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I've just upgraded to 2012-5, and am impressed with the new MIDI Superstyles.
Playing with other musicians in several combinations, I share BIAB songs I've put together, but not all of my colleagues have the most recent version of BIAB.
Obviously, if they don't have the necessary RealTracks etc., they won't be able to hear the output as I hear it, but I would like to be sure that they can at least create leadsheets (transposed as necessary for their instruments).
Do earlier versions of BIAB deal elegantly with new features that weren't invented when they were released? How far back is it possible to go?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
I've just upgraded to 2012-5, and am impressed with the new MIDI Superstyles.
Playing with other musicians in several combinations, I share BIAB songs I've put together, but not all of my colleagues have the most recent version of BIAB.
Obviously, if they don't have the necessary RealTracks etc., they won't be able to hear the output as I hear it, but I would like to be sure that they can at least create leadsheets (transposed as necessary for their instruments).
Do earlier versions of BIAB deal elegantly with new features that weren't invented when they were released? How far back is it possible to go?
It seems to me that you have answered your own question. They can't use the real tracks if they don't have them and I think the same is true for the midi superstyles and tracks. If you are sharing styles, you might have to substitute midi for real tracks if their versions do not have real tracks. Maybe others will chime in on this one with other/better suggestions. FWIW
Stan
Cornet Curmudgeon
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Leads sheets and notation shouldn't be a problem but different styles might. If someone doesn't have a style Biab will ask to use the default one, usually zzjazz. If you use the older midi styles you should be fine.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Let's say I'm acting as a librarian for several bands, and one of my trumpet-playing colleagues has a 4 year old version of BIAB, which he uses for practice and for the production of leadsheets in Bb, and which has no RealTracks etc.
If I send him an MGU file that I've created, which includes the chords and melody of a song I've written along with the latest MIDI SuperTracks and RealTracks, will his version of BIAB be able to cope with the leadsheet part of it without his having to change anything?
Obviously he'll have to find a suitable style and choose MIDI instruments to replace the RealTracks (if BIAB doesn't offer to do it for him), what I want to be sure about before I create a brilliant library of thousands is that an older version of BIAB won't just keel over like older versions of Microsoft Word do when they are asked to open documents from the current version.
I get the feeling I'll just have to suck it and see...
[That's a British saying, I hope it gets safely and inoffensively across the Atlantic!]
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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I've never tried that so I can't give you a definite answer but I don't think there would be any problem. The one exception would be the time sig if the reciepient doesn't have your style. Say it's a jazz waltz, or any other non 4/4 time sig, s/he doesn't have the style and lets Biab use the default zzjazz style. Well, that style is in 4 so the chart would be wrong. I would simply change the songs to one of the old original all midi styles, don't let biab do the auto replacement of the drum track with an RD, do a 'save as' and store them in a separate directory. Then you know there's no problems because everybody should have those old styles. If you also want them to hear a good arrangement of the song you can always create a WMA from within Biab of your new hot version with all the latest stuff and send that along with the old style for the leadsheet. Or, you can do the leadsheet yourself, save as a pdf and just send that with the WMA file. There's free programs that act as a printer but it's not, it saves as a pdf. Lots of ways to accomplish this. Oh, as to your funny old English expression, we can discuss that over cocktails if you'd like...  Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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'suck it and see'
To try something that you have not done before to discover what it is like or whether it will be successful
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
I've never tried that so I can't give you a definite answer but I don't think there would be any problem. The one exception would be the time sig if the reciepient doesn't have your style. Say it's a jazz waltz, or any other non 4/4 time sig, s/he doesn't have the style and lets Biab use the default zzjazz style. Well, that style is in 4 so the chart would be wrong. I would simply change the songs to one of the old original all midi styles, don't let biab do the auto replacement of the drum track with an RD, do a 'save as' and store them in a separate directory. Then you know there's no problems because everybody should have those old styles.
What I've done so far is to create a shared folder for one particular band on Dropbox, and fill it with the MGU files of the repertoire, along with MP3 versions of the same files, with the melody suppressed in all. I can send any member of the band a link to this folder, and once he's set up the Dropbox link, that folder becomes a part of his computer which is automatically kept in step with my master copies. He can open an MGU file in BIAB and use this directly as a backing track (if he has the same RealTracks etc as I have) or else use the MP3 file. I hadn't realised that the time signature could be overruled by a default style, but presumably there's a waltz style somewhere that could keep the leadsheet in 3/4 even if it wouldn't sound right.
Quote:
If you also want them to hear a good arrangement of the song you can always create a WMA from within Biab of your new hot version with all the latest stuff and send that along with the old style for the leadsheet. Or, you can do the leadsheet yourself, save as a pdf and just send that with the WMA file. There's free programs that act as a printer but it's not, it saves as a pdf. Lots of ways to accomplish this.
