Hi all, I'm presently engaged in a long exchange with PG Support about these two styles and I would be interested to know whether this problem affects only me, or whether it is something more fundamental. Desperately frustrating for me since 5 songs I'm working on for a show all are based around these styles.
Both styles are called folk trio (though they have more than 3 instruments) and both are supposed to have shakers and congas playing. As far as I can see they are the same style except one uses a midi piano and one a realtracks piano.
If I try to load _BURDEN in BIAB, stylepicker does not report any of the instruments as being unavailable. However, once loaded, Drums default to standard midi drums.
If I try to load =BURDEN in BIAB, stylepicker reports the drums as not being available, but once loaded Realdrum Shaker and Congas do play.
Interestingly, if I try to load either style in Realband I get no drums.
I keep my realtracks and drums on a separate drive but I get no problem with any other styles. I've bought every realtrack and drum release and update frequently. Is it only me?
-BURDEN shows it uses RealDrums but they actually result in MIDI drums with no sound. See images 1 & 2
=BURDEN shows it has drums that are N/A, but actually loads RealDrums and they play. See Images 3 & 4
I have all of the RealTracks and Styles that have been released.
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.
_BURDEN.STY is a style with three RealTracks, and no MIDI tracks, and no drums.
=BURDEN.STY is a style with one MIDI track (a MIDI SuperTrack) and the rest Realtracks/Drums. For the Drums track, it uses Multi-drums (two or more RealDrums on the same track), in this case ShakerEven8ths and CongasEv8[single]. There isn't a dedicated "Shaker and Congas" RealDrums style, (though one could be made easily) which is why the StylePicker shows it as N/A. You'll notice that it you load the style, BB will display and play the Mulidrums properly.
Andrew, thanks for this. However, I do remain bit confused. The memo for _BURDEN.sty actually refers to drums being available:
Memo: A country folk trio playing a ballad with acoustic bass, piano, and acoustic guitar. -Examples: Handy Man, Green Green Grass Of Home, Genre "Intensity" Score=50/100 _BURDEN.STY. Burden Country Folk Trio All RealTracks. Quartet. Tempo=85 (65-115) Instruments: Ac.Bass, Multi-Drums, Ac.Piano, Ac.Guitar Multi-DrumsShaker and Congas RT2474: Bass, Acoustic, Held Ev 085 , Craig Nelson RT2917: Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm CountryFolk8thsMike Ev 085 , Mike Rojas
The memo for =BURDEN.sty (which is also labelled a trio) also refers to drums:
Memo: A country folk trio playing a ballad with acoustic bass, piano, and acoustic guitar. -Examples: Handy Man, Green Green Grass Of Home, Genre "Intensity" Score=50/100 _BURDEN.STY. Burden Country Folk Trio All RealTracks. Quartet. Tempo=85 (65-115) Instruments: Ac.Bass, Multi-Drums, Ac.Piano, Ac.Guitar Multi-DrumsShaker and Congas RT2474: Bass, Acoustic, Held Ev 085 , Craig Nelson RT2917: Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm CountryFolk8thsMike Ev 085 , Mike Rojas
I can't deny I am a trifle twitched and annoyed about the recent experience I have had with PG Support over this issue. They finally sent me this reply Hello Phil,
I spoke with one of the developers and he gave me some more info for you. Band-in-a-Box: Those Multidrums aren't going to show up as found in the Band-in-a-Box StylePicker just due to the programming in the current version. They will show as N/A but when you load into your song they will actually generate.
RealBand: In RealBand, however, there is not currently support for styles with Multidrums - so you'd have to use a work around until the bug is fixed. The simplest would be to generate the song in Band-in-a-Box and then just drag and drop the drums track into your RealBand session.
...but only after about 9 exchanges, spread over a month where they asked me to load and tryout a number of fixes for a problem that just comes down to confusing labelling in the stylepicker.
However, let me end with my usual spirited rallying cry for BIAB. It's a great product that I dearly love. But, boy, can it be annoying at times!
Right, it's not really clear if we intended Shaker and Congas to be part of one or both of the styles. I'm thinking now that they are supposed to be there, in which case _BURDEN.STY has an error. To fix it, press Ctrl+shift+F9, click the MISC button and select the "Style uses RealDrums" checkbox.
Andrew, Thanks for this. The fix definitely worked and will save me a load of workaround time. I just happen to be using this style a lot at the moment to create various pieces for a theatre group and none of my patched-in drums really sounded right!
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.
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MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyle.
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
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