Any musician who knows anything about his craft will tell you that the groove is everything. You can have chops, technique, attitude and stand on your head while performing, but if the music you're creating doesn't groove--doesn't make the listener either tap his foot or shake his head--then you're missing everything.

This Hal Leonard Quick Pro Guide gives you the tools to incorporate groove into your drum tracks. Described as a "groove encyclopedia for mapping out MIDI to create realistic-sounding drums," Ableton Grooves is an instructional guide for programming drums using MIDI.

The author--a certified Ableton Trainer--takes the drummer or programmer from the very basics of installing the Ableton Live 9 Demo provided on the accompanying DVD-ROM all the way through creating your own custom grooves. MIDI maps on virtually every page guide you through the process while the attached DVD-ROM will help you get started right away with folders that include audio Samples, Groove MIDI Clips and more.

Nothing will ever replace a real drummer. But if you can't locate a human being to pound on a drum kit while you record him, then you need to check out this book and see what you might be capable of creating with Ableton. Reading this will get you as close as you can be to the real, breathing thing.