I wasn't sure where to start this thread, so this seemed appropriate as it shows starting with EZkeys VST2 in BIAB. Please share other 3rd party MIDI content that works well with EZKeys (or other EZ products if you prefer) The pack I am auditioning is Piano Sentiments by Frontline Producer that is available from loopmasters (on sale at the time of posting this video. (I am not affiliated with them)
There is a ton of helpful midi files in BIAB. I downloaded some Bass midi from Groove Monkey and paid $12 but, it was very simple and not so useful.
I downloaded my old copy of Sonar from the old Cakewalk site. It was still there after 12 years. There was midi in Sonar from Session Drummer, but only a few that I listened to that I thought would be useful.
So...as of late, I have been forced to play midi bass on my keyboard or bass guitar to use in EZBass and or Trillian.
I have EZDrummer2 and Superior Drummer from Toontracks, which have almost anything you would need. I also have Addictive Drums, which has better midi for rock. Good drum midi is not hard to find. I also have a drummer friend in Australia who does live tracks for me on midi drum kits or acoustic kits that midi triggers.
Toontracks Suppeor Drummer is a complex drum program to use but provides the ultimate in function.
For EZKeys, there is what can be had from Toontracks at $29 each and sometimes on special for as low as $10. I have a lot of it, some really good and other packs I bought I did not like. The midi was well done; I just did not like the style. There are a ton of midi piano tracks in BIAB that you can play out in EZKeys.
In searching for midi for certain cover songs, I found that a difficult process.
The best possible midi comes from shilled keyboard players. Best to marry one...lol
99% of the free midi was worth just about what it cost. There is a small amount of good midi I have found from sorting through a zillion karaoke songs but what a PITB. I had a hard drive that had about 2000 karaoke songs but it died and to tell the truth, I am glad it is gone.
I agree, there is not a lot of 3rd party midi avialable for EZKeys. No necessaryily a bad thing since EZKeys sales some very good content. In this example, I doubt that this 3rd party content was actually written with EZkeys in mind, but it does work well in this case.
Don't forget you have Guitar Pro Tabs (thousands), if you don't have Guitar Pro you can use TuxGuitar that will convert to midi it also has a batch converter under the Tools menu. And as mentioned you can load Guitar Pro Tabs in Ample VST's and the free Ample and drop the phrases into RapidComposer and it will play all the GP articulations over any chord or octave.
You have Midi Mutator that is included in RapidComposer or separate.
Drop a MIDI pattern on MIDI Mutator to start transforming it into a new original pattern! Fully replace or slightly modify the rhythm with a single click. Experiment with other chord voicings, or replace the chords. Bass lines, chord patterns work equally well. The new MIDI sequence can be dragged directly to your DAW, or stored with a single click.
• regenerate the rhythm using 6 rhythm generator algorithms from RapidComposer, plus a new one that preserves exact note and rest lengths, suitable for modern genres • use rhythm from another MIDI file • slice a pattern, then rearrange slices randomly • displace notes randomly, randomize note positions and/or lengths • extend, widen, randomize chord voicings, replace the chord progression • change the beat positions to change the feel • replace or randomize accents • increase/decrease polyphony • randomize pitches • for monophonic phrases: change the contour, add connecting notes. • simple activation. No internet connection is required for activation or operation
Re: SuGgEsTiOnS welcomed Whatever Midi you Mutate you can add to EZKeys Library, all these things work together. Did you try the EZKeys Library I uploaded and see the folder structure and naming. All this allows you to create up 3rd party libraries, can you dig it ? This is not just limited to EZK you can do it for EZB and EZD. See the bass and percussion generators ? Don't wait for more years to pass until it dawns on you. I know I post things that may be hard to get your head around but trust me they will become common place or even added as features in Biab down the track as they have been. Where was everyone when I was posting Playable RealTracks all those years ago ?? Where were they when I was posting midi chord tracks for virtual instruments ? Where were they when I was posting info on Biab chord track in EZKeys. The best thing to do is go to this little unknown hidden spot but look through it all going way back and you will soon see how this relates https://www.pgmusic.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=postlist&Board=31&page=1 There must of been a time when you never knew about Biab.
I came to a bit of an epifiany regarding the use of midi in EZKeys. When I did my video above I mentioned, "...I don't know how this does what it does". So I have been looking at it closer.
It turns out ANY midi file can be used in the EZKeys midi library. I inserted a BIAB folder containing a slew of midi content from all my scratch files over the past year into the EZKeys midi browser menu. Every .mid file in the folder then appeared as a selection to be used as part of the Browser Midi provided in EZKeys. If I pulled that selection to the EZKeys timeline, it would act as a midi player and show the chord names and play them as is. But if I used that selection as "Browser Midi" to rewrite the song blocks it would morph the midi to play the new chords in the groove and manner of the whatever is in the library selection.
