MASTER TRACKS PRO
User's Manual
CONTENTS
1. Introduction
.1 features
.2 how it works
.3 the interface
.4 switching between windows
.5 using alternate keys
2. Installation of Hardware and Software
.1 hardware hookup
.2 starting up Master Tracks
3. Quickstart Tutorial
.1 booting up
.2 recording a track
.3 playing your first track
.4 recording a second track
.5 playing both tracks
.6 naming your tracks
.7 saving the sequence on disk
.8 editing your sequence
4. Basic Sequencer Operation
.1 the transport and conductor windows
.2 play
.3 record
.4 rewind
.5 fast forward
.6 stop
.7 all notes off
.8 pause
.9 transport window counters
.10 seeing elapsed time
.11 other transport window settings
.12 wait for MIDI keypress
.13 auto
.14 count-in
.15 metronome
.16 MIDI Thru
.17 sequencer window
.18 selecting which tracks play
.19 selecting which tracks record
.20 soloing tracks
.21 naming tracks
.22 selecting MIDI playback channel
.23 setting the program number
.24 looping a track
.25 playing a sequence
.26 recording a track
.27 conductor display window
.28 changing the tempo
.29 the conductor track
5. Song Editor Window
.1 scrolling through the song editor window
.2 playback point
.3 the measure ruler
.4 using song markers
.5 placing markers
.6 moving to a marker
.7 naming a marker
.8 editing MIDI data
.9 selecting measures to edit
.10 selecting an entire track
.11 selecting measures across all tracks
.12 selecting a block of measures
.13 shift click
.14 editing the selected music
.15 playing a sequence from the song editor
.16 moving to the step editor
6. Step Editor Window
.1 show/hide the grid
.2 scrolling through the step editor window
.3 moving to a marker
.4 zooming in and out
.5 switching to another track
.6 playing a sequence from the step editor
.7 editing note data
.8 editing regions of notes
.9 pitch and time indicators
.10 choosing zoom level
.11 tied notes
.12 selecting a region for editing
.13 inserting new notes
.14 choosing note durations
.15 tuplets
.16 setting other note values
.17 inserting notes with the mouse
.18 inserting notes with a MIDI keyboard
.19 rests
.20 backspacing to erase mistakes
.21 moving and copying notes
.22 moving the note
.23 copying the note
.24 erasing notes
.25 editing individual notes
.26 editing note parameters numerically
7. Using MIDI Data Windows
.1 opening a data window
.2 scrolling
.3 moving to a marker
.4 zooming in and out
.5 edit resolution
.6 switching tracks
.7 editing MIDI data
.8 selecting a region
.9 inserting events
.10 changing existing MIDI events
.11 thinning out dense MIDI data
.12 erasing events
.13 the pitch bend window
.14 channel pressure window
.15 key pressure window
.16 modulation window
.17 controllers window
.18 program change window
.19 conductor track data window
8. Using the File Menu
.1 about sequence files
.2 starting a new file
.3 opening an existing file
.4 closing a sequence file
.5 saving a sequence file
.6 using the 'Save As' command
.7 using the 'Revert to Saved' command
.8 customizing your screen display
.9 importing and exporting MIDI files
.10 quitting the program
9. Using the Edit Menu
.1 working with tied notes
.2 about the clipboard
.3 the undo command
.4 cutting
.5 copying
.6 pasting
.7 clearing
.8 mixing data
.9 inserting measures
.10 select all
.11 show/hide clipboard
10. Using the Change Menu
.1 change channel
.2 change duration
.3 change velocity
.4 change continuous
.5 mapping data
.6 changing data values
.7 change conductor
.8 tempo range
.9 changing meter
.10 strip data
.11 transpose
.12 humanize
.13 quantize
.14 percentage ahead of the beat
.15 offset
.16 using quantize
.17 fit time
11. Using the Windows Menu
.1 sequencer
.2 song editor
.3 step editor
.4 pitch bend
.5 channel pressure (aftertouch)
.6 key pressure
.7 modulation
.8 controllers
.9 program change
.10 conductor track data window
12. Using the Layout Menu
.1 hide/show grid
.2 hide/show markers
.3 follow playback
.4 zoom in/out
13. Using the Goodies Menu
.1 display memory use
.2 markers window
.3 about markers
.4 naming a marker
.5 displaying the conductor window
.6 displaying the transport window
.7 managing system-exclusive data
.8 receiving sysex data
.9 storing sysex data on disk
.10 loading sysex data from disk
.11 sending a sysex file to a MIDI device
.12 quitting the sysex dialog
.13 MIDI keyboard setup
.14 MIDI transport control
.15 using the MIDI keyboard for step entry
.16 configuring your MIDI setup
.17 selecting the timing source
.18 using the record filter
.19 changing the record filter settings
.20 miscellaneous controllers
.21 selecting individual channels on the record filter
.22 quantizing while recording
.23 exiting the record filter
14. Advanced Topics
.1 conductor track settings
.2 re-barring to remove a beat
.3 inserting measures in a single track
.4 punch-in recording
.5 looping
.6 looping to the half-bar
.7 loading many MIDI devices with a single mouse click
.8 dumping from other sequencers
.9 editing across windows
.10 crescendos and decrescendos
.11 building songs
.12 song list mode
.13 sequence data structure and ties
.14 sliding tracks
.15 MIDI sync song pointer
.16 SMPTE
.17 transposing drum patterns
.18 notepad
.19 a typical scenario
.20 summary of keyboard commands
.21 list of MIDI controllers
----------> 1. INTRODUCTION >-----------------------------------------
1.1 FEATURES
Master Tracks Pro includes features which let you do the following:
-Control the sequencer using an on-screen control panel that looks
like a tape-recorder transport control. Just click on Play, Record,
Pause, Stop, Rewind or Fast-Forward to move instantaneously from
measure to measure.
-Set the meter, tempo and beat independently for each measure.
-Display the elapsed time of any section of your piece.
-Record all MIDI events on the 16 possible MIDI channels
simultaneously, including key velocity, after-touch, sustain,
modulation and pitch-wheel changes, and program changes.
-Apply automatic and musically accurate error correction to your
music, compensating for imperfect playing technique. A 'humanize'
feature can compensate for the computer's predeliction to error-
correct "too much" and thus create sterile, mechanical-sounding
performances. Humanizing adds random, miniscule irregularities in
note timing and velocities.
-Merge, delete, transpose, repeat and copy individual tracks, or
selected portions of a track.
-Change the note velocities, continuous MIDI data, note
durations, key, tempo, meter or MIDI channel information for
whole tracks or just selected regions of a track or tracks.
-Change playback tempo instantly or gradually over time. You can
have Master Tracks 'fit time' to proportionally adjust tempos in
a region to fit a given length of time - particularly useful for
film and video work.
-Visually edit your compositions on a variable-resolution grid
which displays all MIDI events. Change a note's pitch or duration
by dragging it to a new position. Step input using the mouse or
MIDI keyboard with selectable duration, velocity, articulation and
MIDI channel for each note.
-Graphically plot and alter pitch-bend, aftertouch, key pressure,
modulation, controllers, and program changes.
-Set markers anywhere in a piece and easily jump to those locations
for easy editing. An 'auto-rewind' feature can be set to quickly
rewind your composition to a given point for effortless recording
of multiple takes in a single track, or of subsequent tracks.
-You can set Master Tracks to scroll the graphic display of your
sequence as it plays it, so you can see the music on-screen while
you listen.
-You can incorporate your MIDI music into professional audio and
video productions utilizing MIDI Song-Pointer and external SMPTE
synchronizers.
-A Sysex Utility lets you control your entire MIDI setup from a
single program. You can save and load voices, banks of voices,
drum patterns, samples, or any other kind of MIDI sysex data to
and from your synthesizers, drum machines and other MIDI devices.
This information can be saved on diskette with your sequences.
-You can control Master Tracks right from your MIDI keyboard rather
than from the ST's. Control the transport functions and the step
input durations without taking your hands off your instrument.
1.2 HOW IT WORKS
Master Tracks Pro is similar to a fancy tape recorder, only much more
capable. Like a multi-track tape machine, Master Tracks Pro lets you record
one track of music at a time, playing them back later as an ensemble. You
can even edit each track individually to make changes or fix mistakes - a
feat which is impossible with audio tape recorders. And with a total of 64
tracks available at any given time, Master Tracks Pro offers much greater
flexibility than do most tape machines.
As you may know, there are many MIDI sequencers available today. So,
what makes Master Tracks Pro different? To begin with, Master Tracks uses
dynamically allocated tracks. This means that the varios tracks in a given
musical piece can be of any length, and that the length is alterable. Many
other sequencers require all tracks to be the same length. Master Tracks
Pro does not.
Secondly, Master Tracks Pro allows you to alter discrete portions of a
track or tracks after you've made a recording. This is similar to the
ability to mark and alter blocks of text when using a word processor. After
marking a block of music in Master Tracks Pro, you can then modify the
selected notes or MIDI events in a wide variety of ways.
You record your musical sequences, one track at a time, either in real
time (as you play on a MIDI-equipped keyboard), or note by note using the
mouse or MIDI keyboard (step entry). For step entry of notes, Master Tracks
Pro provides a graphic step editor that lets you see each note on the
computer's screen as you enter it. The step editor also lets you precisely
edit each note or other musical event after it has been recorded, whether
you've used real time or step entry to record your music.
In addition to editing individual notes, tracks as a whole can be
further edited, and they can be mixed together with other tracks in a
variety of ways to form compositions of various lengths, even very long
pieces. Using the Master Tracks Pro CLIPBOARD, you can cut and paste
sections of one piece into another piece to quickly create songs based on a
number of existing sequences.
1.3 THE INTERFACE
Master Tracks Pro's many program functions and commands are organized
logically into a number of different windows where you work with your
sequences. There are six main windows:
>TRANSPORT WINDOW: Where you control you MIDI 'tape deck' by clicking on
Play, Stop, Fast-forward, etc.
>SEQUENCER WINDOW: Where you record and play back your tracks.
>CONDUCTOR WINDOW: Where you control tempo, meter, and beat settings.
>SONG EDITOR WINDOW: Where you display, cut, copy, paste, and regionally
alter tracks. The structure of a sequence is displayed and edited in units
of measures.
>STEP EDITOR WINDOW: Where you display the individual notes in a track.
Graphic display of note data lets you see exactly what you are doing. The
notes are displayed on a piano roll, moving left to right.
>MIDI DATA WINDOWS: Where you display and edit a graphic plot of
pitch-bend, channel pressure, key pressure, modulation, controllers, or
program changes. There are six MIDI Data windows:
Pitch Bend
Channel Pressure
Key Pressure
Modulation
Controllers
Program Change
Conductor Track Data
All of the main windows described above include menu selections at the
top of the screen, and various ICONS located on the screen which are used
in editing or record/playback operations. These are explained in detail in
their respective chapters of this manual.
1.4 SWITCHING BETWEEN WINDOWS
All of the windows and their associated commands are accessed via the
menu bar at the top of the ST's screen, just as they are with any other
Atari ST program. You simply point to the name of the window or menu
selection you want, highlighting it, and pull the mouse toward you,
highlighting the selection you want from the menu. Press the button, and
the program does the rest.
Master Tracks Pro lets you have several windows 'open' and on the screen
at the same time. However, at any given time, there is only one ACTIVE
window. The active window is the one you are working on at the time. To
activate a different window you simply point to it and click the mouse.
Additionally, you can move windows around to convenient locations on the
screen and size them according to your preferences.
Once you have the windows set up the way you like, you can then easily
switch between them. It's a little like setting up your desktop or work
area to have everything in a convenient location. A setup we've found
useful lines up the Song Editor and Sequencer windows so that tracks line
up. The Transport control sits at the bottom of the screen, as does the
Conductor window.
The WINDOWS menu items all have ST keyboard equivalents, too. The three
main Master Tracks Pro windows can be accessed by pressing Function keys
F1, F2, or F3. The other MIDI Data editing windows are accessed by Function
keys F4 through F9.
1.5 USING ALTERNATE KEYS
Aside from the menu and window selection techniques described above,
there are some shortcuts you may want to use. Master Tracks Pro lets you
use the Alternate key to perform certain operations, such as Copy, Cut, and
Paste, rather than using the menu selections directly.
To use these commands, you press the Alternate key and the corresponding
key at the same time. Sometimes this is the first letter of the command.
Having two ways to select and execute commands allows flexibility for
individual preferences and situations. You may find that you prefer using
the menus while you are learning the program, but that you can get things
done faster using the Alternate and Function keys once you're more familiar
with the program. (See the summary of Master Tracks Pro keyboard commands
in Chapter 14)
----------> 2. INSTALLATION OF HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE >----------------
Before you begin using Master Tracks Pro, you will have to:
-Connect your MIDI cables between your synthesizer and computer.
-Make a COPY of Master Tracks Pro or install it on your hard disk (if you
are using one).
This chapter explains how to do these procedures. Please take the time
to read this chapter so that you can begin using Master Tracks Pro quickly
and without any unnecessary headaches.
2.1 HARDWARE HOOKUP
The exact configuration of your MIDI cables will vary depending on your
particular arsenal of equipment. You will need at least two cables - one
for MIDI-In and one for MIDI-Out. The first cable goes from MIDI-Out on
your synthesizer or keyboard controller to the MIDI-In connector on your
Atari ST. The second one goes from MIDI-Out on the Atari to MIDI-In on your
synthesizer.
You may want to hook up other MIDI cables too, if you have additional
synthesizers and sound modules. Some interfaces have additional sockets for
such connections. Alternatively, you may chain together a number of
synthesizers via any MIDI-Thru connectors which your synthesizers have. To
do this, you simply run a cable from your main synthesizer's MIDI-Thru
socket to the second synthesizer's MIDI-In socket, and so on.
2.2 STARTING UP MASTER TRACKS
****FIRST MAKE A BACKUP COPY OF MASTER TRACKS PRO ****
1) Turn on your MIDI equipment, THEN your computer, in the normal
manner.
2) Double-click on MT_PRO.PRG to run the program.
The Sequencer, Transport and Conductor windows and the menu bar will
appear on the screen, and you're ready to go.
----------> 3. Quickstart Tutorial >----------------------------------
This chapter walks you through the basics of recording, editing and
playing back a tune using Master Tracks Pro. Only the basics are described
here, but it's enough to get you going. We certainly recommend your reading
the rest of this manual to take advantage of the full capabilities of the
program.
3.1 BOOTING UP
1) Begin by making sure your MIDI cables are installed properly (see
the section on installation), then turn on your MIDI instrument.
2) Put the backup of Master tracks (THAT YOU MADE, didn't you?) in
your disk drive, and turn on your computer.
3) Double-click on the Master Tracks Pro program (probably named
MT_PRO.PRG). The Master Tracks Pro main screen will appear, with
the Transport, Sequencer, and Conductor windows on the screen.
4) The Transport window at the bottom of the screen contains the
controls used for starting, stopping, fast-forwarding and
rewinding. It also has a pair of counters to show you where you
are in the sequence, and a number of other controls on the right
side of the window. The name of your sequence will appear at the
top of this window.
5) Notice that the Auto control is highlighted in inverse video,
indicating that it is on. When Auto is on, the sequence
automatically rewinds to its start point as soon as you stop
playing or recording.
6) Notice the Sequencer window at the upper portion of your screen.
Click on the Record box (the one labeled REC) in the first track
of the sequence. Be sure that a solid black circle appears in the
field, indicating the track is activated and is ready to record.
3.2 RECORDING A TRACK
7) Get your MIDI instrument ready to record your first track, and set
it to send and receive on MIDI channel 1. Start the recorder by
clicking on Record in the Transport window, or by pressing Enter
on the ST keyboard.
8) Play your music. When you're finished playing, click on Stop in
the Transport window, or simply hit the Spacebar.
Notice that the counter immediately returns to measure 1, beat 1 as soon
as you stop the sequence, because Auto (auto-return) is on.
Notice also that in the Sequencer window, the Play box for the track
you've just recorded now contains a solid black triangle, meaning that it
has been activated for playback.
3.3 PLAYING YOUR FIRST TRACK
1) To play back your first track, click on the Record box again to
deactivate the track for recording, setting it to Play mode.
2) Click on Play in the Transport window, or press the Spacebar on
the ST keyboard.
3) To stop playback, click on Stop in the Transport window or press
the Spacebar again.
3.4 RECORDING A SECOND TRACK
4) To record another track, go back to the Sequencer window and
activate the second track for recording by clicking on its Record
field. You'll see the solid black circle appear in the field,
while it disappears from the first track.
5) The rest of the process is identical to the steps you used to
record your first track: Just click on Record or press the Enter
key to start the recorder. You'll hear your first track play while
you record. When you're through, click on Stop or press Space to
stop the recorder.
3.5 PLAYING BOTH TRACKS
By now, it's probably obvious what you have to do to play both tracks of
your two-track recording. Simply click on track 2's Record box to
deactivate it, and start the playback by clicking on Play or hitting the
Spacebar.
3.6 NAMING YOUR TRACKS
Master Tracks Pro lets you give each track a name for easy reference.
Typical names might be "Bass", "Horns", etc.
1) To name your first track, click over its track name field. A small
window pops up, and you can now type in the name you've chosen.
When you're through, click on OK or press Return.
3.7 SAVING THE SEQUENCE ON DISK
When you're ready to save:
1) Choose "Save As..." from the File menu.
2) As soon as you choose the Save As... command, Master Tracks Pro
will pop up a dialog box that lets you name your sequence. Since
there is very little space available on your Master Tracks program
disk, remove it from the drive and insert a data disk. Click in
the Title bar of the disk directory window. Now type in the name
you've chosen, and click on OK or press Return. The file will be
saved. (after you save a file once, you will not need to enter the
name again. It will be saved automatically every time you choose
the Save command.)
