accompaniment machine

8/13/2019 Accompaniment Machine

1/55

Accompaniment Machine

Instruction ManualCopyright 2013

KBD-InfinityPO Box 13595, Albuquerque, NM 87192 U.S.A.

Telephone: +1-505-220-3975Fax: +1-617-752-9077

E mail: [email protected]: http://www.kbd-infinity.com

1


2/55

Here are a few tips to avoid problems with the program:

1. The Accompaniment Machine is designed for modern multicore desktopsand laptops running Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8. All programfunctions may not be available on older computers running Windows XP.

2. Drivers must be installed so that your keyboard appears as an available MIDIdevice in Windows.

3. Ideally, turn on the keyboard before running the program.

4. To avoid conflicts, leave the keyboard in its default startup state while theAccompaniment Machineis running. In particular, do not change keyboardvoice settings.

5. The program gives the highest priority to redrawing the screen. To avoid gapsin the musical output, do not move the program window while playing MIDIsequences in the Player or Performance windows.

2


3/55

Contents

1 Introduction

51.1 What is a style? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61.2 Quick introduction: exploring the program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71.3 Quick introduction: recording an accompaniment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91.4 Quick introduction: playing a song . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111.5 How does it work? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131.6 Connecting a MIDI device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

2 Style organizer 172.1 Style basics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172.2 Organizing styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

2.2.1 Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192.2.2 Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202.2.3 Popup menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

2.3 Previewing styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

3 Voice laboratory 233.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233.2 MIDI voice basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233.3 Building a new voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253.4 Fine-tuning the voice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

3.5 Saving and loading voice sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283.6 XG voices and drum sets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303.7 Capturing voice parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

4 Performance 334.1 Style controls. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334.2 Guiding the style root and chord. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

4.2.1 Yamaha easy-chord system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344.2.2 KBDI system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354.2.3 Full chord system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364.2.4 Casio chord system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

4.3 Operation sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374.4 Defining melody voices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404.5 Settings, real-time events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414.6 Songs and sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434.7 Recording a performance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5 MIDI player window 465.1 Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465.2 Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465.3 Building playlists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

5.4 Playing MIDI files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485.5 MIDI file resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

3


4/55

6 Techniques 506.1 Connecting Yamaha keyboards to a computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6.2 MIDI audio output to the computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506.3 Making USB drive letters the same on all your computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

4


5/55

1 Introduction

TheAccompaniment Machine (AMac) is a sophisticated yet inexpensive program used toamplify the capabilities of digital keyboards and to create accompaniments for solo or groupperformances. The key is the programs ability to access the thousands of Yamaha-format1

keyboard styles available on the Internet virtual backup bands for your performances. Thefollowing section reviews what a style is. Sections 1.2,1.3and1.4are brief walkthroughs thatgive a quick introduction to AMac2. Section1.2discusses the structure of the program andintroduces the Player, Style Organizer and Voice Laboratory windows. Section1.3 describeshow to build accompaniments in the Performer window. Section 1.4 covers the creation of

songs, sequences for real-time keyboard performances. Section1.5 describes how AMacworkswhile Section1.6shows how to make sure your keyboard and computer are connected.

Some program features...

Access thousands of styles available on the Internet and use them on any keyboard orsynthesizer.

Employ the complete set of style sections (MainA,...,MainD,...,Fill In DD).

With the standardized resources of AMac, instantly play your songs on different key-

boards or with different computers.

Listen to styles and organize your collection in the Style organizer window. See how thestyles will sound with different tempos and chord shifts.

Change between a main and alternate voice set during a performance for a dramatic effect.

Create song files that contain all information to restore your setups.

Set up sequences of operations (like style-section shifts) before a performance. Duringthe performance, step through the operations by pressing a keyboard control key.

Use advanced sequence options such as fades, stop-on-first-beat, alternate voices, volumechanges and tempo shifts.

Organize voices, styles, songs and sets in the familiar environment of your computers filesystem. All resources can easily be transferred to a different computer or E mailed to acolleague.

Create new voices with full control over GM and XG MIDI parameters or capture voicesettings directly from your keyboard. Save your custom settings in permanent voice filesfor use in songs.

1KBD-Infinityhas no affiliation with the Yamaha Corporation.2For convenience, this manual has active links in the table of contents and in the index to take you instantly

to topics.

5


6/55

Figure 1: Accompaniment Machine interface, Performerwindow.

Build accompaniments and play them during performances with theAMacMIDI player.Advanced player features include saved playlists, lyric display, sequence options and anequalizer to level the volumes of a set of MIDI files.

Perform in a familiar environment AMac supports all fingering systems for style har-mony, including an advanced three-finger system to play the ten chord types commonlyencountered in popular songs.

1.1 What is a style?

Styles are the core resource for the Accompaniment Machine. Conceptually, styles are theautomatic accompaniment templates included in digital keyboards (consoles)3 from Yamaha

and other manufacturers. Physically, a style is a binary file that contains special MIDI sectionsto define the musical content and other data to tell how to decipher it. A console generallyhas a built-in set of styles that the user chooses with buttons or wheels. Additional stylefiles may be installed on the console with some effort. One problem is that the style filesfrom different manufacturers are not compatible. There are even compatibility issues within asingle manufacturer. Yamaha styles for high-end workstations will not function on entry-levelconsoles.

Yamaha-format styles have been developed for decades and constitute the largest and mostdiverse available set. The prime advantage of AMac is that the program can interpret everyexisting Yamaha-format style file and can play them on consoles and synthesizers from anymanufacturer. This includes styles for the newest high-end workstations.

3To avoid confusion, we shall apply the term consoleto the complete digital keyboard and reserve the termkeyboard for the set of piano keys.

6


7/55

Chapter2gives details on the structure of style files. For now, it is sufficient to note that theMIDI chunk of a style file consists of a sequence of short musical phrases (one or a few measures)

called sectionsthat are delineated by markers. The following sections may be included:

Intro A, Intro B, Intro C

Main A, Main B, Main C, Main D

Ending A, Ending B, Ending C

Fill in AA, Fill in AB, Fill in BB, Fill in BA, Fill in CC, Fill in DD

Styles often do not contain all sections. Even if a style is complete, manufacturers introducelimitations in low-end consoles so they play only a subset. One of the functions ofAMacis toremove this limitation.

Sections of the type Intro are intended to play once and then to segue into a Main section.

The Main sections cycle continuously pending a user signal. An Endingplays once and thenstops the sequence. Harmonic variations introduce variety when playing Main sections. Thereare also several variants of each type of section. Generally, the accompaniment becomes moreintense (e.g., richer orchestration, more complex rhythms,...) proceeding from Main Ato MainD. The Fill In sections provide transitions between the Main variants. A typical song mayfollow the sequenceIntroA Main A Fill In ABMain BEnding B. When styles areplayed directly on a console, the user must press buttons to signal section changes. When usingAMac to control the console, the user prepares a sequence in advance and advances throughthe sections by pressing a single control key on the keyboard.

A style sequence starts when the user presses a key combination that signals the harmonic

root and chord type to be applied. As the song progresses, the player presses different keycombinations to signal changes of harmony and control keys or buttons to signify style-sectionshifts. With a good choice of styles and sections, the end result is a good approximation to abackup band.

1.2 Quick introduction: exploring the program

To begin, make sure that your keyboard is connected to the computer. (If not, see the sugges-tions in Sect.1.6). Also, ensure that the keyboard is in the default startup mode (if necessary,restart it). Amac has four windows to move between them, click the buttons at top-centerof the program screens (Fig.2). The windows have the following functions:

Performance. This window handles the main program activities: 1) create setups forsongs and 2) accompany real-time performances.

Voice laboratory. Experiment with MIDI settings to create custom melody voices. Savethe results to make them available in the Performancewindow.

Style organizer. Check out features of styles and organize your collection.

MIDI player. Play sequences of MIDI and karaoke files for background music or toaccompany performances.

To get started, click the Player button. If you have a keyboard connected, click Changeport and choose the desired output device. In a first-time run of AMac, the file selector onthe left-hand side points to the default resource directory

7


8/55

Figure 2: Window navigation buttons

c:\Users\UserName\Documents\AccompanimentMachine\Demo

Thereafter, a licensed program will restore the MIDI device setting and the last directory youaccessed. Double-click on the file AllThroughTheNight.mid to add it to the playlist at the

center. Then click Startto play the song on your keyboard. In the Player, you can build andsave playlists of any length. You can save relative volume settings in playlists. This feature isuseful because MIDI files that you find on the Internet often have large variations in volume.

