Sampling

What it means

Sampling means taking a fragment of an already existing sound recording — a sample — and using it in a new musical context. This can be a single sound, a rhythm break, a bass line, a vocal snippet, or a whole bar.

Unlike a quotation, which replays a musical idea, sampling reuses the actual recording itself: the original's timbre, room sound, and timing all become part of the new piece.

Musical use

Sampling became practical with the development of digital samplers in the early 1980s and shaped hip-hop, where producers built new beats from rhythm breaks lifted from funk and soul records. From there it spread into nearly every branch of popular music, from house and drum and bass to contemporary pop production.

A sample can be used unaltered, pitch-shifted, time-stretched, looped, or chopped into tiny fragments and reassembled. Some productions are built almost entirely from such building blocks, while others use a single sample only as a splash of color.

Sampling should be distinguished from quotation, which borrows only the musical idea rather than the recording, and from a cover version, which re-records a piece from scratch. In many countries the recording itself carries its own protected rights alongside the composer's copyright, so releasing a sampled track usually requires clearing or licensing it with the rights holders.

Performance practice

When you work with samples, listen closely to whether the sample's tempo and key fit your own piece — you will often need to time-stretch or transpose it without making it sound unnatural. Also check the legal side before releasing anything built on a sample.