VocalEasel/mma/docs/html/ref/node23.html
Matthias Neeracher fb48baaf09 Updated to MMA 1.4
2009-05-17 22:34:44 +00:00

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<!--Table of Child-Links-->
<A NAME="CHILD_LINKS"><STRONG>Subsections</STRONG></A>
<UL CLASS="ChildLinks">
<LI><A NAME="tex2html709"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002310000000000000000">AllTracks</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html710"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002320000000000000000">Articulate</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html711"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002330000000000000000">Copy</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html712"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002340000000000000000">Comment</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html713"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002350000000000000000">Debug</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html714"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002360000000000000000">Delete</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html715"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002370000000000000000">Direction</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html716"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002380000000000000000">Mallet</A>
<UL>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html717"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002381000000000000000">Rate</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html718"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002382000000000000000">Decay</A>
</UL>
<BR>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html719"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION002390000000000000000">Octave</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html720"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023100000000000000000">Off</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html721"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023110000000000000000">On</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html722"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023120000000000000000">Print</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html723"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023130000000000000000">PrintActive</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html724"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023140000000000000000">ScaleType</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html725"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023150000000000000000">Seq</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html726"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023160000000000000000">Strum</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html727"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023170000000000000000">Synchronize</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html728"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023180000000000000000">Transpose</A>
<LI><A NAME="tex2html729"
HREF="node23.html#SECTION0023190000000000000000">Unify</A>
</UL>
<!--End of Table of Child-Links-->
<HR>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002300000000000000000"></A>
<A NAME="sec-directives"></A>
<BR>
Other Commands and Directives
</H1>
<P>
In addition to the ``Pattern'', ``Sequence'', ``Groove'' and
``Repeat'' and other directives discussed earlier, and chord data,
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> supports a number of directives which affect the flavor of your
music.
<P>
The subjects presented in this chapter are ordered alphabetically.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002310000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="alltracks"></A>
<BR>
AllTracks
</H1>
<P>
Sometimes you want to apply the same command to all the currently
defined tracks; for example, you might want to ensure that <SPAN CLASS="textit">no</SPAN>
tracks have S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>R<SMALL>ND</SMALL> set. Yes, you could go though each track
(and hope you don't miss any) and explicitly issue the command:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass SeqRnd Off
...
<BR>
Chord SeqRnd Off </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
But,
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>AllTracks SeqRnd Off </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
is much simpler. Similarly, you can set the articulation for all
tracks with:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>AllTracks Articulate 80 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
You can even combine this with a B<SMALL>EGIN</SMALL>/E<SMALL>ND</SMALL> like:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Begin AllTracks
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;Articulate 80
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;SeqRnd Off
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;Rskip 0
<BR>
End </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
This command is handy when you are changing an existing G<SMALL>ROOVE</SMALL>.
<P>
Note that <SPAN CLASS="textit">only</SPAN> currently defined tracks are effected by this command.
<P>
A further option is to limit A<SMALL>LL</SMALL>T<SMALL>RACKS</SMALL> to specific tracks
type. For example, you might want to set all the D<SMALL>RUM</SMALL> track
volumes to ``FF'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>AllTracks Drum Volume ff </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Or to set the articulation on B<SMALL>ASS</SMALL> and W<SMALL>ALK</SMALL> tracks:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>AllTracks Bass Walk Articulate 55 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
It is assumed that all the arguments following the initial command
which are valid track types (Bass, Chord, Arpeggio, Scale, Drum, Walk,
Melody, or Solo) are track type limiters.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002320000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="articulate"></A>
<BR>
Articulate
</H1>
<P>
When
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> processes a music file, all the note lengths specified in a
pattern are converted to MIDI lengths.
<P>
For example in:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass Define BB 1 4 1 100; 2 4 5 90; 3 4 1 80; 4 4 5 90 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
bass notes on beats 1, 2, 3 and 4 are define. All are quarter notes.
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> , being quite literal about things, will make each note exactly
192 MIDI ticks long--which means that the note on beat 2 will start
at the same time as the note on beat 1 ends.
<P>
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> has an articulate setting for each voice. This value is applied
to shorten or lengthen the note length. By default, the setting is 90.
Each generated note duration is taken to be a percentage of this
setting, So, a quarter note with a MIDI tick duration of 192 will
become 172 ticks long.
<P>
If articulate is applied to a short note, you are guaranteed that the
note will never be less than 1 MIDI tick in length.
<P>
To set the value, use a line like:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord-1 Articulate 96 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Articulate values must be greater than 0 and less than or
equal to 200. Values over 100 will lengthen the note. Settings
greater than 120 will generate a warning.
<P>
You can specify a different A<SMALL>RTICULATE</SMALL> for each bar in a
sequence. Repeated values can be represented with a ``/'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord Articulate 50 60 / 30 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Notes: The full values for the notes are saved with the
pattern definition. The articulation adjustment is applied at
run time. The A<SMALL>RTICULATE</SMALL> setting is saved with a
G<SMALL>ROOVE</SMALL>.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002330000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="copy"></A>
<BR>
Copy
</H1>
<P>
Sometimes it is useful to duplicate the settings from one voice to
another. The C<SMALL>OPY</SMALL> command does just that:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass-1 Copy Bass </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
will copy the settings from the <SPAN CLASS="textit">Bass</SPAN> track to the <SPAN CLASS="textit">Bass-1</SPAN> track.