Next, click the blue button with the bass clef to move to the Style organizer window. Bothfile organizer windows at the bottom point to the Demo directory which contains the stylefile BallingTheJack.sty. Double-click on the file entry in either window to load it into thepreviewer. This is a rich style file that includes almost all possible sections (with the exceptionofFill in AB). The main repeating sections have four measures (4/4 time at a tempo of 125quarter notes/minute). Click theMain Abutton to hear a single instance of the simplest mainsection. For comparison, click onMain C. It has an adding string padding to add depth. To de-

emphasize the strings, check theContextbox and startMain C. The section plays continuously.Click the Equalizerbutton to bring up the equalizer dialog. Move thePad slider to 50%. Tosee how the style sounds at a faster, double-click on the number 125 in the Base tempo boxand type in 160. Click on different entries in the Chordradio button array to check how thestyle sounds when shifted to different chord types.

The controls and displays at the bottom of the window constitute a full-featured two-windowfile manager. You can delete or rename files, build a directory tree, and move or copy filesbetween the windows. The file manager is an effective tool to organize your style collections.Chapter2gives a complete description of the functions.

Next, click the maroon button with the treble clef to go to the Voice Laboratory. Thepurpose of this window is to build a collection of melody voices optimized to your keyboardor synthesizer. Click the Load voice filebutton. The selection dialog again points to the Demodirectory. Load the file AMac Standard.MDVwhich contains a set of GM (general MIDI) voiceswith no XG settings. The set of available voices appears in the listbox at lower-right. When youenter the Voice Laboratory, AMac sends a Local Off message to your keyboard. In this case,the notes that you hear are those defined by the program rather than the internal processorof the keyboard. Double-click on 013 Marimbaand play some notes in the upper part of yourkeyboard. You should hear a marimba sound rather than a piano. Experiment with some ofthe other voices.

The controls on the left-hand side of the window can be used to set the full complementof MIDI messages for synthesizer control. (Note that your keyboard or synthesizer may not

respond to all of the control messages). Load the marimba voice and move the Reverb/depthslider. A setting of 0 sounds like an open field and a setting of 127 sounds like an enclosed,echoing room. Try cranking up theChorussetting. With a high value, the sound approximates

8


9/55

a ground of marimba players. Set the Octavecontrol to -1 to move the voice down an octave.If your keyboard supports XG voices, check your reference manual to find settings for the XG

bank. For example, on a Yamaha DGX-640 keyboard, voice 193 is designated Carillon. Tomake the sound, set the GM instrument to 015 (tubular bells) and the LSB (least significantbyte) of the XG bank to 097. Youll notice a significant different between the standard GMvoice (LSB = 0) and the XG voice (LSB = 97).

1.3 Quick introduction: recording an accompaniment

One of the main applications ofAMac is to prepare custom MIDI files to accompany perfor-mances using Yamaha-format styles as building blocks. The MIDI files you prepare may haveintroductions, main sections, transitions and endings with changes of harmony, volume andtempo matched to a specific song. The MIDI sequences may be sent directly to an onstagekeyboard or synthesizer during a performance, or they may be converted to an audio file witha Digital-Audio Workstation. One advantage of using an accompaniment for a keyboard solois that all functions of the keyboard are available and both your hands are free. You can playa two-part melody or operate the pitch-bend wheel.

Here, well inspect an accompaniment for a flute duet of the holiday song We Three Kingsof Orient Are. Well use an unusual style to add interest to the familiar tune. As a basis, wellapply the chord progression from a fakebook4. Click the brown button with musical notes to goto the Performancewindow, the nexus ofAMac. If necesssary, click theChoose port buttonand set your keyboard as the MIDI input device.

To begin, youll need to make some settings. Click the Settingsbutton (at top-right) to

bring up the dialog of Fig. 3. Click the Set control note button to put the program in key-sensing mode. Press the key that you will use as the sequence controller generally, the lowestone on your keyboard. Pressing this key during a performance tellsAMac to advance in theoperation sequence (for example, changing the style from Main A to Main B). The control keyis not used for musical information. You can also change theSplit note. Keys above the splitnote are used to play the melody. Keys at or below the split note signal root and chord shiftsin the style. For this task, well use only notes below the split point. To conclude the setup,use the Style leadradio buttons at the upper-left to choose how to signal chords:

Yamaha easy-chord system. AMac supports an augmented version of the familiar

Yamaha easy chord system (Sect. 4.2.1). Pressing a single root key sets the style in thecorresponding major chord (e.g., press any Gkey below the split point to play GMaj).The root key plus the closest lower white key gives a 7chord, the root plus the closestlower black key gives a minchord, and the root plus the closest lower white and blackkeys gives a min7 chord. There are two extra chords in AMac: the root plus the twoclosest white keys gives Maj7and the root plus the two closest black keys gives a dimchord. For any other combination, the programs tries to match one the chords listed inFig.14.

KBDI system. A simplified fingering system (Sect.4.2.2) that expands on the Yamahasystem. The ten most common chords used in popular songs may be played with simple

patterns of one to three fingers. Again, if a combination is not recognized,AMac triesto match one of the chords listed in Fig. 14.

4The Ultimate Christmas Fakebook, 5th Edition (Hal Leonard, Milwaukee), 199.

9


10/55

Figure 3: Performance settings dialog.

Casio chord system. The basic system used on Casio keyboards. Again, a pressing asingle key gives the root Maj chord. Press the root key plus any single lower key for aminchord. The root plus any two lower keys gives a 7chord and the root plus any threekeys gives the min7 chord.

Chords. Play all chords directly according to Fig.14. In this case, the lowest key givesthe root.

Section4gives detailed information about leading style harmony.Exit the Settingsdialog and click the Load song button and choose the prepared example

WeThreeKingsAcc.ASG. Note that the voices on the right-hand side are set to Undefined. Inthis case, your computer will not send voice information for channels below 08hwhen the songstarts. Such information could over-write voice settings you have already made on the keyboard.Note that the song file defined all parameters (such as the tempo), the accompaniment style andan operation sequence The sequence displayed in the top-center list box, has the operations:

Intro B

Main B

Main D

Main AEnding B

We can now generate an accompaniment MIDI file. Figure4shows a harmony diagramfor the song. The operations described in this paragraph will take some practice the maingoal of the text is show what can be done. Press the Arm recorder button or the F7 key.Start the style by pressing a key combination below the split point to signal Emin. Dontworry about the time interval between pressing the arm button and starting the song. AMacsynchronizes everything to the initial notes of the style and leaves one blank measure at thebeginning of the MIDI file. After playing the four-measure introduction, AMaccontinues with

the Main B section in Emin. After two measures, press a B7 key combination to shift theharmony. Continue through the first verse. The red symbols in Fig.4 designate control-keypresses. Press the control key once during the last measure to switch the accompaniment toMain Dwith a more full sound. Note that AMac waits until the end of the current measure

10


11/55

Figure 4: Accompaniment example: We Three Kings of Orient Are(John H. Hopkins)

before switching sections. Wait a measure or two and for a transition and then proceed with thesecond verse. The Ending B section is rather quiet compared to Main D and a direct transitionis jarring. Pressing the control key in the last measure shifts to the more gentle Main A section.During the Main A measure, press the control key to start Ending B. After the section hasended, press the Arm recorder button again to stop the recording. Then, clickSave recordingand give the file a descriptive name like WeThreeKingsAccmp.MID.

Use the Playerwindow ofAMac to preview the MIDI file. You can play one song or youcould make playlist of accompaniment files and use the Single selectionoption to perform a set.

1.4 Quick introduction: playing a song

This section illustrates the role ofAMacas a real-time performance assistant. Click the Loadsong buttonand choose the selectionBallinTheJack.KSGin the default directory. AMacloadsthe following information:

The style associated with the song (left-hand side).

The sequence of operations implemented by the control key on your keyboard (center).

Voice settings for the melody (right-hand side). In this case, the first verse is played inharmony on the organ, and the second verse is played by a tenor saxophone with organharmony.

