Eurythmics "Sweet Dreams" on synth - keyboard tutorial by jpgroleau

After almost 10 years without any new keyboard videos, here comes a new one! Since I was young, I have always loved the synth part of that song. Here is a little tutorial to learn how to play it as close as possible to the real song. I might be wrong, it's probably not perfect, but to my ears it sound's good!
My keyboard was plugged directly into the computer with no microphone so that's why you don't hear any other sounds from the camera. Every sound you hear is the real sound coming from the Roland E-300.

[@dugthefreshest]

The only person I've seen do all the parts correctly!

[@JPGroleau]

Thanks for the nice comment !

[@sireuchre]

I saw a live performance of the song some years ago, and there's a synth trick he was using to far reduce the number of key presses - those 3 note rising scale riffs you hear are actually programmed into each of the keys, so it only takes 4 keys struck in a repeating cycle to produce the sound. It was odd hearing all the notes and seeing so little keying, but that gives that frantic sounding keying without having to have lightning fingers.

[@alansnyder149]

Nice. I am interested to know how songs like this are performed in a live setting. Are they using a lot of pads to trigger sequences and samples and just performing the solos live?

[@toaster5112]

Surreal! Sounds 99% identical. I'm having goosebumps, great job! Subscribed.

[@JPGroleau]

for the goosebumps, take a look at my upgraded version of the "sweet dreams" sound, my most accurate take yet : kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWLbZn-MqaupbtE

[@roberto2k1]

Identical to the original synth sound, good job

[@cgbolton1]

OK so I am a brass instrument player and have been for over 20 years. I have had a piano and musical keyboard in my house for as long as I can remember but I haven't been motivated to learn how to play the keys until this video. I am slowly and painstakingly going over this and I am dedicated to learning how to play this song. Thank you so much for posting this and for doing it in such a clear and easy to follow way.

[@JPGroleau]

Christopher Bolton thank you very much for the nice comment!!

[@paulfitzgerald4933]

fantastic!!! great work man. it goes to show just how damn creative Annie, Howard & Dave were to create it.

[@nocre2948]

You helped me a lot with that background synth

[@JakubKorzeniowski]

man, you got me fire up my minilogue late at night and practice for a few hours! amazing video!

[@fafney]

Thank you so much JP !!! This is the best tuto and version 100% sounds like the original ;) I'll use it to make our first cover !! Merci et bravo

[@nsera9462]

Brilliant, I have always wanted to learn this and your tutorial made it so easy.

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

Not for me. Shame on me. For me, playing by ear is "sour nightmares are made of this"!

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

I'm used to using sheet music.

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

BTW I change my KZbin account and channel periodically because keeping track of passwords is frying my brain. But the point is that I'm not a troll; I have had different accounts over the years.

[@murdocpickles8125]

Sounds like the actual one

[@JPGroleau]

that's a very nice comment ! Thanks

[@murdocpickles8125]

JPGroleau np

[@JPGroleau]

@@murdocpickles8125 here is my best recreation of the "sweet dreams" sound : kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWLbZn-MqaupbtE

[@2CREATthief]

love that sound of this synth so much

[@JPGroleau]

Me too! One of the best synth line from the 80's!

[@bokicar1]

Hahaha since this song came out i was trying to work out notes and it always sounded crap. Now when i sold my synth i found this video, Grrrrrr, Great play!!!

[@JPGroleau]

you have to buy a new synth now !

[@MostlyPennyCat]

What is this "selling synth" you speak off?

[@Raptiel]

Dude thats fuckin awesome. Seems like some magic to me 😂

[@ianbrighton7115]

Brilliant tutorial sounds awesome on the JD XI

[@maestro.english]

Thank you so much for the video! Now I'll finally be able to get that synths's parts right))

[@yungbenz337]

AWESOME VIDEO!!! Sounds cool

[@zxcvsyd]

I just found this out today. But I’m sure Quicksilver would be so proud of this masterpiece.

