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Joined: Jun 2012
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Islansoul
Obviously you've hit on a cool idea. It's had lots of comment, but no submissions.
May I suggest, knowing what we know now, to start the idea again.
Don't call it a contest, and don't restrict it to basic MIDI functionality.
Call it:
We'd like to hear your "MIDI only songs that resemble real instruments".
Rules:
Use whatever tools you need, as long as you only use MIDI sounds and MIDI equipment to create the music for the song (and can verify).
There are a lot of very skilled MIDI professionals. I think the results will be surprising.
Your thoughts on this approach?
Trev
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Pro & Windows 11, Cakewalk Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Session Keys Grand S & Electric R, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M, Pioneer Active Monitors.
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Posts: 887
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Joined: May 2015
Posts: 887 |
Islansoul
Obviously you've hit on a cool idea. It's had lots of comment, but no submissions.
May I suggest, knowing what we know now, to start the idea again.
Don't call it a contest, and don't restrict it to basic MIDI functionality.
Call it:
We'd like to hear your "MIDI only songs that resemble real instruments".
Rules:
Use whatever tools you need, as long as you only use MIDI sounds and MIDI equipment to create the music for the song (and can verify).
There are a lot of very skilled MIDI professionals. I think the results will be surprising.
Your thoughts on this approach?
Trev
Yes, I would like to have someone at PG Music edit the post to what you wrote. Call it:
We'd like to hear your "MIDI only songs that resemble real instruments".
Rules:
Use whatever tools you need, as long as you only use MIDI sounds and MIDI equipment to create the music for the song (and can verify). I'm ok with any MIDI data, like pealds, breath control, vibrato, anything that is a feature inside the VST, I just perfert not to have external processing, unless intended. I understaand that if you want a distorted guitar, you need distortion.
Computer: Macbook Pro, 16 inch 2021
DAWs: Pro Tools, Logic, and Maschine
plays drums, percussion, bass, steel pan, keyboard,
music producer/engineer
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Ah, if it's VST only, count me out.
I like hardware MIDI instruments better.
Someday VST will equal what I can get out of hardware, but that day isn't here yet.
But whichever VST you end up with, remember it's about emulation.
Think of your music as am impressionist thinks of the person he/she is 'doing' and you will be on the right track.
Start by synthesizing your home instrument. You know it best, you know it's nuances best and this will teach you how to get nuances out of your synth.
Then stretch out from there. Take one instrument at a time.
I started on clarinet. Since Sax is my home instrument, since I never learned clarinet and since being a single reed instrument the nuances are similar to sax nuances, it was a logical start. That was back in the 1980s. I simply added instrument after instrument until I got pretty decent on one, then added the next.
One thing it taught me was how to listen to other instrument, and this increased my understanding of musical performance in general.
Being able to imitate an instrument I can't play is a lot of fun, even if the limitations won't let me do it 100%.
And I often play synth sax on the gig. Why? My synth sax will do things my acoustic sax will not do, and my acoustic sax will do things the synth sax will not do. So like a pianist might reach for a Rhodes when appropriate, I'll reach for the synth sax.
Have fun on your musical adventures.
Insights and incites by Notes
Bob "Notes" Norton  Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com
100% MIDI Super-Styles recorded by live, pro, studio musicians for a live groove
& Fake Disks for MIDI and/or RealTracks
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I try not to be a party spoiler but I have to be here. Those saxes are straight MIDI being played on a keyboard. By straight I mean no variation in volume or timbre. IMHO to get a monophonic instrument like a sax, trumpet, etc to sound more realistic you must use either a breath controller or a wind controller. Variations in breath equals variations in volume and with a good sound source timbre also. Also with a wind controller you can control vibrato very easily.
Garritan products use the mod wheel to emulate volume and timbre. However I find it awkward to use but to tell the truth I didn't spend much time with it. I went straight to my wind controller. YMMV
If you want more info and/or MP3s of what I mean just PM me. Yeah the sax sounds dull.
Computer: Macbook Pro, 16 inch 2021
DAWs: Pro Tools, Logic, and Maschine
plays drums, percussion, bass, steel pan, keyboard,
music producer/engineer
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Posts: 887 |
By the way, synthesizers, and sound fx are okay to use, as long as they are synthesizers and sound fx.
Computer: Macbook Pro, 16 inch 2021
DAWs: Pro Tools, Logic, and Maschine
plays drums, percussion, bass, steel pan, keyboard,
music producer/engineer
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Right, so now that the OP has come back to clear things up (a lot) about the concept, I'm now just left wondering how (or if) BBox is expected to come into this?
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
BBox 2022 Audiophile, Mac Pro Intel, OSX 10.6.8, 800x600 (TV VGA)
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
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You can see all the 2026 videos on our forum!
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