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OK, since we seem to be on multiple threads about guitar players, computers and various things from the past... here's another one:

How did you get introduced to BIAB?
What year/version was it?
What kind of computer did you have at the time?
was it a successful experience right away??
Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?
Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?
have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?
any other observations not listed here?

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I learned of BiaB long ago when I purchased Powertracks ver 2.3
It was back in Windows 3.1 days and came on a floppy disk.
I was so excited when Win95 came out and I got the old RAP-10 card.
I can not remember the oldest version of BiaB I got. I was more into using PT for programming songs at the time.
BiaB, for me, is a 'fun' tool. I use it to tinker around with chords and styles.
Most of my songs are written with multiple people, so BiaB isn't involved much. But it IS fun.


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Quote:

OK, since we seem to be on multiple threads about guitar players, computers and various things from the past... here's another one:

How did you get introduced to BIAB?





a guy at work asked me if I had ever heard of it (I hadn't). Next day he brought several 3.5" disks and told me to load it and check it out. he said "you're gonna want to buy this software once you hear it"

He was right. I would bet that in the early days when the software was contained on a few disks or a single CD that a lot of people were introduced to it by receiving a pirated copy, and they liked it so much they bought it. It's a variant of the shareware concept. Regardless of the legality, it is consistent with the principles of human motivation.

Quote:

What year/version was it?



I don't remember. But it came with an app called THE JAZZ GUITARIST which was later discontinued for legal reasons (it was populated with jazz standards, the rights to which were not held by PGMusic, which is why I figure the current rule about linking to covers on the forum is an issue)

Quote:

What kind of computer did you have at the time?



a stripped-down bargain basement 286

Quote:

was it a successful experience right away??



my son and I had been trying to find software that we could use for recording, but everything we found was so complicated we spent all of our time playing with the software and very little time playing with the music. For me, BIAB was the first software that was intuitive enough to sit down, plug up and play along without enduring a loing technical setup first.

Quote:

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?



when I got married I sold all my gear to buy furniture. For years I didn't have anything. I had resigned myself to the idea that music was something I USED to do. BIAB rekindled the spark, and I started buying gear again... but this time mostly gear for recording, not for performing. With the advent of Real Tracks, I bought a mandolin, banjo and dobro so I can add specific melodies that blend in with the acoustic real tracks. And without BIAB I probably would never have bought a hardware synth.


Quote:

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?



without BIAB I wouldn't be playing music at all. I would just be working 14 hour days and falling into bed exhausted every night. Time constraints like that make it impossible to find other musicians who have the same window of opportunity for music. With BIAB, if there is a 15 minute opportunity, I can use it effectively. Otherwise, that time would get wasted.

Quote:

have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?



mostly for musical exploration and capturing ideas for later development

Quote:

any other observations not listed here?



just thanks to PGMusic for creating a product that has given more musical opportunity to more people

Last edited by Pat Marr; 10/16/10 07:53 AM.
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A keyboard tech in Norfolk turned me on to BIAB in 1995. Started using it on a restaurant piano bar gig six nights a week right away. It's been great to see the program evolve over the years. Later, Ray


Asus Q500A i7 Win 10 64 bit 8GB ram 750 HD 15.5" touch screen, BIAB 2017, Casio PX 5s, Xw P1, Center Point Stereo SS V3 and EWI 4000s.
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I helped out a broke Computer Science grad student by purchasing some of his junk.

A Yamaha DX-11 keyboard and a box of computer disks, the old large floppies as well as the newer small plastic cased single density floppies.

In the box was a very early version of BiaB along with some disks in which the student had already stored some created songs.

There was BiaB for that weird version of Windows that came first before Win95 and there was also a set of disks that were an even older version that I think ran on Atari but never used.

Once I installed BB and figured out how to get it running, I do remember that I spent the rest of the evening, about three or four hours, just jamming along with some of the Jazz offerings of the time...


--Mac

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How did you get introduced to BIAB?
A salesman in Sam Ash recommended it. I had been using a hardware unit, the Yamaha QY10, and was looking to upgrade. He convinced me that software was the better way to go (he was right).

What year/version was it?
About 1993. BIAB Version 4.

What kind of computer did you have at the time?
PCs that I built (then as now).

Was it a successful experience right away??
Absolutely. I was used to programming songs from the Yamaha. This was similar, but better. I also already knew music theory and was an experienced computer programmer (and comp sci professor).

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?
Yes. I build my computers and select all peripherals based on their performance with BIAB and SONAR.