[@alansnyder149]

This is Awesome! So in a live setting are you sampling/ sequencing the first and second synth track?

[@ineedamirroroferised2844]

Can you do a video of a continuous loop of the opening riff? I'm not tired of it and never will be. The whole song is beautiful but I can't get enough of that riff.

[@danwoodvine5900]

Well done!

[@manuelurvina1068]

Suscribed because you did it very well.

[@JPGroleau]

Thank you very much!

[@osmaromolina753]

IT HELPED! THANK YOU!

[@JPGroleau]

Glad to hear that!

[@nsera9462]

Brilliant!!!!

[@meechellla]

Seriously 🔥 … thank you ✌🏼❤️

[@Hesthedaddy]

Brilliant !

[@ShubhoBose]

Very helpful!

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

The riff is what originally attracted me to the song! What are the notes? I tried to memorize what I saw, but it's hard to, unless the video is in slo-mo. And that's why I never play by ear; *my playing ANYTHING by ear turns into "Sour Nightmares Are Made of This".* I either need sheet music or to watch someone play it in slo-mo.

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

I just discovered playback speed settings on KZbin. So now I am listening to the riff in slo-mo. That helps a lot.

[@alexc2234]

Awesome!!! I could be wrong but I think at 1:31 the right-hand notes played are G#, C, G, C. but could possibly be G#, C, G, A#, C. Thoughts?

[@JPGroleau]

I've listened to this song dozens of times with good headphones in the past and i've come to conclusion that that A# you mention is from the other synth part. When I play that synth part over the other synth part from 2:19 to 2:36 your ears can hear that "ghost" A# as I call it. Seriously, those two synth parts on top of each other with such a similar sound patch is probably the main reason why this song sounds so awesome! Every notes from the two parts get mixed up and sounds incredible.

[@nathanwahl9224]

@@JPGroleau THAT'S the kind of discussion and info I need when I come to YT, but it's rare. Thanks to you both. I'm trying to figure out how to best approximate this when covering it in our 3-piece band with just a new (to me) DS61. And carry (or at least imply) a decent bass line in there somewhere, too; that's my normal role when not on keys. I'm hoping I can use two patches on the far left range, a bass and one synth, and maybe arpeggiate the synth part on and off to get that "bouncy" thing. Second synth in the middle, solo on the right. In theory . . . . .

[@geovariusofficial242]

merci beaucoup pour ta transcription fidèle du riff principal , surtout le jeu main gauche, maintenant je sais comment la jouer !

[@riccardotorri8648]

amazing! thank you!

[@petrgrygar2191]

To vůbec nebylo špatné! Pořádně si to nacvič a pak to sjeď jedním dechem! Věřím, že to bude stát za to!! :))

[@nigeladams8321]

Bravo my man, bravo

[@osmaromolina753]

impressive

[@adesrackman8556]

J’adore ❤️👌

[@TheSoulcraft]

Love that synth! Drummer here learning synth:you know anything about the old roland em55? I cant figure out the sequencer,only havr pdf version of manual & it sux tbh#

[@justdolphy2814]

That is SO COOL. What were the BPM you used? It sounds just a few clicks faster than the original. And I LOVE THAT.

[@RuleroftheUnderworldMAY2012]

Whenever Pietro Django Maximoff/Quicksilver “Catches Time in a Bottle” It’s Pure Magic

[@fnonaka]

It looks simple, but it's complex!

[@GhostOfDamned]

Sweet memes are made of these

[@nicolaimoen9684]

NUTS

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

@Red that's a cute comment. Sweet memes are made of these is a good parody.

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

@Nicolai It's not nuts, it's funny!

[@sagazbanda]

Thanks you 💕💕

[@edwinrodolfocampossolis8832]

😮😮😮😮IS BEAUTIFUL😭😭😭😭

[@TheGodParticle]

Nice one mate

[@JPGroleau]

thank you!

