Hello everybody, can someone tell me what a push is ? is there another name for it ? can you show me an 80's pop song where it is used ? in 30 years as an amateur musician, I have never seen or heard this word outside of BIAB thanks in advance, Bernard Raasson
Bernard Rasson
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Hi Bernard. In BiaB, a Push plays the chord either an 1/8 or a 1/6th note earlier than the beat.
From the Help: Add Pushes to Chords Pushes in Styles Styles can push any instrument so that the instrument plays before the chord begins. This is very common in Jazz and other Pop music, and gives the music a more natural sound.
"Pushes" (sometimes called anticipations) are chords that are played before the beat. For example, in Jazz Swing the piano player often pushes a chord change by playing the chord an eighth note before the beat.
To use keystrokes: Type the caret symbol ‘^’ before the chord. (The caret symbol is located above the 6 on the keyboard.) Type a single caret to get a chord an eighth note before the beat. e.g. ^C7 Type a double caret to get a chord a sixteenth note before the beat. e.g. ^^C7
Hope this assists.
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Yes, I have heard the word "anticipation" before but infrequently None of my music teachers ever talked about this, so I guess it is somehow related to what kind of music you tend to learn thank you again, have a nice weekend Bernard
Bernard Rasson
BIAB Audiophile 2021, BIAB Megapak 2015 (for midi-only projects), Cakewalk, Roland XV-5080, Roland Fantom XR, Aria AC60 Nylon Strings Guitar, Almansa Spanish Guitar, Fender Stratocaster Japan, two laptops Je parle français
Syncopation is another term you’ve probably heard.
I’m a pro player for almost 60 years now, and I never heard the term ‘push’ used in the way BIAB uses it. Drummers and bassists are more familiar with playing ahead of the beat.
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have you figured out syncopation on biab? I'm trying to get the second chord in a measure to come in on the AND of 2 - so it seems like it would be in the first box in the measure, but with these "push" things it seems like they're saying ^G in the 2nd box should put the chord where I want it - but I'm not hearing it. I'd appreciate any wisdom! Thanks Elzie
Syncopation is another term you’ve probably heard.
I’m a pro player for almost 60 years now, and I never heard the term ‘push’ used in the way BIAB uses it. Drummers and bassists are more familiar with playing ahead of the beat.
To me they're PULLS, not Pushes - they pull the note 1/8 or 1/16 ahead of the timing. Semantics really as I have no formal musical training. Thank goodness BB doesn't care about that. ; Ian
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have you figured out syncopation on biab? I'm trying to get the second chord in a measure to come in on the AND of 2 - so it seems like it would be in the first box in the measure, but with these "push" things it seems like they're saying ^G in the 2nd box should put the chord where I want it - but I'm not hearing it. I'd appreciate any wisdom! Thanks Elzie
You need to 'Push' the 3rd beat. Agreed, the term 'Push' is quite misleading because it actually pulls the note to play earlier. Try entering the chord in the RH part of the cell as ^G and see if that assists. How well the push works might also depend on the style.
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This is interesting subject. I have asked questions about anticipations in the past and have gotten little response. In arranging class at he naval School of Music we were constantly being docked for writing a fill that destroyed an anticipation. I have yet to figure out how to prevent this from happening when using BIAB>
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I am confused on how to use the push function to play chords on the upbeat of the fourth beat of a measure and follow it with a downbeat on the first beat of the following measure. If I want the 'and' of four I need to push the first beat of the next measure so my question is how do I get the downbeat of the next measure to play? or do I need to give up on that rhythm phrase?
BIAB is its own world. Many things are "non standard".
I have heard the term "push" only once in a recording studio. I did not understand it then anymore than I understood it the first time in BIAB. I assumed at the time that they were talking about the timing. Having played to a click track most of my life when recording any "push or pull" would be left to the studio engineer to deal with.
Jazz is definitely not a form of music that I know much about. I have learned to play "behind the beat" but I have great difficulty keeping it constant.
Perhaps this "push" business in BIAB is related to the limits imposed on entering chords, a way to move things by something less than a quarter note. Perhaps it is a way to emulate the practice of playing behind the beat or playing ahead of the beat.
As Matt pointed out, Syncopation is something that moves notes off the beat and stressies notes not normally stressed. Actually Syncopation is complex enough that it does not lend itself to a minor explanation. Google it.
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As a jazz bass player, "pushing" the beat means something entirely different to me! I would refer to the BiaB 'push' as anticipating the beat, as others have said.
So, yes, I did find the BiaB terminology slightly confusing at first, but it just takes a little getting used to and now it's fine :-)
This is sort of a naming convention used by BIAB that does not resonate clearly with everyone.
These movements of notes out of time constitute more of a feel than a precise value in music I have listen to.
Swing music does similar sorts of things by moving the emphasis on the off–beat or weaker pulse. But also swing does not necessarily require a defined amount of movement as in "swing feel".
At the end of the day I guess it matters little what you call this movements of notes in BIAB. Learning non standard terms and ways of doing thing is a basic requirement of dealing with BIAB.
I assume there could be examples of this device in other styles of music other than jazz and funk. Please post a link if you know.
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Actually, this technique is not that unusual and shows up in all types of music. Here is a link to a hard rock track that uses BIAB pushes on the third beat of every even bar:
So, if I'm understanding this correctly, if I want an upbeat on the 'and' of the fourth beat and a downbeat on the first beat of the next measure I need to find a style that gives that to me and not write it accordingly. Correct?
So, if I'm understanding this correctly, if I want an upbeat on the 'and' of the fourth beat and a downbeat on the first beat of the next measure I need to find a style that gives that to me and not write it accordingly. Correct?
Not quite.
BIAB as provided cannot have a chord on the and of beat four, and also on the downbeat of the next measure (assuming 4/4).
But there are workarounds. Third party styles such as by Norton Music will do this, and you can do it yourself if you change the time, time base and / or style, to make what was in one measure into two.
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We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 28 RealTracks and RealDrums!
Few things are certain in life: death, taxes, and a brand spankin’ new XPro Styles PAK! In this, the 10th edition of our XPro Styles PAK series, we’ve got 100 styles coming your way! We have the classic 25 styles each from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, and rounding out this volume's wildcard slot is 25 styles in the Praise & Worship genre! A wide spanning genre, you can find everything from rock, folk, country, and more underneath its umbrella. The included 28 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
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