The Amen Break - An analysis of the most important sample in history | Drum Patterns Explained

► / captainpikant Support us on Patreon and get access to lots of drum patterns, cheat sheets and more!
Much has been said about the history of the Amen Break, but in this episode we take a look at the drum pattern behind the legendary breakbeat, how it works, its little details and what makes it special.
► Instagram / captainpikant
Featured drum patterns - transcriptions available on Patreon:
The Winstons - Amen Brother
Gear used:
Roland TR-6S
Synthstrom Audible Deluge
#amenbreak #tr6s #909 #deluge #drummachine #synthstrom #roland #hiphop #jungle #dnb #drumnbass #breakbeat #sampling
Produced by Jean-Claude Dirckx and Sophie Hoppstädter

[@CaptainPikant]

For all you Deluge users we made a list of some helpful shortcuts we used while making this video: • Double clip length and rollout: [Shift] + press [◄ ►] knob • Re-order kit row: [Audition pad] + press and turn [▼▲] knob • Change single kit row colour: [Shift] + [Audition pad] + turn [▼▲] knob • Make a kit row send MIDI: [Audition pad] + [MIDI] (any sound assigned to the kit row is removed, it will only send MIDI now) • Select MIDI channel / note for kit row: [Audition pad] + turn [lower] knob / [upper] knob • Add current instrument to choke group: [Shift] + [Polyphony] > CHOK • Sample start/end: [Shift] + [Waveform]. Press green start line or red end line, then adjust with [pads] or [select] knob. Zoom in for finer adjustments (press and turn [◄ ►] knob) • Newly placed notes and notes played with the audition pads will default to the same velocity as the last note touched on that pattern (that's the reason I touch the cymbal step at 8:00 - so I can use the audition pad at this velocity). These will of course also be in the Deluge Cheat Sheet we're working on right now! :)

[@Klimen777]

An example done quickly on TR-6s without a sampler Real Drums kzbin.info/www/bejne/jmPXgHl3mLV3b80

[@thb-music]

Man... timestretch artifacts are like a spcial sauce of each sampler. DnB/Jungle oldskoolers seem to just know an Akai timestretch vs anything else.

[@danielmulholland5869]

The 1010music blackbox has my favorite artifacts of any modern unit

[@SlashCampable]

I'm a big fan of the jank you can get from abletons stretching. At ultra low speeds the beat and granular modes start sounding amazing.

[@rebusd]

@@SlashCampable amen brother lol

[@made.online2149]

the virgin timestretch the chad playing it slower & faster by pitching it up and down

[@henrymackay6724]

My mpc1000 gets a bit too crunchy lol Edit: I am aware most dnb was on a s950 or s I forget the number

[@mattkaz9604]

I should hate this break as it's been used to death, but it really does sound so nice and lend itself to being used in so many ways.

[@JgHaverty]

I think the magic of it is it transcends a specific genre. When its used between artists between the likes of U2 down to NWA, its more of a flourish than anything

[@inthefade]

It's the blue jeans of break beats; Everyone wears them and no one cares that everyone wears them.

[@crimsonfancy]

@@inthefade Interesting observation. I can relate and do appreciate your analogy.

[@scottadams7820]

Do you hate guitars and pianos and snare drums because they've been used to death too?

[@mattkaz9604]

@@scottadams7820 Yes.. yes i do.

[@scality4309]

First time i heard an Amen, i would have never thought it was just a normal drumkit.

[@Gameboygenius]

Right? I want to see that what snare drum looks like.

[@inthefade]

It's all about the room sound, compression and mic setup.

[@gearwatcher]

@@Gameboygenius It's a 14x6.5 ludwig steel

[@leewightman8619]

Real drums just pitched and sliced

[@blueberrimuffin6682]

@@leewightman8619 Ah yes, the original track Amen, Brother by the Winstons, famous for resampling and chopping their own drum break in the 60s.

[@DJChrisNeon]

I always felt the charm of the Amen was how it changed in pitch when it was matched to the tempo of whatever track it was being used in.

[@netako]

I love how the drum beats that plays during the transitions are played by the featured drum machine (drum machines this time) in his videos.

[@CaptainPikant]

Thanks! I think you're the first one to notice!