3.8 EDITING YOUR SEQUENCE
Now that you have saved your first sequence, Open the file on your
Master Tracks Pro original disk entitled INVENT1.MTS (J. S. Bach Invention
#1). You can make changes on groups of measures from the Song Editor
window.
1) Choose Song Editor from the Windows menu to call up the window. A
graphic representation of your sequence will appear in the window,
with each track visible as a row of rectangular boxes. Each box
represents a measure. If the measure contains any MIDI data, it
will appear as a solid black box. If it is entirely empty, the box
will appear "hollow" in outline.
Let's say your sequence has a standard A-B-A pattern, and you want to
use the edit commands to repeat the B section.
2) First, copy the B section to the Master Tracks Clipboard, a
temporary holding area for MIDI data during the editing process.
Click on the first measure in the B section in track 1 and drag
the mouse diagonally (with button still down) across both tracks
until the entire B section is highlighted. This SELECTS the range
of measures.
3) When all the measures in the B section are selected, choose Copy
from the Edit menu. During the brief pause, Master Tracks Pro
copies the selected measures to the clipboard.
4) Next we need to insert some new measures in the sequence to make
room for the repeat of the B section. Click on the space in track
1 between the last measure of the B section and the first measure
of the second A section. You'll see a blinking vertical cursor
appear at this INSERT POINT.
5) Now choose Insert Measures from the Edit menu. When the dialog box
pops up, type in the number of measures the B section contains.
Click on OK or press Return when you've made your entry, and
notice that new empty measures will appear in your sequence as
hollow boxes.
6) Now you're ready to add the B section data into the new measures.
Without changing the Insert point, choose Paste from the Edit
menu. The entire contents of the clipboard will be emptied into
the new empty measures in both tracks of your sequence, and you've
just created a repeat of the B section.
7) You can now click on the Play button or press the Spacebar to hear
your revised sequence.
----------> 4. BASIC SEQUENCER OPERATION >----------------------------<br>
Master Tracks Pro is designed to
work much like a conventional
multitrack tape deck. Although a sequence is stored in the ST's memory
instead of on tape, you still need controls that let you play, record,
fast-forward, rewind, and stop the sequence. You also need a counter to
tell you where you are in a sequence. The Transport window is where Master
Tracks Pro provides these features.
4.1 THE TRANSPORT AND CONDUCTOR WINDOWS
The center portion of the Transport window has six screen "buttons":
play, record, fast-forward, rewind, pause and stop. They function just as
their counterparts on an actual tape deck. To "press" one of these buttons,
just click on it with the mouse.
Alternatively, you can control any or all of these functions from your
MIDI keyboard. See the section on the Keyboard commands in Chapter 13 for
instructions on how to define the keys you want to use for transport
control. You can also execute the play, record, and stop functions from the
ST keyboard.
4.2 PLAY
Plays the sequence beginning at the point currently indicated in the
counter. Pressing the Spacebar also starts playback. Before starting
playback, remember to be sure that the MIDI channels set for each track
agree with the instrument(s) that you are using to play the track. Also,
the track or tracks you wish to hear must be selected. (see 'selecting
which tracks to play', sect. 4.18).
4.3 RECORD
Click on the Record button to start recording on the track selected on
the Sequencer window, beginning at the location in the sequence indicated
in the Measure Counter. Pressing the Enter key on the ST keyboard also
starts the recording.
A track must be selected before you start recording, or thecommand will
not function. (see 'selecting which tracks record', sect. 4.19 for
details).
Each time you record on a track, the new data is recorded over any data
previously recorded. You can have Master Tracks Pro start recording at any
point in the sequence, and existing data in the track before that point is
left intact. Likewise, any data in the remainder of the track past the
point at which you stop recording remains untouched.
4.4REWIND
Click on Rewind to rewind the sequence a measure at a time. You can also
move instantly to the beginning of the sequence by double-clicking on this
control.
4.5 FAST FORWARD
Click on the Fast-forward control to advance through the sequence a
measure at a time. Double-click to move instantly to the end of the
sequence. You can click on Fast-forward while a sequence is playing and
hear the speeded up playback.
4.6 STOP
As you'd expect, clicking on the Stop button stops playback and
recording. If the Auto function is on, the sequence automatically rewinds
to wherever you last started playback. You can also use the Spacebar on the
ST keyboard to stop the sequence during playback or recording.
4.7 ALL NOTES OFF
Pressing the Spacebar, or clicking Stop, sends an "All Notes Off"
command to all MIDI channels.
4.8 PAUSE
Clicking on the Pause button pauses both play and record. When you click
again, the sequence resumes playing or recording.
4.9 TRANSPORT WINDOW COUNTERS
On the left side of the Transport window are two counters that let you
locate your current position in the sequence. The Measure Counter at the
top left displays the position in the sequence in measures, beats, and
individual clock ticks (Master Tracks Pro's internal clock divides a
quarter note into 240 parts [ticks]. See the section on the Conductor
window for more information about sequence timing.)
You can move to any location in the sequence directly by clicking on the
measure, beat or clock field in the Measure Counter, and typing in a number
from the ST keyboard.
4.10 SEEING ELAPSED TIME
The Elapsed Time Counter shows the actual time (in minutes, seconds, and
tenths of seconds) that has elapsed since you began playback. As you'd
expect, playing the same sequence at different tempos will result in
different elapsed time readings. The Elapsed Time Counter comes in handy
for syncing music to video segments or commercials of predetermined length.
(See also Fit Time, Chapter 10)
4.11 OTHER TRANSPORT WINDOW SETTINGS
At the right of the Transport window are a variety of miscellaneous
controls:
4.12 WAIT FOR MIDI KEYPRESS
Clicking on the Key control highlights the control. Now when you select
play or record Master Tracks Pro will wait until it detects that a MIDI key
has been pressed and released before it begins recording or playing. This
is one way to control the transport from the MIDI keyboard. (see MIDI
transport control, Chapter 13)
4.13 AUTO
Turn on Auto by clicking on it. When Auto is on, whenever you stop the
sequence it will automatically rewind to the point where playback last
started.
4.14 COUNT-IN
When this control is on, Master Tracks Pro's metronome counts off one
measure according to the meter set in the Conductor window before starting
to play or record.
4.15 METRONOME
Clicking on Metronome highlights the control, and turns the Metronome
on. Now, when you play or record a sequence, you'll hear a click tone on
each beat in each measure over the ST's monitor speaker for the entire
length of the piece.
4.16 MIDI THRU
This control is used when you're recording from a master MIDI controller
that doesn't produce sound itself, or when you want to use one synthesizer
to control another while recording. Click on Thru to highlight it. With
MIDI Thru on, the MIDI data you send to the ST will be passed out the MIDI
Out port. All the data will be sent out on the MIDI channel indicated in
the Thru box. If no channel is assigned (0), all data will pass thru on its
incoming channel(s). The Thru channel follows the channel set for any track
set to Record in the Sequencer window.
4.17 SEQUENCER WINDOW
The Sequencer window is the display window for some of the most basic
information about your sequence. It lists the 64 tracks available in Master
Tracks Pro, and allows you to select the tracks that will record or play.
You can also select a MIDI channel for all data in each track, choose a
name and an initial MIDI program number for the track, solo single tracks,
and loop tracks independently.
If the Sequencer window is not already on your screen, or if it is
hidden by other windows, you can activate it by choosing it from the
Windows menu, or by pressing F1 on the ST keyboard.
Sequencer window basics are simple. To change any item in the window,
just click in the box of the item you want to change. For settings that are
either on or off, an icon in the box indicates the setting is on, while an
empty field means that the setting is off. For parameters that require you
to enter text or numeric values, a Change Value window will pop up,
allowing you to enter the information.
A "0" in the channel or program columns indicates that the function is
OFF for that track.
You can select any combination of tracks in your sequence to play back.
Other tracks that are not selected will not play, even if they contain MIDI
data.
4.18 SELECTING WHICH TRACKS PLAY
Click on the Play box of each of the tracks that you want to select for
playback. The triangular Play icon appears in each track's Play box to show
that the track is selected, and will be played when you start the sequence.
In addition, immediately after you complete a recording on a track, that
track is automatically set to playback.
To turn play off for that track, click on the box again. The Play icon
will become hollow, and the track will not be played when you start the
sequence. Tracks can be muted and turned back on during playback and
recording.
4.19 SELECTING WHICH TRACKS RECORD
Only one track can be activated for recording at a time. To select a
track for recording, click on the Record box for that track. A solid black
circle appears in the Record box to indicate that the track is selected.
When you start the recording, all incoming MIDI data will be recorded on
that track.
To deactivate a track for recording without selecting another track,
just click on the Record column for that track again. The Record icon
disappears.
4.20 SOLOING TRACKS
The Solo command gives you an easy way to play back a single track or a
few tracks without having to individually deactivate the Play box on all
the other tracks. Then, when you want to hear more tracks again, you only
have to turn off Solo on the selected tracks.
To select a track for soloing, just click on the track's Solo box.
You'll see a solid black diamond pop up in the box. To turn Solo off, just
click on the box again. Any number of tracks can be soloes at a time.
4.21 NAMING TRACKS
Each track can have a name, which serves as a memo you can use to
describe the music in the track or to remind yourself of which instrument
and/or sound you've chosen to play the track. These track names are saved
permanently with the sequence file when you store it on a disk.
Click on the Name box in the track you wish to name (you can name any
track, even if it does not contain MIDI data). A dialog box pops up and
asks you to type in the name of the track. You can use any combination of
characters you wish. When you're finished, click on OK or press Return to
complete your entry. Or click on Cancel if you want to return to the
Sequencer window without making any changes.
4.22 SELECTING MIDI PLAYBACK CHANNEL
The Channel box contains the current MIDI channel setting for playback
of the track. To use this feature, you need a little back-ground on the way
the program handles MIDI channel information.
Master Tracks Pro supports multiple-channel tracks. You can record on
any combination of channels within a track, and you can freely mix data
from one track to another, retaining all of the original data.
If you enter a channel number of 1-16 in the Channel box, all data in
the track will be played on that channel. On the other hand, a channel
value of 0 plays back the track exactly as it is stored in memory, on the
same channel(s) it was received on.
To change the channel, click in the Channel box. A small data entry
window will pop up. Type in the number of the channel you want for the
track, or use the arrow controls to change the setting. When the channel
number is correct, click on OK or press Return to enter it and return to
the Sequencer window. Of course, you can click on Cancel to leave the
setting as it was. Thru follows the channel for any track set to record.
4.23 SETTING THE PROGRAM NUMBER
A PROGRAM is the MIDI term for a MIDI device's programmed setup, stored
in the memory of the device. On a synthesizer, a program is equivalent to a
"patch" or sound. On a drum machine, a program may select a particular
song, and on a MIDI effects device it may select a configuration setting
with pre-programmed values for all the parameters on the device. Each
program has a number, and when a MIDI program change message is sent to the
device, the device responds by switching to that program number.
Master Tracks Pro allows you to record program changes at any point in a
track, and to enter as many program changes as you like via the Program
Change window accessible on the Windows menu. On the Sequencer window,
however, the number in the Program field refers only to the program number
that Master Tracks Pro will send when the sequence begins playing from the
beginning. (Bar 1 : Beat 1 : Clock 1)
If the Program setting is 0 (the default), no program change is sent
when the sequence begins - your instrument will remain set to whatever
program it's already on, until it receives a program change from the
sequence data. Likewise, if you start the sequence from some other point
than the very beginning, the program indicated in the Program field is not
sent, and only program changes stored in the sequence data will be sent.
To change the program setting, click on the Program field for the track
you want. When the small data entry window pops up, type in the number of
the program you wish, or click on the arrow keys to raise or lower the
value. When the number is correct, click on OK or press Return to enter it
and return to the Sequencer window, or click on Cancel to return without
entering the change. The program change will be sent out whenever you click
OK or press Return even when a sequence is playing.
4.24 LOOPING A TRACK
Each track in a Master Tracks Pro sequence can be independently looped.
When the sequence gets to the end of a track, it plays the track over again
from the beginning, no matter what other tracks are doing.
Since the Record function always rounds recorded tracks to the nearest
complete measure, the track always plays to the end of a measure before
looping back, even if no notes are playing in the measure.
Another important detail is that looping only works if you start
playback before any of the tracks in the sequence have ended. If you have a
short track and start playback in the middle of the song, after that track
has ended, the looped track won't play.
To set a track to loop, simply click in the Loop box for the track, at
the far right of the Sequencer window. The Loop icon will appear in the
box. To shut the loop function off, click on the Loop box again, and the
icon disappears.
4.25 PLAYING A SEQUENCE
To play a sequence, first be sure to select the tracks you want to play,
and check that the MIDI channels agree on your MIDI devices with the data
in the sequence. If you wish, use the Transport controls to move the
Measure Counter to the point in the sequence where you want to begin
playback.
You can start playback in one of three ways:
> Click on the Play button in the Transport window.
> Press the Spacebar on the ST keyboard.
> Assign a key on your MIDI keyboard to start playback. To select
the key you wish to use for this purpose, use the Keyboard
command on the Goodies menu. See Chapter 13 for details.
Once you start the play function with one of these controls, the
sequence will immediately begin to play if the Key and Count-in settings on
the Transport window are off, and if Sync is set to internal with the MIDI
setup command on the Goodies menu. If Key is on, however, Master Tracks Pro
will pause before beginning to play until it detects that a MIDI key has
been played and released. If the Count-in is on, you'll get a one measure
count-in, and then play will begin. Finally, if Sync is set to MIDI, Master
Tracks Pro will wait to begin playback until it receives a start command
from the external MIDI sync source.
During playback, you can change sequence tempo with the scroll bar on
the Conductor window. You can even switch between windows while the
sequence is playing, and examine data in any part of any track without
interrupting playback.
4.26 RECORDING A TRACK
To record a track, first select it for recording by clicking in the
Sequencer window Record box as described earlier.
The program can record on all 16 MIDI channels simultaneously. After
you've recorded a track containing data on multiple channels, you can use
the Strip Data command on the Change menu to move the data for each channel
onto its own track. If you wish, however, you can use the Record Filter on
the Goodies menu to select a particular channel before you start recording.
(See Chapter 13 for details on the Record Filter.)
If you do select a channel on the Record Filter, Master Tracks Pro will
only record the data from that channel, and will ignore any data it
receives on other channels. In this case, you'll need to be sure that your
synthesizer is set to send on the same channel before you start to record.
Master Tracks Pro can record all types of MIDI data, but you can also
use the Record Filter to filter out any types of data you don't want to
record. Again, check Chapter 13 for more details. If you want to separate
various types of data after the recording is already complete, use the
Strip Data command on the Change menu.
Start recording with one of these three options:
> Click on the Record button in the Transport window.
> Press the enter key on the ST keyboard.
> Play the key on your MIDI keyboard that you've assigned to the
Record function. See Chapter 13 for details on how to make the
key assignment with the Keyboard command.
At this point, if the Key and Count-in controls on the Transport window
are off, and if Sync is set to Internal with the MIDI Setup command, Master
Tracks Pro will immediately begin to record.
On the other hand, if Key is on, the program will wait until it detects
a MIDI key has been pressed and released before it begins recording. If
Count-in is on, you'll get a one measure count-in (you can hear it if the
metronome is on), and then the recorder starts. If Sync is set to MIDI,
Master Tracks Pro will pause until it receives the signal to start from an
external MIDI device.
When you've finished recording, click on the Stop button in the
Transport window, hit the Spacebar on the ST keyboard, or play the key on
your MIDI keyboard that you've assigned to the Stop function.
As soon as you've finished recording a track, the program automatically
activates the track for playback, and the Play icon appears in the track's
Play box.
It's a good idea to get in the habit of deactivating a track's record
mode right after you've recorded it so
you don't record over it
accidentally next time. Click on the track's Record box in the Sequencer
window, so that the circle disappears from the box, protecting the track.
4.27 CONDUCTOR DISPLAY WINDOW
The Conductor window is a small but very important Master Tracks Pro
window, since it displays the sequence timing information. On the Conductor
window, you'll see the current values for the tempo, the beat, and the
meter, as set on the special Master Tracks Pro track called the Conductor
track. If the Conductor window is not on the screen, or if it is hidden
behind other windows, you can make it visible by choosing Conductor on the
Goodies menu.
4.28 CHANGING THE TEMPO
You can use the tempo scroll bar in the Conductor window to change the
tempo even while a sequence is playing or recording. There are three ways
to do this:
> You can click and hold on the scroll box in the scroll bar, and
move it directly to a new value.
> Clicking anywhere in the grey part of the scroll bar moves the
scroll box rapidly toward that location, and causes a
corresponding rapid change in the tempo setting.
> Finally, you can click and hold on one of the arrow controls at
either end of the scroll bar. This changes the tempo one value at
a time.
4.29 THE CONDUCTOR TRACK
The Conductor track is a separate track in a Master Tracks Pro sequence
that determines timing for the entire sequence. The Conductor track allows
each measure to have its own meter, tempo, and beat note, and the tempo can
change gradually, even within a single measure.
You can think of tempo changes you make in the Conductor display window
as offsets to the actual tempo value stored in the Conductor track. The
play tempo in the Conductor display window automatically follows the
changes in the Conductor track tempo. When you change the plat tempo using
the Conductor display window scroll bar, all the original tempo changes in
the Conductor track are preserved, but they are scaled proportionally to
the changes you make.