[@peternauta]

A pity you didn't show in detail the right hand

[@applesauce4389]

If you slow the video down to .5 or .25 speed, it makes it much easier to break it down

[@peternauta]

@@applesauce4389 even in slower speed is not possible to see what is not in the video.

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

@@applesauce4389 I would if I could, but this is a public computer & they won't let people download editing software. Bummer!

[@abitinsane5446]

do you have the notes written out? it's so hard to follow your hands.

[@JPGroleau]

I don't. You can reduce de speed of the video, should be easy to see what notes in what order.

[@abitinsane5446]

+JPGroleau cool

[@daniellewilkie7572]

ABitInsane .

[@daniellewilkie7572]

ABitInsane ya fr

[@daniloapostolov-dacatv1536]

What is sound button?

[@xLeidenFrost]

if anyone needs help on finding the mode of this on a yamaha dgx-650, its called "80s brass"

[@franckdebank]

Merci mon p'tit jpgroleau!

[@Bounesclow]

Great job dude!!

[@JPGroleau]

thanks !

[@daniellewilkie7572]

Bounesclow .

[@FinAndo69]

What is the ID number for that tone on a Casio CTK-2300

[@luciovisani1293]

Bravo!

[@swishoemi]

now play this on 0.75

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

I just did, but I have to keep listening to it. Playing by ear is hard. I'm used to using sheet music.

[@yazid51100]

Great ! 👍

[@thefamemonster316]

can i use This for a cover You'll be credited

[@jpeg.600x2]

I have a question I've been pondering for a long time and I was wishing if you could help?How do you compose the parts on the keyboard so it plays at the same time and records many tracks.I have a Yamaha YPT-255 and I couldn't find a way to record parts and play them together.Does it only play one past or is there a way I am ignorant of?Pls help.

[@jpeg.600x2]

I meant part

[@JPGroleau]

some keyboard (like the one I'm using in this video) have built-in sequencer. I can record 16 tracks, one at the time. I took a look at the specs of the Yamaha YPT-255. This keyboard seems to be only able to record a single track. You would need a software to record the keyboard in your computer, track by track.

[@jpeg.600x2]

JPGroleau thnx

[@goeritz]

whats the tone?

[@angel127_]

well DAMNNNNNNN.

[@evem8539]

wow

[@JPGroleau]

thanks !

[@FrazzleGaming]

Im never gonna be able to play the 2nd synth track XD its to hard and I cant really see

[@JPGroleau]

try to look at it one hand at the time. Each hand is not that hard, then you try putting them together.

[@FrazzleGaming]

okay :D thank you

[@djsisa4088]

Speed 0.5 for low person like me

[@hakimtazibt7141]

Nice

[@JPGroleau]

thank you!

[@easy4steve]

cool

[@oscarrivera9028]

yo what do you use for the iano to make it sound like that

[@JPGroleau]

You can see the sound patch in the video. Polysynth and Synth Brass 1. Syn. Strings 1 for the solo. To record the sound of the keyboard I used the outputs of the keyboard connected to an Mbox, recorded with Pro Tools.

[@1plmkoqazxsw]

alright mate do you no how to play luvstruck southside spinners.Been trying to find a tutorial for that tune for years.

[@JPGroleau]

+Tom Cooper unfortunatly, I don't know that song.

[@mariyasavchenko8028]

Does anyone know which sound from garageband to use? Please help ;)

[@JPGroleau]

I don'T really know garage band, but you need to find some kind of "synth brass" sound, or any not-to-harsh saw wave patch. For the synth solo part, use something like a synth-strings or slow strings patch.

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

@Maria Savchenko Garage band? What's that? (pardon my ignorance) I have heard of garage band as in *bands playing in garage*s but I didn't know there's a *specific sound* named "garage band". Pardon my ignoooooraaaanceeee.