[@semyonboyk0]

I can never get tired of hearing an Amen. Great video, thanks for sharing!

[@valencygraphics]

Can I just say as a non-musician, but an avid listener who loves doing deep dives on my favorite genres: This was so refreshing and wonderful to hear a precise and in-depth break down of the building block that makes up my favorite genre, Drum and Bass. The way you've presented it is so wonderful and clear. Absolutely lovely. Thank you.

[@CANControlGRAFFITI]

Welp. I’m afraid that means you like hip-hop and the likes mate 😅

[@maksimn.]

​@@CANControlGRAFFITI Amen breaks aren't unique to hip hop mate

[@harrys919]

@@CANControlGRAFFITIwhat’s wrong with that

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@CANControlGRAFFITIabsolutely, my love for jungle/DnB as a young teen is what helped me get into hiphop as an older one! (I mean I already liked classic NY hiphop like GM Flash, but everything more modern than that lol)

[@k.upward]

I‘ve always struggled with my songwriting for the singular reason of being bad at designing beats. I just found this channel and it’s a godsend

[@BenGeorge77]

Deluge is a junglemachine--the p-locking lets you change all sorts of parameters per hit, so you can do the filter/pitch/etc sweeping. Also, the timestretch algo is really reminscent of the early Akai algos, so riiiinnnnsssee oooouuuttt to your heart's content.

[@antonyath2950]

I m 46 and an oldschool breakbeat rave fan from the 90s era. Also an amateur musician in that genre from 2000. The video blew my mind! Such an inspiration! (Especially the slices!)

[@rockdoverehab8407]

I've literally just started playing around with music production stuff, videos like this really help with the motivation to keep learning cool shit like this!

[@paulm7826]

Very detailed and informative, and presented in a clear and accessible way. This is the best analysis of the Amen break that I have seen. Thank you.

[@beetheimmortal]

The time-stretching at the end reminded me of Fatboy Slim's Rockafeller Skank, where he used its slowdown artifacting intentionally when the song transitions to its slower part.

[@AndyWardpara]

Wow, I wasn't expecting the reconstruction to sound as convincing as it does, seriously well done 👏

[@shalaq]

I'm a drummer and this video was very helpful. Since Jojo Mayer and his band Nerve emerged, a loy of drummers try to freely improvise on this break in the manner that you just showed. Thank you❤

[@GLYCEMusic]

Just subscribed. This is by far the best analysis/breakdown of the amen break that I've ever seen. This is coming from a music producer who has been at it for 8+ years!

[@ringtangting]

Great video,I never really thought about how with slicing a break you could introduce all kinds of flam roll and ratchet wizardry in a song.

[@blank8969]

this hardware is incredible, and here i thought this kinda drum precision necessitated a live recording...

[@jdrukman]

it just makes things a lot easier and quicker. if you have a drummer handy just tell them to jam out some funky grooves for a few minutes. i recorded a guy with a single mediocre mic in a mediocre room and it worked out great. i had unique jungle breaks that nobody else did. i put so much effects and crap on them that it didn't really matter how good the original recording was.

[@benshirro]

first time I've ever seen the Amen broken down in this way - super interesting, thanks!

[@cooptrol]

Just a subtle correction from a drummer: it's not a crash cymbal, its the edge of the ride cymbal.

[@delr0ssy827]

Loved the ending, another awesome video packed with tons of useful information for us producers....can't thank you enough for your hard work. Your editing is some next level shit, honestly

[@CaptainPikant]

Thank you so much :D

[@LD-eo8vc]

@@CaptainPikant actually this tutorial was intersting because you started from the bottom and went to the top ;) just a historical jorney I really like as a 45 years old man who never lost contact with making music ;) and started at 13 ...

[@dennishelfrich]

This is the best Amen Break explaination I ever have seen so far! Very good job! Awesome!

[@renosance8941]

I've always feared these giant drum machines, but you make everything seem so logical and accessible.

[@AMTunLimited]

This is so dope. I might use this as an excuse to transcribe to sheet music and cram as much of this info as I can

[@synthfluencer]

Excellent tutorial! Straight to the point, comprehensive and informative. In the 90s I despaired of re-creating this drum loop; wish I would have seen this video back then 😄

[@ecrylian]

That tip with the 909 kicks to supplement pitched up amens lack of low end is gonna be really helpful, this video is fantastic!