To enter new Conductor track settings for the entire sequence or a given
range of measures, you must select the Change Conductor dialog box, either
by clicking over the meter display in the Conductor display window, or by
choosing Conductor... on the Change menu. See the section on changing
Conductor values in Chapter 10 for details.
The Conductor track can be graphically viewed and edited in the
Conductor Track Data window. See Chapter 7 on using MIDI data windows.
----------> 5. Song Editor Window >-----------------------------------<br>
The Song Editor allows you to edit large blocks of music at one time.
Working on groups of measures, you can move sections of music within a
sequence or build new sequences from segments of other sequences. You can
also modify the data in a variety of ways using the commands in the Edit
and Change menus.
Select the Song Editor window by choosing it from the Windows menu, or
by typing F2 on the ST keyboard.
Like the Sequencer window, the Song Editor is a table of tracks in
which each track is listed on a separate row. But instead of alphanumeric
information, the Song Editor window provides a graphic representation of
the musical data that the track contains, in one-measure blocks.
The left border of the window is marked with the track numbers, and
the top border is a MEASURE RULER which marks off the measure numbers.
Tracks containing MIDI data appear on the screen as a row of rectangular
boxes, each box representing a measure. Solid black boxes contain MIDI
data, while hollow boxes are measures of rests, without any MIDI data.
The grey vertical bar at the end of the data area represents the end
of the Conductor track for the sequence. Even if the tracks you're looking
at are completely empty of MIDI data, and no measure boxes are on the
screen, the grey bar will still appear at the measure where the Conductor
track ends.
5.1 -scrolling through the song editor window
You can scroll through the track data on the Song Editor window using
the scroll bars as you would with other ST programs. You can also scroll
using the method described for selecting blocks of measures in the section
on "selecting measures to edit", below.
5.2 -playback point
Clicking anywhere in the Song window with Auto OFF will set the
transport to start playing or recording from that point.
5.3 -the measure ruler
The row of numbers at the top of the Song Editor window is the measure
ruler. It marks off measures in the sequence so that you can keep track of
which part of the sequence you're looking at. You can change the numbering
scheme displayed on the measure ruler by pressing one of the number keys
3-0 across the top of the ST keyboard. If you press 3, every third measure
on the ruler (1,3,6,9, and so on) is numbered, while the rest of the
measures are indicated by hash marks. If you press 4, every fourth measure
is numbered, and so on. Pressing 0 numbers every tenth measure. The "+"
key will increment your selection by one and the "-" key will bring it back
down again.
5.4 -using song markers
Master Tracks Pro provides MARKERS that let you identify a particular
location in you sequence so that you can return to it any time you wish.
Markers always mark the beginning of a measure.
In Master Tracks Pro, markers are displayed at the top of the Song
Editor window, just below the window's title bar, on another horizontal bar
called the MARKER RULER. Markers are also displayed in the Step Editor and
MIDI Data windows, but you can only place or move them using the Song
Editor window.
The marker ruler appears in these windows only if the Show Markers
command on the Layout menu is in effect. If you choose Hide Markers, the
ruler will disappear from all the windows.
5.5 -placing markers
When the marker ruler is visible, you'll see a small box at its left
edge containing a hollow upside-down triangle. This box is called the WELL.
To place a marker into the marker ruler, click and hold over the well.
Another upside down triangle, the marker you'll be placing, will appear
just below the well.
Now, while still holding down the mouse button, drag the new marker to
the measure where you want to place it. Once you've positioned the marker,
release the mouse button. The marker will remain where you've placed it,
and will become solid black. In addition, a vertical dotted line will
appear below the marker, extending through the track list to help you see
exactly where the marked measure is in your track.
You can move the marker any time you're in the Song window, by clicking
and holding on it, and dragging to its new location.
5.6 -moving to a marker
To move the Song Editor, Step Editor, or MIDI data window display to the
next marker in the ruler, press the Tab key on the ST keyboard. The data in
the window will move so that the next marker is at the extreme left of the
window. Press the Tab key repeatedly until you reach the marker you wish.
Only the active window is affected. To move to a previous marker, press
Shift-Tab. Again, the data lines up so that the marker is at the left edge
of the window.
In a large composition, you may want to make a note to yourself to help
you remember the music each marker is pointing to. Master Tracks Pro helps
out by letting you name the markers on the screen. Once you've named a
marker, the name appears to its immediate right on the marker ruler.
5.7 -naming a marker
There are two ways to name a marker or change its name. From the Song
Editor window, you can double-click on the marker to bring up a dialog box
for the marker name. Type in the name from the ST keyboard, then click on
OK or press Return to enter it and return to the Song Editor.
The other way to name markers involves the Markers window, which is
available on the Goodies menu. See Chapter 13 for details.
5.8 -editing MIDI data
The Song Editor lets you easily change MIDI data in large regions using
all the commands on both the Edit and Change menus. Again, the smallest
unit available for editing changes in the Song Editor window is an entire
measure, and all edits are done on multiples of whole measures. Also, the
edits you make in the song editor window affect all types of MIDI data at
once. Commands like Cut on the Edit menu, or Channel on the Change menu
affect MIDI data such as controller data and program changes, as well as
note information.
To make changes to one or more measures of your sequence using menu
commands, the region of measures must first be SELECTED. Selected measures
appear on the screen highlighted in inverse video.
5.9 -selecting measures to edit
To select one or more adjacent measures in a track, click over the first
measure in the track, and drag over the entire group.
5.10 -selecting an entire track
To select an entire track, click on the track number in the left-hand
column. To select several adjacent entire tracks, click and hold over the
first track number in the group, and drag the mouse up or down in the track
number field.
5.11 -selecting measures across all tracks
To select one measure in all tracks, click on the column for that
measure in the measure ruler at the top of the window. To select adjacent
measures in all tracks, click and hold on the column for the first measure
and drag to the column for the last measure.
To deselect a selected area. simply click anywhere on the Song Editor
window.
5.12 -selecting a block of measures
There are two ways to select a block of measures across multiple tracks.
First, you can position the mouse pointer at one corner of the block,
click, and drag towards the diagonally opposite corner until the inverse
highlight covers the measures you want to select.
5.13 -shift click
Second, a block can be defined by clicking at one corner of the block,
holding down the Shift key on the ST keyboard, and then clicking on the
diagonally opposite corner. To define a block that is larger than one
screen, you can scroll with the scroll bars after clicking on the first
corner, but you must hold down the Shift key before you click on the data
area again.
Note: If you plan to Cut, Copy or Clear a region that includes notes
that are tied from or to other measures, you should be sure you understand
the way Master Tracks Pro handles this situation. Read the section on tied
notes in Chapter 9 for details.
5.14 -editing the selected music
Once you've selected a measure or measures, you can edit the region
using the commands on the Edit or Change menus. See Chapters 9 and 10 for
instructions.
5.15 -playing a sequence from the song editor
Master Tracks Pro lets you play your sequence no matter what window
you're using, and the Song Editor window is no exception. Just click on the
Transport's Play button or hit the Spacebar to start playback.
If you wish, you can set the Song Editor screen to scroll through the
sequence data during playback, using the Follow Playback command on the
Layout menu. If the Follow Playback command is on, and the Song window
selected as the active window, a vertical highlight bar moves along the
track data to mark the measure that is currently playing.
You can also use the Song Editor to determine at what point the song
begins playing. This capability is useful when you want to hear just the
part of the song you're working with, and you can also use it as an
alternative to the fast-forward and rewind buttons on the Transport
window.
To use the Song Editor to determine the point at which play begins, you
must first turn the Transport window's Auto control off. With Auto off, and
the Song Editor window active, click in the window at the place you wish
playback to begin. Once play begins, scrolling the Song Editor window has
no effect on what you hear.
You can control the playback point in the same way when you are using
the Step Editor window or any of the MIDI data windows.
5.16 -moving to the step editor
From the Song Editor, you can move directly to the Step Editor to work
on any specific measure in the track you wish. Simply double-click on that
track and measure in the Song Editor window.
----------> 6. Step Editor Window >-----------------------------------
The Step edit window is used exclusively for note data. It provides a
variety of precision tools that let you input and edit notes in small
groups or individually.
Select the Step Editor window by choosing it from the Windows menu, or
by typing F3 on the ST keyboard. You can also open the Step Edit window at
a specific measure in a particular track by double-clicking on that measure
in the Song Editor window.
The Step Editor window is devoted primarily to a graphic display of one
track's worth of note events. This data area is divided by a grid of fine
dotted lines that makes it easier to accurately determine the position of
notes in the window. You can decide whather to display the grid with small
divisions or divisions at every octave (see the show/hide grid command in
the Layout menu).
The note data itself is displayed in the data area as a sideways player
piano roll. Each note is represented as a small rectangle, or NOTE BAR,
oriented horizontally in the data area.
Along the top border of the data area is a measure ruler, which marks
off the measures and beats in the track. At the left border there's a
keyboard graphic to indicate the pitches of the notes in the track.
Just above the top border of the data area is another horizontal bar,
the marker ruler. If any markers are set, they'll be displayed here just as
in the Song Editor window. The marker ruler can be toggled off by selecting
Hide Markers from the Layout menu. This expands the data area. To toggle
the marker ruler back on, select Show Markers from the Layout menu.
At the top of the window there are two rows of icons and parameter
settings, collectively called the menu bar. On the top row of the menu bar,
you'll see several note icons, representing the rhythmic values of the
notes you insert; a tuplet box; and controls for note articulation and
velocity.
On the second menu bar row are several note editing icons, pitch and
time indicators, and track and MIDI channel controls.
All of the options on the first menu bar row, along with the channel
control, are used only during input of new notes. The remaining options are
used in a variety of editing functions.
Like the lines on a piece of graph paper, the grid in the Step Editor
helps you locate your position more precisely. The vertical lines in the
grid represent measures, while the horizontal lines indicate pitch.
6.1 -show/hide the grid
You can choose whether the grid has horizontal divisions only at
octaves, or has a division for every "white key" using the Show/Hide Grid
command. The version of the grid you use is a matter of personal taste. The
Show/Hide Grid command functions as a toggle. To display the full grid,
choose the Show Grid command. To show the grid with only the octave
divisions, choose the Hide Grid command.
6.2 -scrolling through the step editor window
As in the Song Editor window, you can scroll through the data in the
Step Editor window with scroll bars.
6.3 -moving to a marker
Just as in the Song Editor window, markers are displayed on a marker
ruler near the top of the Step Editor window, and you can move the display
to a marker position using the Tab and Shift-Tab keys. However, you can
only set the markers in the Song Editor. Again, to see the marker ruler and
use the markers, you must have chosen the Show Markers command from the
Layout menu first.
6.4 -zooming in and out
Master Tracks Pro's two Zoom commands let you decide how much of the
track data you can see at one time on the Step Editor window. Like a zoom
lens, the Zoom commands let you zoom in or out for different levels of
"magnification". You can zoom in to work on small portions of the track
more precisely, or zoom out to see more notes all at once.
The Zoom level you choose not only affects how much of the sequence you
can see, it also determines how precise your editing changes and additions
can be. This is because the Zoom level sets the minimum number of clock
ticks that you can move the mouse. When you're zoomed all the way out,
moving the mouse by a single pixel on the screen moves you 24 clock ticks
in the sequence. When you're zoomed in all the way, you can move the mouse
by individual clock ticks.
Master Tracks Pro gives you six different Zoom views. To zoom in one
level, choose the Zoom In command from the View menu.
6.5 -switching to another track
The Step Editor window displays note data from only a single track at a
time, and you must switch the display to another track to edit its data.
Change tracks by clicking on the Current Track box. When the Change Value
window pops up, type in the new track number, or click on the arrow
controls to change it incrementally.
Click on OK once you've entered the correct number, or press Return on
the ST keyboard. The Change Value window will disappear, and the new track
will be displayed.
6.6 -playing a sequence from the step editor
As in the Song Editor window, you can play your sequence while you are
using the Step Editor window.
At your option, you can have the Step Editor window scroll through the
track data while the sequence plays. Choose the Follow Playback option on
the Layout menu to enable this feature. As each measure plays, its
indicator at the top border of the data area gets highlighted in inverse
video. The Step Editor window must be selected as the active window for
scrolling to take place during playback. With Follow Playback turned off,
the Step window can be scrolled and examined independently of transport
counter position during playback.
The playback / record start point can be set by clicking with the arrow
cursor in the Step Editor window at the desired location, provided Auto is
off, just as in the Song Editor or MIDI Data windows.
6.7 -editing note data
Master Tracks Pro gives you powerful control over the step-editing
process with a variety of editing options. You can select editing regions,
just as in the Song Editor window, and you can also add, delete, edit,
move, or copy individual notes.
6.8 -editing regions of notes
With regional editing, you can quickly edit a group of notes all at
once. Using the commands on the Edit and Change menus, you can move, copy
or delete the note data, transpose the pitches of all the notes in the
region, change MIDI data such as MIDI channel and note velocity, and alter
timing in several ways. See the chapters on the Edit and Change menus for
more details on these features.
To edit a region of notes, the region must first be selected using the
arrow cursor. On the Step Editor window, a region consists of all notes in
the track along a horizontal section of the window. In other words, between
two points in time in the sequence. You cannot define regions vertically
(by pitch) - all pitches are automatically included in a selected
horizontal region.
For many operations, you'll need a way to locate notes precisely in the
data area both in terms of time and pitch. That guidance is provided by the
time and pitch indicators in the menu bar. The time indicator always
displays the time value at the current position of the cursor, in measures,
beats and clock ticks.
6.9 -pitch and time indicators
The pitch at the current cursor position appears in the pitch indicator,
displayed as a pitch letter name and an octave number. Master Tracks Pro
can handle all MIDI pitches, a range from C-2 to G8 (middle C is C3).
Accidentals are always displayed as sharps.
6.10 -choosing zoom level
Since all editing operations occur on clock tick boundaries, how
precisely you can define the beginning and end of a region depends on the
Zoom level. At the highest magnification, zoomed all the way in, you can
define the region by individual clock ticks (there are 240 clock ticks per
quarter note). When you're zoomed all the way out, on the other hand, the
resolution is much coarser, and the smallest movement of the mouse
represents 24 clock ticks, or one tenth of a quarter note.
No matter which zoom level you're using, you'll need a way to keep track
of where you are in the sequence while you're defining regions. For many
editing commands, the measure and beat demarcations in the measure ruler at
the top of the Step Editor window will give you all the information you
need to locate the endpoints of your region. For more precise work,
however, you can use the time indicator in the menu bar to begin and end
the region at exactly the right point.
Notice that as you move the arrow pointer around in the data area, the
time indicator changes to show the exact beat location of the current
pointer position.
IMPORTANT: Edit and Chenge menu commands will only affect notes in the
selected region if those notes BEGIN in the region. That's the reason to
pay attention to the zoom level while you're selecting a region - a note
can appear to be within the selected region when it actually starts
slightly before the beginning of the region. You may be zoomed out too far
to see this. If the beginning of the note falls within the selected region,
the entire note will be altered by the command you use, even if the end of
the note isn't included in the selected region.
6.11 -tied notes
There is an exception to the rules just mentioned, however. Notes in the
selected region that are tied over from an earlier measure are recognized
by commands such as Cut, Copy, and Clear if the region begins precisely on
the measure boundary. See the section on tied notes in Chapter 8 for more
detail.
6.12 -selecting a region for editing
To select a region for editing, choose the arrow pointer on the Step
Editor menu bar by clicking on it. Now, move the pointer into the data area
to the left edge of the region you wish to select.
Click and hold the mouse button, drag the pointer to the right edge of
the region. You can scroll the screen while selecting a region by dragging
the pointer to the right screen boundary. As you select a region, the
region becomes highlighted in inverse video.
Release the mouse button when you've defined the region as you want it.
You can now use the Edit and Change menu commands on the selected region.
Clicking in the measure ruler will select an entire measure at a time. You
can select an area and then use the scroll bar to scroll to the end of the
area you wish to select and hold down the Shift key while you click the
mouse. This selects the entire area.
6.13 -inserting new notes
Master Tracks Pro gives you two ways to insert new notes in your
sequence: you can use the mouse exclusively, or you can enter the desired
pitch by playing the corresponding key on your MIDI keyboard.
6.14 -choosing note durations
With either method, you start the process by selecting values for the
note's duration, velocity, MIDI channel, and articulation. Choose the
duration, or rhythmic value you want by clicking over the appropriate note
icon at the left side of the menu bar. Selecting the dot icon multiplies
the duration of the note value by 1-1/2.
If you wish, you can select a combination of note values, and all the
selected values add together for the total duration of the note you are
inserting. To select more than one value, click on the first note type you
want to select, and then hold the Shift key down as you click on the
remaining note type(s).
6.15 -tuplets
To enter notes with tuplet values, click over the word "tuplet" in the
tuplet box in the menu bar. When the box is highlighted, any notes you
insert will have the tuplet value shown in the box.
For example, say the value in the tuplet box is 3:2, and you've selected
the eighth note duration icon. In this case with the tuplet command on, the
timing of the notes you insert will be adjusted so that three of these
notes would fit in the same time normally occupied by two regular eighth
notes. This is equivalent to eighth note triplets. For a quintuplet, you
would select 5:2.
You can choose a wide range of
tuplet values to create complex
polyrhythms or to experiment with other unorthodox note timings. To set a
new tuplet value, click over the current value in the tuplet box. A small
Change Value window will pop up, allowing you to change both numbers in the
tuplet value.
The number you wish to change in this window must be highlighted first.
If it's not, click on it. Then click over the arrow controls to raise or
lower the number as you wish, or type in a number from the ST keyboard.
When both numbers are correct, click on OK or press Return to enter them
and return to the Step Editor window.
