piano` | e1-c7 | recorded FM electric piano: glassy, bell-like attack over a soft body, the electric piano of 1980s ballads. Lo-fi, city pop, R&B, synth pop |
| `kalimba` | b3-a5 | thumb piano: soft, round, quick decay |
| `marimba` | c3-c6 | wooden mallet bars, warm and round |
| `vibraphone` | f3-f6 | metal bars with a long ring |
| `xylophone` | c4-c7 | hard, dry and bright mallet bars |
| `glockenspiel` | c5-c7 | small steel bars, very high and pure |
| `balafon` | c3-c6 | west African gourd xylophone, buzzy and earthy |
| `harp` | c3-c6 | concert harp, plucked |
| `sax` | c3-c5 | saxophone, sustained notes |
| `sax_stacc` | c3-c5 | saxophone, short tongued notes |
| `harmonica` | c4-c6 | blues harmonica |
| `electric_bass` | c#1-d#4 | electric bass guitar recorded direct, round and solid; a note stops when it ends. The rock bass: add drive 20% for grit |
| `powerchord` | c2-d4 | distorted electric guitar power chord (root, fifth and octave in one note): write only the root, one note at a time. The rock and metal rhythm guitar, and one stem plays the whole riff: a hit (x or X) is the open chord, held as long as the note lasts, and a ghost hit (o, or any velocity under 60) is the same chord palm-muted, a short tight chug. [o o X - o o X -] is chug chug CHORD |
| `palmmute` | c2-d4 | only the palm-muted chug of powerchord, at any velocity: write only the root. For a second guitar that never opens up; it rings a fifth of a second however long the note |
| `crunch_guitar` | c#2-c6 | electric guitar through a lightly driven amp, single notes: riffs, arpeggios and strummed chords written out as notes. Indie and alternative rhythm guitar |
| `violins` | g3-c7 | a violin section, bowed with vibrato: the top line of an orchestra |
| `violas` | c3-e6 | a viola section, bowed: the warm middle of the strings |
| `contrabass` | e1-c4 | orchestral double bass, bowed: the floor under the strings |
| `double_bass` | e1-g4 | a double bass plucked with the fingers: jazz walking lines, folk, rockabilly |
| `bassoon` | a#1-e5 | low double reed: dry and woody, the bass of the woodwinds |
| `piccolo` | d5-a7 | small flute an octave above the flute: bright and piercing |
| `tuba` | f1-f4 | the lowest brass: round and wide |
| `recorder` | f4-g6 | wooden alto recorder: plain and breathy, early music and folk |
| `ocarina` | a4-e6 | clay vessel flute: hollow, pure and gentle |
| `tubular_bells` | c4-g5 | struck orchestral chimes: church bell tones with a long ring |
| `dan_tranh` | b2-d6 | Vietnamese plucked zither: bright metal strings that bend |

The sounds with more than one way of playing:

| sound | also played |
|---|---|
| `violin` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato`, `tremolo` |
| `cello` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato` |
| `violins` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato`, `tremolo` |
| `violas` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato`, `tremolo` |
| `contrabass` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato`, `tremolo` |
| `string_ensemble_1` | `pizzicato`, `spiccato`, `tremolo` |
| `flute` | `staccato` |
| `oboe` | `staccato` |
| `clarinet` | `staccato` |
| `bassoon` | `staccato` |
| `piccolo` | `staccato` |
| `trumpet` | `staccato`, `muted` |
| `french_horn` | `staccato`, `muted` |
| `trombone` | `staccato` |
| `tuba` | `staccato` |
| `sax` | `staccato` |
| `recorder` | `staccato` |
| `dan_tranh` | `tremolo` |
| `powerchord` | `muted` |

Every pitched sound also takes the [styles of playing](https://docs.songco.de/ode/rows-and-settings/#styles-of-playing), which need no recording: `stacc`, `marc`, `ten` and `port`, or in plain words `short`, `punch`, `held` and `pushed`. Bowed strings add `spic` (`bounce`). On bowed strings, winds, brass and choirs each note is shaped by the player, and the `bow` and `breath` [settings](https://docs.songco.de/ode/rows-and-settings/#settings) set how.