[@JorbLovesGear]

Excellent stuff, as always. Watching the deluge used for drums really makes me miss mine, the perfect rhythm interface. Cheers, always love your work.

[@DanielJohn2001]

The hand banana man said it all, the Akai s950 was a beast and still in use today. Pete Cannon still bangs out old skool tracks using an old skool studio. Captain Planet, I doff my hat to you sir....

[@fakshen1973]

Great video. With the Amen break, that ride cymbal can be a bit much, especially when pitching down. The bell of the ride just makes me pucker some times and reach for a lot of EQ. If you're using Ableton, the drum bus plug-in has a transient section that can really take the edge off it. Just dial it down to taste. It is much more pleasing than trying to notch out different frequencies. Plus it shortens up the ringing of the ride, creating more space for other sounds with mid-high and high, dominant, frequencies.

[@pooshNchums]

I love your channel. It’s equal parts synth music history and instruction. Keep up the amazing work! Thanks!

[@Gammaknife97]

I was gonna like it anyway but calling the video an Amen Breakdown was a very nice touch that solidified a like and a follow! Great video!

[@aardvarkmindshank]

Learnt a lot from that, thanks. For example, I tend to just lay in a bar or two of drums and repeat it. Now I’m gonna copy that a few times and tweak each bar. Second, I will start to use dynamics on drums more, for ghost notes for example. I need to go away and work out how to chop up a sample like that too. Very cool. Loving my new Deluge, what a machine. Thanks.

[@MOOTANT1]

Velocities are so so important but since software, you wouldn't know it was a big thing for creating expression and dynamics. The velocity response/curve on many software instruments and drum machines is pathetic. Edit: and PS Captain, very authentic and well done. 😎

[@charliehaffke2051]

I think it was pretty easy to sample, as just playing at 33 1/3 rpm (for the single version) immediately makes it hip hop

[@darksideblues135]

You mean, Straight out of compton.

[@zedd_centauri]

Great clinic. I very much enjoy the production style.

[@Jim_KYB]

Excellent, can you do the Apache break next please?

[@CaptainPikant]

Thanks! The Apache break and others such as the Funky Drummer break are definitely on our radar, but it will take a while until we get there :)

[@QuantumKatmusic]

Your videos are always so crispy and detailed, great 🔥

[@joelkulesha8284]

Wonderful video as always! Love it!

[@aaronl3460]

This is the best production lesson channel out there, and I really enjoy your aesthetic! Thanks for making such great content

[@sethamunofficial6545]

Far one of the best format i see about producing I like to sea how much love and work you put in your videos. Quality instead of Quantity

[@MaksimLin]

What a fantastic video - thank you for making this, its so useful for a new comer in understanding the amen break which gets mentioned and used so much.

[@unfa00]

Wow, the production quality as well as the content here are astonishing. Great work!

[@weeeBloom]

Amazing! thanks for the tut, please keep creating educative content like this one

[@vertigev]

This is so entertaining, useful, cool, and informative. Thanks!

[@_AndreSix]

Awesome video, I really like how easy you made it on the viewer, it's a very easy watch in my opinion and yet you're going into very specific detail. Lovely !

[@romanpistelak58]

Just wow. never thougt about remaking that drumbeat, but here you are. Amazing video and Deluge too..

[@aaronthompson317]

What a great video. Your breakdown of how to compile and complete this classic riff are well presented! Cheers!

[@VDJ4500]

Now i miss my Deluge! A great job on Amen break; thx

[@LondraCalibro9]

great video! love your work - thank you!

[@en1gma127]

This video has such amazing production. Brilliant channel.

[@harmlesscreationsofthegree1248]

What an outstanding video and piece of equipment. This channel is amazing!

[@harmlesscreationsofthegree1248]

Awesome vid, very slick produxtion. A joy to watch

[@m0b5pawn94]

Fantastic video. The production quality is unparalleled imo

[@funkl0314]

This is super dope! Thanks for the lesson!

[@dvbtune]

Just what I needed!! Great tutorial for Amen Break lovers!

