"Breaks" are points in a song when one or more of the instruments rests, plays a shot, or holds a chord.
Rests - You can specify any, some, or all instruments to rest at any bar. For example, you could rest all instruments except the bass for the first 4 bars, and then add in the piano for 4 bars, and then add in the entire band for the rest of the song. You may optionally disable the rests in the middle or final choruses (where people are likely taking solos, and rests are not appropriate).
Shots - You can specify certain instruments play a "shot," where the chord is played and then a rest follows. For example the song "Rock Around The Clock" has a shot on beat 1 followed by a rest for seven beats.
Held chords - You can specify that certain instruments hold a chord sustained for a certain number of bars. For example, you can have the bass and piano hold a chord sustained while the drums continue to play a pattern
A chord can be specified as a Rest by adding a period after the chord.
. indicates a C chord that is a Rest.
A chord can be specified as a Shot by adding two periods after the chord.
.. indicates a C chord that is a Shot.
A chord can be specified as a Held Chord by adding three periods after the chord.
... indicates a C chord that is a Held Chord.
Also, check that your tracks aren't frozen.
BIAB & RB2026 Win.(Audiophile), Windows 10 Professional & Windows 11, Sonar Platinum, Cakewalk by Bandlab, Izotope Prod.Bundle, Roland RD-1000, Synthogy Ivory, Kontakt, Focusrite 18i20, KetronSD2, NS40M Monitors, Pioneer Active Monitors
Thanks for posting , this is great now I am getting more of an idea how its done.
Is it just a full stop on the keyboard for the dot ?, as I have done that and you can see in the image I have added that using my full stop, its up in the middle not down the bottom, that's why I think for some reason its not working for me ?.
Hope you get what I mean.
Thanks
win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 . https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases
Dan I am just picking a style and putting two chords in ,then trying all the different formats one dot, two dot, etc to see if I get a result and nothing happens ?.
I would love to be able to do the stops, holds that I hear others do in their songs , another avenue.
win 10 64 bit 16gb,i7 chip, ssd 500gb, m-audio air, ,Roland BK-7M, 1000,shure sm7b,sonar,acid,mixcraft, variety of plugins.Sample tank 3,Kontakt. TC Helicon Voicelive 3 2 . https://beatmaster1.bandcamp.com/releases
Dan I am just picking a style and putting two chords in ,then trying all the different formats one dot, two dot, etc to see if I get a result and nothing happens ?.
I would love to be able to do the stops, holds that I hear others do in their songs , another avenue.
That is exactly what I did for these chords to see if it worked. Have you "Reset to FActory settings"? That will fix a world of problems in BIAB. Actually that is exactly what I had to do to get BIAB to even play...
Makes me wonder if there is a problem with the "holds and shots" folder (don't remember the exact name). The main RT's don't contain holds and shots (don't need any audio for rests); they are contained in the holds and shots folder and pulled from there. (This affect RT's only, as BIAB handles holds and shots for MIDI data internallY).
I would definitely try a "reset to factory defaults". I would also make sure that your RT/RD folders are set correctly. If perchance your BIAB is the result of an upgrade from pre-2018 to BIAB 2019, I would run the folder cleanup utility to make sure nothing is in the wrong place.
Just a few things to try. Holds/shots definitely work on a properly set up system (I use them all the time). I have issues with some of the holds and shots not always matching the original RT in sound and intensity (sometimes, it sounds like the hold is being played by a completely different instrument), but that's a different issue.
John
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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.
Here’s just a small sampling of what you can look forward to in XPro Styles PAK 10: Soft indie folk worship songs, bumpin’ country boogies, gospel praise breaks, hard rockin’ pop, funky disco grooves, smooth Latin jazz pop, bossa nova fusion, western swing, alternative hip-hop, cool country funk, and much more!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
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XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
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Rejoice, one and all, for Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box® is here! We’re serving up 200 brand spankin’ new styles to delight your musical taste buds! The first three courses are the classics you’ve come to know and love, including offerings from the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres, but, not to be outdone, this year’s fourth course is bro country! A wide ranging genre, you can find everything from hip-hop, uptempo outlaw country, hard hitting rock, funk, and even electronica, all with that familiar bro country flair. The dinner bell has been rung, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 21 today!
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Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 21 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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