Yes, but then you'd have to always work with the Chord Sheet unfolded, unless you know of some way to scroll to chorus 2 or 3, for examples, in order to select things there.
Which makes me curious about something. If you start with a Chord Sheet unfolded, do you get the same variations across choruses as you would otherwise?
OK, but I don't want to freeze all tracks. I only want to freeze the parts of all tracks contained within specified bars or sections which I select.
If you think about a spread sheet, I don't want to just freeze a row, which is what is similar to current track freeze. I want to freeze all rows in sections of columns. Columns being similar to the bars in the Chord Sheet.
I would need the master bus for the unfrozen sections I still want to work on.
Here's a screen shot of an Artist Performance File saving the first 3 bars of all tracks for each of three Choruses. Use Bar Settings to Mute 'all tracks' for bars 1-3 for Chorus 1, chorus 2 and chorus 3
This method allows continuing editing for the project while saving the frozen sections. A render of this mix is seamless.
I would never have imagined that 'Mute" meant frozen. I would have thought that the equivalent of the Volume slider in the Mixer had been attenuated to zero gain.
But if I understand this correctly, it is still lacking in a most important respect.
That is, I still want to be able to hear all the tracks as I play through. I don't part/ parts of the song muted. If I had to go back and forth to F5 and toggle, that would negate much of the usage I envision.
This is very useful, but unless I misunderstand, falls short of what I'd like.
Thanks again for the time you've taken to screen shoot and explain this. I'm learning a lot of things in the process. I know how to use F5, but I guess not as thoroughly as I thought.
I would never have imagined that 'Mute" meant frozen. I would have thought that the equivalent of the Volume slider in the Mixer had been attenuated to zero gain.
But if I understand this correctly, it is still lacking in a most important respect.
That is, I still want to be able to hear all the tracks as I play through. I don't part/ parts of the song muted. If I had to go back and forth to F5 and toggle, that would negate much of the usage I envision.
This is very useful, but unless I misunderstand, falls short of what I'd like.
Thanks again for the time you've taken to screen shoot and explain this. I'm learning a lot of things in the process. I know how to use F5, but I guess not as thoroughly as I thought.
I wasn't clear in my explanation. This method doesn't fall short of what you're looking for. You will hear all of the tracks as you play through the song. The reason there's a Mute at the bars that are saved is so both the normal tracks and the saved tracks don't sound and play in unison. You only want to hear the saved tracks for those bars during a play through.
The sequence will be the 'saved bars' will play the first 8 bars and the chord sheet 8 bars for all tracks are muted and all the tracks are unmuted beginning at bar 9. The mute/unmute is only done once in F5 and there's no toggling. However, if your project uses any Utility Tracks, they will also have to be silenced for bars 1-8 at each chorus.
When I have something I want to freeze, I turn those bars into an 'Artist Performance File.'
Those bars are then somehow reloaded (I'll search for how) back into the project and can be programmed to play within the chorus as they did before.
Where ever they are, I mute all the same bars with F5 so whatever else would otherwise be playing at the same time in the song file doesn't.
In case I changed my mind about the performance file's iteration in the 3rd chorus, I could mute it with the Audio Editor and unmute that chorus in the active song file. (Yes or no?)
As I've yet to try this, the part of creating the 'Artist Performance File' and importing/ attaching it to the active song file is pretty hazy. But it would seem it less elegant and perhapsa bit klunky as opposed to having like function directly in an active song file.
<< When I have something I want to freeze, I turn those bars into an 'Artist Performance File.' >> That's correct.
<< Those bars are then somehow reloaded (I'll search for how) back into the project and can be programmed to play within the chorus as they did before. >>
Yes. I'll be happy to assist you if you need it. There a multiple ways and according to your workflow, we'll get you situated with what fits your workflow or project.
<< Where ever they are, I mute all the same bars with F5 so whatever else would otherwise be playing at the same time in the song file doesn't. >>
Yes
<< In case I changed my mind about the performance file's iteration in the 3rd chorus, I could mute it with the Audio Editor and unmute that chorus in the active song file. (Yes or no?) >>
I've looked at the help menu, the Mixer tracks context menu, the forum and Googled ... and I don't see where to get started.
I read your post from 2020 regaling Artist Performance Tracks listing the what can be done, but not the how; and, all I gleaned from the help file was that Artist Performance Tracks play on the Melody Track.
You offered to help if you knew my workflow, so ....
Just imagine I'm writing a 32 bar song with 4 choruses. I'm sold on the first 8 bars and the iterated variations of those 8 bars on all but the 3rd chorus. So that's what I want to freeze.
I've looked at the help menu, the Mixer tracks context menu, the forum and Googled ... and I don't see where to get started.
I read your post from 2020 regaling Artist Performance Tracks listing the what can be done, but not the how; and, all I gleaned from the help file was that Artist Performance Tracks play on the Melody Track.
