I am so amazed at BIAB. I am very curious about how the recording of real musicians might be done and how is that audio information used to make everything happen in BIAB. Chat tells me that of course this is proprietary information and I understand that. Is there anyone who can give an explanation that will not violate their intellectual property, but still give a good idea about the generalities of the process? I am just fascinated by the whole idea. What can I know without PG having to kill me?!?!?!?
Well I got to the first of your linked videos before bedtime and wow this was REALLY interesting. More tomorrow, but then do I understand for BIAB RTs by professional musicians, they would have the musicians play every chord imaginable within reason so that a chord could be selected by the software to match what the user inputs for his/her song? The studio sessions must be pretty interesting then with the players playing an unusual chord chart covering all the needed chords. How granualar do they get? Do the artists play even the very unusual chords with odd extensions or just the basics and then the software will make the closest substitution like your first video mentioned when discussing User Tracks?
How does this work for non chordal instruments like solo single line instruments? Does the artist record a whole group of single notes that can be used for every eventuality?
I think knowing this is giving me an even greater appreciation for what is going on in these backing tracks. How totally interesting.
If you look at the different pop/rock/jazz UserTrack templates you will see the type of chords being played. There would be chord substitutions/transposing going on for unavailable chords. I made some solo instruments that played in different keys and scales in the UserTrack forum, they were in a Drum template so they don't transpose, you just pick the key and scale your song is in. I imagine PG would have a lot of musical Al Gore rhythms to work it all out, more than my knowledge of music.
I think what's proprietary is quite how they move and mix them so well into the generated version, but the UserTracks themselves are pretty straight-forward.
Jazz relative beginner, starting at a much older age than was helpful. Kawai MP6, Korg M50, Ui24R, Saffire Pro 40. AVL:MXE Linux; Windows 11; Win8.1: Scarletts BIAB2022 UltraPAK, Reaper, a bunch of stuff.
We users don’t know very much. I believe there is less substitution of chords if you turn off Natural Arrangement. However, that may result in more range jumps and less effective voice leading.
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
Right, that's the biggest problem I see as well. A player can play an Ebm9 chord on a piano but which voicing? Which octave? There are so many to use and I think the limitation is the file sizes. I have no idea of the limit but there must be one. The more inversions and voicings of each chord that was recorded, the file size would grow and that has to affect generation times because the program now has to search and try to stitch together the adjoining chords. As it is you can hear a lot of non musical jumps with certain chord changes along with certain RT's.
As it is, what they've done already is pretty amazing and as users we're like mushrooms, we're kept in the dark.
We are here talking about the magic of this program. It is enough to listen to some WMAs of isolated instruments to understand that the idea of PG was its main value. Then all the annual improvements have made it a gas plant that no one thinks of competing. On the one hand a lot of mathematics to assemble the RTs and on the other a lot of Real Music made by Real Musicians. The sum is Biab, and thank you for having such correct prices, Doctor Gannon!
Then along come RT sample sets and you can add the notes you need. This should be automated as I can do this in Reaper to duplicate the notes to fit the chord.
Here's a RT Soloist notes. I want to create up some UserTrack soloist so you can select the key and scale but the A B sections marked in the UserTrack template are not playing A in A and B in B but all over this place.
MultiRiff window will not work on Drums or UserTracks only RealTracks.
Add updated printing options, enhanced tracks settings, smoother use of MGU and SGU (BB files) within PowerTracks, and more with the latest PowerTracks Pro Audio 2024 update!
Download and install this to your RealBand 2024 for updated print options, streamlined loading and saving of .SGU & MGU (BB) files, and to add a number of program adjustments that address user-reported bugs and concerns.
Did you know... not only can you download your Band-in-a-Box® Pro, MegaPAK, or PlusPAK purchase - you can also choose to add a flash drive backup copy with the installation files for only $15? It even comes with a Band-in-a-Box® keychain!
For the larger Band-in-a-Box® packages (UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition), the hard drive backup copy is available for only $25. This will include a preinstalled and ready to use program, along with your installation files.
Backup copies are offered during the checkout process on our website.
Already purchased your e-delivery version, and now you wish you had a backup copy? It's not too late! If your purchase was for the current version of Band-in-a-Box®, you can still reach out to our team directly to place your backup copy order!
Note: the Band-in-a-Box® keychain is only included with flash drive backup copies, and cannot be purchased separately.
Handy flash drive tip: Always try plugging in a USB device the wrong way first? If your flash drive (or other USB plug) doesn't have a symbol to indicate which way is up, look for the side with a seam on the metal connector (it only has a line across one side) - that's the side that either faces down or to the left, depending on your port placement.
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows® Today!
Update your Band-in-a-Box® 2024 for Windows for free with build 1111!
With this update, there's more control when saving images from the Print Preview window, we've added defaults to the MultiPicker for sorting and font size, updated printing options, updated RealTracks and other content, and addressed user-reported issues with the StylePicker, MIDI Soloists, key signature changes, and more!
A few excerpts:
"The Tracks view is possibly the single most powerful addition in 2024 and opens up a new way to edit and generate accompaniments. Combined with the new MultiPicker Library Window, it makes BIAB nearly perfect as an 'intelligent' composer/arranger program."
"MIDI SuperTracks partial generation showing six variations – each time the section is generated it can be instantly auditioned, re-generated or backed out to a previous generation – and you can do this with any track type. This is MAJOR! This takes musical experimentation and honing an arrangement to a new level, and faster than ever."
"Band in a Box continues to be an expansive musical tool-set for both novice and experienced musicians to experiment, compose, arrange and mix songs, as well as an extensive educational resource. It is huge, with hundreds of functions, more than any one person is likely to ever use. Yet, so is any DAW that I have used. BIAB can do some things that no DAW does, and this year BIAB has more DAW-like functions than ever."
Convenient Ways to Listen to Band-in-a-Box® Songs Created by Program Users!
The User Showcase Forum is an excellent place to share your Band-in-a-Box® songs and listen to songs other program users are creating!
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!
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.
One of our representatives will be happy to help you over the phone. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday, and 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST Saturday. We are closed Sunday. You can also send us your questions via email.
One of our representatives will be happy to help you on our Live Chat or by email. Our hours of operation are from
6:00AM to 6:00PM PST (GMT -8) Monday thru Friday; 8:00AM to 4:00PM PST (GMT -8) Saturday; Closed Sunday.