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?
Yes, dramatically. It gave my composing a large boost.

Have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?
All of these. My CD, "Brazilian Wish", has nine songs composed in BIAB that I took into a major studio with only minor arranging alterations. I recently recorded another CD with my percussionist (his album) and we did eight more of my songs, again all composed in BIAB. We first worked together with BIAB to fit my chords and melodies to his ideas for Latin percussion, which I could audition in RealDrums. By the time we hit the studio, we knew the sounds we wanted. I am often hired to do horn arrangements for other people's CDs, and I use BIAB to transcribe their songs, then experiment writing hooks and horn lines before I record them.

Any other observations not listed here?
I can play almost any wind instrument, but almost no rhythm instruments. BIAB immediately gave me what I was missing to be able to compose and hear my songs without having to find a keyboard player or guitarist. It's a life and career-changing program.


BIAB 2024 Win Audiophile. Software: Studio One 6.5 Pro, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6; Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Roland Integra-7, Presonus Studio 192, Presonus Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors
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Mac wasn't it windows 3.1 before '95 came out ?
I was doing a google for music software and was lead here. I downloaded the trial version & the rest is history.
I've learnt sooooooo much from biab

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somehow i received an old pg music flyer that had been stashed in my computer desk for months. in cleaning up one day i chanced to open it. it featured version 8 (by this time it had evolved to v10) and i was impressed with its many features. i remember thinking it was a difficult read due to its lack of white space but i read the unconditional 30-day money back guarantee and decided to order, what could i lose? within a few days the package came and, within ten minutes of installing, i had created my first original composition. needless to say, i was sold. a stroke left me mute and paralyzed but band-in-a-box has made it possible for me to continue to make music for which i am eternally grateful to peter gannon and the entire staff at pg music.

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I saw a small ad in either Electronics Musician or Keyboard magazine. This was for version 1 and it was on the PC. I had an Atari 1040/ST at the time.

I got the first version available for Atari, and started writing styles as soon as that option was introduced. Peter Gannon called and offered to help me convert the styles to IBM (that's what we called the PC in those days). By then BiaB was still a DOS program on the PC, and I bought a 386 PC and the DOS version of BiaB. Because I hated DOS, I would write styles on the Atari and put them on a disk formatted on the PC to transfer them. As soon as version 1 for Windows arrived, I started writing styles on the PC instead of the Atari.

A year or so later I bought a Mac (OS6) and BiaB/Mac so I could sell to the Mac people.

I already had a few synth modules and keyboards so I used the MIDI port.

I primarily use BiaB to do the 'mule work' of writing backing tracks for my duo (I had been doing all the work on Master Tracks Pro since about 1985), exporting as a MIDI file and then adding the song specific parts in MTPro. I also write aftermarket styles for BiaB, check out the mp3 demos at http://www.nortonmusic.com/styledemo.html

I wrote the original styles on version 4 (3 instrument) because I wanted something that PG Music didn't offer. And I'm still writing styles for the program.

How has it changed my life?

I started a second "moonlighting" business, I learned how to run a mail-order business, when the internet came along, I learned how to write HTML to make web sites, and writing styles for BiaB gave me a practical application for the music arranging that I took in school.

I've also made a lot of BiaB friends, many of whom are also my customers.

Thanks Peter Gannon for enriching my life.

Notes


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
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I this it was about 2007 I got the program but put it aside for a year or so. I was totally bewildered on how it worked but knew it did something great.
We use it now for backing track of both PD gospels and our own work.
I'm learning slowly. Every now and then I'll search for a midi file, many of which are either piano or organ and not that well done.
BIAB makes a real difference in a song.
Wyndham

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Quote:

How did you get introduced to BIAB?




My introduction to BIAB actually came about because Cakewalk included a copy of Jammer with one of my DAW updates. I ended up purchasing Jammer Pro and then became pretty frustrated with both the cost and the limited availability of styles to go with the program. I stumbled across PG Music one day when I was googling for Jammer styles, and was impressed with the number of styles and the values for the dollar. Demoed BIAB and haven't looked at Jammer since.

Quote:

What year/version was it?




BIAB 11. uh, 2002 or 2003 maybe? I don't remember the year, just the version I started with.

Quote:

What kind of computer did you have at the time?




A Toshiba satelitte running Windows 98.

Quote:

was it a successful experience right away??




Pretty much. It was easy to learn. Despite all of the crabbing and complaining that you hear from some quarters about the GUI, I felt like everything made sense. Comparing it to Jammer, it was much easier for me to learn and operate.