The program sends information on the synthesizer voice setups to your keyboard when the songis loaded. Press a key on your keyboard in the melody section above the split note you shouldorgan notes in harmony. Next, click the Start/Stop button in the Stylegroup on the right-handside. When the style starts, play a few melody notes. If you do not hear simultaneous style and

melody notes, your computer may not be powerful enough to run AMac. Click the Start/Stopbutton or press the Escapekey to stop the style.To begin, well test the left-hand functions. Signal a G7chord using keys below the split

point following your fingering system of choice. As directed by the operation sequence, the

11


12/55

Figure 5: Song example: Ballin The Jack(Jim Burris, Chris Smith)

program starts the six-measure Intro B section of the style. The Measure field in the Stylegroup gives a countdown. Introduction sections automatically go the next sequence operationwhen complete. In this case, the program plays theMain Csection continuously, waiting for thenext control operation. Press the control key that you defined for your keyboard once. AMaccompletes any pending measure beats ofMain Cand then switches to the single-measure Fillin DD. After this measure, the program executes the Toggle alt voicecommand. This operationchanges the melody voices and does not affect the bass sound. The program automcaticallyproceeds toMain D. Press the control key one more time at the end of the second verse to hearEnding B.

The final step is to play a complete song. Figure5 gives the song score in fakebook format.

The sequence is set up for playing the song twice. The solo in the first verse is played by anorgan, the second verse by an alto saxophone. Both verses have an organ harmony. The redcircles designate points to press the control key to advanced the sequence. High circles designateactions on the first verse and low circles the second. To review, you play the song through afterthe six measure introduction. At the first ending, press the keyboard control key to signal theFill in DD section. During this section, press the control key again to switch to the alternatevoice set. After playing the song a second time, press the control key to signal Ending B. Whilepracticing the song, you probably dont want to repeat the introduction ending every time. Toskip the introduction, select the sequence operation Main Cand signal a G7chord to start.

12


13/55

1.5 How does it work?

A basic understanding of the interaction between a computer and a keyboard is useful to use

AMac effectively. Figure6shows a block diagram of a full-functioned digital keyboard. Al-though externally it appears to be a unified device, it includes three processing units thatcommunicate through MIDI signals. The physical keyboard is a set of 61 to 88 switches con-nected to a relatively simple processor. The main function of this unit is to send MIDI messagesconsisting of three bytes: a status byte and two data bytes.

The Statusbyte designates whether a key has been pressed (NoteOn) or released (Note-Off).

The first data byte gives the keyboard note (a number from 0 to 127).

The second data byte gives the note volume if touch control is active. Otherwise, thedata byte has the maximum value 127.5

The keyboard processor may have other functions like monitoring the setting of the pitch-bendwheel and sending appropriate messages.

When the keyboard is inLocalmode, the MIDI signals from the keyboard are transmitted tothe main processor as well as to the computer output port. The functions of the main processorare controlled by the assortment of buttons, knobs and dials on the keyboard. Performancefunctions may include the following:

Add voice control information to the MIDI stream to specify how the synthesizer shouldinterpret notes from the keyboard (e.g., flute, saxophone, piano,).

Add information from a loaded style to the MIDI stream, with harmonic offsets controlledby keys pressed in the lower part of the keyboard.

Calculate harmonies and add additional notes to the melody line whenHarmonyis active.

The main processor may have additional functions, like playing songs, adding metronome clicksto the MIDI stream and driving an LCD display. The output from the main processor goesto the MIDI synthesizer, a processor that drives a digital-to-analog converter. This deviceconverts the arriving numerical MIDI messages to complex waveforms that contain informationon attack, overtones and other features to represent an interesting instrumental voice. The

waveforms are ported to the internal amplifier and speakers of the keyboard or to an externalamplifier.

Even entry-level keyboards from Yamaha have functional keys and good synthesizers. Themain performance limitations reside in the main processor (dashed box in Fig. 6). Only asmall subset of style sections is typically supported and it is often difficult to back up songsettings and add new styles. The primary function of AMac is to replace this processor(Local mode off). MIDI signals generated by the keyboard processor travel to your computerthrough the USB cable. Within the computer,AMacuses the information to generate complexMIDI signals to represent a style and multi-voice melody. This information can be ported tothe keyboard synthesizer or to virtual instruments within the computer. Using AMac gives

several advantages:5Pressure sensors are expensive, so most touch-sensitive keyboards do not measure how hard you press a

key. Rather, they use two simple switches to measure how fast you press it. Hence, the volume of a MIDI noteis often called the velocity.

13


14/55

Figure 6: Relationship between AMac and a digital keyboard

14


15/55

Figure 7: Dialog to set the MIDI input and output devices

Modern 64-bit computer processors outperform the older processors found in keyboards.

Low-price personal computers may have > 8 gigabytes of memory and > 500 gigabytesof hard-disk storage. With this capability, you can store an unlimited number of stylesand song presets.

Its easier to build songs and manipulate resources using a color monitor, a mouse and acomputer keyboard rather than the non-standard buttons and wheels on different key-boards.

The main processor of the keyboard is an isolated, proprietary device. In contrast, apersonal computer is an open system that can communicate with the entire world throughthe Internet.

1.6 Connecting a MIDI device

A connection between your keyboard and computer is necessary to use AMac. It is also thekey to enjoying a wide variety of other software and activities. If your digital keyboard is notconnected to a computer, you can explore only a tiny fraction of its potential.

Computers connect to a variety of output devices using many conventions. Communicationwith musical instruments is through a MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) serial port.In days past, MIDI connections were made with special cables and connectors. The keyboardgenerally had two MIDI connectors for output and input. It was necessary to buy a computer

interface box to convert a parallel or serial port to MIDI input/output connections. Theconfiguration of Fig.6would require two MIDI cables.Today, MIDI connections between a keyboard and computer are combined into a single USB

cable that handles information flow in both directions. Windows computers support virtual

15


16/55

MIDI interfaces. Connected devices are available to programs like AMac through interfacingstandards. To connect a keyboard to a computer, drivers must be installed so that the virtual

interface recognizes the device. Driver installation occurs automatically when you plug in aCasio keyboard. For Yamaha keyboards, you must install the drivers manually. See Sect. 6.1for tips on the procedure.

If all goes well, turn on your keyboard and then run AMac. Click the brown buttonwith musical notes to go to the Performer. Choose Change portto open the dialog of Fig. 7.The keyboard is usually the only input device available, but there may be multiple outputdevices. The choice Microsoft GS wavetable synthis available on all Windows computers. It isa rudimentary program to convert the MIDI note numbers to audio signals and to send them tothe computer soundcard. Typically, you would pick the keyboard as the output device becauseit has a better synthesizer. Select the keyboard in the input and output list boxes and click OKto exit the dialog. AMac saves the choices when you exit. The program attempts to restorethe device settings the next time it runs.

16


17/55

2 Style organizer

2.1 Style basics

Styles are the heart ofAMac. They are the automatic accompaniments that can turn a simplerendition of a song into a professional-sounding performance. AMacsupports the style formatdefined by the Yamaha Corporation for their digital keyboards. Tens of thousands of suchstyles covering all musical genres are available for download on the Internet.

The function of the Style Organizerwindow (Fig. 8) is to help you sort through the vastarray of available styles to find the right one for a song. Go to the window from the other

program windows by clicking the blue button with the bass cleff. This section reviews somebasic features of style files. The following section describes capabilities of the Style Organizer.

Yamaha styles are contained in files with names of the form FPrefix.STY6. The first partof the file consists of a standard MIDI header and a single MIDI track. The track is dividedinto short musical sections by markers. The sections have the following names:

Main A, Main B, Main C, Main D

Intro A, Intro B, Intro C

Ending A, Ending B, Ending C

Fill in AA, Fill in AB, Fill in BB, Fill in BA, Fill in CC, Fill in DD

Break AA, Break BB

A style need not contain all sections simple styles may include only a few7. The sections in thefirst group (Main A, Main B...) provide the bulk of the accompaniment. They are intended tobe played cyclically through most of the song. In most styles, Main Ais the simplest variation,with progressively more embellishment and richer orchestration in the other sections. If youplay two verses of a song, the first is usually accompanied by Main A, switching to a morecomplex option to add variety in the second verse.

The Intro sections are introductions to the Main types, played once at the beginning ofthe song. Again, the complexity increases from Intro Ato Intro C. The Ending sections areplayed once at the end of song. The Fill insections (which always consist of a single measure)are used as bridges between the Main types. Finally, Break AA and Break BB are advancedfeatures implemented on some Yamaha keyboards that appear rarely in available styles.