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

@@CraigScottFrost Phaser? What's that? (pardon my ignorance)

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

@@CraigScottFrost I don't have a phone at the moment (I accidentally broke it by cleaning it with SANITIZER), but when I get a new one I will do that. Thank you for informing this *ignorant ole dummy* (that's what I feel like when there's music-related terms that I haven't heard of!)

[@grievinggeekclairedixon3445]

No, of course I'm not dumb; I just give myself a hard time for being ignorant about anything that is music-related. I have a relative who is "a character" and who calls herself dumb (when she doesn't realize something that's obvious). I sass myself the way she sasses herself. I got my flippant sense of humor from her. But I digress. She's not dumb and neither am I.

[@todosko]

haha! good!

[@JPGroleau]

Thanks !

[@kam9908]

this is the closest to the real one

[@jjaung07]

😊

[@Kai-Infinity]

What synth sound you used here? Thanks,

[@JPGroleau]

the main sound is "synth brass 1", the left hand or other synth sound from the main part is "polysynth" and the solo sound is not that good at all, because I dont have a better one, but I used "synth strings".

[@mags14570]

Slow it down and show us please

[@JPGroleau]

mags14570 you can slow down the video playback by yourself!

[@clashofthehornsofficialytu2082]

Dang bro how lazy u gotta be to even ask that question lol

[@Ricy013]

does somebody has notes?

Are you blind?

[@nocturnal7345]

Ricy013 This is seriously playable by ear

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

@@nocturnal7345 Not for me. I'm terrible at playing by ear. *Shame on me!* I need the score or at least for you to post on a comment what the notes are. (Not the whole thing, just the riff). I'm not going to play the whole thing; it's too fast.

[@nocturnal7345]

@@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882 There are midis out there that can maybe help you play this. Tbh, my perfect pitch is non existent and I can just play by ear but can't really identify notes without a reference.

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

​ Magnus Maximus I have enough perfect pitch to pick out the melody of most songs, & the riff in this particular song, but only when it's played slow. This is FAST. That's why it's difficult. I remember well that I couldn't even play my most fave tune ("The Ploughboy's Dream") by ear without the sheet music, & it's an easy song (this was years ago, but I remember because it's my favorite tune). This is it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6qrdoOGept2o7s So if THAT was hard for me to play by ear, everything else will be, too. Shame on me.

[@ВиталийРоман-ц1л]

я тоже научилса играть sweet dreams

[@ruslandkdkd]

прикольно

[@SidneiVermundes]

it's So Hard for me 😭😭🙀🙀

[@Ocsyreg]

Oooh this is in superpads XD

[@zikkicharade]

Why he only shoes the left hand and not the right

[@JPGroleau]

0:33 first synth track, left hand. 1:27 second synth track, both hands. 1:55 synth solo, right hand.

[@jmm1233]

Blue Monday

[@xxrenegadeninjaxx7234]

anyone 2018?

[@абв-ц9я]

Мне кажется фейк если нет сделай разбор

[@KitsuneyokaiNinetales]

I can sing the song

[@mediumvibesonly7974]

thats coool

[@yvonnedavis1225]

... didn't help...

[@claireforestgreenorgangeek7882]

Didn't help me either. For me, it's sour nightmares are made of this. I freakin' can't play by ear.

[@jeffthekiller2588]

una asi no se toca se toca de otra forma telo digo por que soy pianista profesional

[@абв-ц9я]

No

[@ronalddaniel1696]

nada aver

[@sobrefatos_oficial]

Tudo aver cara

[@altoremoblakovsky5955]

0:16 fake

[@JPGroleau]

Нано 45561954 you should’ve watch the entire video. I explain later that I recorded one synth track first, then I play the other synth part over that recording. I’m sorry, but I only have enough hands to play one track at a time! And there’s more than one synth track in the real song. That’s what I explain in this video!

[@AxMxx]

what's the eighth key you

[@JPGroleau]

If needed, I suggest you slow down the speed of the video. Should be able to see all the notes quite well then!

[@NYyazoofan]

Well done!