6.16 -setting other note values
Notes you insert in the track in the Step Editor window take on the
values displayed in the menu bar for articulation, on and off velocity, and
input MIDI channel. Articulation refers to the percentage of the note's
duration value that it actually plays. By varying the articulation setting,
you can add changes in note length to define phrases and legato or staccato
passages. Shorter articulations produce a more staccato effect. The input
channel and velocity settings refer to the standard MIDI input parameters.
Before inserting a note, you can change the current settings for these
parameters by clicking on the appropriate fields. When you do, the
corresponding Change Value window will appear. You can either type in a new
value from the ST keyboard, or click over the arrow controls to raise or
lower the value incrementally. Then click on OK or press Return.
6.17 -inserting notes with the mouse
To insert notes using the mouse, first select the pencil icon in the
menu bar by clicking on it. When you move the pointer to the data area, it
becomes a crosshair that lets you position the new note exactly where you
want it on the screen.
Using the keyboard graphic at the left of the data area and the measure
and beat markings along the top, align the crosshair so that it corresponds
to the pitch and time where you want to insert the note. You can also use
the pitch and time indicators in the menu bar to locate the position
precisely.
When you have the correct position, single click on the mouse. A new
note bar will be inserted into the data area in that position, its length
corresponding to the duration and articulation you selected.
6.18 -inserting notes with a MIDI keyboard
Follow the above steps for selecting the note's duration, velocity,
input channel, and articulation. Then, select the keyboard icon next to the
arrow in the menu bar by clicking on it. Since you're using your MIDI
keyboard to enter the pitch data, you don't need a crosshair, and the mouse
pointer remains an I-beam cursor when you move it into the data area.
Position the I-beam at the horizontal position where you want to enter
the first note. Use the time indicator in the menu bar for precision. Once
you've positioned the cursor properly, click on the mouse to activate the
insertion point for MIDI keyboard note entry.
Now you can enter notes by pressing the corresponding keys on your MIDI
keyboard. Each time you play a key, a new note bar will appear at the pitch
and time you specified, and the I-beam cursor advances to the next
insertion point. As you continue to insert notes, the Step Editor window
scrolls appropriately.
6.19 -rests
Pressing Return on the ST keyboard inserts a rest corresponding to the
note duration that is currently selected.
6.20 -backspacing to erase mistakes
If you play the wrong key during the pitch entry process, press the
Backspace key on the ST keyboard to delete it.
During the note entry process, you can switch to new note durations with
either the note icons in the menu bar, or via the MIDI keyboard using keys
that you've assigned to duration values with the Keyboard command on the
Goodies menu (see Chapter 13 for details).
6.21 -moving and copying notes
With the move and copy commands, you can transfer all of a note's data,
including its duration, channel and velocity to a new location. Of course,
the pitch and/or the start time of the note at the new location may be
different, depending on where you move the note.
To move a note somewhere else in the track, or to make a copy of a note
at another location, you'll need the crosshair mouse pointer. To get it,
click over the pencil icon in the menu bar, and then move the pointer over
the note you want to move or copy. The center of the crosshair must be
directly on the note. Although the center of the crosshair can be anywhere
along the note's length, it's best to place it precisely at the beginning
of the note, so that you can use the time indicator in the menu bar to
locate the point where you insert the note with precision.
6.22 -moving the note
Now, if you want to MOVE the note from its current position to a new
one, simply click and hold the mouse button. A dotted border will appear
around the note bar, and while you continue to hold the mouse button you
can drag this "note ghost" to a new pitch and/or time in the sequence. When
the note is correctly positioned, release the mouse button. The ghost will
be returned to life as a solid note bar at the new location, while the note
bar at the previous location will vanish.
There will be times when you want to shift a note's position in time but
not change its pitch, or vice versa. To make these operations easier,
Master Tracks Pro provides a way to lock in the note's pitch or start time
during a move operation.
To lock in the pitch or start time, hold down the Shift key and then
click and hold on the note. Now, as you continue to hold down the mouse
button, whichever way you first move the mouse locks in the note's position
on the other axis.
So, for example, if you first move the mouse horizontally, you've locked
in the pitch, and you can't move the note vertically. You can now only move
the note horizontally, in time. Except for this detail, the move operation
proceeds normally.
6.23 -copying the note
Copying a note involves essentially the same steps, except that instead
of just clicking over the note you want to copy, you must hold down the Alt
key an the ST keyboard before you click on the note. Once the "note ghost"
border appears, you can release the Alt key, and continue by dragging the
cursor to the location where you want to insert the copy. When you're in
position, release the mouse button, and a new note bar will appear. The
original you copied from remains where it was.
6.24 -erasing notes
You can erase an individual note with the eraser mouse pointer. Click
over the eraser icon in the menu bar. When you move the pointer down into
the data area, it becomes a crosshair inside a circle.
To erase a note, simply position this eraser cursor anywhere along the
note and single click. The note will disappear from the window. You'll
probably find it easier to erase the note you're actually intending to
remove when you're not zoomed out to the higher magnifications, where note
durations appear very short on the screen.
6.25 -editing individual notes
Editing commands for single note events allow you to place new notes in
your sequence, and to move, copy, or delete existing notes using the mouse.
If you need more precision, Master Tracks Pro also gives you a numeric
method for altering each note's data.
6.26 -editing note parameters numerically
To alter an individual note's pitch, start time, duration, on and off
velocities, or channel, select the arrow mouse pointer by clicking over the
arrow in the menu bar. Move the arrow directly over the note you want to
edit, and double click.
After a moment, the Edit Note window pops up, and a grey highlight
appears over the note being edited so you won't forget which one you're
working on.
To change one of the values in the window, select it by clicking on it
to highlight it. Use the arrow controls at the right of the window to
change the value incrementally, or type in a new value directly from the ST
keyboard. Master Tracks Pro won't let you enter invalid settings for these
parameters, and will only beep if you try.
The START TIME parameter refers to the point in the sequence that the
note begins, in measures, beats, and clock ticks. Rather than setting an
end time, however, you use the DURATION parameter to determine how long the
note lasts, again in measures, beats, and clock ticks.
You can change the MIDI key number (pitch) with the arrow controls, or
by typing a key letter name followed by an octave number, or by pressing
the appropriate key on your MIDI keyboard. The On velocity and Off
(release) velocity are changed in the same manner as is the output MIDI
channel. In order to change the output MIDI channel on a note or range of
notes, the channel setting in the Sequencer window must be set to "0".
Once all the parameters in the Edit Note window are to your liking,
click on OK or press Return to finalize them and close the window. You can
click on Cancel instead to return to the Step Editor window without making
any changes.
----------> 7. Using MIDI Data Windows >------------------------------
Master Tracks Pro provides six special MIDI Data windows for graphically
editing types of MIDI data other than notes on an event-by-event basis.
Instead of having to work with a long list of numbers, you can see your
data at a glance on a graph, yet you can still edit it with full precision.
You'll find separate MIDI data windows for pitch bend, channel pressure,
key pressure, modulation , controllers, and program change data.
7.1 -opening a data window
There are two ways to open a MIDI Data window. First, you can choose it
from the Windows menu with the mouse. Second, you can open it from the ST
keyboard by typing the Function key that corresponds to the window, as
follows:
> Pitch Bend F4
> Channel Pressure F5
> Key Pressure F6
> Modulation F7
> Controllers F8
> Program Change F9
> Conductor Track F10
If the window is open but hidden behind other windows on the screen, you
can bring it up to the foreground by choosing it on the Windows menu or
with its ST keyboard command.
All six of the MIDI Data windows look and work alike, and are very
similar to the Step Editor window as well. Most of each window is devoted
to the data area, where individual MIDI events appear as vertical lines or
points. The height of each line or point corresponds to the numeric value
of the event, while the horizontal location of the line or point specifies
when in the track the event occurs. You can see event data for one track at
a time in the data area.
You can toggle the display from lines to points by pressing any key on
the ST keyboard when the MIDI Data window is active.
At the top of each window, just below the window title bar, you'll see a
single row of icons and data, the menu bar. The three icons in the left
portion of the menu bar are used to select different editing operations
(see the section below on editing event data).
To the right of the icons, there's a time indicator that displays the
horizontal position of the cursor in the track, in measures, beats, and
clock ticks. Next, there's a value indicator, that gives the data value
corresponding to the cursor's vertical location in the data area. Finally
come boxes showing which track's data is currently on the display, and what
channel will be assigned for new event insertions.
Just below the menu bar is a row of mostly empty space, the marker
ruler. This is where the markers you've placed in the Song Editor window,
if any, will be visible. You can hide the marker ruler with the Hide
Markers command on the Layout menu if you like. This expands the data
window. See Chapter 12 for details on how to use markers.
Below the marker bar is another horizontal bar, the measure ruler, which
marks the position of measures and beats in the track.
7.2 -scrolling
Use the scroll bar controls to move the MIDI Data window displays just
as you would with the Song Editor or Step Editor. Use the measure ruler to
keep track of where you are in the sequence as you scroll.
7.3 -moving to a marker
You can also move to markers that you placed in the sequence on the Song
Editor window. Press Tab to move to each successive marker. Press Shift-Tab
to move to a previous marker. Playback position can be determined by
clicking at the desired location in any MIDI Data window, with Auto turned
off in the Transport, the same way as in the Song and Step Editor windows.
7.4 -zooming in and out
You can use the Zoom In and Zoom Out commands on the Layout menu to see
more of the MIDI data on the screen at a time, or to get a close up view of
a small amount of data for precise work. To move in one zoom level, choose
the Zoom In command on the Layout menu. To zoom out one level, choose Zoom
Out.
The zoom level you use determines how many clocks per screen pixel are
displayed. The smallest distance on the screen you can move the mouse
pointer is a pixel. When you are zoomed all the way out, each pixel
corresponds to 24 clock ticks. Zoomed all the way in, a single clock tick
per pixel is displayed.
7.5 -edit resolution
The number of clock ticks per pixel affects the resolution with which
you can edit data in the MIDI Data windows. When you are zoomed all the way
out, for example, you can only edit events at 24-clock-tick intervals. When
you are zoomed all the way in, you can edit an event at any clock location.
If you wish to change or erase an event that doesn't fall at one of the
clock tick intervals at your current zoom level, you must zoom in for
higher resolution editing.
Note that the more you zoom in, the more individual events you can place
in the sequence. Zooming in gives you more precise control over the
placement of each event, but you can easily use up large amounts of memory,
and the sequence is forced to send data much more rapidly. Use the zoom
level that matches your needs for precision, memory, and data density.
Consult Chapter 12 for more details on how to use Zoom commands.
7.6 -switching tracks
To view or edit MIDI event data on another track, click over the Track
box in the menu bar. A Change Value window pops up, and you can either type
in the desired track number from the ST keyboard, or change it by clicking
on the arrow controls in the window. When you've entered the correct track
number, click on OK. The Change Value window will disappear, and the MIDI
Data window will now display data for the new track.
7.7 -editing MIDI data
As in the Step Editor window, you use various mouse pointers to make
different kinds of changes on events in the various MIDI data windows.
7.8 -selecting a region
To use the commands on the Edit or Change menus on MIDI Data window
data, you must first select a region within the track. To select a region
for global changes, use the arrow pointer by clicking on its icon in the
menu bar. Move the pointer to the left edge of the region you want to
select, using the time indicator in the menu bar to help you locate the
desired point in the sequence precisely. Then click on the mouse, and drag
across the selected region to the right. As you move the mouse, the region
will be highlighted in inverse video.
When you reach the right edge of the region, release the mouse button.
You can now perform Edit and Change menu operations on the selected region.
For the most part, these changes will only apply to the type of data
displayed in the window. (see the discussion in Chapter 9 on how different
types of data are affected by the Edit menu commands on the MIDI Data
windows.)
7.9 -inserting events
The ability to enter MIDI events graphically is one of Master Tracks
Pro's most powerful features. To insert individual MIDI events or modify
existing ones, you select the crosshair pointer by clicking on the pencil
icon in the menu bar.
Before inserting a new MIDI event, however, you can use the Channel box
in the menu bar at the top of the window to select the MIDI channel for the
new event. Click on the Channel box to bring up a Change Value window, and
enter the desired channel number by typing it in or adjusting it with the
arrow controls. Click on OK or press Return to finalize the change.
To insert a single event, move the crosshair to the position in the data
area where you want the event to go. Use the time indicator in the menu bar
to locate the exact time in the track where you want to insert the event
along the horizontal axis of the graph. Use the value indicator to position
the cursor vertically for the correct value.
Now simply click the mouse. A vertical line will appear,extending from
the graph baseline to the height representing the data value.
You can insert multiple consecutive events simply by holding down the
mouse button and dragging the cursor to draw a curve on the data area. This
makes it easy to add smooth pitch bend or mod wheel changes.
When you insert consecutive events, the graph will appear to be filled
in with solid black under the curve you draw. Nevertheless, each event
along the curve can still be edited individually.
The zoom level you're currently using affects how many events are
inserted when you draw a curve by dragging the mouse across the data area.
Depending on the zoom level, each horizontal mouse position can represent
as many as 24 clock ticks or as few as 1.
If you're zoomed all the way out when you draw consecutive events,
you'll get a new event every 24 clock ticks. When you're zoomed all the way
in, you get a new event with every clock tick. Be cautious about entering
consecutive events when you are zoomed in, because you can use up memory
quickly and you may force the program to send data too rapidly. The MIDI
data stream can only support 3120 bytes per second.
A good way to enter a series of consecutive events is to draw them in
when you are zoomed out to save memory, and then zoom in to edit them
precisely. When you zoom in, you'll see a solid black graph resolve into
individual event lines, making it easy to position the cursor.
7.10 -changing existing MIDI events
To change events that are already stored in the track data, just insert
a new event at the same time. When you do, the old event will be erased.
7.11 -thinning out dense MIDI data
If you have a section of MIDI data that is denser than necessary, you
can thin the MIDI data by tracing over their curves with the mouse at lower
resolutions (zoomed out).
7.12 -erasing events
To erase individual events, click on the eraser icon in the menu bar to
select the eraser cursor, a crosshair within a circle. Move the cursor
directly over the event you wish to erase and click. The event line or
point will disappear.
7.13 -the pitch bend window
Pitch bend data can take either positive or negative values. When a note
is not being bent it has a pitch bend value of 0. So in the Pitch Bend
window you'll see a horizontal dotted line running through the middle of
the data area to mark the zero point. The area above the line, which
represents positive pitch bend values, is marked with a "+" in the left
border. The area for negative values below the line is marked with a "-".
Positive values range to +127 and negative values go down to -128.
You can switch between two options for displaying pitch bend and other
MIDI data. Normally, the data appears as vertical lines. However, if you
press any key on the ST keyboard while you're working in any MIDI Data
window, each event is displayed as a single dot in the graph. Pressing
another key will toggle back to the normal display.
7.14 -channel pressure window
Channel pressure, also known as aftertouch, affects all notes on a given
MIDI channel. It has a range of 0 to 127.
7.15 -key pressure window
Key pressure, also known as "polyphonic" aftertouch, affects individual
MIDI notes. To use this parameter, you must first specify the note you want
to assign the key pressure event to by
entering its pitch in the
appropriate box at the far right of the menu bar. A box will pop up, and
you can either type in the note's pitch or play the note on your MIDI
controller. The value range for key pressure is 0-127.
7.16 -modulation window
Modulation refers to the "mod" wheel (or lever) found next to the pitch
bend wheel on many synthesizers. It is MIDI controller #1 and you could
also edit or create modulation data in the Controllers window. Like many
other controllers, it has a range of 0 to 127.
7.17 -controllers window
Since MIDI allows multiple controllers, the Controllers window lets you
specify the controller number for each event in the window. You must select
the controller number before you insert the event. (Consult the owner's
manual of your MIDI device for valid controller numbers and their
associated range of values.)
Click on the appropriate box at the right of the menu bar. Enter the
controller number in the box that pops up, and click on OK or press Return
to enter it. Then insert events just as you normally would. You can switch
to a new controller number at any time. Refer to the controllers list in
Chapter 14.
7.18 -program change window
The Program Change window lets you view, enter and edit program changes.
Sending a program change on a given MIDI channel will affect all MIDI
devices listening to that MIDI channel. The range of program numbers is 1
to 128.
7.19 -conductor track data window
The Conductor Track Data window shows a graphic representation of the
Conductor track. Like the other MIDI Data windows, the tempo values can be
edited with the arrow, pencil, and eraser cursors. A tempo change can be
entered at any clock boundary (240 clocks per quarter note).
----------> 8. Using the File Menu >----------------------------------
The File menu has a variety of commands that let you manage your
sequence files. These commands work just as they do in most other Atari ST
applications, so if you've had any previous experience with the ST you'll
already be familiar with how to use them.
The File menu includes the Preferences command, which allows you to set
up the program the way you like, and store that setup on your Master Tracks
Pro disk.
MIDI files are an industry standard format for storing MIDI sequences.
If you own any programs that support this new format, you will be able to
share sequence files with these programs. You can save your sequence as a
MIDI file (Export), or Import a MIDI file created with another program.
8.1 -about sequence files
A Master Tracks Pro file is a single sequence, either in its temporary
form in your ST's memory, or stored more permanently on a disk. A file is
OPEN when you're working with it in you ST's active memory, whether you
loaded it from disk or started a new sequence from scratch. When you close
a file, it is removed from memory, and you can only work on it again by
reloading it from the disk.
You can only have one sequence file open at a time in Master Tracks Pro.
If you're already working on a file, Master Tracks Pro gives you a chance
to save it when you create a new file or when you load a file from disk.