Easy to reproduce this all yourselfs to see what it is doing. So I think musocity is pointing out that any and all of the BIAB midi content is fair game to be inserted into EZKeys as "3rd party" midi.
Dan, you probably were not following "VST>VST" EZkeys thread in "Recording" closely. I have mentioned this:
"EZkeys, while tailored for their "own" synths, as a program itself is just a fancy and convenient arpeggiator/phrase player with bunch of other features. So... You can use MIDI phrases in EZkeys that were meant for completely different instruments (Strings, flutes, etc.) and since it has MIDI OUT function, you can hook it up to any other VST that has these Strings, flutes, etc. And you will get completely new usage out of EZkeys."
This will work in BIAB by dragging out timeline from EZkeys to empty track and re-voicing with any other VST of choice. But a better way would be to have EZkeys MIDI "out" send data directly to synth of choice. Unfortunately this is not available yet in BIAB. (*Having a conversation with my self)
If I understood intentions correctly, Musocity "suggestion", has to do with EZkeys VS RC. Which is not a bad conversation, just doesn't seem to fit the theme of this thread.
If I had VArranger and someone said to me about Biab I would go and check it out, then I might end up with Biab and I would be thankful for that user mentioning Biab and not just keep on subject about VArranger. If users read the post and think wow I might buy EZD but then later find RC and think wow this does all that and more for the same price why did I buy EZK ?
Musocity, my hope for this thread was that people would share info on 3rd party Midi packs that would work nicely with Ezkeys. Hopefully non mechanical, melodic, swing, rhythmical with interesting twists, etc.
I agree, there is not a lot of 3rd party midi available for EZKeys. No necessarily a bad thing since EZKeys sales some very good content. In this example, I doubt that this 3rd party content was actually written with EZKeys in mind, but it does work well in this case.
Do you have a link to Todd's website to purchase his MIDI files? I had no luck trying to find it via Google search. Thanks in advance.
TheMaartian, here is Dan's guy: mediamusicmasterystore.com If you stay on site for few minutes (and have your pop-up blocker turned off) you should get a window to sign up for newsletter... and get a free MIDI pack. You can get it, to see if it works for you.
I looked at the packs and you have from 10-20 loops (10x phrases, many :45 to 1:00) at a slow tempo there's not much playing. You have an absolutely massive PG midi library of midi. You have the RealCharts from the Yamaha acoustic/midi piano. There is so much more playing with the PG it's not short bits n pieces midi loop library. That's why I suggested to PG to create some Toontrack libraries from their midi. I went through all this with audio loop packs (and midi) they are so limited in the playing compared to PG. Lot of chords but little playing: https://www.sessionbandloops.com/royalty-free-jazz-loops-sessionband-jazz-volume-1/
You have an absolutely massive PG midi library of midi. You have the RealCharts from the Yamaha acoustic/midi piano.
OK, so where are the BIAB super midi content (.mid) located? In what folder? I don't think that exists for us. Are you suggesting we extract the midi from the hundreds of .sgu files? Then put those into a folder so they could be used in EZKeys?
"you have an absolutely massive PG midi library of midi."
Indeed. Instead of PGmusic creating something for Toontrack, we should have these for our use within BIAB, the ezee way, eliminating the need for Ezkeys. That is why I suggested having them selectable as regular tracks, like we do with RT, RD, SM, Loops & UTs. Truth be told, one of the reasons I bought EZkeys, because there were not much enthusiasm from users or PG himself on that proposal.
I looked at the item you suggested from sessionbandloops, but these are WAVs, not MIDI.
Yes, Dan's guy has smaller sets (sometimes he has wild sales). The pack I suggested has about 200 loops. Both (Dan's and mine) are played by people, so they are in a way similar to Super Midis, but shorter.
Ya, well that did not work well that I can tell. I picked a folder (Midi supertrack6demos-latin piano) with 6 .sgu files. When done BIAB reported 6 midi files had been written, but where they are is anyones guess. they were not in the sgu folder.
I also tried to extract the midi from the supertrack demos .sgu folders (took a test copy of: SuperTracks8 Demos - More Country Piano, and kept a few files in it for test). I then doubled clicked in one of the SGU files to open BIAB.
Using the Midi Batch option as above it seems to generate the midi files in the same folder as I selected in the batch command and from which started the SGU from. However I got midi for all the instrument tracks not only the piano (even if I have piano selected and mute the rest).