Quote:

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?




No, not specifically to accomodate BIAB. I made changes to accomodate MIDI playback in general, mainly in the addition of outboard sound modules.

Quote:

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?




Its made some changes in how I RECORD music. In the MIDI only era, I used BIAB to generate some instrumentation that I subsequently exported and edited in SONAR and incorporated into my recordings after using the edited MIDI files to drive drum machines and sound modules. The biggest change came post REAL TRACKs. BIAB produced real tracks has replaced probably 90% of my use of audio samples and acid loops in my recordings.

Quote:

have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?




I use BIAB 15% for practice, 60% recording, 25% indirectly for production of backing for live performances.


Keith
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I saw it in a store. I bought it along with a keyboard. Never looked back. Use it for a while everyday most of the time. Well except for recently, but it was hard to stay awake in the hospital and they would let me bring in the Bose and the keyboard and computer. (Just kidding, like I wanted to even turn over.....) Well I'm back at it.


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Musica est vita
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How did you get introduced to BIAB?

A friend had it and as I was looking into starting up as a 'One Man Band' it seemed to fit the bill for backings

What year/version was it?

Must have been Version 1.0 for DOS in 1988/89. Came on a 360kb floppy. In fact I've still got it somewhere but it won't run on quad-cores and the like as it needed the Roland MPU 401 ISA card and breakout box.

What kind of computer did you have at the time?

I had an IBM PC clone at the time with two 1,2Mb floppies and a 30Mb hard disk. A Roland MPU 401 sufficed for midi control.

was it a successful experience right away??

I would have to say yes. In those early days you only got Drums and bass, but it was better than nothing.

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?

Not especially for BIAB. Upgrades came to support other software with more extensive power needs.

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?

Not at all. As BIAB has grown it now does more of what I wished for years ago!

have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?

All of those.

any other observations not listed here?

BIAB is one of the most invaluable programs I own. I upgrade every time there is a new version - couldn't be with out it.

Kevin

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How did you get introduced to BIAB?

I started recording years ago with a Cassette based 4 track from Clarion, then bought a floppy disk version of Cakewalk home studio. It was a lot of work just to get a couple tracks down right. I bought an early version of Cakewalk Music creator 1.0 , and also N-Trackstudio. Cakewalk seemed to struggle with my built in sound card, and N-Ttrack crashed my system constantly. I stumbled on BiaB on the internet while searching for DAW programs that did not cost a bunch, it was more than i wanted to spend at the time. I registered over at Audiominds and I kept hearing mac talk about Powertracks, and BiaB, so I looked it up again. I ended up buying PT version 10, but really did not use it much, even though it was stable, it did not have VSTi support yet. So i struggled onward with a new version of cakewalk MC 2003. One day i bought BiaB on a whim, and at first did not use it much, but really did like it. I just did not understand it fully.

What year/version was it?

I originally bought version 2007

What kind of computer did you have at the time?

A home built PC I still use it today, it has been a workhorse! The biggest upgrade came in a M-Audio card 24/96 delta from guitar center.

was it a successful experience right away??

Not really, i did not like the basic GM sounds, and adding a number of synths was not a part of it. But when i finally got a DAW working flawlessly i began to see the advantage using of BiaB as a creation tool to feed that DAW.

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?

No not really. I have really began to use RB more these days, but BiaB remains a valuable tool.

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?

When i started it was to make original songs and also to redo a few covers for my enjoyment, But now i am making full sets of music and playing for others, something i did not think i would ever really do again since my youth. I could do that without RB, and BiaB, but they make it simple and easy. Something very valuable as Pat said above, with life's time restraints.

have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?

All the above, BiaB, and therefore RB as well are invaluable to me, and I thank PG for continuing to supply a tool that so many love. I have suggested it to a few online music friends, and now they own and use it.

any other observations not listed here?

I want to thank the folks again at PG, for the great programs, but also the people here on the forum. You guys and Gals are really very decent, kind and helpful folks. It is nice to come to a place where you can help, and be helped without a hassle. Rharv, Pat Marr, Silvertones, Macster, John Conley, Matt, Noel, and on and on with the solid people. Thanks again, and Keep it up! I gotta say especially a big thanks to Mac, i almost gave up on this process, but he has helped me beyond words, both in his technical knowledge, and his big hearted desire to help you solve a problem, but mostly for just good solid advice that points you in the right direction. PT, RB, BiaB, and MTS are my softwares of choice, and everyone of them were a Mac suggestion at some point. Finding the right tools took the fight out of the process, and put the joy back in. Thanks friend, Rob

Last edited by Robh; 10/19/10 09:27 AM.