Be sure to SAVE YOUR SEQUENCE FILES FREQUENTLY WHILE YOU WORK WITH THEM!
so that you don't lose your work because of a power failure or other
problems with your system. You can store files on any disk or drive in your
system, as long as there is enough space, using options in the Save and
Save As... commands.
8.2 -starting a new file
To create a brand new sequence, choose the New command on the File menu
or press Alt-N on the ST keyboard. Since you can only have one file open at
a time, this command closes the file you've been working on, if any, giving
you a chance to save it if you like.
When the new file is opened, any windows you had open remain on the
screen in the same position, but all the existing data disappears. Master
Tracks Pro calls the new file "Untitled" until you rename it with a name of
your own choice using the Save As... command (the file name is always
displayed in the Transport window title bar).
8.3 -opening an existing file
Choose the Open comand or press Alt-O on the ST keyboard when you want
to load an existing disk file into Master Tracks Pro for playback or
further editing. When you choose the Open command, Master Tracks Pro will
first give you a chance to save the file you're currently working on, if
any.
Next, a dialog box will pop up, showing the name of the disk and/or
directory in the currently selected drive, and the names of all the Master
Tracks Pro files stored on that disk in a scrollable box underneath. If the
list of files is too long to fit into this box, you can use the scroll bar
at the right side to scroll through the list to the file you want.
If the file you want is on a disk in another drive, click on the line
below the word Directory. Press Esc and then type in the drive and/or
directory path you want to open from. Now click in the title bar of the
file display box to see existing files. To backtrack through the file
Hierarchy, click in the left box of the title bar.
Once you've located the file you want to open, click over any portion of
the name. The name will now be highlighted, indicating that it is selected.
If you make a mistake, you can select a new file name just by clicking on
it. When you've selected the correct file, click on OK. The dialog box will
disappear, and Master Tracks Pro will load the file. Another way to open
the file is simply to double-click on its name when it shows up in the
dialog box.
After the file is opened, the same set of windows you were using before
you opened the file will still be on the screen, but the data in the
windows will now be from the newly opened file.
8.4 -closing a sequence file
Use the Close command to end work on a particular file without leaving
Master Tracks Pro. When you choose the Close command, you'll be given an
opportunity to save your current work if you've made any changes since it
was last saved.
All windows you've been using remain on the screen, but they are now
empty of data. Essentially, the Close command gives you another way of
starting a new sequence.
8.5 -saving a sequence file
The Save command stores the sequence that's currently open on disk, if
an earlier version of the file has already been saved. As soon as you
choose the Save command, Master Tracks Pro will save the current version of
the sequence in the same disk file, without any further action on your
part, overwriting the existing file of the same name.
If your file has not been saved before, or if you haven't made any
changes since the last time you saved it, the Save command is disabled and
appears in grey instead of black on the File menu. To save a file for the
first time, or to resave a file that has already been saved, use the Save
As... command instead.
8.6 -using the 'Save As...' command
The Save As... command lets you save a new file for the first time, or
resave a file that has previously been saved, using a new name if you wish.
You may also save your file on a different disk. In addition to its
importance for saving new files, this command is especially useful when you
want to store your latest edits as a different file to avoid erasing an
earlier version of the sequence.
When you choose the Save As... commmand, a dialog box appears, which
allows you to choose a name for the file before you save it. The field
where you enter the file name is labeled "Selection:". If you're saving a
new file, there will be no name in this field. If you're saving a
previously saved file, the current name of the file appears in the file
name field.
If you want to change the name supplied by the program, press Esc and
then type in the new name.
The Save As... dialog box also lets you select the disk and drive where
you want to store the new version of the file. The title bar of the display
window shows the name of the disk or directory in the currently selected
drive. You can eject the disk and insert the disk you want to use. Then
click on the line below the word Directory, press Esc and type in the drive
and/or directory path you want to save to. Now click in the title bar of
the file display box to see existing files. To move back through the folder
hierarchy click in the left box of the title bar.
If you decide you don't want to save the file after all, you can click
on Cancel at any time. To go ahead and save the file with its new name,
click on OK. After a few minutes, you'll be returned to the main Master
Tracks Pro screen.
8.7 -using the 'Revert to Saved' command
Choosing the Revert to Saved command loads the disk version of the file
that you're currently working on, restoring the file to the way it was when
you last saved it. Use this command when you've made changes in a sequence
that you know you don't want to keep.
When you choose the Revert to Saved command, Master Tracks Pro pops up a
dialog box asking if you're sure that you want to discard the changes
you've made since the last time you saved the file. If you want to go ahead
with the command, click on Yes, and the last saved version of the file will
be loaded, replacing the data that was in memory. To cancel the command,
click on Cancel.
8.8 -customizing your screen display
The Preferences command lets you customize Master Tracks Pro's window
display and other settings to your personal tastes. When you choose
preferences from the File menu, the program takes a "snapshot" of the
current positions and sizes of any open windows on the screen, and also
records the data elements in the Layout menu, (Show/Hide Grid, Show/Hide
Markers, Follow Playback, and Zoom resolution), The Goodies menu (Keyboard,
MIDI Setup, and Record Filter parameters), and all settings in the
Transport window (Auto, Thru, Metronome, Count-in, and Key). All of this
information is saved on the program disk in a special "Preferences" file.
The next time you start Master Tracks Pro, the program will read the
Preferences file as it loads, and will come up on the screen with the
windows you want open at the positions and sizes you choose. In addition,
the settings of the functions on the Layout and Goodies menus will be as
specified in the Preferences file.
8.9 -importing and exporting MIDI files
MIDI files are an industry standard format that has been adopted by many
software and hardware manufacturers. This allows you to use Master Tracks
Pro to play or edit files created on other sequencers or to use your Master
Tracks Pro files with other sequencers or notation programs. Both types of
MIDI files are about 35% smaller than a normal Master Tracks Pro file and
thus take less room on your disk and less time to transmit by modem.
_______________________________________________________________
| All channels merged into a single multi- |
| TYPE 0 channel track.
|
| Channel
assignments saved.
|
| Text and program change assignments NOT saved. |
| Loop assignments
and markers NOT saved. |
|______________________________________________________________|
| Parallel
multi-channel tracks.
|
| TYPE 1 Channel assignments saved.
|
| Text and program change assignments saved. |
| Loop assignments
and markers NOT saved. |
|______________________________________________________________|
When you Export from the File menu, a dialog box gives you the choice of
type 1 or type 0. When you select Import from the File menu, Master Tracks
Pro will display any MIDI files on the current disk.
8.10 -quitting the program
Choose the Quit command or simply press Alt-Q on the ST keyboard when
you want to end the Master Tracks Pro session. If you haven't saved the
file you've been working on when you choose the Quit command, Master Tracks
Pro gives you a chance to do so via a dialog box with the message "Do you
want to save (filename) before Quitting?".
Click on Yes or press Return to save the final version of the file
before quitting. Click on No if you want to quit without saving the file.
If you decide not to quit after all, click on Cancel.
----------> 9. Using the Edit Menu >----------------------------------
Master Tracks Pro's Edit menu contains commands that are used within
the Song Editor, Step Editor, or MIDI Data windows to edit MIDI data in
selected measures or regions.
To use any of these commands on a specific region, the region must first
be selected using the mouse as descibed in the chapters on the Song Editor,
Step Editor, and MIDI Data windows. If you want to use an Edit command on
an entire sequence or track, you can skip that step by using the File
menu's special command, Select All. This command selects the entire
sequence at once if chosen when the Song Editor is the active window. If
the Step Editor or a MIDI Data window is active, one entire track will be
selected. See the descriptions of the Select All command later in this
chapter for details.
The Edit menu capabilities start with basic Cut, Copy, Paste, and Undo
editing commands. With Cut, Copy, and Paste, and a couple of supplemental
commands, you can transfer data from any location in a sequence to any
other location, or even to another sequence entirely.
Before covering the Edit menu commands individually, there are a few
things that you'll want to know about. One thing to be aware of is that
some of the Edit commands work slightly differently depending on which
window you're working with. Those differences are described with each of
the commands.
9.1 -working with tied notes
There will probably be times when you'll want to select regions in the
Song Editor or Step Editor windows that include notes tied from the measure
immediately before or after the selection. If the selected region begins on
the measure boundary, Master Tracks Pro will recognize the tied notes when
you use the Edit menu commands Cut, Copy, and Clear.
When you use one of these commands, the program removes or copies only
the portion of the note that falls within the the measures in which the
selected region is located. With the Cut and Copy commands, this portion of
the note is moved to the clipboard, and appropriate note-on and note-off
events are added to it to make it a complete event. When you use Cut or
Clear, the program also removes this portion of the note from the sequence,
and inserts new note-on and note-off events for the parts of the note that
remain.
9.2 -about the clipboard
The Clipboard is a temporary storage location for MIDI data that Master
Tracks uses when you move or copy within a sequence, or from one sequence
to another. For faster performance, the Master Tracks Pro clipboard is
stored in RAM, the computer's internal memory, and not on disk like some
Atari ST clipboard files. The effect of this is to speed up editing
considerably. But there is a trade-off. The problem with this approach is
that the data on the clipboard will be lost if you lose power or the
computer fails for some other reason. Don't expect the clipboard file to be
saved when you power down your computer. You must paste it into a sequence
and save it using the File menu commands.
9.3 -the undo command
At the top of the Edit menu is the Undo command, which can also be
executed by pressing Alt-Z on the ST keyboard. This command allows you to
cancel the last alteration you made to your sequence with the commands on
the Edit or Change menus. Remember, though, that Undo only applies to the
last change you made in the sequence. As soon as you use another Edit or
Change command or start recording a new track, the change is now permanent
and can no longer be removed with Undo.
9.4 -cutting
Use the Cut command to remove MIDI data from the region you've selected,
and place it in the Master Tracks Pro clipboard. You can execute the Cut
command by choosing it from the Edit menu, or by pressing Alt-X on the ST
keyboard.
The exact way that data is removed by the Cut command depends on how
you've selected the data:
> If you've selected one or more entire tracks in the Song Editor
window, the Cut command removes their data entirely.
> If you've selected the entire sequence using the Select All
command, or with the mouse in the Song Editor window, Cut removes
all data.
> If you select one or more adjacent measures across ALL tracks in
the sequence, the measures are completely removed and the
remainder of the sequence is shifted to the left to fill the gap.
> If you select a region within a track or tracks, but not all
tracks in the song, Cut removes the data but leaves the measure
intact. In other words, the rest of the data in the track(s) is
NOT shifted to the left to fill the gap. This is done to preserve
the Conductor template across all the tracks. After this sort of
cut, you'll see hollow measure bars indicating empty measures in
the Song Editor window.
Remember, a Cut command can be reversed with the Undo command.
The Cut command and the various windows:
> On the Song Editor window, Cut works on all data types in the
selected region.
> On the Step editor window, Cut works only on note data.
> On a MIDI Data window, Cut works only on the type of data
displayed in that particular window.
9.5 -copying
The Copy command makes a copy of the data in the selected region and
puts it in the Master Tracks Pro clipboard. The existing data is not
changed. In addition to selecting the Copy command with the mouse, you can
also execute it by pressing Alt-C on the ST keyboard.
The Copy command's effect varies, depending on which window you are
working in:
> On the Song Editor window, Copy copies all data types to the
clipboard.
> On the Step Editor window, Copy only copies note data.
> On the MIDI Data window, Copy only copies the type of data
displayed in the window.
9.6 -pasting
Paste places the contents of the clipboard into the sequence beginning
at the location of the blinking cursor. You can choose the command with the
mouse, or use Alt-V from the ST keyboard.
If the clipboard contains data from more than one track, data from the
lowest numbered track in the clipboard goes into the track marked by the
cursor. Data in the clipboard from subsequent tracks are automatically
inserted into the next tracks in order.
To use Paste, first select an insert point by placing the cursor at the
beginning of the measure where you want to insert the clipboard data. Then
select the command. THE DATA YOU PASTE IN REPLACES ANY EXISTING DATA IN THE
SEQUENCE. (To merge the clipboard data with the existing data, use the Mix
Data command.)
You can paste data into empty tracks anywhere you like. Just position
the cursor at the measure location where you want the pasted data to start,
and execute the command. Remember, too, that you can Paste clipboard data
from one sequence to an entirely different sequence if you wish.
The Paste command works with the various windows as follows:
> On all windows, Paste places all the contents of the clipboard
into the track, even if the clipboard includes data of another
type than displayed in the active window.
> On the MIDI Data windows, Paste will only place the type of data
cut or copied to the appropriate Data window. (See Change
Continuous to move from one data type to another.)
> On the Step Edit and MIDI Data windows, if the clipboard contains
data from multiple tracks, you'll place data from the lowest #
track only.
9.7 -clearing
Clear works exactly like Cut, except that the data is removed without
placing it in the clipboard. This gives you an alternative way to remove
portions of your sequence. You may find it useful when you want to remove
data from your sequence, but don't want to erase the contents of the
clipboard.
To use the Clear command, choose it from the Edit menu after you've
selected the region you want to clear. Alternatively, you can simply press
the Backspace key after selecting a region.
The Clear command and the various windows:
> On the Song Editor window, Clear removes all data types.
> On the Step Editor window, Clear only removes note data.
> On a MIDI Data window, Clear only removes the type of data
displayed in the window.
9.8 -mixing data
The Mix Data command works identically to the Paste command, except that
the data in the clipboard that you're inserting in the sequence is merged
with existing data already in the sequence.
To use the Mix Data command, first place the blinking cursor to the left
of the first measure in the block where you want to place the clipboard
data. Then choose the Mix Data command from the Edit menu, or type Alt-M on
the ST keyboard.
> Only one track can be mixed at a time with another. So if you
want to "bounce down" several tracks to a single track, you must
do them one by one.
9.9 -inserting measures
With the Insert Measure command, you can lengthen the sequence by adding
empty measures within it. You might use this command to insert a new
section into the middle of a composition or to add a blank space or
countdown to the beginning.
You can use the Insert Measure command from the Song Editor, Step
Editor, or MIDI Data windows. No matter which window you're working in,
using the Insert Measure command creates new measures in all the tracks in
the sequence, even if you've only selected a single track. The
newly-inserted measures will all have the same meter and tempo as the last
measure prior to the inserted section. Use the Change Conductor command in
the Change menu to alter these timing settings.
When you choose Insert Measure, or type Alt-I on the ST keyboard, a
dialog box pops up on screen. Type in the number of measures you wish to
insert, and click on OK or press Return to confirm your entry. Click on
Cancel to return without inserting measures.
The steps you'll take to use the Insert Measure command vary slightly
depending on whether the Song Editor window or the Step Editor window is
currently active.
In the Song Editor window, place the cursor at the beginning of the
measure before which you want to insert the new measure(s). After executing
the command, the new measures will appear on the screen as hollow measure
boxes, indicating they are empty of MIDI data, with the cursor positioned
at the beginning of the first measure in the inserted group. All the
remaining measures in the sequence will have been pushed to the right and
renumbered.
For example, say you want to insert two measures beginning after the
eighth measure in the sequence, and just before what's in the ninth
measure. Place the cursor between the eighth and ninth measures and select
the Insert Measure command. Once you've completed the insertion, the newly
inserted measures will be measures nine and ten, while what was formerly
measure nine will now be measure eleven.
In the Step Editor window, use the arrow pointer to select any region in
the measure before you want to insert the new measure, and then give the
command. After a brief pause, you'll see a new empty measure on the screen,
and the remaining measures will be renumbered to reflect the insertion.
(See Chapter 14 for inserting time into a single track.)
9.10 -select all
The Select All command lets you select the entire sequence or track for
use with the editing commands. From the Song Editor window, just choose
Select All from the Edit menu, or type Alt-A on the ST keyboard. Any
visible data becomes highlighted, indicating that it is selected. In the
Step Editor and MIDI Data windows, Select All selects the entire track
you're working with.
9.11 -show/hide clipboard
Show Clipboard pops up a small window which describes the current
contents of Master Tracks Pro's clipboard. The window tells you which
tracks and bars the data was copied from, how long the data lasts in bars
(measures), beats, and clock ticks, and whether the data was cut or
copied.
The Clipboard window remains on screen until you close it, although it's
likely to get buried under other screen windows. If you like, you can leave
the clipboard window open on the screen. If it gets hidden behind other
windows, however, you must either move or close them to see the clipboard
window again, or choose Show Clipboard from the Edit menu.
----------> 10. Using the Change Menu >-------------------------------
While the Edit menu commands let you move or delete regions of notes,
the Change menu contains commands that allow you to regionally alter MIDI
and timing data in sophisticated ways. All of the Change menu commands work
on any region you select in the Song Editor, Step Editor, or MIDI Data
windows.
Included are commands for changing MIDI channel, note duration, note
velocity, continuous MIDI data, and tempo and meter in the selected region.
There are also commands for stripping different types of data out of a
track, transposing pitch, and for changing the rhythmic relationships of
MIDI events.
As with Edit menu commands, you must first select a region before you
can use the Change commands. To select a region, use the mouse as described
in the chapters on the Song Editor, Step Editor, and MIDI data windows.
10.1 -change channel
This command permanently changes the MIDI channel assignments of all the
data in a selected region to a new channel number. After selecting a
region, choose the Channel... command from the Change menu.
When the Change Channel dialog box appears, type in the channel number
(1 to 16) you wish to assign to the data in the selected region. Click on
OK or press Return on the ST keyboard to complete the process. Click on
Cancel to exit from the command without making any changes. The Channel
setting on the Sequencer window must be set to "0" or else that setting
overrides this command.