You can listen to style files in the Playerwindow (Chap.5). Here, AMac reads the MIDItrack and ignores the section markers and other information. You will hear the style sectionsplayed in sequence. If you play several styles, you will notice that some sound good and somesound terrible. The ones that sound good follow a style standard:

6Alternative suffixes for style files are .BCS (Basic), .PRS (Professional), .SST (Session) and .PCS (Piano

combo). All styles have the same format, independent of the suffix7The internal routines of a keyboard like the PSR E423 can play only a small subset of style sections: MainA, Main B, Intro A, Ending Aand Fill in AB

17


18/55


19/55

Table 1: MIDI channels used by styles

Channel Function Comments08h Sub rhythm Rhythm instruments if XG MSB = 127, otherwise may be

used for general tonal instruments09h Rhythm Drum set0Ah Bass Bass instrument (e.g., piano or tuba)0Bh Chord 1 Chord instrument (e.g., guitar)0Ch Chord 2 Chord instrument (e.g., guitar)0Dh Pad A floating voice (e.g., strings or a choir)0Eh Phrase 1 Melodic phrases, often in intros and endings0Fh Phrase 2 Melodic phrases, often in intros and endings

2.2 Organizing styles

Figure8 shows the layout of the Style Organizer. The organizer has two main functions:

Preview styles (controls at the top).

Organize style files to create performance collections (controls at the bottom).

Well start with commands in the lower portion of the window. The two listboxes show thecontents of two directories (folders) on your computers hard disk or removable USB drives.In typical use, one of the directories contains a large collection of style files that you want topreview. The other directory contains a subset of styles that you have selected for a song orperformance. Navigation controls to switch to different directories appear above each listbox.Controls that act on files are located between the listboxes. The red active-button shows thelistbox that currently has the focus. Some of the file controls (Delete,Rename, Create dir) acton selected files in the active listbox. The other controls (Copy, Move) transfer files from theactive listbox to the other one. The active listbox changes if you click on the opposite listboxor on any of the controls on the other side.

2.2.1 Navigation

Directory names in a listbox are shaded and file names are unshaded. Directories alwaysappear first. To move into a directory, double-click its name. Use the Up button to move upone level in the directory tree. The Root button takes you to the root of the current drive.Use the Change drivemenu to change the active listbox to a different drive of the computer.Sometimes its useful to set both listboxes to the same location (for example, to move files intoa new child directory). To set the right box to the same location as the left box, right-click onthe right-hand active-button.

As you move between directories, AMac saves a list of previous locations. Use the Backbutton to move to the previous directory. When you move back, the program saves a list of

locations in the forward stack. In this case, use the Forwardbutton to return to a directory.AMac saves its current state when you exit. Information includes the current directoriesof the left and right listboxes and saved locations. The settings are restored the next time yourun the program.

19


20/55

2.2.2 Operations

The file-operation controls located between the boxes are the core of the style organizer. They

perform the following functions:

Copy: copy the selected directories and files of the active listbox to the directory of theother listbox.

Move: move the selected directories and files of the active listbox to the directory of theother listbox. In this case, the directories or files are copied to the destination directory,checked for validity and then deleted in the source directory.

Delete: permanently erase the selected directories and files of the active listbox.

Create dir: create a new directory within the directory of the active listbox. Type aname in the text field of the dialog and press OK or Cancel. Alternatively, press Enterin the text field to create the directory or Escto cancel the operation.

Add location: you may often return to a specific directory used for style storage. In thiscase, a saved location can eliminate the effort of stepping through the directory tree eachtime. Use this button to add the currently-active folder to the list of saved locations.

Saved locations: this button raises a dialog with a list of your saved directories. Double-click on an entry to switch to the directory in the active window. Alternatively, select alocation and click OK. To delete a location, select it and click the Remove from list

button. ClickCancel if you decide not to change the location of the active window. Youcan drag entries up and down with the mouse to organize the list.

You can copy the path of the directory locations of the left or right windows to the clipboard.Click on the text field listing the directory above the window and press Ctrl-C. You can alsocopy the names of any group of directories or files in either window to the clipboard. Make aselection using the standard rules and then pressCtrl-C. The style organizer shows the progressof extended copy, move or delete operations. During this period, other program commands aredeactivated. Click Cancelto abort the operation.

2.2.3 Popup menuRight click anywhere in the window to access the popup menu, which includes the followingoptions:

Display all files/Display only style files. Toggle the list box display to show all filesor only files with the extensions STY, .BCS, .PRS, .SST or .PCS.

Sort by name. Directories are listed in alphabetic order with their last-modificationdate, and files are organized alphabetically with their byte size.

Sort by date. Both directories and files are ordered first by last-modification date and

then alphabetically by name showing the last-modification date.

Sort by extension. The same as the previous option, except that files are groupedalphabetically by their extension (suffix) and then by name.

20


21/55

Figure 9: Style equalizer

Refresh view. Use this command to update the display if you change the files in one orboth of the displayed directories with an external program.

2.3 Previewing styles

To load a style for preview, double-click on a style file in either the left or right listbox. The

controls at upper-left show file properties. Style typeindicates whether the file follows the older(SFF1) or newer (SFF2) format. TheBase tempo (in quarter notes per minute) is the defaultstyle tempo. Type in a number (from 10 to 300) in the text box to preview the style at adifferent tempo. There is a button in the center section of the window for each possible stylesection. The active buttons show which sections are present in the currently-loaded style. Clickan active button to hear one instance of the section. TheNumber of measures in the currentsection is displayed. This information is useful to identify whetherIntro or Ending sectionsare simple or elaborate. When a section is playing, you can Pauseor Stop it with the buttonson the right-hand side. There is also a volume control.

Sections play once if the Context checkbox is unchecked. Activate Contextwhen you wantto hear how the sections sound when repeated or when they merge into other sections. In thecontext mode, sections play according to the following rules:

Current section of type Main: play in a continuous loop.

Current section of type Intro: play the introduction and then one instance of the corre-sponding Main section.

Current section of typeEnding: play the corresponding Mainsection and then the ending.

Current section of type Fill or Break: play the lead Main section, the fill and then thefollowingMain section.

Use the radio buttons in the player control section if you want to hear how the style soundswhen transposed to different chord types (see Table 14for chord definitions).

21


22/55

The sounds of MIDI files (style files included) may change when played on different devices,depending on how the synthesizer represents the GM or XG voices (see Sect. 3.2). A rhythm

section that sounded perfect to the style developer may be deafening on your keyboard. Also,you can significantly alter the character of a style by changing the relative volume levels ofchannels. To tune channel volumes, check the Contextbox and click on one of theMainsectionsfor continuous play. Then click the Equalizerbutton to bring up the dialog of Fig. 9. Use theequalizer to reduce the volume of individual style channels (Table1). Changes are immediatelyaudible and will be maintained when you exit the equalizer. In the Style Organizerwindow,the equalizer settings are for preview purposes and do not change the style file. The equalizeris also accessible in the Performancewindow. Here, you can make the style volume settings apermanent part of a song record.

22


23/55

3 Voice laboratory

3.1 Introduction

Voices are the instrumental sounds that you use to play the melody of a song above the bassline supplied by the style. In the Performancewindow,AMaccan send the melody notes youplay to three different instrumental sounds on your keyboard (MIDI channels 00h, 01h and02h). The notes to channels 01h and 02h may be the same as those to channel 00h (unison),or they may be displaced by octaves or by harmonic intervals based on the current style chord.Optionally, a set of alternate voices may be defined so you can switch instruments during a

song.On a mechanical instrument, mastering a song means learning to play the correct notes

with good intonation and phrasing. Electronic keyboards add a new dimension to the creativeprocess. You can choose from a variety of musical resources that can enhance the quality ofyour performance. One of the key components is a rich and appropriate melody voice set. TheVoice Laboratorygives you the tools to find ideal voice settings for your keyboard and to saveyour experiments in an easily accessible form.

In the Performancewindow, you can load prepared voices from voice sets (sets of voicespecifications for different instruments). The information in these files is similar to the collectionof predefined voices on your keyboard. The function of the Voice Laboratory is to create orto modify voice collections to use in performances. An understanding of some MIDI principleswill help you use the Voice Laboratory and voices in the Performance Window effectively.Section3.2reviews the essentials. Sections3.3and3.5walk you through the steps of buildinga new voice and saving it so you can use it again. Section 3.6 covers advanced XG voicecapabilities.

Enter the Voice Laboratory window by clicking the maroon button with the treble clefsymbol from any other window in AMac. Figure10 shows the window layout. Controls aredivided into groups by function. MIDI port commands are at the lower left. An output port isnecessary to hear the voice settings. If an input device like a keyboard is present, the programechoes notes you play with the current voice settings. If there is no input device, you can stillhear the voice with the Send test notescommand. Controls to set parameters of the current

voice are grouped at upper-left and lower-center. Controls to edit the current voice are in theupper central area. Commands on the right-hand side apply to voice files.

