Fight the Power
Public EnemyDense sample layers show fragments becoming a new rhythm and context.
SINSTRUMENT · KNOWLEDGE GUIDE
Sampler
Recorded sound can be sliced, pitched, looped and rearranged.
- Instrument family
- Electronic
- Origin
- Australia, the United States and Europe, late 1970s–1980s
- Related genres
- 4
ORIGIN
Where does it come from?
Digital samplers store recordings in memory so they can be sliced, pitched, looped and triggered, turning recorded sound into rearrangeable material.
ROLE IN ARRANGEMENT
What does it do in an arrangement?
It is both a rhythmic instrument and a method for placing older sounds in a new context.
ChoppingPitchingLooping
COMMON USES
Where will you hear it?
Used throughout hip-hop, dance music, pop and scoring; source choice and rearrangement are equally important.
LISTENING EXAMPLES
Recordings and repertoire to recognize
COMMON GENRES
Common in these genres
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