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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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[This was delivered to my inbox from a web-based bass instructor who I have not done any business with. I self-taught myself 80% of what he's talking about. Indeed, I purchased BiaB for this very purpose. The other 20% I'll probably explore as time permits. Thought somebody here would be interested in this. Bracketed text is mine.]
Back in the 30s the US Postal Service had a massive problem - the death rate among their pilots due to crashses when landing was through the roof. A guy called Edwin Link had invented a machine that he swore could be used to train pilots...but no-one believed him and he had to cart this machine on a flatbed truck to fairs and circuses around the US to make ends meet.
He was invited to a meeting with the US Postal top brass...which they tried to cancel because the airport he was due to meet them at was fog bound. He said he was coming...and to their amazement executed a perfect landing in the fog (which was considered nearly impossible at the time.)
The advent of World War 2 shortly afterwards and the necessity to train thousands of pilots quickly (and safely) accelerated the use of flight simultors as required training aids.
You might be wondering why I'm talking about flight simulators? The reason is I want to talk about a tool I use nearly every day - and when anyone asks me to describe it I use a metaphor and say that it's like a flight simulator for bass.
The tool I'm talking about is called Band In A Box (made by PG Music).
If you're serious about practicing on the bass this tool is nearly as important as your bass guitar! (And I'm not joking)
Off the top of my head here's some practice activities you can use it for:
1. Generating chordal environments with realistic sounding backing where you can change tempo or key at the touch of a button.
2. Working on your time - part 1. You can set up styles very quickly in Band In A Box (BIAB) to play on just the 2 and 4 of the bar. Or just the 2 of the bar. Or just the 4. Or just the 2, every other bar. And so on. (My favourite variation of this is practicing grooves ranging from funk to walking bass with guitar skank on beats 2 and 4 and nothing else! A harmonic metronome!)
3. Working on your time - part 2. You can set up an 8 or 16 bar repeating chord pattern in band in a box - and then set it so that the last 2 beats are silent. So you have to play over those and come back in on the downbeat. And then make the last 4 beats silent. Or the last 6 beats silent. or 8 beats. And so on. (G
4. Learning tricky riffs and melodies. You can program a tricky riff into Band In A Box (or import a midi file with the riff on it) and then use a feature called the Woodshed Feature. You set a start tempo, tell Band In A Box how many beats per minute to increase on each repetition and then set your pattern looping. This allows you to play the tricky piece at say 60 bpm, and then 61 bpm, and then 62 bpm and then 63 bpm (or any incemental increase you desire). It's a great way to internalize and nail those tricky riffs that you need to for your band.
5. Practicing creating bass lines on the fly. Band In A Box has a feature where you can choose own paraments, press a button and Band In A Box will generate a set of chord changes with a melody and immediately count you in. If you've muted the bass...then you have to create the bass line.
6. Sight Reading Etudes. One of the biggest problems for practicing sight reading is the relative dearth of song like etudes. Problem solved. You can create a style (which is quite simple with a bit of midi experience - or co-opt your keyboard player to help) and then apply that style to a set of chords or common chord progressions in specific keys that you need to work on, click generate and then print out the resulting etude. As a bonus you can then mute the bass and sight read the etude in real time.
And there's much much more.
The thing is....learning to use Band In A Box SPECIFICALLY for bass players isn't that obvious and requires a little bit of tweaking and playing around. [I disagree, it was obvious to me, but it did and does require playing around.]
More about this plus practicing tomorrow.
Cheers
https://soundcloud.com/user-646279677BiaB 2025 Windows For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 27,289
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This is a solid review that Sales will want to see.
When I was learning to play jazz in the late 1950s, the best we had was Music-Minus-One LP records. I would have progressed so much better if BIAB were available then.
Dr. Peter Gannon plays bass, in case you didn’t know. And I understand BIAB was created to learn jazz tunes from fakebooks.
BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Slate VSX, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 2,644
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OP
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This is a solid review that Sales will want to see. I agree, solid indeed. Feedback like this may influence where they decide to take the company. Didn't know who Dr. Gannon is but went to the website and learned this. Founded in 1988 by program creator Dr. Peter Gannon, PG Music has grown to have an international standing.Next time you see him, tell him thanks for the creation and to keep thumping and holding down the bottom end  PS> You seem to be amoungst the real music pros here, do you have examples of your work?
https://soundcloud.com/user-646279677BiaB 2025 Windows For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jul 2015
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Of the many things, BIAB can do, it truly excels as an instructional tool. Go grab a demo and find some bass, guitar, piano, or other instrument part and break it down to wherever small piece you need to learn. Super useful.