3.2 MIDI voice basics

As discussed in Sect.1.5, AMac receives numerical data from your keyboard (generally via aUSB port), does computations and then sends back appropriate messages to the keyboard orto a different MIDI synthesizer. Incoming numbers contain information such as the identity ofa pressed key, the press speed and the duration of the note. Outgoing data can be classed intotwo groups:

23


24/55

Figure 10: Voice laboratory

Setup information.

Performance information.

The performance information consists mainly of NoteOn and NoteOff signals, sent at theappropriate times. In contrast, setup information is sent at t = 0, before the performancestarts. An important component of the setup is the definition of voices. For example, if aNoteOn signal is sent to MIDI channel 2, should the resulting sound approximate a violin,a clarinet, a tuba,...? In the absence of any setup information, every channel sounds like anacoustic piano, the default on most keyboards.

AMac and the keyboard communicate over 16 MIDI channels each channel can represent adifferent musical instrument. Channels 08h through 0Fh are set aside for styles. The associatedsetup information is built into the style and is sent automatically when the style starts. You

cannot control this information other than adjusting relative volume levels. AMac sendsmelody information over channels 00h, 01h and 02h. You have complete control over thecharacteristics of the melody voices. TheVoice Laboratorymakes it easy to experiment withdifferent settings and to save the results.

Voice settings on a MIDI synthesizer such as a keyboard are sometimes called patches.The term is a holdover from the days of analog synthesizers. A collection of oscillators, filters,envelope generators and other equipment was physically patched together to produce a specific,complex audio signal in response to a MIDI note number. There was a revolutionary change withthe advent of digital synthesizers. Thousand of dollars worth of interconnected electronic devicescould be replaced with a set of numbers (parameters) applied to wave-generation algorithms.

An inexpensive keyboard could easily hold parameter sets for thousands of patches.With an effectively infinite number of possibilities, some standardization was essential. Inparticular in order to circulate standard MIDI files, it was necessary that all synthesizers pro-duced about the same instrumental sounds. The requirement lead to the general MIDI (GM)

24


25/55

convention, a set of 128 standard instrument sounds that a synthesizer should be capable ofreproducing. If so, the synthesizer is GM compliant. Table 2 lists the options. The com-

puter communicates what instrument sound should be approximated by the synthesizer in aparticular MIDI channel by sending the following two-byte message:

First byte: C0h + ChanNo

Second byte: GMCode

The message is called a program command. The channel number covers the range ChanNo =00hto 0Fh, so the first number may vary from C0hto CFh. The quantityGMCodeis the numberin Table2and covers the range 00h (0) to 7Fh (127). At a minimum, the setup transmissionconsists of program commands for each of the channels used in the song. Finally, note that thereis considerable variation between synthesizers in the quality and characteristics of the standard

instrumental sounds, so the audio signal generated from a MIDI file will differ somewhat oneach device.

During setup, the computer can also send control change information to fine-tune the voicecharacteristics. For example, we could set the reverberation (or depth) level. Reverberationdetermines the level of multiple reflections of sound (echos) in the virtual performance space.A value of 00h corresponds to open space space or an anechoic chamber while the maximumvalue 7Fh corresponds to a closed space with hard walls. The computer sends the followingthree-byte MIDI message:

First number: B0h + ChanNo

Second number: 5BhThird number: Reverb level (00h to 7Fh)

The first byte,B0h to BFh, indicates that control information follows for the MIDI channel. Thesecond byte shows the type of control information the number 5Bh indicates reverberationlevel. The final byte is the value.

3.3 Building a new voice

To illustrate the procedure, lets define a voice from scratch. Click the New voice button.AMacsets the voice controls on the left-hand side of the window to default settings:

General MIDI patch to 00h (acoustic grand piano),

Volume level to 5Ah,

No special settings for effects like Reverb, Brightness= 40h.

Pan level 40h (equal volume on the right and left sides if the synthesizer supports stereo).

Click the Send test notes button. You short hear a short scale and chord played in a pianovoice.

A better way to test voices is to play selections on a keyboard. If your keyboard is attached,choose it as the MIDI input device (use the Change portbutton if necessary). Set the synthesizeras the MIDI output device well assume the same keyboard is used as the output device.Play a few notes. You should hear the piano voice. Now, click on the down-arrow on the GM

25


26/55

Table 2: GM Voices

000 Acoustic Grand Piano 043 Contrabass 086 Lead 7 (fifths)

001 Bright Acoustic Piano 044 Tremolo Strings 087 Lead 8 (bass + lead)

002 Electric Grand Piano 045 Pizzicato Strings 088 Pad 1 (new age)

003 Honky-tonk Piano 046 Orchestral Harp 089 Pad 2 (warm)

004 Electric Piano 1 047 Timpani 090 Pad 3 (polysynth)

005 Electric Piano 2 048 String Ensemble 1 091 Pad 4 (choir)

006 Harpsichord 049 String Ensemble 2 092 Pad 5 (bowed)

007 Clavinet 050 Synth Strings 1 093 Pad 6 (metallic)

008 Celesta 051 Synth Strings 2 094 Pad 7 (halo)

009 Glockenspiel 052 Choir Aahs 095 Pad 8 (sweep)010 Music Box 053 Voice Oohs 096 FX 1 (rain)

011 Vibraphone 054 Synth Choir 097 FX 2 (soundtrack)

012 Marimba 055 Orchestra Hit 098 FX 3 (crystal)

013 Xylophone 056 Trumpet 099 FX 4 (atmosphere)

014 Tubular Bells 057 Trombone 100 FX 5 (brightness)

015 Dulcimer 058 Tuba 101 FX 6 (goblins)

016 Drawbar Organ 059 Muted Trumpet 102 FX 7 (echoes)

017 Percussive Organ 060 French Horn 103 FX 8 (sci-fi)

018 Rock Organ 061 Brass Section 104 Sitar

019 Church Organ 062 Synth Brass 1 105 Banjo

020 Reed Organ 063 Synth Brass 2 106 Shamisen021 Accordion 064 Soprano Sax 107 Koto

022 Harmonica 065 Alto Sax 108 Kalimba

023 Bandoneon 066 Tenor Sax 109 Bagpipe

024 Acoustic Guitar (nylon) 067 Baritone Sax 110 Fiddle

025 Acoustic Guitar (steel) 068 Oboe 111 Shanai

026 Electric Guitar (jazz) 069 English Horn 112 Tinkle Bell

027 Electric Guitar (clean) 070 Bassoon 113 Agogo

028 Electric Guitar (muted) 071 Clarinet 114 Steel Drums

029 Overdriven Guitar 072 Piccolo 115 Woodblock

030 Distortion Guitar 073 Flute 116 Taiko Drum

031 Guitar Harmonics 074 Recorder 117 Melodic Tom032 Acoustic Bass 075 Pan Flute 118 Synth Drum

033 Electric Bass (finger) 076 Blown Bottle 119 Reverse Cymbal

034 Electric Bass (pick) 077 Shakuhachi 120 Guitar Fret Noise

035 Fretless Bass 078 Whistle 121 Breath Noise

036 Slap Bass 1 079 Ocarina 122 Seashore

037 Slap Bass 2 080 Lead 1 (square) 123 Bird Tweet

038 Synth Bass 1 081 Lead 2 (sawtooth) 124 Telephone Ring

039 Synth Bass 2 082 Lead 3 (calliope) 125 Helicopter

040 Violin 083 Lead 4 (chiff) 126 Applause

041 Viola 084 Lead 5 (charang) 127 Gunshot

042 Cello 085 Lead 6 (voice)

26


27/55

instrument control and choose a different voice, like a celesta. Notes should now have a differentsound.

Heres whats happening. When you press or release a key, the keyboard sends signals tothe computer. The signals are intercepted byAMac, and the program echoes them (i.e., sendsthe same information back to the keyboard) on MIDI channel 00h. The keyboard produces anaudio signal that depends on the program information it has received. When you changed theGM instrument,AMac sent the MIDI message

First byte: C0h

Second byte: 08h (celesta)

Third byte: 00h

to the synthesizer. All subsequentNoteOnmessages will be represented by a celesta-like sound.

Heres a couple things that may go wrong: What if you hear both a piano and a celesta sound? In this case, the keyboard is not only

sending information to the computer, but also sending information directly to its ownoutput. The MIDI convention is to sum signals arriving from all sources. Its necessaryto set the keyboard to Local Off. This happens automatically on Yamaha keyboards.AMacsends aLocal Off signal whenever you enter the Voice Laboratoryand sendsLocalOnwhen you exit. Some Casio keyboards do not recognize the Local Off signal, so youmust set it manually.