I'm not at all keen on maintaining multiple copies of the same song, with variations to suit everybody - there's so much scope for failure to keep everything in step - especially where Bb and Eb versions are also needed. I use PDF995 as a virtual printer when I need a PDF file of a lead-sheet.
Quote:
Oh, as to your funny old English expression, we can discuss that over cocktails if you'd like...
Bob
Your place or mine?
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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You're place of course if I can ever get over there. I do have a friend who lives on the Isle of Bute who's offered to put me up if I decide to make the trip.
It sounds like you're doing a lot of these for more than one band. I think I would do the MP3's with a pdf of the leadsheet and don't bother with sending Biab files.
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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For the avoidance of misunderstanding, I should state that my username (which implies female gender) is the title of a Jimi Hendrix number, and that I am, in fact, male.
(Just in case you should turn up on my doorstep...).
For the moment, I'm going to stick with the paired combination of a concert copy of the MGU file with a four-chorus MP3. I don't really want to get into production of leadsheets for C, Bb and Eb instruments, unless there's a way of automating the process.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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OAAwwwhhhhhh! Klang... Klang...
Reminds me of that time in this bar where there was a tall striking chick who turns out was not quite as female as "she" looked. Luckily I was warned by the bartender as I was about to walk over on a break...Turns out she/he was a regular and we had great fun watching different guys hitting on her, er him er, whatever.
Why would you have a username like that? Well, actually none of my business really...
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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PG Music Staff
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>> Obviously, if they don't have the necessary RealTracks etc., they won't be able to hear the output as I hear it, but I would like to be sure that they can at least create leadsheets (transposed as necessary for their instruments).
Do earlier versions of BIAB deal elegantly with new features that weren't invented when they were released? How far back is it possible to go?
==========
Yes, the files are backwards compatible, so they will load into an older version of BB. As you mentioned, they won't have RealTracks (of course), but they would just need to change the style to one that they do have ( a MIDI one), and the files will play fine.
The chords/ leadsheets display and print out without needing to change the style - those would just load and display/print.
Have Fun!
Peter Gannon
PG Music Inc.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Thanks, Peter and Matt.
My primary concern is to have a way of exchanging transposible worksheets, so that's fine - but I'm not sure what an older version of BIAB will do with "New chord types add2, madd2, and dim triad" (see Matt's link) for the initial presentation and for transposition. I haven't come across any of them in a jazz chart so far, so it may not be an issue for me.
As to Jazzmammal's comment on my choice of username - his choice of username might also cause a shrink to raise an eyebrow! He's still welcome to a drink if he turns up here!
When I was a tall and skinny schoolboy I was nick-named foxy-face, or just foxy, and I used it as a username on a couple of forums, but on a couple of sites, foxy was taken, and I added the "lady" part to get a unique username.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Anonymous
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Quote:
For the avoidance of misunderstanding, I should state that my username (which implies female gender) is the title of a Jimi Hendrix number, and that I am, in fact, male.
You could have gone with Purple Haze.... just sayin'.... 
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
You could have gone with Purple Haze.... just sayin'....
Surely "Hey Joe!" would have been appropriate?
ROG.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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That group was rehearsing at the bass players place about 15 years ago when the whole area had a big power failure and it was summer. A truck knocked over a pole with the transformer on it. It soon got blistering hot in there so we all went outside and starting throwing around possible names for the band and somehow Jazzmammals happened. The bassist/leader has a coonskin hat with the tail hanging from the neck of his upright and we all joke "yeah we're the 'Mammals but don't worry we don't eat much."
Foxy, how about signing your posts with a real name like most of us do, then who cares what your forum username is?
Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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And here I always thought it was a reference to the best Sinclairs episode evah...
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Quote:
Foxy, how about signing your posts with a real name like most of us do, then who cares what your forum username is?
Bob
Makes sense!
Michael
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Band-in-a-Box for Windows
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Lots of my group share MGU / SGU files across lots of different versions of biab all of the time
Forward & backward compatibility is DEFINITELY not a problem - the only thing that you do get is the warning nmessage that the style is not available & offering you a different one.
It sometimes takes a bit of fiddling to get something suitable - but as the purpose of the exercise it to be able to rehearse separately (using biab) - so that we have a chance of playing it properly when we are together - this is just fine.
... thanks for explanation of the name Michael - I was beginning to think it was some Gaelic thing.
& Bob - it probably takes as long to get from the 'Isle of Bute' to Fife as it takes from California (but the view is much better).
Chris
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Real Band seq files contain the music files, so if they have RB I would use that. That way there would be no need to have the same styles, and your own tracks would be sent also.
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