Toneworks have just launched Catalyst, a powerful MIDI sequencer plugin for Mac and Windows, and it’s available at 38% off (at the time of writing this article) as part of the company’s Summer Sale.
There are times when we, as music producers, feel uninspired and need a creative boost to kickstart a new idea or finish off an old one.
Within this scenario, a plugin like Catalyst may be a great ally since it comprises a wealth of options to generate musical ideas quickly and easily.
At the top of the interface, you’ll find an interactive block diagram where you can switch on and off specific plugin modules.
The signal flow starts with a monophonic step sequencer that allows you to create patterns with up to 32 steps – each with its own pitch, velocity, and gate time controls.
Then, the sequencer feeds into a harmonizer, where you can stack up chords from individual notes.
A cool feature of Catalyst is its ability to select a key and snap each generated musical element to it, be it a sequenced melody or a chord progression inside the harmonizer.
In this way, you can use the randomizer functions to instantly generate new melodies or chords without worrying about getting out of the selected key.
The harmonizer features a selection of voicings and inversions to make the chord progressions sound more coherent and a handy density slider to define the number of notes inside each chord.
This latter feature comes particularly helpful when paired with the next module in the chain, the arpeggiator.
This differs from the step sequencer since it plays notes from the incoming chords, but it features the same individual pitch, velocity, and gate time controls to customize your arpeggios.
If all of this generative power wasn’t enough, Catalyst can even host AU/VST softsynths and automate its internal parameters without leaving the interface and having to make tedious routing and mapping.
For instance, you have three separate lanes to sequence independent parameters like the synth’s cutoff and its envelope’s attack and decay.
By changing the number of active steps, you can effectively generate polyrhythms in no time. This works well for unexpected and unusual rhythmic results.
Catalyst is available for 49€ during the Summer Sale (retail price being 79€), and a free trial can be downloaded with saving disabled and a 30-minutes time limitation.
It’s compatible with both Mac and Windows users, with 64-bit operating systems only.
Get the deal: Catalyst (38% off during the summer sale – available for €49)
More:
- Modularis Is A FREE Analog-Style Sequencer Plugin By 2MGT
- Gatelab Is A FREE Gate Sequencer Plugin By Audiomodern
Last Updated on July 26, 2023 by Tomislav Zlatic.