Lenovo Win 10 16 gig ram, Mac mini with 16 gig of ram, BiaB 2022, Realband, Harrison Mixbus 32c version 9.1324, Melodyne 5 editor, Presonus Audiobox 1818VSL, Presonus control app, Komplete 49 key controller.
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How did you get introduced to BIAB?

After many many searches for backing tracks on the internet one search brought me to this very forum. I asked a couple of questions and I believe it was Mac (go figure) who said he thought BIAB just might be just what I was looking for. Thanks again Mac!

After a long spell of just getting away from playing music I had the urge to get back in

What year/version was it?

I am thinking it was in 2004 and of course the current version at that time.

What kind of computer did you have at the time?

Old HP laptop that the company let me keep when I retired that same year. Hardly any memory and of course very slow processor.

Was it a successful experience right away?

A resounding yes! I downloaded the free trial version, worked out a few tunes as was thinking this is just what I am looking for, but didn't that Mac guy tell me that only a day or so ago. Of course I could not save my first arrangements using the trial version but I was hooked from day one.

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?

Yes but just because of the software requiring more memory and speed.

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?

Yes it enabled me to do just what I wanted to do and that is work solo gigs.

Have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?

In the order of use . . .

#1. Performance
#2. Arranging/Practice
#3. Recording although very little as I only record samples for my website.

Any other observations not listed here?

Only wished I had met BIAB earlier in my life as not only is the product just what I was looking for but it has even made me a better all-round musician.

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Quote:

How did you get introduced to BIAB?




It must have been through ads in Keyboard magazine or one of the other Guitar Player pubs. I don't even recall whether I got it in a store or by mail order. I do recall having an e-mail exchange with Dr. G. afterwards.

Quote:

What year/version was it?




It was version 7, which came on two 3-1/2" floppies and came with v. 1.0 of Power Tracks, also on two diskettes. This would have been in the mid 1990s(?).

Quote:

What kind of computer did you have at the time?




A 386 running Win 3.1 with 8 Mb RAM and 30 Mb HD.

Quote:

was it a successful experience right away??




Not exactly. I was intimidated by the program's depth for a long time (which doesn't mean that I am not today). I played demos, entered covers, and pushed buttons for years before getting creative with it.

Quote:

Have you changed your gear to accommodate BIAB in any way?




Once I got serious about it, I built a dedicated DAW, which I have continued to upgrade since 2003 or so. It's really time for a completely new machine.

Quote:

Has BIAB influenced how/why you play music?




It has utterly transformed the process and the rationale. I have gone from covering songs with backing tracks to an almost completely original repertoire, using BIAB as a co-composer, as I have described elsewhere. It also took me out of the acoustic guitar/singer category and placed me square into full-on electronic compositions with electric guitar overtop.

The change came when I finally entered an original piece into BIAB, clicking "Play," and having my jaw drop when it did something totally unexpected (and brilliant) on a turnaround.

Quote:

have you used it mostly for practice, performance, recording, instruction, other?




I primarily use it for the initial stages of creation. I nearly always port compositions into Reason, if only for revoicing, and possibly into another sequencer after that either as MIDI tracks or via Rewire.

It is important to note, though, that my guitar playing has gotten a lot better since getting BIAB. Can anyone explain this? It's the band I always needed to jam over to work out my inner visions.

Quote:

any other observations not listed here?




What comes to mind are Wishlist kinds of things. I wish there was a way to customize the dropdown menus in order to remove or gray out commands I will never use. I whelm easily.

The other thing is to mention that I am incredibly grateful to PG et Cie. for this unique tool.

R.


"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
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I first learned of BIAB in a music mag of some sort. My first version was either 7 or 8, (or maybe even 6). Up until that time I’d been using a “rhythm machine” of some sort, Boss or Yamaha, for practice. It sucked pretty bad.

My first computer was a Dell with a whopping 266MHZ processor and really big 2GB hard drive running Win 95. Top of the line at the time. I think I bought one more after that, and I’ve been building my own since then, with the exception of one other one which was a gift. I taught my son how to build them and he built the one I’m currently using as a Christmas gift last year. It’s pretty sweet.