The voice setting on a Yamaha keyboard may affect note output to the computer, even

if the keyboard is set to Local off. Some keyboard voices may have octave displacementsand even voice doubling on multiple channels, which can cause confusion. Be sure thekeyboard is in the powerup default state when you use AMac and do not change thehardware voice when the program is running.

3.4 Fine-tuning the voice

Use the set of controls on the left-hand side to customize the voice. It is important to recognizethat some of the controls may not have an effect, depending on the sophistication of your syn-thesizer. Inexpensive Casio keyboards use waveform samplers rather than an actual synthesizer.Therefore, most of the parameters (except chorus, reverb and octave) are ignored. Moderate

price Yamaha keyboards respond to all the controls on the left side, but not the controls in thecenter. Experiment with your own keyboard to see which controls are recognized.

All sliders have the range 00h (0) to 7Fh (127). The controls have the following functions:

Volume. The default volume of the voice.

Reverb/depth. Effect of the performance space a higher value gives a longer echoeffect.

Chorus. Simulation of multiple players (like a string section). With a high value, thesynthesizer broadens the frequency width of overtones. A low value corresponds to a solo

instrument.

Cutoff/brightness. A low-pass filter a high value passes all frequencies while a lowvalue passes only low frequencies for a mellow sound.

27


28/55

Resonance/timbre. Instruments create a series of overtones, integer multiples of thefundamental note frequency. A instrument like a banjo has a high content of overtones,

while a flute has a low content. A high value of this parameter gives strong overtones,while a low value gives reduced overtones. Incidentally, if you want to appear musical besure to pronounce timbre as tamber(as in tambourine).

Attack time. Musical instruments like pianos typically do not produce notes with uni-form amplitude. Instead, the amplitude follows an envelope like that of Fig. 11: a loudersection when the hammer strikes the string, a sustained period while the key is helddown and then a decay when the key is released. The profile of Fig. 11 is called anADSR envelope (attack/decay/sustain/release). Generally, the amplitudes are built intothe parametric definitions of the synthesizer, but you can adjust the timings. Use thiscontrol to adjust the attack time. Note that there are only A, D and R commands the

S time is controlled by how long you hold the key.

Release time. The release time of the ADSR envelope.

Left/right. This command, also know asPan, controls stereo effects. For a setting of00h, the voice sounds only in the left channel. A setting of 7Fh gives sound in the rightchannel.

Octave. An octave displacement, implemented in AMacrather than in the synthesizer.As an application example, a displacement of -1 is usually used with a tenor saxophoneto get a more soulful sound without the need to transpose the notes of the song.

Sound variation. A generalized control for synthesizers that support multiple variantsof an instrument sound.

Decay time. The decay time of the ADSR envelope.

Vibrato rate. Vibrato is a low-frequency modulation of pitch. This control sets themodulation frequency.

Vibrato depth. This control sets the frequency range for the vibrato modulation, gen-erally small compared to the fundamental frequency.

Vibrato delay This control sets the phase of the vibrato modulation relative to theNoteOn signal.

Tremolo depth Tremolo is a low-frequency modulation of amplitude. This control setsthe volume change.

3.5 Saving and loading voice sets

When you find a good combination of parameters, youll want to save the voice to use in yourperformances. Modify the voice name if you want something more descriptive, and then click

the buttonAdd as new to list. The voice appears in the listbox in the lower-right corner of thewindow. You can create and add any number of voices to the list.

28


29/55

Figure 11: Parameters for note amplitude envelope.

The list is not a permanent record, so it is important to save your results before exiting theprogram. Use theSave voice filecommand and specify a prefix to create a voice file with suffixMDV (for MIDI voice). The next time you run AMac, you can reload the file and work withthe entries in the list:

Add more voices.

Delete entries.

Edit voices by tuning the parameters.

Reorder the list.

To add a voice, define a set of parameters and click the Add as new to list button. To delete

voices, highlight entries in the list and then click the Delete voicesbutton. To select multipleentries, hold down the Ctrl key. To select a block, select the top and bottom entries whileholding the Shiftkey. To remove all entries, use the Clear voice list button.

To change one of the voices in the list, double-click on it or select it and click the Edit voicebutton. The voice name and its associated parameters are transferred to the control area onthe left-hand side. After making changes, there are two options to move the results to the voicelist:

Use the Update in voice listbutton to replace the old voice.

Use the Add as new to listbutton to append the voice settings to the end of the list. Inthis case, the voice must have a unique name.

29


30/55

TheAMacdistribution includes three voice set files that you can use as templates for yourwork:

KBDI STANDARD.MDV. A basic set of 119 GM instrument voices with default parametersettings.

PSRE423.MDV. A set of XG voices captured from the Yamaha PSR E423 keyboard. Thesevoices are best used on Yamaha keyboards.

DGX640.MDV. A set of XG voices captured from the Yamaha DGX-640 keyboard. Thesevoices are best used on Yamaha keyboards.

3.6 XG voices and drum sets

Digital synthesizers can produce thousands of instrumental sounds, far more voices than the128 of the general MIDI convention. XG parameters allow you to access the full set of voicesavailable on your keyboard. In the XG convention, voices are arranged in banks of 128. Thebank number (a 14 bit quantity) is specified by two seven bit numbers: MSBcontains the top7 bits and LSB contains the lower 7 bits. The maximum number of voices on a synthesizerthat support the XG convention is (128)3 = 2, 097, 152. In practice, the number of availablesynthesizer voices is much smaller.

The drawback of XG is that the voices are not standardized between manufacturers andmay even differ between keyboards from the same manufacturer. Therefore, voices that youcreate with XG parameters may be appropriate only for your keyboard. This is the reason that

most of the MIDI files you download on the Internet use only GM voices.If your goal is to perform on your keyboard, XG voices are a good option if you know the

correct parameters. These may be listed in the reference material supplied with the device. Forexample, the Yamaha PSR E423 supports 700 voices, with XG parameters given in the DataListmanual. The setting for the ChristmasBelvoice, GM instrument = 098, MSB = 000 andLSB = 067, gives a warm bell sound. In most cases, if a synthesizer does not support XG voicesor does not recognize the particular XG specification, it will substitute the general MIDI voice.Manufacturers usually define XG voices so that they sound similar to the corresponding GMvoice. In the example, GM voice 098 is FX 3 (crystal), close to ChristmasBel. Therefore, XGvoices may have an acceptable sound on different keyboards.

The XG parameters can be used to make rhythm (percussive) sounds on your keyboard.Such sounds have a broad spectrum without a well-defined pitch. Rhythm sounds are a keycomponent of most styles by convention, they are transmitted over MIDI channel 09h. Becausepitch information is not required, the note value in NoteOnandNoteOff MIDI messages is usedto determine the type of drum sound. Like the general MIDI instrument voices, there is a set ofgeneral MIDI percussion sounds recognized by all synthesizers that support the GM standard.The options are listed in Table 3. To illustrate, if a synthesizer receives a NoteOn signal onMIDI channel 09h with note value 39h, it produces the sound of a hand clap.

The XG parameters may be used to send rhythm information on other channels, such aschannel 00h used by the Voice Laboratory. To illustrate, set XG MSB = 127, XG LSB = 0 and

GM Instrument = 0, and then play some notes. You should hear drum sounds. The type ofdrum may depend on your keyboard characteristics. For example, on the PSR E423 there is adefault one octave displacement. Set the Octavecontrol to -1 and play notes. The expandedset of percussion instruments will match the small pictures above the keyboard.

30


31/55

Table 3: General MIDI percussion sounds

Note Drum sound Note Drum sound

35 Bass Drum 2 58 Vibra Slap36 Bass Drum 1 59 Ride Cymbal 237 Side Stick/Rimshot 60 High Bongo38 Snare Drum 1 61 Low Bongo39 Hand Clap 62 Mute High Conga40 Snare Drum 2 63 Open High Conga41 Low Tom 2 64 Low Conga42 Closed Hi-hat 65 High Timbale43 Low Tom 1 66 Low Timbale44 Pedal Hi-hat 67 High Agog

45 Mid Tom 2 68 Low Agog46 Open Hi-hat 69 Cabasa47 Mid Tom 1 70 Maracas48 High Tom 2 71 Short Whistle49 Crash Cymbal 1 72 Long Whistle50 High Tom 1 73 Short Giro51 Ride Cymbal 1 74 Long Giro52 Chinese Cymbal 75 Claves53 Ride Bell 76 High Wood Block54 Tambourine 77 Low Wood Block55 Splash Cymbal 78 Mute Cuca56 Cowbell 79 Open Cuca57 Crash Cymbal 2 80 Mute Triangle

81 Open Triangle

31


32/55

3.7 Capturing voice parameters

In the Voice Laboratory, you may be able to import your favorite keyboard voices into AMac

and save them in a voice file to use with your performances. The process is possible withkeyboards that have an InitSend function. In this case, the device exports MIDI messagescontaining the setup information discussed in Sect. 3.2 (e.g., GM program, XG parameters,...).The following procedure applies to the Yamaha PSR E423:

1. Prepare the keyboard. Press theFunctionbutton and use theCategorybuttons to scrollto InitSend.

2. InAMac, pressNew voiceto clear parameters and then press the Capture voicebutton.The green indicator indicates that the program is in capture mode.