You offered to help if you knew my workflow, so ....
Just imagine I'm writing a 32 bar song with 4 choruses. I'm sold on the first 8 bars and the iterated variations of those 8 bars on all but the 3rd chorus. So that's what I want to freeze.
What's next?
No problem. I'll work up a step by step process for 4 choruses @ 32 bars and save the bars 1-8 for Choruses 1,2, and 4 and bars 1-8 will regenerate normally in Chorus 3.
Until then, thinking of your issue and versatility of Artist Performance Files, I created a short SGU file and saved 8 Bars in 3 choruses of four that started with a 3rd Party all midi style by Notes Norton. The Mixer Style contains a SuperMidi instrument, midi instruments, RealDrums and RealTracks. It's a demonstration of the Artist Performance File's power and versatility to work with any mixture of any type audio medial that works in BIAB.
Here's a link to a YouTube video of the playback and I've posted a screenshot of the SGU Chordsheet in this post for review.
I'm also posting a comparison of the original wav file to the saved BIAB Performance file where you can see that addition content is included in the save audio version for the APF to merge with the regular BIAB generated tracks.
Finally, there's a screenshot of the Artist Performance Wav file in the Audio Edit Window.
This should help you understand the Artist Performance File a bit better. Another good feature when using Artist Perforance Files is it's possible to have notation, guitar tab and piano roll in an Artist Performance File.
Okay. Give this a try. Here are steps and some screen shots to do the 4 chorus example you gave. Let us know how it goes.
01. Create a complete 32 bar, 4 chorus song. Example will use _BULB.STY and no Utility Tracks.
02. Drag the Master Icon into the WAV quadrant of the Drag/Drop icon and render.
03. Select the DAW Mode Button and drag the WAV render onto your desktop.
04. Close DAW Mode.
05. At the top of the Chord Sheet, select Audio\import audio.
06. Import the saved WAV audio file from your desktop onto the Audio Track at the default settings. This should import the render synced with the BIAB instruments.
07. Open Bar Settings (F5)
08. Select Chorus 1
09. Mute All Tracks at Bar 1a - Set the Audio Track Back to normal. Set All Tracks Back to Normal at bar 9b - Set the Audio Track to Mute.
10. Select Chorus 2
11. Mute All Tracks at Bar 1a - Set the Audio Track Back to normal. Set All Tracks Back to Normal at bar 9b - Set the Audio Track to Mute.
12. Select Chorus 4 (skip chorus 3 because bars 1-8 are not saved).
13. Mute All Tracks at Bar 1a - Set the Audio Track Back to normal. Set All Tracks Back to Normal at bar 9b - Set the Audio Track to Mute.
14. Close Bar Settings (F5)
Press play to hear the song. Observing the BIAB Mixer, the Audio Track vue meter should play bars 1-8 and the other instruments are silent. The Mixer instruments should transition to playing at bar 9 with the Audio Track Silent. This will repeat for Chorus 2 and 4 while Chorus 3 plays through normally.
Bars 1-8 for Choruses 1,2, and 4 are audio synced to play with the Chord Sheet and will be saved with the file. Editing to the Chord Sheet can continue without affecting this file. The file will change if the Key Signature or tempo are changed without altering the audio wav. Save the file to preserve edits.
There should be two WAV files once you save the project. The original DAW Mode Render and another WAV file saved with the project name. The two files contain the same audio but the saved wav is larger in size than the rendered file. It's the file that BIAB will open and load when you open the project after it's saved.
I assume that's due to BIAB saving APF information into the file. Artist Performance Files are unique to BIAB and allow users to do many tasks with audio on any BIAB Mixer Track. It makes it possible for audio to be loaded onto any of the original seven Legacy Tracks.
I want to sincerely thank you. You have gone to great effort to demonstrate how this is done and I really, really appreciate it.
But while this approach can do what I want, it is not at all what I want. When you generously laid out the steps in your recent reply it became clear to me.
I want a composing editing tool. This is, in my opinion, a very useful archival method to resurrect something you might have done in the past and want later to improve upon or expand.
To accomplish this once while working on a project I'd estimate to take at least 5 minutes with rendering, importing and programming F5.
What if I wanted to make a change after I'd imported this? Wouldn't I have to go through the entire process again in order to change the behavior of the Artist Performance Track/ File ... or at least through F5?
And I would have to keep a lot of settings in memory as I don't believe there is a simple method to review what is frozen/ unfrozen from a basic view of Chord Sheet and Mixer.
In my view 'Section Freeze' should be a transparent, reversible in part or whole, simple to access and implement function of the basic BIAB composition workflow.
DFT, It’s a good point you’ve made. There could be a flag on parts you’ve generated that would protect them (mark that section “frozen”) as opposed to the rest of the track. That doesn’t exist now of course, and you just have “frozen” or “ not frozen” . But it’s a good idea for the future.
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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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