10.2 -change duration
Choosing the Duration... command pops up a dialog box that allows you to
alter the duration of each note in the region - how long it plays. The
dialog box gives you two choices for changing note durations. The first
option in the box lets you set all the notes in the region to a specified
duration. Activate this option by clicking in the circle next to it. A
solid black dot appears within the circle when the option is selected.
Next, select the duration you wish by using the arrow controls to choose
the appropriate note duration icon.
To select a tuplet resolution, click on the box next to "Tuplet", and
enter the tuplet values you wish by clicking on the appropriate boxes and
typing in the new numbers.
Based on the duration you choose, the number of clock ticks each note
will receive in the region appears in a box to the right of the arrow
controls. If you prefer, you can type in any duration value - expressed in
clock ticks - you wish into this box.
The second option in the Change Duration dialog box allows you to scale
all duration values in the selected region by a percentage of their current
values. Again, click on the circle beside this option to select it, so that
the black dot appears. Now type in the percentage of the current duration
values, within the range of 1 to 999%, you wish to use. With this option,
the relative timing of all the notes is preserved.
After selecting the option you wish, Click on OK or press Return to
complete the command, or click on Cancel to return to your work without
making any changes.
10.3 -change velocity
The dialog box that pops up when you choose the Velocity... command lets
you change the velocity values for all notes in a selected region.
Changing velocity is useful for adding punches to a track or to mix the
loudness of a track or passage relative to other tracks. It can also be
used to bring velocity values up or down over time to create swells,
crescendos, and decrescendos.
First you need to decide whether your changes will apply to the note-on
velocities, note-off velocities, or both. Click over the circle to the
right of one or both of these choices in the dialog box.Most synths do not
transmit or recognize note-off velocities.
Next, you can decide from among four options for altering the velocity
values. Click over the circle next to the option you select:
1)You can set all velocity values in the region to a specific value.
2)You can change all velocity values by a specific percentage.
3)You can have all velocity values in the region change smoothly from
one value at the beginning of the region to another value at the
end of the region.
4)You can add or subtract (with a minus value) a set amount to all
velocity values in the region.
After selecting which of these four options you wish, click on the
appropriate data box(es) for that option and type in the value or
percentage you've chosen. Click on OK or press Return to enter the value.
Valid MIDI velocity values are between 1 and 127. A velocity value of 0
is the same as a note-off command. If you enter a velocity value below 1 or
above 127 in options 1 or 3 above, Master Tracks Pro will tell you that the
value is out of range. You'll then be returned to the Change Velocity
dialog box with a highlight on the invalid value. If the values you've
entered in options 2 or 4 throw existing velocity values out of the value
ranges, Master Tracks Pro will clip them to 1 or 127 as appropriate.
10.4 -change continuous
Choosing the Continuous... command brings up a powerful dialog box that
lets you alter data from any continuous MIDI controller, such as a pitch
bend wheel, a modulation wheel, aftertouch (channel pressure), or a
numbered MIDI controller. You can use this command to map data from one
MIDI controller to another, change the values of the controller data, or
both.
10.5 -mapping data
By mapping one type of MIDI data to another type, you can send data
recorded from one controller to a MIDI device that responds to a different
controller. For instance, you can map pitch bend information to channel
pressure if you like.
To map one data type to another, first select the type of data you wish
to operate on in the selected region from the choices listed under "Select
Data Type" at the top of the dialog box. Click on the circle next to the
choice you select so that a smaller solid black circle appears. If you've
chosen the Controller # option, you must also type in its number in the
corresponding box.
Next, click on the box labeled "Map Data Type To" at the right of the
dialog box. An "X" will appear in the box. Now choose the data type to
which you want to map the existing data by clicking in the circle next to
your choice. Again, you must type in a number if you select the Controller
# option. See Chapter 14 for a list of controller numbers.
10.6 -changing data values
To change data values, you must first select the type of data you wish
to work on, if you haven't done so already, as descibed above. Next, click
in the box labeled "Change Data Values" so that an "X" appears in the box.
You now have four choices:
1) You can set all values in the region to a specific value.
2) You can change all values by a specific percentage.
3) You can have all values in the region change smoothly from one
value at the beginning of the region to another value at the end
of the region.
4) You can add or subtract (with a minus value) a set amount to all
values in the region.
After selecting which of thes four options you wish, click on the
appropriate data box(es) for that option and type in the value or
percentage you've chosen.
If you are mapping data to another controller at the same time you are
changing data values, the changed values will apply to the controller you
are remapping the data to.
Once you've made all your choices, click on OK or press Return to
complete the command. Click on Cancel at any time to exit the dialog box
without making any changes.
NOTE: If there is no controller data present in the track to change,
changing data values will have no affect on the track. There must be at
least one data value either recorded or inserted (entered) in order for a
change to occur.
10.7 -change conductor
Master Tracks Pro has a separate Conductor track with which you can
determine the rhythmic structure of your entire sequence. All tracks in the
sequence follow the settings in the Conductor track for meter, tempo, and
the type of note that gets the beat, but you can vary these settings from
measure to measure as often as you like. You can even change tempos
gradually for ritardandos and accelerandos anywhere in your sequence.
The vertical grey bar in the Song Editor window represents the end of
the Conductor track.
Choose the Conductor... command on the Change menu to bring up the
Change Conductor dialog box. Optionally, you can access the Change
Conductor dialog box from the Conductor window by clicking on the time
signature in the window.
Unlike other Change menu commands, you don't have to select a region
before you use the Conductor command. If you have selected a region,
however, the first and last measures in the region will appear in the
appropriate boxes at the top of the dialog box. You can define a new region
by typing in different measure numbers.
If you wish to set the meter or beat note for the region, click on the
circle next to that option in the dialog box. Then type in the new meter
values. Select the note icon for the beat note with the arrow controls at
the right. In 4/4 time, if a quarter note beat is selected, you will hear
four beeps per measure from the metronome with an accent on each first beat
and you will see four main divisions in each measure in the Step Edit
window. If you change the beat to an eighth note, you will now hear 8 beeps
per measure and see 8 main divisions per measure. Tempo will now be half
speed since it is measured in "beats" per minute so you may wish to double
the tempo for this region.
You have four options for setting a new tempo in the region:
1) You can set all tempo values in the region to a specific value.
2) You can change all tempo values by a specific percentage.
3) You can have all tempo values in the region change smoothly from
one value at the beginning of the region to another value at the
end of the region.
4) You can add or subtract (with a minus value) a set amount to all
tempo values in the region.
10.8 -tempo range
After selecting which of these four options you wish, click on the
appropriate data box(es) for that option and type in the value or
percentage you've chosen. The range of permissible values for tempo setting
is 10 to 300 with beat set to quarter not, but with the beat set to
sixteenth note, tempos can be up to 1200 BPM. If you enter a value outside
this range with option 1 or 3, Master Tracks Pro will highlight the illegal
value and ask you to change it before you can return to your work. Any
existing tempo values changed by options 2 or 4 so that they are out of
range will be truncated to the maximum or minimum values.
Click on OK or press Return to complete the Conductor command. Click on
Cancel to exit the command without making any changes.
10.9 -changing meter
The Conductor track allows you to have multiple meters in the same song.
On way to use multiple meters is to create the rhythmic structure of your
sequence with the Conductor track before you record any music. The
Conductor track is equivalent to a "tempo map" and a "meter map" combined
into a single structure. Use the Conductor command to define meter and
tempo for each section in turn. Once you've created this Conductor
template, you can record your music, and the program will automatically
shift meters at the correct measures as you record.
To see how this process works, try this example: First, select New from
the File menu to clear the ST's memory. Now choose the Conductor command
from the Change menu. Set bars 1 to 4 to a 4/4 meter at 100 beats per
minute with a quarter note beat. Now choose the Conductor command again,
and set bars 5 to 8 to 3/4 at 140 beats per minute. Choose the command a
third time, and set bars 9 to 12 to 2/4 at 80 bpm.
In the Song Editor window, you'll now see that you have a 12 bar score.
If you move the transport with the fast-forward button, or "play" the empty
sequence, you'll see the tempo and meter settings in the Conductor window
change as you reach each new section of the Conductor track.
If you wish, you can save a Conductor track template as a disk file
before you enter any music, and use it for as many separate sequences as
you like.
10.10 -strip data
The Strip Data command lets you cut or copy selected types of MIDI data
from the edit region. Among the types of data you can cut or copy are data
from a particular MIDI channel, various types of MIDI controller data, or a
range of notes.
You can select any combination of these data types each time you use the
Strip Data command. For example, you could copy only notes above middle C
and pitch bend data, both from channel # 4.
The selected data types are cut or copied to the clipboard. You can then
paste them back into your sequence anywhere you like using the Paste or Mix
Data commands on the Edit menu.
By selecting various ranges of notes, you can use the Strip Data command
to create as many keyboard "splits" as you like. The command can also help
conserve memory by removing unnecessary controller data while leaving other
data intact.
Select a region and pop up the Strip Data dialog box by choosing Strip
Data... from the Change menu. Click in the box or boxes next to the data
type(s) that you wish to cut or copy with the command. If you select the
Controllers option, you can either cut or copy all numbered MIDI
controllers, or you can select a specified controller number.
Similarly, you can either select all notes in the edit region, or only
notes in the range you enter. To enter note pitches to define the range,
you can either type in the pitch or play the corresponding key on the MIDI
keyboard. If you type in the pitch, enter the pitch letter name, a # sign
if the pitch is an accidental, and the octave number. Valid pitch range is
from C-2 to G8. All accidentals must be entered as sharps.
Finally, decide whether you want to cut or copy the selected data types,
and click on the circle next to the option you choose. If you select Cut,
the selected data types in the region will be removed from the sequence and
placed in the clipboard. If you select Copy, a copy of the data will be
placed in the clipboard, while the original data remains intact.
When you've finished making your selections in the Strip Data dialog
box, click on OK or press Return on the ST keyboard. Click on Cancel
instead to exit without making any changes.
Another way to cut or copy specific types of MIDI data is to perform the
operation from the Step Editor or MIDI Data windows. When you use the Edit
menu Cut or Copy in those windows, only the data type you're currently
working with will be transferred to the clipboard.
10.11 -transpose
The Transpose command changes the pitch of all notes in the selected
region from one key to another. The Transpose command recognizes individual
clock ticks, so you can use it on regions that include portions of
measures.
When you choose this command, a dialog box appears, and you are asked to
enter the key from which you are transposing, and the new key to which you
want to transpose.
To enter these keys, click on the appropriate box, and then type in a
pitch letter name, a # sign if you're entering an accidental, and the
octave number, or play the appropriate note on your MIDI keyboard. Valid
pitches range from C-2 to G8. You must enter all accidentals as sharps.
Press Return or click on OK to enter the transposition and return to
your work. Click on Cancel to exit without making any changes.
10.12 -humanize
The Humanize command is designed to make your sequence less machine-like
and rigid by randomly shifting the start time, duration, and/or velocity of
each note in the selected region.
When you select the Humanize command, a dialog box appears that lets you
choose whether to apply the randomization effect to start times, durations,
or velocities. Click on the box next to each option you want to select.
Next you must enter a maximum value to tell the program how large the
random changes can be. Th Humanize command will add or subtract a random
amount from each note in the region, but only within the range set by this
value. In the case of start times and durations, type in the maximum number
of of clock ticks that will be added or subtracted to existing values when
the Humanize command goes to work. For velocities, the maximum value is
simply a numeric value between 1 and 127.
In practice, very small values work best for achieving subtle variations
in mechanical sounding music. Large values will produce wide ranges that
are sometimes useful, but not at all predictable.
When you've made your selections, click on OK or press Return to enter
them and complete the command, or click on Cancel to exit without making
any changes.
10.13 -quantize
The Quantize command aligns the start times of all notes and other MIDI
events in the selected region to an imaginary timing "grid". The grid
divides the region into intervals of a set number of clock ticks. When you
use Quantize, the command moves the start time of every note within the
region so that it falls precisely at the beginning of the nearest grid
interval.
Of course, you'll usually quantize to a grid based on the standard note
type, such as to the closest quarter or sixteenth note. But Master Tracks
Pro gives you the freedom to quantize to any interval you wish.
10.14 -percentage ahead of the beat
Master Tracks Pro defaults to a quantize setting of 35% ahead of the
beat. In other words, if you are quantizing to 16th note values, it will
align (shift) any notes which fall from 35% before the current 16th note
and up to 65% behing the current 16th note. If a note falls more than 35%
early, it will be quantized to the previous 16th note position. This range
can be adjusted to your specific situation by entering a different value in
the percentage box. If you tend to rush a particular passage you may wish
to set the shift range to a larger percentage ahead of the beat.
10.15 -offset
The Quantize command also allows you to shift start times in the
quantized region slightly away from the grid interval. This feature is
valuable for creating passages that are a little ahead of or behind the
beat or for sliding notes in a track.
10.16 -using quantize
Begin by choosing Quantize from the Change menu to bring up the Quantize
dialog box. Then select the quantization value by using the arrow controls
to choose the corresponding note duration icon. To select a tuplet
resolution, click on the box next to "Tuplet". Then enter the tuplet values
you wish by clicking on the appropriate boxes and typing in the numbers.
Based on the duration you choose, the number of clock ticks in each note
value will appear in a box to the right of the arrow controls. If you
prefer, you can simply type in any duration value you wish in this box.
If you select an offset for quantization, click on the box for that
option so that an "x" appears in the box. Decide whether you want the
offset to occur before or after the grid boundaries, and click on the
circle next to your choice. Finally, type in the number of clock ticks that
you want for the offset (240 per quarter note).
When you've entered your selections, click on OK or press Return to
complete the Quantize command. If you wish, you can click on Cancel to exit
without making any changes.
10.17 -fit time
The Fit Time command lets you stretch or sqeeze a given section of music
so that it fits exactly into a particular amount of time. It works by
scaling all the tempos of the Conductor track for the selected region
proportionally, so that the relationships between any existing tempo or
meter changes in the region are preserved. In this way, you don't lose the
feel of the music.
Fit Time works only on whole measures. For best results, you should only
use it on relatively short passages, but they should be at least three
measures long.
Fit Time isn't a complete substitute for SMPTE sync, but it can be very
useful for doing short jingles and commercials, when you have to stretch or
compress the total time of a section just a bit.
When you choose the Fit Time command, the dialog box has three data
entry boxes, one each for minutes, seconds, and tenths of seconds. When you
first pop up the dialog box, these display how long the region would play
using the current tempo settings.
Don't try to squeeze or stretch a section a ridiculous amount. The
program's tempo range, from 10-300 quarter notes per minute, will limit how
much you can change the region within this command. Trying to make a 2
second region fit into 60 minutes is definitely not recommended.
Click on each data entry box in turn and type in the new amount of time
you want the region to play. When you've made the entries, click on OK or
press Return. Depending on how long the region is, the calculation can take
some time.
----------> 11. Using the Windows Menu >------------------------------
The Windows menu provides access to any of the main Master Tracks Pro
data windows. If a window is not currently on the screen, or if it is
hidden behind other windows, you can bring it up to the front and activate
it from the Windows menu in one of two ways.
* You can choose the window you wish by name from the Windows menu.
* You can press a Function key on your ST keyboard.
Here's a brief desciption of each of the main Master Tracks Pro windows,
including which Function keys you can use to call up the window from the ST
keyboard:
11.1 -sequencer - F1
The Sequencer window allows you to see and name all the tracks in your
sequence. In addition, it lets you choose which tracks play, record, solo,
and loop. You can also enter MIDI channel settings and initial MIDI program
numbers for each track in the sequence.
11.2 -song editor - F2
The Song Editor window provides a graphic display of your sequence in
units of measures, and shows where the end of the sequence falls. Blocks of
measures can be selected and edited with a variety of powerful commands.
You can place and display markers that allow to quickly find specific
places in your sequence.
11.3 -step editor - F3
The Step Editor window lets you see and edit note data graphically. You
can input, move, copy, and erase individual notes anywhere on the graph.
You can also edit note parameters numerically. In addition, you can use a
step method for note entry, and you can select regions of notes for editing
operations.
11.4 -pitch bend - F4
The Pitch Bend window allows you to display and edit pitch bend data.
You can enter, edit, and erase individual pitch bend events, and you can
draw in consecutive events graphically. You can also select regions of
pitch bend events for editing operations.
11.5 -channel pressure (aftertouch) - F5
The Channel Pressure window lets you work with MIDI channel pressure
data, also called monophonic aftertouch. Using a graph in the window, you
can add, edit, and erase individual channel pressure events, and you can
also draw them in consecutively on a graph. Regions of channel pressure
events can be selected for editing operations as well.
11.6 -key pressure - F6
The Key Pressure window is the window for displaying and working with
MIDI key pressure data, also called polyphonic aftertouch. You can enter,
change, or erase key pressure events on the graph in the window, draw in
consecutive events, or select regions of events for editing operations.
11.7 -modulation - F7
The Modulation window lets you display and edit MIDI modulation data
which usually corresponds to the mod wheel on your synthesizer. The graph
lets you input, edit, or erase modulation events, draw them in as a group,
and select events in regions for editing operations.
11.8 -controllers - F8
The Controllers window lets you enter and edit data for any MIDI
controller. Using the graph in the window, you can enter, edit, or erase
individual controller events, draw them in consecutively, and select them
in regions of editing operations. (See the MIDI Controller list in Chapter
14).
11.9 -program change - F9
The Program Change window lets you see and edit MIDI program change
events within your sequence. You can insert, edit, or erase individual
program change events, you can select them regionally for editing
operations, and you can draw them in consecutively if you like.
11.10 -conductor track data window - F10
The Conductor Track data window shows a graphic representation of the
tempo map and time signature. Tempo changes can be inserted with the pencil
at any clock boundary (240 clocks per quarter note). The time signature at
any given point in the Conductor track will be displayed in the small
Conductor display window at the left bottom of the ST screen during
playback, when the Conductor track data window is scrolled, or when you
click a point in the Conductor Track data window.
