BACKGROUND The trick with the harmonisers is not to have the harmony too loud because every now and then audio artifacts and octave jumps occur. These are incredibly difficult to avoid. Fortunately, at lower volumes, the listener's ear doesn't hear them and the harmony is still just as effective. I've used TC Helicon Harmony many times and I like it.
Harmonisers are also useful for creating a track that user can learn to sing and then create their own vocal harmony.
PG Music include a songfile and an associated WAV file that can be used to practice with the harmonisers. This file is found in...
\bb\Documentation\Tutorials – Audio Harmony
The file is called LISTEN.MGU
CREATING HARMONY WITH TC HELICON IN REALBAND
1. Open the file Listen.MGU (mentioned above) in Realband and test that it plays.
2. Save it as an SEQ file. This is Realband's file format and saves BIAB information as well as Audio information.
3. If the file doesn't play it means that Audio and MIDI driver settings need looking at. Please create a thread in the Realband forum at the link below
7. After you select the top options, you'll be taken the screen on IMAGE 3 below. Set it as I've shown.
Notice that Audio is track #8 and that the first empty track on which to write the first harmony track is #10. For this reason, I chose "11" as my first harmony track (#5 on IMAGE 3)
8. Click OK
9. When you get to the next screen (IMAGE 4), set it as I've shown.
What to look at...
I've turned down the volume of the input track 8 to zero (#1)
#2 shows which setting refers to Harmony Down and which refers to Harmony Up.
I've left the volume settings where they were. If you want to make volumes louder, slide these upwards.
#4 I've set the "Harmony Down" to sound a little more masculine (the 'M' setting)
#5 I've set the "Harmony Up" to be a little more feminine (the 'F' setting)
#6 I've added a natural vibrato to "Harmony Up"
10. Leave everything else as is and click on "Generate" on the right side of the dialogue box. IMAGE 5 shows the harmony tracks written to Realband tracks 11 and 12.
After I played around with volume levels -- I raised all the MIDI volumes and lowered the Audio track volume a little...you'll find mp3 files of my results at the end of the post.
NOTE: I only used Coyote WT to play the MIDI backing. With either Realtracks or a superior soft synth the mp3 files would sound much better.
The good news is that once creating harmony with TC Helicon is mastered, the second harmoniser on IMAGE 1 in the first post, is pretty much self-explanatory.
In other words... it's worthwhile learning TC Helicon.
Beatmaster: Hope it worked ok for you! Please let me know if my instructions are lacking any where and I'll adjust them.
rharv: I had no idea that webpage existed! I seriously enjoyed listening to "After The Storm". That's a great sounding piano! You've also managed to take TC Helicon to levels I have yet to achieve. You've given me some goals to work towards now. Thanks!
One thing I will add is that if you are recording a vocal, you should sing/record it without vibrato in your voice (just sing it straight). It makes for a cleaner harmony in the end. You can record the vocal twice (one with vibrato, one without), and use the one without vibrato to create the harmony. You can add harmony back in to the harmony tracks using the drop down after creating the harmony tracks. This should give you better results.
John
Laptop-HP Omen I7 Win11Pro 32GB 8TB SSD Desktop-ASUS-I7 Win10Pro 32GB 11TB SATA
Noel, As I thought about this,that was a 12 bit 32k sampled piano from my Roland S-series sampler (or maybe the W-30) back in the day. Probably late 80's. It worked for this song I guess, but the piano sound is all a facade <grin> .. the sound set loaded from a 720k floppy. Yeah, I'm that old
We have much nicer sounding pianos available now .. maybe this one worked because the song was written using this sound and the whole mix was shaped around it (?) I dunno, but thanks!
I do not work here, but the benefits are still awesome Make your sound your own!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® Special Offers Extended Until January 15, 2026!
Good news! You still have time to upgrade to the latest version of Band-in-a-Box® for Windows® and save. Our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows® special now runs through January 15, 2025!
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Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: The Newly Designed Piano Roll Window
In this video, we explore the updated Piano Roll, complete with a modernized look and exciting new features. You’ll see new filtering options that make it easy to focus on specific note groups, smoother and more intuitive note entry and editing, and enhanced options for zooming, looping, and more.
Band-in-a-Box 2026 Video: AI Stems & Notes - split polyphonic audio into instruments and transcribe
This video demonstrates how to use the new AI-Notes feature together with the AI-Stems splitter, allowing you to select an audio file and have it separated into individual stems while transcribing each one to its own MIDI track. AI-Notes converts polyphonic audio—either full mixes or individual instruments—into MIDI that you can view in notation or play back instantly.
Bonus PAK and 49-PAK for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®
With your version 2026 for Windows Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons for FREE! Or upgrade to the 2026 49-PAK for only $49 to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks!
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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
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SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
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FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
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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)
Join Tobin as he takes you on a tour of the new user interface in Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows®! This modern GUI redesign offers a sleek new look with updated toolbars, refreshed windows, and a smoother workflow. The brand-new side toolbar puts track selection, the MultiPicker Library, and other essential tools right at your fingertips. Plus, our upgraded Multi-View lets you layer multiple windows without overlap, giving you a highly flexible workspace. Many windows—including Tracks, Piano Roll, and more—have been redesigned for improved usability and a cleaner, more intuitive interface, and more!
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