## Percussion

30 hand drums, shakers, bells and blocks, each with several recorded takes. A stem on one takes a `rhythm` row and no pitches. `take 3` picks a take, counted from 0, and `take [0 2 1 3]` picks one per hit.

| sound | takes | character |
|---|---|---|
| `conga` | 34 | hand drum, low and round; open tones, slaps and mutes |
| `bongo` | 28 | small high hand drums |
| `cajon` | 18 | box drum: bass thump and snare slap |
| `darbuka` | 20 | goblet drum: deep doum and sharp tek |
| `framedrum` | 18 | wide, soft hand drum |
| `timpani` | 30 | orchestral kettle drum |
| `slitdrum` | 6 | hollow wooden log tone |
| `clave` | 6 | sharp wooden click |
| `woodblock` | 10 | hollow wooden knock |
| `cowbell` | 13 | acoustic cowbell |
| `agogo` | 5 | paired metal bells |
| `cabasa` | 6 | bead shaker, short and dry |
| `guiro` | 5 | scraped gourd |
| `tambourine` | 7 | jingles |
| `triangles` | 37 | triangle, open and muted |
| `sleighbells` | 6 | sleigh bells |
| `vibraslap` | 4 | rattling buzz |
| `ratchet` | 8 | wooden ratchet |
| `gong` | 7 | large gong, long tail |
| `sus_cymbal` | 25 | suspended cymbal: hits, scrapes and swells |
| `anvil` | 9 | struck steel |
| `brakedrum` | 17 | struck car brake drum, pitched clang |
| `fingercymbal` | 1 | tiny bright cymbal |
| `marktrees` | 6 | chime tree sweep |
| `oceandrum` | 3 | rolling beads, surf-like |
| `siren` | 5 | hand siren |
| `slapstick` | 5 | whip crack |
| `flexatone` | 8 | wobbling metal glissando |
| `clap` | 10 | real hand claps |
| `didgeridoo` | 12 | drone pipe hits |

## Textures

Recorded and synthesised noises for atmosphere. Takes work the same way.

| sound | takes | character |
|---|---|---|
| `wind` | 10 | wind gusts |
| `space` | 18 | sci-fi blips |
| `metal` | 10 | small metallic hits |
| `insect` | 3 | insect chirps |
| `crow` | 4 | crow calls |
| `thunder` | 3 | a roll of thunder, about 7 seconds: far off, close by with a crack, a long roll |

## Ambience

8 beds for the air around a track: rain, a record's surface, tape, birds, crickets, a stream, the sea and a fire. Each one is worked out in your browser, in stereo, and goes round with no seam for as long as a note holds it. None is a recording.

```ode
stem air: rain {
  rhythm   [x]
  take     1
  highpass 300hz
}
```

One hit a bar keeps a bed going through the track. `take` picks the kind, counted from 0: `rain` runs from a drizzle to rain on a window, `vinyl` from a clean record to a dusty one. Set its level low in the mix table, around `-16db`, so it sits under the music. `thunder`, under textures, is one roll and plays once per hit.

| sound | takes | character |
|---|---|---|
| `rain` | 4 | rain: drizzle, steady, downpour, rain on a window |
| `vinyl` | 3 | a record's surface with its clicks, hiss and one scratch that comes round each turn: clean, worn, dusty |
| `tape` | 2 | tape hiss: open reel, tired cassette |
| `birds` | 3 | birdsong: a garden, the dawn chorus, one bird alone |
| `crickets` | 2 | night crickets: one or two, a field |
| `stream` | 2 | running water: a trickle, a brook |
| `waves` | 2 | the sea coming in and drawing back: a calm shore, surf |
| `fire` | 2 | a crackling fire: embers, a campfire |

## General MIDI instruments

34 instruments in the General MIDI set, for brass, reeds, strings and the like. Most are recordings of single notes, and a few are synthesised. They are plainer than the instruments above and useful when a track calls for an acoustic colour.

`trumpet`, `muted_trumpet`, `trombone`, `french_horn`, `brass_section`, `flute`, `pan_flute`, `shakuhachi`, `clarinet`, `oboe`, `violin`, `cello`, `string_ensemble_1`, `tremolo_strings`, `choir_aahs`, `voice_oohs`, `accordion`, `church_organ`, `steel_drums`, `music_box`, `sitar`, `banjo`, `koto`, `electric_guitar_clean`, `electric_guitar_jazz`, `overdriven_guitar`, `distortion_guitar`, `slap_bass_1`, `fretless_bass`, `taiko_drum`, `orchestra_hit`, `reverse_cymbal`, `pad_warm`, `pad_halo`

## Where the sounds come from

- The synthesised kits, instruments, singers and ambience are defined in Songcode's catalog and computed in your browser.
- The `live` and `rock` kits, the recorded instruments, the percussion and most of the General MIDI set are recordings from open sample libraries, served by Songcode. [songco.de/licenses](https://songco.de/licenses#sounds) credits each library.

---

This page on the web: https://docs.songco.de/audio-engine/sounds/
Every page of the Songcode docs, for agents: https://docs.songco.de/llms.txt (index) and https://docs.songco.de/llms-full.txt (all of it in one file).