Currently BB enables users to import MIDI tracks to the BB Melody track. This is a really useful feature for people who write musical scores in external heavyweight notation programs such as Finale, PrintMusic, MuseScore, etc.

BB MIDI import to a melody track is useful because it saves people a lot of time because they don't have to enter melody notes twice, in two different programs. The workflow is (1) export individual score parts into single track MIDI files, for (2) loading into BB melody or solo tracks.

However, the BB import process to a melody track is not well documented at all in either of the BB user manuals (online or hardcopy).

As a consequence, users can waste a lot of time (like I did) doing the wrong things (Loading a MIDI file, instead of Importing MIDI to a specific track). Finally I phoned support and found out the right way to do it. (Melody, Edit Melody Track, Import Melody from MIDI file...)

A better approach would be to add a section to the manual to describe this simple and very useful process. (It's obviously the easiest way to get existing melody notes from an external notation program into BB.)

If this simple non-code documentation change was made, users could save time, be more productive, and connect BB melody/solo tracks to other programs more easily.

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As part of the suggested documentation, some paragraphs should be devoted to explaining how BB parses the incoming MIDI notes into the time signatures of the importing BB style.

For example, I know from recent wasted time, experience, and two support calls that BB uses the style attributes to parse incoming MIDI notes into the currently loaded style.

In my case, I wanted to load the notes for Silent Night (3/4 time, even/straight 8ths) into a waltz style (BGWALTZ, 3/4 time). BUT... it turns out that BGWALTZ swings the notes in the style, so the BB parser forced the incoming even 8ths into swing (triplet) 8ths.

Of course this made my notation notes wrong in the display window, and -- the point here -- I could not understand what was happening, could not find any help in any documentation, and ended up making another support call (or two) to debug the problem.

In the end, I solved the problem myself while on the support call, by switching the style to replace the 3x3 (3 sets of triplets) vertical grid lines in the editable notation window with the expected 3x4 (3 sets/beats of 4 vertical lines (1/16 each)).

If this information was explained in the documentation, users could more easily accomplish their MIDI importing workflow goals without these kinds of problems.

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In a later support call, Kent? explained that there is a Triplet Swing Resolution checkbox in the options for the notation window. This checkbox controls the use of a 3x3 or 3x4 grid of vertical lines.

He also asserted that the checkbox and grid only affected the presentation of the imported notes, not the playing of the MIDI notes. I confirmed this by playing my imported melody, with and without the Triplet checkbox checked in the notation window options.

Perhaps this could also be explained in the MIDI importing documentation or tutorial, if/when it is ever written.

Last edited by kevinj; 11/19/14 04:19 PM.