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Greetings. I am writing a 12 bar Jazz Blues. On each repeat of the 12 bars I want to be able to choose which of the 4 RealTrack instruments are playing or muted. Every time I repeat the 12 bars, I may want to chose a different selection of the 4 instruments (play some, mute some).

I suspect I cannot do this when using repeat signs.

I suspect I will need to write out a "fresh" 12 bars each time I repeat and then somehow set the play and mute designations for just those bars. I would then do that again for another round of the 12 bars if I want to make another instrument selection change.

Am I on the right track here? And if so, how do I designate which instruments are playing or muted on the selected bars?

Thanks so much for your help!

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I believe you are on the right track. You probably intended the pun.

I would make it one long song (not use repeats). Then use F5 at each measure to change to Mute or Back to Normal for each instrument.

If you want more instruments, move one to a Utility Track and use the 'normal' track to generate a new track, then move that to a Utility Track etc.


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I think you can if you set the Chorus Length to 12 bars and use the Chorus drop down window in Bar Settings.

Each 12 bars Chorus will have it's own Chorus number assigned and the Bar Settings will be unique to each numbered Chorus.

Three 12 bar repeats = 3 Choruses





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Bar Settings Dialog Window with Chorus drop down menu highlighted.

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Originally Posted By: BackingTrack
Greetings. I am writing a 12 bar Jazz Blues. On each repeat of the 12 bars I want to be able to choose which of the 4 RealTrack instruments are playing or muted. Every time I repeat the 12 bars, I may want to chose a different selection of the 4 instruments (play some, mute some).

You might take a look at some of the "medley" styles and RealTracks. These contain a number of instruments that change by numbers of bars, or at part-markers, or at new choruses.

One can make one's own medleys, but I'm afraid I've never really understood the right way to do that. Someone else may offer a guide.


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Gordon is correct regarding using the RealTrack Medley Maker to change RT instruments. Select the Chorus # you want an instrument change and from that Chorus selection, click the RealTrack Button, select the track to change and select the new RealTrack. To change to another instrument or revert back to the style original instrument. Repeat the process from the Chorus you want this change to occur in.

He's also correct this can be done with MultiStyles.




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Thanks for all these helpful answers! They bring up some questions for me.

The term "chorus" is used in the answers several times. Does this mean in my case 1 set of 12 bars that will be repeated perhaps with some instrument volume changes (muting for me) on each repeat? Each set of 12 bars is a "chorus"?

If this is so, the F5 function (which I didn't know about) seems to allow picking a chorus # which to me intimates that you could use this with a 12 bar "chorus" repeating with repeat signs and then selecting which repeat (chorus #) you wanted the changes to be applied to.

BUT the dialog box also indicates that you might only be able to make these instrument volume changes (muting for me) on a bar by bar basis within the selected chorus #, thus 12 changes, bar by bar, for a certain type of chorus rendering. I don't want to change instruments, just muting or no muting

Does this seem right?

Is there a way to make these changes for a span of bars, rather than only one bar at a time?

Thanks for your ongoing support.

Last edited by BackingTrack; 09/27/22 12:44 PM.
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Quote:
The term "chorus" is used in the answers several times. Does this mean in my case 1 set of 12 bars that will be repeated perhaps with some instrument volume changes (muting for me) on each repeat? Each set of 12 bars is a "chorus"?

In BiaB speak, a 'chorus' is one play through the entire song (excluding intro and ending).


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A "chorus" in Band in a Box (BIAB) is a complete playthrough of the length of the song. The default can be adjusted but is normally 32 bars with 3 choruses. This means 2 repeats of the main Chord Sheet for 3 choruses to be 2 repeats. There are markings at bar 1 and 32 defining the repeat bars and a total song consisting of 96 bars.

Setting a start of 1 and end of 12 with a number of Choruses set at 3 is a 36 bar total. Then with the F5 Bar Settings function, each of the 3 choruses act independent of the other choruses as far as defining mute ranges, instrument changes, tempo changes - in short, each chorus functions as a stand alone Chord Sheet that will play linearly from start to finish.

A range of instrument volume changes is possible within a single chorus or across several choruses.
For example:

Mute an instrument in Chorus #1 at bar 30
Return to Normal (unmute) the instrument in Chorus #2 at bar 5

Mute/return to normal can be done within a chorus by selecting the measure in Bar Settings in the 'BAR #' Box to mute and select the measure from the 'BAR #' box at the measure to Return to normal (unmute) -- example Bar 5 mute Bass >>>> Bar 12 Return to normal Bass

EDIT: AudioTrack explained better in a sentence what it's taken me 4 paragraphs.... ;=)

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Last edited by Charlie Fogle; 09/27/22 02:15 PM.

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Ahhh spectacular!

So yes I have the definition of Chorus correct. Thank you so much for the specific definition.

AND Charlie Fogel and AudioTrack, thank you so much for saying that the range for the volume change is accomplished by setting the on/off state at a certain bar of a certain chorus and then reversing or changing that setting at another bar of a certain chorus.

That means that the changes cover a SPAN of measures and the change does not have to be set for every bar in the Span. Really clear now.

Thanks for the rigor in your answer and solving for me the definitions, and the span of bars question. So helpful!!!

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