----------> 12. Using the Layout Menu >-------------------------------
The Layout menu contains several commands that determine the appearance
of the data windows. These commands can influence your interaction with the
program in important ways.
12.1 -hide/show grid
This command is a toggle that lets you switch between two versions of
the Step Editor window grid. The grid always displays a dotted vertical
line at each measure boundary, but you have two choices when it comes to
the light horizontal lines that represent pitch: you can either choose to
display a horizontal line for every "white key", or you can HIDE the full
grid and display horizontal lines only at octaves.
The octave grid gives an uncluttered screen, while the full grid
provides more help in precise placement of notes.
When the full grid is visible, you can switch to the octave grid by
choosing Hide Grid on the Layout menu. Conversely, when the octave grid is
on screen, you can switch to the full grid by choosing Show Grid.
Which grid you use is a matter of convenience and personal style.
12.2 -hide/show markers
Hide/Show Markers is a toggle command that lets you display or remove
the marker ruler from the Song Editor, Step Editor, and MIDI Data windows.
(Markers and the marker ruler are described in full in the chapters on the
Song Editor window and the Goodies menu.)
When the marker ruler is not visible, you can display it by choosing
Show Markers on the Layout menu. To remove it, choose Hide Markers. The
Song Editor, Step Editor, and MIDI Data windows are all affected by this
command at the same time. With markers hidden, the data areas of the
windows expand to show more data.
12.3 -follow playback
When thw Follow Playback feature is active, the Song Editor, Step
Editor, and MIDI Data windows scroll as the sequence plays, displaying a
highlight to indicate the measure that is currently playing. With this
feature off, these windows remain as you left them during sequence
playback.
To activate the Follow Playback feature, choose it on the Layout menu.
When the feature is active, a checkmark appears next to it on the menu.
To deactivate Follow Playback, simply choose it again. The check mark
will disappear. When Follow Playback is deactivated, you can scroll to and
examine any location in any window independently of the playback transport
position.
12.4 -zoom in/out1
The Zoom commands let you choose how much data you see in the Step
Editor and MIDI Data windows. To get the big picture on your sequence, use
the Zoom Out command to place more measures on the window. For precise
work, use the Zoom In command to show a smaller amount of the sequence at
higher "magnification". Six separate levels of zoom are available, so you
can easily adjust the display to fit your needs.
The Zoom level set by the Zoom In and Zoom Out commands also determines
the number of clock ticks displayed per pixel on the screen, and thus
affects the resolution at which you can edit data in the Step Editor and
MIDI Data windows.
If you zoom all the way in to the highest level of magnification, each
pixel represents a single clock tick. This is the best level for precise
work when you're entering notes, pitch bend, or other MIDI data.
When you zoom further out, the clock-tick-per-pixel value increases.
When you move the cursor in one of the windows, it is "snapped" to an
imaginary grid with divisions at 8 clock ticks per pixel, 12 per pixel, and
so on, up to a maximum of 24 when you're zoomed all the way out. (a pixel
is the smallest dot on the ST screen and the minimum distance interval you
can move your mouse) You can use this feature to do a kind of manual
"quantizing" of notes and other events in the Step Editor and MIDI Data
windows. Just click on the note or event with the crosshair (pencil), and
the event will automatically be moved to the nearest division of the
imaginary grid.
You may also want to zoom out when you're inputting pitch bend or other
continuous controller data to economize on memory, and to reduce the rate
at which the sequence must send data. If you input pitch bend data when
you're zoomed all the way in, you create 24 times as much data as when
you're zoomed all the way out.
To zoom in one level, choose the Zoom In command or press Alt-,(<) on
the ST keyboard. To zoom out, choose Zoom Out or press Alt-.(>). Using
either command affects all the data windows on screen.
----------> 13. Using the Goodies Menu >------------------------------
The Goodies menu brings together many powerful and sophisticated
features in a single menu and includes many of Master Tracks Pro's unique
features.
First, there are simple toggle commands for displaying and activating
four screen windows. But then come a set of commands for tailoring Master
Tracks Pro to your own system, and for controlling the sequencer from your
MIDI keyboard. There's also a special command that lets Master Tracks Pro
receive, store, and send MIDI system exclusive information.
All settings on the Goodies menu are saved when you use the Preferences
command on the File menu. See Chapter 8 for details.
13.1 -display memory use
Selecting Memory brings up a dialog box that shows how much memory, in
bytes, that your ST has available for sequence storage, and how much of the
total is still empty. Click on OK to close the dialog box.
13.2 -markers window
Choose Markers on the Goodies menu to display a window showing locations
and names of the markers you place in the sequence on the Song Editor
window.
Master Tracks Pro provides markers that let you identify a particular
location in your sequence so that you can return to it any time you wish.
Markers always mark the beginning of a measure.
13.3 -about markers
Master Tracks Pro markers look and act much like tab stops in word
processing programs. In Master Tracks Pro, markers are displayed in a
horizontal marker ruler in the Song Editor, Step Editor, and MIDI Data
windows, just below the title bar of each window.
The marker ruler appears in these windows only if the Show Markers
command on the Layout menu is in effect. If you choose Hide Markers on the
Layout menu, the ruler will disappear from all the windows.
Markers are placed in a sequence on the Song Editor window, as described
in Chapter 5.
When any of the windows with markers is active, you can move the window
data to the next marker in the ruler by pressing the Tab key on the ST
keyboard. The data in the window will move so that the measure at the
marker is at the extreme left of the window. To move to a previous marker,
press Shift-Tab. Again, the data lines up so that the measure marked by the
marker is at the left side of the window.
13.4 -naming a marker
There re two ways to name markers or to change their names. As described
in the chapter on the Song Editor, you can double-click over a marker to
pop up a window that lets you name the marker.
The other way to name markers involves the Markers window, which you can
display by choosing Markers from the Goodies menu. When you do, the window
will pop up, displaying a table of the markers. For each marker, the table
lists its measure location and its name.
To name a marker, or change its name, single click over the name field
of the marker on the table. An Enter Text window will appear, asking you to
enter the name you want to give the marker. Once you've typed it, click on
OK (or click on Cancel to return without making any changes).
The name you've chosen appears in the marker window, and also in the
marker ruler at the top of the other edit windows.
13.5 -displaying the conductor window
The Conductor window displays basic sequencer timing information,
including the meter, tempo, and beat note. It also includes a scroll bar
that allows you to control tempo for playback and recording. For a full
description of how the Conductor window works, see Chapter 4.
If the Conductor window is not on the screen, or if it is hidden behind
other windows, you can pop it up by choosing Conductor on the Goodies menu.
The Conductor window serves as a reference display. The Conductor track can
be edited graphically using the Conductor Track data window. (see Chapter
11)
13.6 -displaying the transport window
The Transport window is where the basic sequencer controls are located,
including the Play, Record, Fast-forward, and Rewind buttons. It also
includes a pair of sequence counters, and a variety of other functions
related to sequence operation. You'll find a full description of the
Transport window in Chapter 4.
If the Transport window is closed, or if it gets hidden behind other
windows on the screen, choose Transport on the Goodies menu to bring it to
the foreground, making it active.
13.7 -managing system-exclusive data
Master Tracks Pro's Sysex feature allows you to send and receive MIDI
system exclusive data such as synthesizer patches to and from the MIDI
devices in your system. You can store this data in files on disk, and then
retrieve it at any time to send to your instrument. Since each instrument
has a different system exclusive data format, you can only do "bulk dumps"
with Master Tracks Pro - that is, all data is stored and sent in one
continuous file, and can't be edited within Master Tracks Pro.
To use the Sysex feature, choose Sysex on the Goodies menu. When you do,
the System Exclusive dialog box pops up.
13.8 -receiving sysex data
Before you can receive system-exclusive messages from your synthesizer
or other MIDI devices, you'll need to know how to send them from the
devices. Consult your owner's manuals for instructions.
When you're ready to proceed, click on Receive in the System Exclusive
dialog box. Master Tracks Pro will now record any system-exclusive data it
receives.
Send the data from the MIDI device using the procedure specified by the
manufacturer. You can receive up to 64 separate system-exclusive messages
in one file. When you send the data back to the device later, it will be
sent on the same channel it was received on.
When you've finished sending the system-exclusive data from the device
to Master Tracks Pro, click on Stop in the dialog box to shut off the
receiving process.
To assist in recording multiple system-exclusive messages in a single
file, the program counts the number of messages it receives and displays
the count when you click on Stop.
13.9 -storing sysex data on disk
To store a system-exclusive data file, begin by naming the file. Click
on the filename field to enter the name there. You can also place a memo
about the data in the Memo box. To do so, click on the box or press Tab and
enter your memo.
When you've named the file and written the memo, click on Save. A File
dialog box will pop up. You can scroll a list of filenames on the current
disk, and switch drives or directories from this dialog box. You also have
another chance to name the file for your data.
Once you've chosen the drive and disk where you want to save the file,
click on OK on the File dialog box, or press Return. If you decide not to
save the file, you can click on Cancel to return to the System Exclusive
dialog box.
13.10 -loading sysex data from disk
To send a system-exclusive file to your MIDI device, the first thing
you'll need to do is retrieve it from disk. Click on Open in the System
Exclusive dialog box to bring up a File dialog box. This box contains a
listing of all system-exclusive files stored on the current disk, and
allows you to switch disks and directories if you wish.
Once you've located the desired file, you can open it either by double
clicking on the name, or by single clicking on the name to highlight it,
and then clicking on OK or pressing Return. At any time before you open the
file, you can decide not to open it and return to the main dialog box by
clicking on Cancel instead.
13.11 -sending a sysex file to a MIDI device
Before you can send a system-exclusive
file to a MIDI device
successfully, you must first get the device ready to receive it by
following the appropriate steps listed in the owner's manual. When you're
ready, click on Send in the System Exclusive dialog box. Master Tracks Pro
will send the file in its entirety. Usually the receiving device will
inform you about whether or not the transfer was successful.
13.12 -quitting the sysex dialog
When you've finished your system-exclusive operations, click on Quit
in the dialog box to return to the main Master Tracks Pro screen.
13.13 -MIDI keyboard setup
One of Master Tracks Pro's most useful features is the ability it gives
you to operate all the sequencer transport controls and to select durations
in the Step Editor using a MIDI keyboard, freeing you from the need to move
back and forth between the ST and your synth.
Selecting the Keyboard command pops up a dialog box that lets you
configure Master Tracks Pro for MIDI keyboard control of these functions.
When you've made your configuration settings, click on OK to enter them and
return to the program, or click on Cancel to return without entering the
changes.
13.14 -MIDI transport control
The options for transport control are at the left side of the Keyboard
command dialog box. To activate MIDI keyboard control of the transport
functions, click on the small box next to "Use in Transport" in the dialog
box. A checkmark will appear in the box when MIDI keyboard control of the
sequencer transport is active. You can turn it off again at any time by
clicking on the box again.
Next, assign each transport function in the list (play, stop, record,
and so on) to a key on your MIDI keyboard. Click on the larger box to the
right of each function and then type in the pitch letter name and octave
number of the key to which you want to assign that function.
In addition to entering the key you'll use to control each transport
function, you must also activate keyboard control of each function
individually by clicking over the small box to the left of the function
name. When the keyboard control is active, a checkmark appears in the box.
You can deactivate any function simply by clicking on the box again. Being
able to activate the functions individually allows you to use only the ones
you really need, leaving you more keys to play. Keys that have functions
assigned to them will not be recorded in the sequence.
13.15 -using the MIDI keyboard for step entry
The chapter on the Step Editor descibes how to use your MIDI keyboard to
insert new notes in the sequence. To activate MIDI keyboard control of the
duration of inserted notes, click on the box next to "Use in Step Input". A
checkmark will appear in the box indicating that keyboard control of note
durations is now active. You can turn it off again by clicking over the box
once more.
Then specify which key you wish to use for each duration value by
clicking over the box to the right of the corresponding note icon, and then
typing in the pitch letter name and octave number. Using the same method,
you can also specify a key to activate the tuplet function, and one to
insert a rest equal to the currently selected duration.
Once you've made your keyboard assignments, you must also activate each
key separately by clicking over the box to the right of its duration icon.
Again, you can deactivate any key by clicking over the box another time. By
activating only the keys for the durations you need, you'll save keys for
recording music. Any settings you make in the Keyboard Setup can be saved
with Preferences in the File menu.
13.16 -configuring your MIDI setup
The MIDI Setup command lets you choose whether Master Tracks Pro uses
its own internal clock for sync timing, or follows an external MIDI clock
source.
Selecting the command brings up a dialog box that lets you make these
choices. Once you've made your changes, click on OK to enter them and
return to the program, or click on Cancel to go back without saving your
changes.
13.17 -selecting the timing source
The timing of a Master Tracks Pro sequence can be set by its own
internal clock or by an external MIDI clock. If you use an external MIDI
source for timing, Master Tracks Pro responds to all MIDI timing messages,
including Start, Stop, Continue, Song Pointer, and MIDI clocks.
Only one clock source can be active at a time. To set the sync source to
the program's internal clock, click on "Internal" in the MIDI Setup dialog
box. If you want to sync the sequence to an external MIDI clock source,
click instead on "External".
13.18 -using the record filter
Master Tracks Pro can selectively record only the MIDI data you wish,
while it filters out any data that you don't want to record. Choose the
Record Filter command on the Goodies menu to bring up a dialog box that
lets you choose which combination of MIDI data types Master Tracks Pro will
record.
With this feature, you can independently select or disable each MIDI
data type, including pitch bend, channel pressure (also known as monophonic
key pressure or aftertouch), polyphonic key pressure, modulation, program
changes, note data, and other MIDI controllers. You can also have the
program quantize note timing while you are recording.
As a simple example, you may want to conserve memory by filtering out
aftertouch or modulation wheel data (since both of these controllers send
data continuously, they can quickly fill up large amounts of your system
memory). Filtering out the aftertouch and mod wheel data is a simple matter
of deactivating these options on the Record Filter dialog box.
You can choose not to record notes at all, so that you can create a
seperate track for, say, pitch bend data. That way, you can concentrate on
making your pitch bends as accurate as possible. You can choose a single
channel that Master Tracks Pro will listen to while recording, while it
ignores incoming data on other channels. You can also quantize on input as
many drum machines do.
13.19 -changing the record filter settings
To change the Record Filter settings, first choose Record Filter on the
Goodies menu. In response, the Record Filter dialog box appears.
Each MIDI data type appears in the dialog box with a corresponding box
to the left of its name. When the box is darkened, that data type will be
recorded. When the box is empty, that data type is disabled, and it will be
ignored during recording. You can select or disable any combination of data
types you wish. Clicking on the boxes toggles them between the selected and
disabled settings.
13.20 -miscellaneous controllers
Tha Controllers option in the Record Filter dialog box refers to all
miscellaneous MIDI controllers other than the ones specifically listed in
the box. Most popular synthesizers respond at most to only a few of these
miscellaneous controllers, and many don't recognize anything beyond pitch
bend, modulation, and aftertouch. Consult your synthesizer owner's manual
for the numbers of any controllers that your instrument can send or
receive.
13.21 -selecting individual channels on the record filter
Another choice on the Record Filter dialog box, "Only on Channel" allows
you to filter out data from all but one MIDI channel when you record. When
this setting is active, the box beside it is darkened. You can deactivate
this option by clicking on the box beside it so that it is empty, and data
from all channels will be recorded.
If you wish to use this option, enter the channel number by clicking on
the data box on the right of the option, and then typing in the channel
number, from 1 to 16.
13.22 -quantizing while recording
You can use the option on the Record filter labeled "Quantize to" to
quantize notes while you record them, much as a drum machine does.
Activate this option by clicking in the box next to it. The box will
darken when it is active.
Next, select the resolution for quantization by using the arrow keys to
choose the appropriate note duration icon. To quantize to a tuplet
resolution, click on the box next to "Tuplet", and enter the tuplet values
you wish by clicking on the value boxes and typing in the new numbers. You
may also change the percentage value that determines how far ahead of the
beat Master Tracks Pro will reach to quantize a note. (See Chapter 10)
13.23 -exiting the record filter
When you're finished making your Record Filter selections, return to the
Main Master Tracks Pro screen by clicking on OK. To return without entering
the changes you made, click on Cancel. Any settings you make in the Record
Filter can be saved with Preferences in the File menu.
----------> 14. Advanced Topics >-------------------------------------
In this chapter you'll find information about how you can put Master
Tracks Pro to work on your most sophisticated musical chores, including
looping, punch-in recording, MIDI and SMPTE sync, and more.
14.1 -conductor track settings
The program stores tempo, beat, and
meter values in a separate
"Conductor Track" along with each measure in the score, providing an
elegant way of setting up conductor "templates" of meter and tempo changes.
These values are stored in the Conductor track and control how the MIDI
data is broken up into measures. Conductor templates can be saved to disk
as a score for later use. The vertical grey bar in the Song Editor
represents the end of the Conductor track.
14.2 -re-barring to remove a beat
The Conductor track can be utilized to remove measures or even a single
beat from your sequence. For example, if you have a 4/4 measure in your
piece (say measure 6) which you have decided needs the last beat removed.