Also comparing a midi file generated with the Batch command vs generated midi with the single file command seems to generate slightly different midi files for the same SGU song. But when generating a single file midi I can get only the piano track midi when I have piano selected.
I now wonder if it is possible to only have the "piano track" generated as midi when using the Batch command.
I was looking for a batch midi splitter but none of them worked well so I'm just making one up to do it all. Should be able to make a batch script to load a chord template and opens the the next style and saves to SGU/MGU to a folder then batch converts the folder to mid.
OK, I found the 6 midi files. Ya, I use Everything. They were in the .sgu source folder, don't know why I did not see them last night.
But the result from using them in EZKeys were not favorable. EZKeys had no problem isolating and identifying the multiple instruments in the arrangement and identifying "piano", but I don't think it was meant to be used with these large number of bars. Also I suspect that the midi cc info such as pedal on/off and velocity may be absent.
My conclusion at his point is just because you can do it, doesn't mean you should do it. But that is just me.
TheMaartian, here is Dan's guy: mediamusicmasterystore.com If you stay on site for few minutes (and have your pop-up blocker turned off) you should get a window to sign up for newsletter... and get a free MIDI pack. You can get it, to see if it works for you.
Merci beaucoup! Muchas gracias! Note that there's a link at the bottom of each page on his website to request the Cinematic Sampler MIDI file. I really like that these are longer phrases (0:45 to 1:30), compared to the EZKeys MIDI. I'm going to purchase the Black Piano, White Pian, Truly Free, Progressions and Piano Meditations packs. On the fence for the Lonely Piano pack since it's all in 3/4. Some of the packs are on sale at the moment.
EDIT: What the hey. Picked up the Lonely Piano pack, too. What's life without a little 3/4?
Glad you are appreciating Todd's material. I discovered him early last year and have picked up a number of his packages. Keep in mind, I don't think any of this was "intended" to be used in EZKeys. In fact, only in the past week or two have I even tried it and found that some of it was indeed well suited. Otherwise, I always have worked with his material directly in Reaper. And by the way, his 3/4 midi was inspirational. I thought 3/4 was only for waltzes, he showed me differently.
I have only tested EZKeys with one midi file extracted from BIAB but I think is sounds more or less the same when played "piano solo" in BIAB as when dragged into EZKeys.
However I had hoped to be able to use it in the EZKeys User Library (I did put a copy in the Library folder). It turned up as an entry in the User Library but when I am trying to use it over my own chords sequence in EZKeys it does not sound good at all. The library stuff probably need to be in chunks in some type of format I would guess.
If you want to render smaller bar sections just highlight the chord sheet. If you take the song name out you won't get a massive long filename. BBPiano_Real 1535 Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm PopPowerPushA-B Ev 120_SingleRender_DragDrop.mid You can use Bulk File Renamer to remove the "_SingleRender_DragDrop" from all.
To do it in Reaper create a new project and save as style name, Drag the Batch render Midi (without the 2 bar lead-in) from Biab into Reaper, Import/Expand to multi track and import tempo map, Split up any section of track then highlight all those sections, Then run "Convert active take MIDI to .mid file reference" these will save in project folder. Don't forget to create Endings and Holds for EZKeys.
- Emotions Vol 1 - MIDI Piano Loops & - Emotions Vol 2 - MIDI Piano Loops
They have a test midi package for download that can be dropped into EZKeys library for testing.
These all sound good. Keep em coming along with any followup. Several years ago (well maybe longer) I did a deep search for this stuff and never remember seeing these. I think this is a better use of our time then panning for old gold in BIAB files.
It will take me some time to fully sus these out as I am in the middle of a big project.
My guess, with four different 3rd party products, emotional and cinematic phrased MIDI loops are covered well.
I am really interested in some human played funky, syncopated grooves (pop funk, pop jazz), Latin/Brazilian/Bossa and Oldies Pop/ballads in MIDI. 8+ Bars. Anybody?
(a little bit hard to find, I was initially looking at Patotec Productions but could not find it, then I saw the YT above and it shows Bigfishaudio.com)
This video from Shawn at Shootie School is pre-requisite viewing if you intend to use 3rd party midi with any toontrack product. So I thought best to put a link here...
Here is some new "on-sale" material from Todd. We talked about using this as 3rd party library material for EZkeys. But just as it stands, it is very well constructed midi chord sequences which can be used to drive Intrumental VI pianos and strings. I am going to skip going out for lunch today and spend the $17 on this as an investiment in my musicial education and INSPIRATION!. May also loose a pound or two as a bonus.