3. On the keyboard, activateInitSendby pressing Yes in the Reset group.

4. Click the Capture voice button again to take the program out of capture mode. Thesettings of the controls and parameters on the left-hand side replicate the voice. You cantest the settings by pressing keys on the keyboard or click the Send test notes button.

5. Modify the voice name if desired and add it to the voice file listbox. The voice will beincluded when the voice file is saved.

This procedure was used to create the voice file PSRE423.MDV.

32


33/55

4 Performance

The Performancewindow is the most important component of AMac. It executes real-timeoperations to control styles, voices and command sequences during your performance or practice.The key to thePerformancewindow is the song file. The file preserves the work you performedcreating the song environment it is available with a single mouse click. Song files contain thefollowing information:

A header with current parameter settings of the Performancewindow.

The current operation sequence, which contains information about changes to make inresponse to the control key (e.g., different style sections).

MIDI message parameters that define up to six melody voices (three standard voices andthree alternate voices.)

Volume equalizer settings for the style channels.

The complete style file.

The implication is that the song file contains everything necessary to play the song. There is noworry of a missing-file error during a performance. You can also save sets(song collections). Sets

may sequence through any number of song files, enough for an entire evenings entertainment.The following section describes the functions of controls in the Stylegroup at the left-center

of Fig.12. Section4.2discusses fingering options for guiding the root and chords of the style tomatch the harmonies of the song. Section4.3covers operation sequences, a list of style sectionchanges and other real-time performance options that you set up before performing a song.The changes are implemented by pressing a single keyboard control key. Section 4.4 coversthe controls on the right-hand side of Fig. 12 for melody voice creation. You can define threesimultaneous voices, either in unison, octave or harmony. Section4.5discusses parameters thatcontrol program options (e.g., the control and split keys). Section4.6reviews the controls ofthe Song/Setgroup on the lower-left in Fig.12. Finally, Sect.4.7 describes how to make MIDI

recordings of your AMac performances.

4.1 Style controls

A song must be associated with a Yamaha-format style. Therefore, the first step in buildinga song is to load a style. Its not necessary to find the perfect style at the beginning it canalways be changed later. Style commands are located in theStylegroup at the left-center ofthe window. Use the Load stylebutton to find a style file and place it in memory. AMacshowsthe time signature and default tempo. For a quick preview, click on the Start/Stop button oruse theEscapekey. If you want detailed information about the sections of the currently-loadedstyle, click the blue button with the bass clef to go to the Style Previewwindow. You can thenreturn to the Performancewindow without a loss of information9.

9If you load a different style while in the Style Previewwindow, it will appear as the loaded style in thePerformancewindow.

33


34/55

Figure 12: Screenshot of the Performancewindow.

The Equalizerwas described in Sect. 2.3. Clicking the button opens the dialog of Fig. 9.Use the sliders to balance the components of the style for the right sound. The settings arerecorded when you save a song. You can also change the globalVolumeof the style (relativeto the melody). To change theTempo, type a new value (in quarter notes per minute) in thetext field.

4.2 Guiding the style root and chord

When performing a piece using styles, the function of your left hand is to signal the harmony ofstyle notes. The required information is 1) the chord root note and 2) the chord type. AMacsupports four fingering systems.

4.2.1 Yamaha easy-chord system

The easy-chord system for Yamaha keyboards makes it relatively simple to lead styles harmon-ically. When accompaniment is active, pressing a single key in the bass region of the keyboard(below the split point) shifts the notes of the style so that they correspond to the major chordof the key note. For example, press a Gkey below the split point to specify a GMaj chord.Other chords are formed by simultaneously pressing additional keys below the root key. Thefollowing rules are standard on Yamaha keyboards:

Press the root key and the next lower white key to define a 7 (seventh) chord.

Press the root key and the next lower black key for a min(minor) chord.

Press the root key and both the next lower white and black keys formin7(minor seventh)chord.

34


35/55

Figure 13: KBDI chord system

AMacaugments the system with two additional common chords:

Press the root key and the next two lower white keys to define a Maj7 (major seventh)chord.

Press the root key and the next two lowest black keys for a dim (diminished) chord.

Note that the program displays the current chord in the Chordtext field.The richness of styles compensates for the limited chord set, so you can usually make a good

rendition of a song with the six-chord set (analogous to the bass key rows on an accordion).Occasionally you may want a special chord for just the right effect. In this case, you canplay any of the chord patterns described in Sect. 4.2.3. IfAMac cannot match an easy-chordpattern, it searches for a full chord pattern. In the event that no match is found, the programplays a major chord using the lowest note as the root.

4.2.2 KBDI system

The KBDI chord system is an expansion of the Yamaha easy-chord system that supportsmore chords. The ten most common chords encountered in popular songs can be played usingcombinations of 1, 2 or 3 fingers. The Yamaha method of referencing chords to adjacent blackand white keys is sometimes confusing because the pattern depends on the location of the rootnote and often leads to awkward finger positions. The MIDI note step (a difference of 1 in theGM note number) is the basis of the KBDI system (for example, Bis one step below C andBis two steps below C). Figure13 shows the KBDI fingering conventions. Depressing a singlekey (the root) gives a major chord. Pressing the root key and the adjacent lower one (-1 step)gives a7chord (e.g.,B/C for C7). Similarly, pressing the root key and the next lower one (-2

steps) gives a minor chord (e.g., B/C for Cmin). As with the Yamaha system, you can alsouse the advanced chords listed in the following section.

35


36/55

Figure 14: Full chord set recognized by AMac (shown for a root note ofC).

4.2.3 Full chord system

The most versatile but most difficult approach is to play full chords to guide the root and chordtype. AMacrecognizes the thirty-one chord patterns shown in Fig.14. The root note is alwaysthe lowest one. Transposing a chord is easy in a MIDI program. For example, shifting a C7sus4chord to a D7sus4 is simply a matter of adding 3 to each MIDI note number. In contrast, ona keyboard the player must remember how the steps translate into sharps and flats, a task foran accomplished pianist. Furthermore, it may not be possible to play chords with a large spanon a 61-key keyboard.

4.2.4 Casio chord system

Casio chord fingering is the easiest to use and also the most limited. Again, the highest keydetermines the root. Pressing a single key gives a major chord. Pressing the root and any lowerkey produces a 7 chord. The root plus two any two lower keys gives a minor chord and theroot plus three keys gives a min7 chord. Because of the arbitrary spacings of keys in the 2,3and 4 key combinations, this option does not support full chords.

36


37/55

4.3 Operation sequences

Real-time changes of style sections and other properties are essential for an interesting per-

formance. With keyboard controls and other performance software, you must press specificbuttons to invoke the changes. Buttons have three disadvantages:

Identifying which button to press in real time provides a distraction from your playing.

It is impractical for the manufacturer to include a keyboard button for every possibleaction, so the options are limited.

An incorrect button press can lead to disaster (e.g., ending a style rather than changingmain sections).

In contrast, AMac has a unique system where all changes are invoked by a single control keyon your keyboard (Fig. 15). Pressing the key advances the program to the next entry in asequence that you prepare beforeplaying the song.

The sequence appears in the listbox at top-center in Fig. 12. When a style is first loaded,the default sequence is MainA|Stop. In this case, pressing a key combination below the splitpoint starts the Main A section of the current style. The Main A section of the style playscontinuously with the current tempo and equalizer settings. The style stops when the controlkey is pressed.