Select measure 6 and choose Conductor from the Change menu. Change the
meter of measure 6 from 4/4 to 1/4 time. Now when you return to the Song
Editor window or Step Editor window you will see 4 measures occupying the
space previously taken up by measure 6. This is most graphically depicted
in the Step Editor window. Each of these four new measures now contains
only one beat. In the Song Editor window, Cut the last of these new
measures (#9) by selecting it along the measure ruler at the top of the
window. Selecting measures in this cuts time out of the sequence on all 64
tracks. You can now select the 3 remaining 1/4 measures (#6-#8) and choose
Conductor once again from the Change menu and rebar those three measures to
3/4 time making them one measure again.
14.3 -inserting measures in a single track
The Insert Measure command works on all tracks at once. To insert time
into a single track use the following method.
Let's say you wish to insert two measures between bar 4 and bar 5 on
track #1 which is currently 14 bars long. In the Song Editor window, select
measures 5 through 14 of track #1 and Cut them. Then select an insert point
between measures 6 and 7 and paste the bars you cut back into the track.
The track will now be 16 measures long with 2 empty bars at measures 5 and
6.
14.4 -punch-in recording
Master Tracks Pro allows you to make punch-in recordings in two ways:
First, you can start and stop recording at any point in the piece using
the Transport and Sequencer windows. This means you can punch in new
material over any section of an existing track simply by starting and
stopping the recorder at the proper points. The existing data in that
section of the track is replaced by your recording, but data before and
after the punch-in section will be unaffected.
Because Master Tracks Pro records in measure increments, you must stop
recording prior to the end of the last bar of the section you are punching
into.
Remember that you can have a count-in of one bar prior to recording.
Master Tracks Pro will round the new data to the next measure, so punching
in less than 1 measure is not allowed with this method.
You should make a copy of the track to a blank track before punching in
using this method. That way, you have the option to undo the recording if
you liked the original better, and then redo it if you want to keep it
after all.
The second punch-in method utilizes an empty track. Begin recording on a
different track at or before the section in time you wish to replace. You
can have as long a count-in as you like as you are recording on a parallel
track that you will edit in later. When you have a take you like, Copy and
Paste the notes (or MIDI data) you "punched in" from the second track into
the original track in the Song Editor. This will let you "undo" the
punch-in and compare takes, and will give you more freedom in selecting
exactly where to punch in. If you wish to mute the section you are punching
in to, simply clear those measures in the Song Editor proior to punching
in, or Copy them to a spare empty track for temporary storage.
Using these two punch-in methods along with the Step Editor and the
Change commands, it's possible to correct all playing errors.
14.5 -looping
Individual tracks can be looped during playback. This feature is
especially useful with short repeating sections such as bass or drum
parts.
Record the part once, and then edit if necessary. You can trim your loop
using the Cut command to get the proper number of measures to loop. A track
ends where there are no more filled or hollow measures present in the Song
Editor. For reference, the grey vertical bar in the Song Editor indicates
the end of the Conductor track.
Turn on the track's loop control and let the part play back. Lay down
other parts or even other loops against it by recording on other tracks.
Remember that the loop is only stored in memory once, and always starts
at the beginning of the sequence. That means if you start playback past the
point of the loop, the track will not play back. That also means that if
you are copying tracks from one sequence to another it may not be possible
to preserve the loops that begin later in the piece. This is the reason to
create literal copies of your loops, especially before building songs.
Loops encourage speed and spontaneity in music making and also save
memory. Use them to work out your ideas. However, once your song or song
section is complete, copy and paste the looped part into the track so that
it fills out to the end of the sequence. This will give you the flexibility
of Master Tracks Pro's song structure. This will also let you create subtle
variations in the loop each time it plays using the Change menu or other
regional editing commands. Once you have copied your looped part you can
append as many copies of it as you like by repeatedly selecting Paste or
pressing Alt-V. The insert point automatically moves to the end of the last
paste.
14.6 -looping to the half-bar
Master Tracks Pro's Loop feature requires you to loop to the nearest
measure, but if your phrase ends in the middle of a measure and you want it
to loop anyway, it can be accomplished by re-barring the last measure of
the track. Let's say you're working in 4/4 time but you want the track to
loop a two and a half bar phrase. Select bar 3 (presumably the last bar of
the track) and choose Conductor from the Change menu. Click on the circle
next to Set Meter and set the meter to 1/4 time. You will now have 4
measures with one beat each in them in place of old measure #3 which had
four beats in it. Select the last two of these new measures and Cut them.
Your track will now loop the way you want it to.
14.7 -loading many MIDI devices with a single mouse click
Master Tracks Pro's Sysex feature remembers the MIDI channel of each
message it receives. It will send each message in a file out on the same
channel it came in on. Each sysex file stored on disk can have as many as
64 messages (bulk dumps) in it. Most synths, drum machines, and rack mount
tone modules send their sysex bulk dumps as one or two messages. So if your
system includes MIDI devices that have a selectable basic send and receive
channel, you can set each device to a different channel and dump each one
consecutively into a Master Tracks Pro Sysex file while the RECEIVE button
is highlighted in the Sysex dialog box. Then SAVE all of this information
as one file. (You might want to give it the same name as the sequence it
applies to.) When you want to reload all your equipment to play the
sequence, just load the Sysex file and click on Send and watch each of your
MIDI devices receive its information in turn.
14.8 -dumping from other sequencers
You may wish to load a sequence created on another older computer or
sequencer (that does not support MIDI files) into Master Tracks Pro to take
advantage of its advanced features. This is easily accomplished since
Master Tracks can record incoming data on all MIDI channels simultaneously.
You only need to make one pass, playing all tracks of the sequence with one
track on Master Tracks Pro set to record. After you have transferred the
sequence you can use the Strip Data feature to un-merge the newly-recorded
track by channel, Pasting data from each MIDI channel onto its own track.
To sync the two sequencers together it is recommended that the recording
sequencer be the MIDI master and the playing sequencer be the MIDI slave.
14.9 -editing across windows
The Cut, Copy, Paste, Clear and Mix Data editing commands perform
slightly differently depending on which window you're working in.
The Song Editor works with all data types whenever you perform an edit
operation. You can work with notes and MIDI data at the same time in the
Song Editor.
In the Step Editor, when you cut, copy or clear, you will only affect
the note data on all channels present. In the same way, when you cut, copy,
or clear in a MIDI Data window, you will only affect the type of MIDI data
you are looking at in that window.
Keep in mind, however, that the Paste and Mix commands for both the Step
Editor and MIDI Data windows will copy ALL data in the clipboard into the
sequence, no matter what type or types of data are included.
This scheme lets you strip a particular type of data from a track using
Cut or Clear in the Step Editor or MIDI Data windows without affecting any
of the other data in the track. You can also use a track's worth of data
collected in the Song Editor and paste or mix it in the Step editor for
MIDI delay (see below).
14.10 -crescendos and decrescendos
Many patches (sounds) on synthesizers and drum machines respond by
getting louder with increased velocity settings but some, like organs, do
not. The MIDI Volume controller is controller #7. In the Controllers
window, click on the Controller # box and use the arrows or the keyboard to
enter a value of 7. You can now use the pencil icon cursor to enter
decreasing (or increasing) values at any spacing or curve you like.
Alternatively you can choose Continuous Data from the Change menu, select
the range of measures over which you wish the change to occur, and enter
the starting and ending values. IMPORTANT: You must have a controller value
entered in the track for Change to work. (There must be something to
change.)
14.11 -building songs
Master Tracks Pro provides up to 9999 measures measured by 64 tracks of
literal track data in which to work provided you have enough memory in your
computer. Variations and combinations of two song-building techniques give
you many ways of building songs from segments without giving up the ability
to edit or add additional tracks over the entire length of the song. Using
these techniques make it possible to add variation and sweetening to
repeating sections and help keep your song organized in a single file.
The first method separates songs into sections within the same long
sequence. Build a conductor template and lay out the song structure using
markers. You can begin record or play at any point, so you can work on
whatever section you like at any time. Leave several blank measures between
sections to avoid accidentally erasing anything, and then, using the Cut
command, remove the blank measures later when you've finished recording.
You can copy and paste between sections at will and your file will save all
sections at once.
Another method lets you build songs in a more traditional way by
appending different files together from the disk. For example, you could
record three separate sequences and save them individually on the disk in
separate files called Intro, Verse, and Chorus. Open the verse and copy it.
Then open the Intro and paste the Verse onto the end of it. Set markers if
you wish and use Save As... to save the new file. Call it Song. Open the
Chorus file and copy it. Open the Song file and paste the Chorus at the end
of the Verse. You will now have a large Song in memory based on Intro,
Verse and Chorus which you can add to and edit further. This Song can also
be used as a part of another, longer song.
14.12 -song list mode
If you have enough memory in your ST, (a stock 1040 ST is good for about
80,000 notes depending on pitch bend, aftertouch, etc.) you can have Master
Tracks Pro accompany you (or entertain you) for a list of songs and have a
precise control of the time between songs. Use the method described above
but replace "Intro, Verse, and Chorus" with actual songs. Insert a few
blank bars between each song and place the markers at the beginning and end
of each song. The markers allow you to quickly Tab from song to song. To
determine the time between songs, select the inserted blank bars and use
the Fit Time command from the Change menu. In performance you can also use
"Pause" assigned to your MIDI keyboard from Keyboard Setup to let you pause
between songs and then start up at the right moment.
14.13 -sequence data structure and ties
Master Tracks Pro stores sequences as groups of tracks and measures
along with a separate conductor track. The conductor track determines how
data is stored, displayed, and played back based on the meter, beat, and
tempo values stored with each measure. Storing data in measures is not
required for MIDI sequencing but becomes more important when you begin to
provide sophisticated graphic editing operations as those found in Master
Tracks Pro, and when you desire to convert your MIDI sequences to music
notation (more about this later).
Ties are a special case of MIDI data and may cause problems for you when
you cut and paste across tied notes. Some MIDI events are single events
such as Program Change #7 or Sustain Pedal On. Because notes have a certain
duration between note on and note off and Master Tracks Pro stores notes in
groups of measures, notes that tie across measure boundaries are stored
internally as notes tied to one another, just as you would with music
notation. When you cut across ties (not usually recommended) the ties will
automatically be clipped with note on or note off events added so that no
notes hang in the sequence or on the clipboard.
14.14 -sliding tracks
You can delay a track by individual clock ticks (there are 240 clock
ticks per quarter note) by first Cutting or Copying the track in the Song
Editor. Then paste the clipboard into a blank track using the Step Editor,
selecting the amount of MIDI delay by positioning the insertion point with
the arrow cursor. This will delay all the MIDI data including notes in the
track by the number of clock ticks or beats corresponding to your insertion
point.
Another way to produce MIDI delay or even MIDI Pre-delay is with the
Offset feature in the Quantize dialog box from the Change menu. You can
experiment with different values for the number of clocks until you get
something that does the job. If you wish to offset start times without
quantizing, simply set the quantize value to one (1) clock.
MIDI delay can be used to "fatten up" a track's sound by playing two
tracks together to separate channels slightly delayed. More radical delays
or offsets can be achieved using the Song Editor to delay tracks by
measures using Cut and Paste. Rounds or echoing effects can be easily done
and undone until you have something you like.
14.15 -MIDI sync song pointer
Master Tracks Pro generates its own internal time base when sync is set
to Internal in MIDI Setup using a resolution of 240 clock ticks per quarter
note. It will send out MIDI timing messages, including Song Pointer, Start,
Continue, MIDI clocks, and Stop corresponding to the Transport activity.
For example, whenever you move the Transport to a new location in the
sequence, a corresponding MIDI Song Pointer message is sent out.
14.16 -SMPTE
If Sync is set to MIDI in the MIDI Setup, the program accepts the
timebase reference from an external MIDI source and interpolates 240 clocks
per quarter note based on the incoming MIDI clock rate. It will receive and
autolocate to MIDI Song Pointer when in MIDI Sync mode. Using MIDI Sync
mode with an external SMPTE-to-MIDI sync device such as Roland SBX-80,
Fostex 4050, Garfield Master Beat, Cooper PPS-1 and others, you can sync
Master Tracks Pro to SMPTE. Connect the MIDI Out of the external sync box
to the MIDI In of your ST. Select MIDI Setup from the Goodies menu and
choose External. A typical setup might have the master keyboard/controller
connected to a MIDI merger along with the SMPTE-to-MIDI converter. You can
now record new tracks while Master Tracks Pro runs in sync with your SMPTE
striped video or audio tape. If your external sync box supports MIDI Song
Pointer, Master Tracks Pro will "chase" the tape transport and start
anywhere in the piece. If your external sync box has Tempo Mapping
capability, you can create a tempo map that duplicates your conductor track
settings.
When synced to MIDI or SMPTE, the Conductor track becomes unnecessary
since the tempo map should be coming from the SMPTE-to-MIDI converter. When
used in this application, leave the Conductor set to 4/4 bars with quarter
note beats.
14.17 -transposing drum patterns
Master Tracks Pro's Strip data feature makes this easy. You'll need to
know what MIDI note numbers the two drum machines each respond to. You can
learn this from the owner's manual or by playing each machine with your
MIDI keyboard (using Thru on Master Tracks Pro) until you have noted which
key corresponds to which drum. Let's take a Yamaha RX snare #1 and convert
it to a Roland 707 snare #1. First, we strip the snare out of the Yamaha
drum track by clicking the box next to "Notes" and the circle next to "Only
notes between" in the Strip Data dialog box from the Change menu and
entering E2 (the note assigned to Yamaha's snare #1) in both note value
boxes. Choose Cut if you wish to remove the snare permanently from the drum
track and Copy if you want to leave it in. Place the cursor on bar #1 of an
empty track and Paste. Select the entire new track and choose Transpose
from the Change menu. In the first note value box enter E2 and in the
second box enter D1 (Roland's note assignment for snare #1). Do this with
each drum to complete the transition. You can the Mix back down to one
track if you wish, or keep independent control of each drum for further
editing.
14.18 -notepad
Master Tracks Pro has 64 tracks to record on. Most people use only 16 to
30 of them at a time. This leaves a lot of empty space that can be used for
making notes about your work. Just scroll down to an unused area in the
Sequencer window, click in a Track Name field and jot down whatever you
like, perhaps information about the patches you used and the associated
sysex file.
14.19 -a typical scenario
You are fortunate enough to land a gig doing the score for a 30 second
commercial. The producer informs you that there will be a 5 second voice
only opening and another 5 seconds of voice only for the closing so your
music must be exactly 20 seconds long. You accomplish this task
effortlessly using Master Tracks Pro and arrive at the recording studio
ready to lay down your sequenced tracks to tape. "There's been a slight
change", the producer informs you. "The opening voice segment is now 6
seconds long but the entire thing must still be 30 seconds.... OK?" No
Problem! Just use Fit Time to make the blank measures at the start of the
piece to fit 6 seconds and then select the 20 second music section and use
Fit Time to fit it to 19 seconds to give the producer exactly what he
wants.
14.20 ----------------------------------------------------------------
- - SUMMARY OF KEYBOARD COMMANDS - -
====================================
Transport Commands:
------------------
[SPACE] Start and Stop Transport
[ENTER] Record
[TAB] Move to next marker
[SHIFT][TAB] Move to previous marker
[RETURN] Enter a rest in Step-Entry mode
[BACKSPACE] Clears selected area in Song, Step, and MIDI Data
windows, Deletes last note entered in Step Entry
mode.
[0] to [3] Change measure ruler display values
+,- Change numbering start point
Window Commands:
---------------
F1 Sequencer window
F2 Song Editor window
F3 Step Editor window
F4 Pitch Bend window
F5 Channel Pressure (Aftertouch) window
F6 Key Pressure (Polyphonic) window
F7 Modulation window
F8 Controller window (all other controllers)
F9 Program Change window
F10 Conductor Track Data window
File Commands:
-------------
Alt - N Start with new sequence
Alt - O Open sequence from disk
Alt - S Save current sequence to disk
Alt - Q Quit Master Tracks Pro
Edit Commands:
-------------
Alt - Z Undo last edit or change operation
Alt - X Cut
Alt - C Copy
Alt - V Paste
Alt - M Mix
Alt - I Insert measure
Alt - A Select All
Layout Commands:
---------------
Alt - < (,) Zoom In
Alt - > (.) Zoom Out
Goodies Commands:
----------------
Alt - K Keyboard Setup
Alt - R Record Filter
In any MIDI Data window, pressing any key except Spacebar, Return,
Enter, Tab, Backspace, or Clear will toggle between a dotted line graph and
a filled graph of any MIDI data which is present.
14.21 ----------------------------------------------------------------
- - - MOST COMMONLY USED MIDI CONTROLLERS - - -
CONTROLLER #1 MODULATION WHEEL
CONTROLLER #2 BREATH CONTROLLER
CONTROLLER #4 FOOT MODULATION
CONTROLLER #5 PORTAMENTO TIME
CONTROLLER #6 DATA ENTRY SLIDER
CONTROLLER #7 MAIN VOLUME
CONTROLLER #8 BALANCE
CONTROLLER #10 PAN
CONTROLLER #64 SUSTAIN (Damper Pedal)
CONTROLLER #65 PORTAMENTO
CONTROLLER #66 SOSTENUTO (Middle Pedal)
CONTROLLER #67 SOFT PEDAL
CONTROLLER #92 TREMOLO DEPTH
CONTROLLER #93 CHORUS DEPTH
CONTROLLER #94 CELESTE (Detune) DEPTH
CONTROLLER #95 PHASER DEPTH
CONTROLLER #96 DATA INCREMENT
CONTROLLER #97 DATA DECREMENT
CONTROLLER #122 LOCAL CONTROL (Off=0, On=127)
CONTROLLER #123 ALL NOTES OFF
CONTROLLER #124 OMNI MODE OFF
CONTROLLER #125 OMNI MODE ON
CONTROLLER #126 MONO MODE ON
CONTROLLER #127 POLY MODE ON