Mute your instrument part and play along with ten zillion styles. There is nothing like it, before or since. A huge amount of music theory can be absorbed from the program saying nothing about all the highly musically educated nice people hanging around the forum.
The minus one thing Matt referred to only gives you a hand full of songs to play to and zero ability to change anything, not even the tempo. Yep, we could have certainly used BIAB back in those days.
To me, BIAB is a box full of ideas. It is well worth the cost if you never use it to compose a song. The other thing for me is that PG Music has always been a very good company to do business with. They have answered all my silly questions and fixed anything that was messed up, and got stuff to me very quickly when I ordered it.
As part-time snappy dressers, the sales crew has been fun to deal with...lol A joke people, A joke!...lol
Billy
“Amazing! I’ll be working with Jaco Pastorius, Charlie Parker, Art Tatum, and Buddy Rich, and you’re telling me it’s not that great of a gig?
“Well…” Saint Peter, hesitated, “God’s got this girlfriend who thinks she can sing…”
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jul 2000
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I do not know Dr. Gannon although we have spoken.
I’m on many CDs as a soloist and arranger but only one under my name. PG Music lets me mention it because I composed all the songs using BIAB. The CD is called Brazilian Wish and you can find it under my name on Apple, Spotify, Pandora etc.
BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Slate VSX, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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The CD is called Brazilian Wish and you can find it under my name on Apple, Spotify, Pandora etc. Well Jimny Cricket and Jumpin bull frogs ! . . . Music Royalty !! Well done. I just created a Matt Finley station on Pandora and the first song that came up was Brazilian Wish, a bit complex for me to fully understand but I just may need more listens. Interestingly enough, the 2nd song that came up was one by Craig Chaquico and Russ Freeman, I love everything on their From the Redwoods to the Rockies album. And the 3rd song was by Acoustic Alchemy, also one of my favorite artists. These guys are on my Smooth Jazz station. Then Song For My Father (which I never heard before but like a lot) played by David Benoit; excellent piano. Then 5th was you again, When She’s Gone. Now this is music ! Isn’t it interesting how you can view genres and styles on a spectrum and how your compositions happen to be just a shade of gray (next to) a genre that is one of my favorites and how this is opening up new listening experiences for me. Well done Matt, I’m blown away.
https://soundcloud.com/user-646279677BiaB 2025 Windows For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jul 2000
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Thank you for the kind words.
The title track, Brazilian Wish, may be one of the more complex harmonically. When She's Gone, though, is the one people would be humming after my concerts. If you want some rollicking samba fun, try So Close.
I perform songs by Russ Freeman (listen to It's the Thought That Counts) and David Benoit (Some Other Sunset, Swingin' Waikiki), so that isn't surprising that Pandora would see similarities. Also, I had a dozen world-class performers on my CD, with their own reputations, so Pandora creates links using that, too. The song, Song for My Father, was a jazz standard when I was growing up; it's by Horace Silver and is outstanding.
BIAB 2025 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 7 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Presonus 192 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Slate VSX, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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Woodshedding - Learning to Play!
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Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 2,644
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OP
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Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 2,644 |
When She's Gone, though, is the one people would be humming after my concerts. I can definitely hear a musical connection between It’s The Thought That Counts by Benoit/Freeman and the tracks on the From Redwoods to Rockies. Some Other Sunset: What can I say other than world class piano. Swingin' Waikiki (Java Jazz Festival 2007): On his Steinway . . . what a set of fingers! Here are just a few that speak to me; without using a single (intelligible to me) vocal In The City - Brian Culbertson Irresistible Bliss – Chris Botti Always Forever – Peter White Between Tears - Johannes Linstead Stories Of The Painted Desert – The Rippingtons (I think Russ Freeman might be in this band) Cruisin’ – Mark Antonine Cry No More – Ryan Farish Salt Water Sound – Zero 7 Chime – Paul Hardcastle And too many others to mention.
Last edited by Bass Thumper; 07/27/22 01:21 PM.
https://soundcloud.com/user-646279677BiaB 2025 Windows For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.
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Ask sales and support questions about Band-in-a-Box using natural language.
ChatPG's knowledge base includes the full Band-in-a-Box User Manual and sales information from the website.
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 10 for Windows & Mac 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.
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!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 10 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 10 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
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.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 21 – Now Available for Windows Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest Xtra Styles PAK installment—the all new Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher)!