Heres a more interesting sequence:

IntroA|MainA|FillAB|MainC|EndingC

In this case, AMac starts IntroA in response to keys below the split point. The programshows a measure countdown in the Measure text field. After the introduction, the programautomatically advances to the MainA section and plays it continuously. During this time, youwould play the first verse of a song. Pressing the control key at the end of the verse, the programplays the single measure of the FillABsection and then advances to the MainCsection, whichis played continuously for the second verse. At the end, a control-key press invokesEndingC.The program stops the sequence when the ending section is complete. By default, the programstarts at the first operation in the sequence. You can start anywhere in the sequence by selectingan operation in the listbox before starting the style by pressing keys below the split point. For

example, to practice the ending of the example song, select MainCand then begin playing.The example shows how to switch between available sections of a style. AMac sequence

operations offer many more options, including fades, global volume changes and alternate voicesets. The following list documents the full set of sequence operations. If the action is the firstone in the sequence, it starts immediately when keyboard keys below the split point are pressed.Otherwise, changes occur at the end of a measure of the previous section.

Main A, Main B, Main C, Main D. If another section is playing, the program waits untilthe end of the current measure. Then, it switches to the specified section and plays it ina continuous loop until the next control signal. [No parameter]

Intro A, Intro B, Intro C. Introduction sections play once, and then the programproceeds to the next sequence entry. [No parameter]

37


38/55

Figure 15: AMac control key usually the lowest one on the keyboard.

EndingA, EndingB, Ending. Ending sections play once, and then the program stops thestyle. [No parameter]

Fill In AA, Fill In AB, Fill In BB, Fill In BA, Fill In CC, Fill In DD.The program plays the single-measure section and then proceeds to the next sequenceentry. [No parameter]

Break AA, Break BB. The programs plays the single-measure section and then proceedsto the next sequence entry. [No parameter]

Stop style. AMac stops the style immediately (the program does not wait until ameasure end). [No parameter]

Stop one beat. The program waits until the end of the current measure, plays thedownbeat of the next measure and then stops the style. This option often provides agood simple ending. [No parameter]

Pause style. The program immediately stops the style and then restarts when thecontrol key is pressed again. A singlePauseoperation in the sequence both stops andstarts the style. The next entry in the sequence must be a style section type (Main A,

Main B,...,BreakBB). Fade out. The program fades out at the end of a song by lowering the system volume

of the output device. The volume of both melody and style channels is reduced. Theparameter is the fade out time in seconds. You can enter fractional values (e.g., 12.6seconds).

Volume. The operation sets the relative volume of all channels (melody and style). Aparameter value of 1.0 corresponds to the initial volumesettings upon entering the song.The initial volume level of melody channels is set by clicking the Set current voicebuttonand changing the volume slider. The initial volume of style channels depends on settings

in the style file and the Equalizersettings. A parameter value of 0.5 reduces the volumeby 50%. You can raise the volume above the initial level with a parameter greater than1.0 (up to 5.0). Note that high values may result in volume saturation of some channels.

38


39/55

Melody volume. The operation sets the relative volume of voice channels. The parameteris a number between 0.0 and 1.0.

Style volume. The operation sets the relative volume of style channels. The parameteris a number between 0.0 and 1.0.

Tempo set. Use this operation to set an absolute tempo. The parameter is the desiredtempo in quarter notes per minute. Note that the tempo change takes place immediatelyupon pressing the control key.

Tempo change. Use this operation to make a relative change in the present value of thetempo. The parameter may have the range 0.2 to 5.0. A value of 2.0 doubles the tempowhile a value 0.5 halves it.

One beat measure. Use this command or the following two to play a song where ameasure has an irregular number of beats. In response to the command, the programwaits until the end of the current measure, plays one beat of the current style and thencontinues with the regular pattern. As an example, suppose there is a 5/4 measure ina 4/4 song. Use this command and press the control key at any time in the precedingmeasure. AMac plays 1 + 4 beats and then continues with the normal 4/4 pattern. [Noparameter]

Two beat measure. The program waits until the end of the current measure, plays twobeats of the current style and then continues with the regular pattern. For example, use

this operation if a song in 4/4 has a six-beat measure. [No parameter] Three beat measure. The program waits until the end of the current measure, plays

three beats of the current style and then continues with the regular pattern. [No param-eter]

Toggle alt voice. Use the operation once to switch to the alternate set of voice dis-cussed in the following section. Use the operation again to return to the normal voice set.As an example, with this feature you can use a completely different set of voices for thesecond verse of a song. Note that songs always initialize to start with the normal voiceset.

Use the Add entrypopup menu to build or to expand an operation sequence. If a currentoperation is selected, the new entry is added below it. Otherwise, the new entry is added at theend of the list. Use the mouse to change the order of operations. Left-click on an operation, holddown the left button and move the operation to the desired location. To remove an operationfrom the list, select it and click the Remove entrybutton or theDeletekey. TheClear sequencebutton removes all entries. Finally, note if you change the style associated with a song, not allstyle sections referenced in a sequence may be available. If a section is not supported in thecurrent style,AMac makes an optimal substitution.

39


40/55

Figure 16: Tune active voicedialog called from the Performancewindow.

4.4 Defining melody voices

AMachas many options for defining melody voices. The program supports three simultaneousinstrument voices, either in unison, at octave displacements or in harmony. You can define two

independent voice sets and switch between them in a song. Voice controls are collected in theVoice group on the right-hand side of the Performance window (Fig. 12). The three voicesof the standard set are shown in Fig. 16. Voice0 is transmitted to MIDI channel 00h of thesynthesizer, Voice1 to channel 01h and Voice2 to channel 02h. Click on a voice name to makeit active. The active voice name is shown in bold letters. To work on the alternate voice set,activate the Alternate voicescheckbox. There are two ways to set the active voice:

Load a voice file following the procedure described in Chap. 3. Then double-click one ofthe entries in the listbox at bottom-right to transfer its parameters.

Create a voice from scratch by clicking the Adjust current voice button.

To employ voices that you have created in the Voice Laboratory, use the Load voice filebutton to load a file (FName.MDV). Then, double-click on one of the entries to load its parametersinto the active voice. If the voice settings are not ideal for the song, you can tune them byclicking theAdjust current voicebutton. AMacdisplays a dialog with the same controls as thevoice laboratory (Fig.16). As parameters are changed, the external synthesizer is updated soyou can hear the effect by playing notes on the keyboard. Anything may be changed, includingthe voice name and the GM instrument. The active voice is updated when you exit the dialog.Note that these changes affect only the voice in the song. They do not modify the loaded voicefile. The settings are recorded when you save a song file. To create a voice from scratch, make

an undefined voice active then click the Adjust current voicebutton. Finally, to delete a voice,make it active and then use the Remove voice button.When theHarmonycheckboxes to the right of Voices 01h and 02h are unchecked, the voices

play in unison. (In other words, channels 00h, 01h and 02h receive the same MIDI notes). To

40


41/55

add octave displacements, make a voice active and then click the Adjust active voicebutton.Set the Octavecontrol in the dialog.

To use harmony, the primary voice (Voice 00h) must be defined. If a single Harmonycheckbox is active, AMac plays the corresponding voice with duet harmony (with notes ofVoice 01h lower than those of Voice 00h). Harmonic displacements depend on the current rootand chord of the style. If both harmony checkboxes are active, the program produces trioharmony with the notes of Voicer 01h lower than those of Voice 00h, and the notes of Voice02h lower than those of Voice 01h. The same rules apply to the alternate voice set.

Real-time calculations of harmony in response to chord changes in style are complex. AMacmay get mixed signals if your bass playing is loose or error-prone. Therefore, its a good ideato practice a song with harmony deactivated until you become proficient. In the event of anerror resulting in a hung harmony note, immediately press the bass notes for the current or thenext chord to clear it.

Here is a suggested exercise to check out the voice capabilities. Load any style and definethe following operation sequence:

Main A|Toggle alt voice|Toggle alt voice|Toggle alt voice|Stop style

Load the voice file KBDI Standard.MDV. Choose Harpsichord for Voice 00h and Celesta forVoice 01h. Go to theSettingsdialog and set the Initial chord toCMaj (Sect.4.5). Check howthe combined voice sounds with Harmony for Voice 01h checked and unchecked. Next, checkthe Alternate voices box. Pick Drawbar organfor Voice 00h and Marimba for Voice 01h. Startthe style by pressing a C key below the split point. Note that the song automatically startsin the primary voice set. Play some notes and press the control key to alternate between the

voices.

4.5 Settings, real-time events

There are several parameters to define for the Performancewindow. Click the Settings buttonat the upper-right to bring up the dialog of Fig. 17. Click one of the radio buttons in theStyleleadgroup to set the fingering system to guide the style harmony. Section4.2 describes theoptions. Note that the current choice is stored in a song file, so you can use different fingeringsystems for different songs. Table 4 gives a list of program parameter settings recorded in songfiles.

Next, you should set the Control key and the Split point appropriate for your keyboard.The