I really liked BIAB right off the bat. It was far more advanced than what I’d been using, but it was very limited for bluegrass music because of the incorrect time values in the bluegrass styles. It treated bluegrass as a 16th note based music, when virtually ALL of the sheet music for bluegrass and fiddle tunes are written in 8th notes. I’m running BIAB 2009.5 and it still treats them the same way. According to the upgrade list for BIAB 2010, they have tried to address that, but I can’t afford the upgrade since I lost my job, so I’m not sure.

I've tried to recruit friends into using BIAB over the years, but once they saw the incorrect time values for fiddle tunes and bluegrass, they weren’t interested.

I haven’t changed my setup or “gear” to accommodate BIAB. I use it almost strictly for practice, with the exception of using it to program chord progressions for songs I’ve written so I’ll remember them.

It’s a powerful tool, and I’d highly recommend it to any musician, even though the verdict is still out for me concerning fiddle tunes, bluegrass, traditional, New Acoustic, Dawg music, “Jazzgrass” and any other up tempo acoustic music. 8th notes are 8th notes, regardless of the tempo.

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Up until that time I’d been using a “rhythm machine” of some sort, Boss or Yamaha, for practice. It sucked pretty bad.




A point which might well have been raised in the original post. What were we doing before BIAB?

I play enough guitar, bass, and keys to get by. I got BIAB primarily to take the effort out of drums/drummers. Until BIAB I had been using:

  • Nothing. My acoustic guitar and voice should be enough to carry the lot. The audience can imagine the rest, right?
  • Drummers, when I could get them, which wasn't often. I didn't want to move my four-track reel-to-reel and they didn't want to move their drums, and one or the other of us always seemed to live in an apartment.
  • "Drum Drops" records (you know, those black vinyl thingies?), with 3:07 of professionally produced drum tracks in various styles. These actually worked pretty well if your song fit the AABAB structure they gave you. I never used "Music Minus One," but some of you will remember that. Same deal with structure.
  • Boss Dr. Rhythm. I think I recorded one tune with it.
  • Korg DDM-110 Super Drums with 2 count them 2 dynamic levels. Never recorded anything with it, but I still have it.


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A good drummer can make/break a lot of songs IMHO.
We go through the trouble here. Actually bought a drum set, even though neither Barry or I would call ourselves a drummer. We like the convenience of having it mic'd and ready to go, just need a drummer to show up (usually late) to record them.

And who cares if they take up 6-8 channels? We work with 32 channel mixer and 48 track DAW! That's the beauty of having that equipment; no worries on track count (so far anyway).

Some songs do call for electronic drums, some don't. They are all tools in the box.


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There are other places you can listen to these songs too! Visit our User Showcase page to sort by genre, artist (forum name), song title, and date - each listing will direct you to the forum post for that song.

If you'd rather listen to these songs in one place, head to our Band-in-a-Box® Radio, where you'll have the option to select the genre playlist for your listening pleasure. This page has SoundCloud built in, so it won't redirect you. We've also added the link to the Artists SoundCloud page here, and a link to their forum post.

We hope you find some inspiration from this amazing collection of User Showcase Songs!

Congratulations to the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!

We've just announced the 2023 User Showcase Award Winners!

There are 45 winners, each receiving a Band-in-a-Box 2024 UltraPAK! Read the official announcement to see if you've won.

Our User Showcase Forum receives more than 50 posts per day, with people sharing their Band-in-a-Box songs and providing feedback for other songs posted.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed!

Video: Volume Automation in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®

We've created a video to help you learn more about the Volume Automation options in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows.

Band-in-a-Box® 2024: Volume Automation

www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024full/chapter11.htm#volume-automation

Video: Audio Input Monitoring with Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®

We've created this short video to explain Audio Input Monitoring within Band-in-a-Box® 2024, and included some tips & troubleshooting details too!

Band-in-a-Box® 2024: Audio Input Monitoring

3:17: Tips
5:10: Troubleshooting

www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024full/chapter11.htm#audio-input-monitoring

Video: Enhanced Melodists in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows®!

We've enhanced the Melodists feature included in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows!

Access the Melodist feature by pressing F7 in the program to open the new MultiPicker Library and locate the [Melodist] tab.

You can now generate a melody on any track in the program - very handy! Plus, you select how much of the melody you want generated - specify a range, or apply it to the whole track.

See the Melodist in action with our video, Band-in-a-Box® 2024: The Melodist Window.

Learn even more about the enhancements to the Melodist feature in Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows at www.pgmusic.com/manuals/bbw2024upgrade/chapter3.htm#enhanced-melodist

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