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!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Energetic folk rock, raucous train beats, fast country boogies, acid jazz grooves, laid-back funky jams, a bevy of breezy jazz waltzes, calm electro funk, indie synth pop, industrial synth metal, and more bro country than could possibly fit in the back of a pickup truck!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 21 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 21 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 21.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 21 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
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.
Introducing XPro Styles PAK 10 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
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.
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!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 10 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of XPro Styles PAKs.
Video: XPro Styles PAK 10 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
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.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 21 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest Xtra Styles PAK installment—the all new Xtra Styles PAK 21 for Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher)!
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!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Energetic folk rock, raucous train beats, fast country boogies, acid jazz grooves, laid-back funky jams, a bevy of breezy jazz waltzes, calm electro funk, indie synth pop, industrial synth metal, and more bro country than could possibly fit in the back of a pickup truck!
Special offers until December 31st, 2025!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 21 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 21 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Learn more and listen to demos of the Xtra Styles PAK 21.
Video: Xtra Styles PAK 21 Overview & Styles Demos: Watch now!
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.
Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Windows is Here!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows is here and it is packed with major new features! There’s a new modern look, a GUI redesign to all areas of the program including toolbars, windows, workflow and more. There’s a Multi-view layout for organizing multiple windows. A standout addition is the powerful AI-Notes feature, which uses AI neural-net technology to transcribe polyphonic audio into MIDI—entire mixes or individual instruments—making it easy to study, view, and play parts from any song. And that’s just the beginning—there are over 60 new features in this exciting release.
Along with version 2026, we've released an incredible lineup of new content! There's 202 new RealTracks, brand-new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two new RealDrums Stems sets, XPro Styles PAK 10, Xtra Styles PAK 21, and much more!
Special Offers
Upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows and save up to 50% on most upgrade packages during our special offer—available until December 31, 2025. Visit our Band-in-a-Box® packages page to explore all available upgrade options.
2026 Free Bonus PAK & 49-PAK Add-ons
Our Free Bonus PAK and 49-PAK are loaded with amazing add-ons! The Free Bonus PAK is included with most Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Windows packages, but you can unlock even more—including 20 unreleased RealTracks—by upgrading to the 2026 49-PAK for just $49. Browse the full contents of each package and listen to demos here.
XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs Special Extended Until August 31st!
XPro & Xtra Styles PAKs Special Extended Until August 31st!
The XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs special offers are now available until August 31st at 11:59pm PDT!
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XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with any version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-9 includes 900 styles!
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Get Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 19 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Listen to demos and order now! For Windows or for Mac.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 19 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.
Don’t miss this chance to supercharge your Band-in-a-Box setup—at a great price!
Mac 2025 Special Upgrade Offers Extended Until August 15th!
It's not too late to upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® and save! We've extended our special until August 15, 2025!
We've added many major new features to Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac®, including advanced AI tools like the amazing BB Stem Splitter and AI Lyrics Generator, as well as VST3 plugin support, and Equalize Temp. Plus, there’s a new one-stop MIDI Patches Picker with over 1,100 MIDI patches to choose from, all neatly categorized by GM numbers. The MultiPicker Library is enhanced with tabs for the SongPicker, MIDI Patch Picker, Chord Builder, AI Lyrics Generator, and Song Titles Browser, and the tabs are organized into logical groups. The Audiophile Edition is enhanced with FLAC files , which are 60% smaller than AIFF files while maintaining identical audio quality, and now ships on a fast 1TB SSD, and much more!
Check out all the new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® here:
Purchase your Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac during our special to save up to 50% off your upgrade purchase and receive a FREE BONUS PAK of amazing new Add-ons. These include the 2025 RealCombos Booster PAK, Look Ma! More MIDI 13: Country & Americana, Instrumental Studies Set 22: 2-Hand Piano Soloing - Rhythm Changes, MIDI SuperTracks Set 44: Jazz Piano, Artist Performance Set 17: Songs with Vocals 7, Playable RealTracks Set 4, RealDrums Stems Set 7: Jazz with Mike Clark, and more!
Upgrade to the 2025 49-PAK for just $49 and add 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and 20 RealStyles, FLAC Files for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks, Look Ma! More MIDI 14: SynthMaster, MIDI SuperTracks Set 45: More SynthMaster, Artist Performance Set 18: Songs with Vocals 8, and RealDrums Stems Set 8: Pop, Funk & More with Jerry Roe.
Learn more about the Bonus PAKs!
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