[@HeIsMe1978]

Very interesting break-down of the mother (or brother) of all breaks! Your videos always start me thinking and give me a better understanding of the music I love. I've taken to programming some "realistic" (as far as my understanding of live drumming allows me to be) drums using the recently released free Vintage Drums library for the Spitfire LABS VST, that I then sample and chop to add a little variation in my D'n'B / jungle / braindance -ish sketches. It's great fun.

[@ahareally]

Really well explained - and TOP production!

[@redheart6995]

You are the best on KZbin! So much kudos for making your videos adfree! This tube is rotten with ads!

[@JaDjok]

Did you already release that video about the humanization of samples, you are talking about at 8:10? Couldn't find it here on a channel or on your Patreon page. Anyway, excellent, high-quality content. Huge thanks for your time and effort, and separate thanks for posting it here on KZbin for free. Make no mistake, your work is appreciated!

[@CaptainPikant]

Hi Ivan, thank you so much! The humanization video is still in the works :)

[@carldahlqvist1290]

Following along transcribing and programming this on my own machine was pure joy! Thank you for the awesome tutorial, captain!

[@bac0ntoast]

Hey, this is a great video, and is incredibly well made! Gave it a like :)

[@JGT999]

Love the video really informative and entertaining 👌

[@mikepruyn5716]

Loved seeing you chop it up live at the end, I gotta try that

[@nanob0zo]

Excellent video. Love it.

[@grandmasterjo1]

Brilliant work after slicing and adding Thank you for the tips

[@KrisBarton432]

Wow, you did an amazing job 🤯 Thank you

[@TheHorseValse]

Excellent work! :)

[@man_zo4138]

such a clean lesson, thanks!

[@paulmcallister7909]

Holy Hell!. I have learned so much just from this one video. Thank you, dude!! 😃👌👍

[@vintageMIDI]

flippin' fantastic beat breakdown

[@PrimitiveBaroque]

This is the best drum machine/electronic music channel I've ever run across.

[@omniosi]

Love these vids! Love to see more hip hop.

[@philziedler1559]

My favourite new KZbin discovery this channel. Well done, great channel!

[@garcialovesme]

Great video on the most well known drum sample (possibly any sample). Also a great advert for the deluge. I'm definitely getting one now.

[@evenmind-music]

Great work!

[@Metachemical]

Fantastic video!

[@albertpauw8234]

Excellent, need some time to process this. But it really is a great drum break. Thank you

[@alexbarn]

Awesome video, thank you! I’m going to program this into my eurorack modular system...should be fun!

[@Taipans]

Everything you add it to makes it amazing 👏

[@emphatic001]

Loved this, you know your stuff.

[@Shin3y]

This is legitimate my favorite break, and my favorite sample, I have samples at least one part of it in most of my (admittedly trash) songs! Very good analysis!

[@cookingupbeats]

This is great. Inspired me to open up me DAW again and start playing around. Also I never put that hip hop beat with the Amen break, used to knock that out on the table top as a kid.

[@axdambient]

For me, the nicest thing about the Amen is that Im not playing a loop. It has its notes and it's structure but you are giving me all this The basis of drum sampling Might seem like a simple thing to say today, but a godsend to the world when it happened. I have a drum set!

[@nobodys2358]

Thank you for such a detailed video🧡

[@noneofyourbusiness9353]

Outstanding video

[@IndividualName]

Great video, thanks!

[@TaliaOutwrong]

Banger video!

[@easychats]

You certainly know your stuff Buddy. Excellent 👌🏼

[@Gianluca_Sansone_Music]

Omg please do more!! More drum n bass/ Jungle

[@Bl4nk0_]

Your channel is excellent!!

[@cyrrustvirus]

Absolutely Awesome! ❤

[@ZenMountain]

Fantastic, thanks!!!

[@RaskolnikovR]

Great vid !

[@NAWN]

Very nice video!

[@paulstephenson3867]

Great video!

[@vishalgulve]

Did justice mate. Love seeing how others chop it up. Got it distilled on that machine ❤

[@DJPastaYaY]

Wonderful video about the amen break!

[@EdTalenti]

Fun video!

[@ghiekorg]

Thanks I was really searching for an explanation of the structure of this beat