<P>
The C<SMALL>OPY</SMALL> command only works between tracks of the same type.
<P>
The following settings are copied:
<P>
<UL>
<LI><A HREF="#articulate">Articulate</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node13.html#compress">Compress</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="#scale-direction">Direction</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node14.html#harmony">Harmony</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node13.html#chord-invert">Invert</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="#octave">Octave</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node12.html#rskip">RSkip</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node12.html#rtime">RTime</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node17.html#rvolume">RVolume</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="#scale-type">ScaleType</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="#strum">Strum</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node21.html#set-voice">Voice</A> or
<A HREF="node4.html#drum-tone">Tone</A>
</LI>
<LI><A HREF="node17.html#volume">Volume</A>
<P>
</LI>
</UL>
<P>
Warning: You are probably better off to use internal macros for
this.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002340000000000000000"></A><A NAME="comment"></A>
<BR>
Comment
</H1>
<P>
As previously discussed, a comment in
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> is anything following a
``//'' in a line. A second way of marking a comment is with the
C<SMALL>OMMENT</SMALL> directive. This is quite useful in combination the
B<SMALL>EGIN</SMALL> and E<SMALL>ND</SMALL> directives. For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Begin Comment
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;This is a description spanning
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;several lines which will be
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;ignored by MMA.
<BR>
End </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
You could achieve the same with:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>// This is a description spanning
<BR> // several lines which will be
<BR> // ignored by MMA. </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
or even:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Comment This is a description spanning
<BR>
Comment several lines which will be
<BR>
Comment ignored by MMA. </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
One minor difference between <SPAN CLASS="textbf">//</SPAN> and
C<SMALL>OMMENT</SMALL> is that the first is discarded when the
input stream is read; the more verbose version is
discarded during line processing.
<P>
Quite often it is handy to delete large sections of a song with a
B<SMALL>EGIN </SMALL>C<SMALL>OMMENT/</SMALL>E<SMALL>ND</SMALL> on a temporary basis.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002350000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="debug"></A>
<BR>
Debug
</H1>
<P>
To enable you to find problems in your song files (and, perhaps, even
find problems with
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> itself) various debugging messages can be
displayed. These are normally set from the command line
<A HREF="node2.html#sec-running">command line</A>.
<P>
However, it is possible to enable various debugging messages
dynamically in a song file using the D<SMALL>EBUG</SMALL> directive. In a
debug statement you can enable or disable any of a variety of
messages. A typical directive is:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Debug Debug=On Expand=Off Patterns=On </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Each section of the debug directive consists of a <SPAN CLASS="textit">mode</SPAN>
and the command word ON or O<SMALL>FF</SMALL>. The two parts
must be joined by a single ``<SPAN CLASS="textit"><SPAN CLASS="MATH"><IMG
WIDTH="19" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0"
SRC="img11.png"
ALT="$=$"></SPAN></SPAN>''. You may use the
values ``0'' for ``Off'' and ``1'' for ``On'' if desired.
<P>
The available modes with the equivalent command line switches are:
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=3 BORDER="1">
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT"><SPAN CLASS="textit">Mode</SPAN></TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT" COLSPAN=2><SPAN><SPAN CLASS="textit">Command Line Equivalent</SPAN></SPAN></TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Debug</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-d</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">debugging messages</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Filenames</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-o</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">display file names</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Patterns</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-p</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">pattern creation</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Sequence</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-s</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">sequence creation</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Runtime</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-r</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">running progress</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Warnings</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-w</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">warning messages</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT">Expand</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">-e</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">display expanded lines</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
The modes and command are case-insensitive (although the command line switches are not).
<P>
The current state of the debug flags is saved in the variable
$_Debug and the state prior to a change is saved in $_LastDebug.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002360000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="sec-delete"></A>
<BR>
Delete
</H1>
<P>
If you are using a track in only one part of your song, especially if
it is at the start, it may be wise to free that track's resources when
you are done with it. The D<SMALL>ELETE</SMALL> command does just that:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Solo Delete </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
If a MIDI channel has been assigned to that track, it is
marked as ``available'' and the track is deleted. Any data
already saved in the MIDI track will be written when
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> is
finished processing the song file.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002370000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="scale-direction"></A>
<BR>
Direction
</H1>
<P>
In tracks using chords or scales you can change the direction in which
they are applied:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Scale Direction UP </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
The effects differ in different track types. For S<SMALL>CALE</SMALL> and A<SMALL>RPEGGIO</SMALL> tracks:
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=3>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">UP</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Plays in upward direction only</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">DOWN</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Plays in downward direction only</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">BOTH</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Plays upward and downward (<SPAN CLASS="textit">default</SPAN>)</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">RANDOM</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Plays notes from the chord or scale randomly</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>When this command is encountered in a S<SMALL>CALE</SMALL> track the start
point of the scale is reset.
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
<P>
A W<SMALL>ALK</SMALL> track recognizes the following option settings:
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=3>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">BOTH</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">The default. The bass pattern
will go up and down a partial scale. Some notes may be repeated.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">UP</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Notes will be chosen sequentially from an ascending, partial scale.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">DOWN</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Notes will be chosen sequentially from a descending, partial scale.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">RANDOM</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Notes will be chosen in a random direction from a partial scale.</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>All four patterns are useful and create quite different effects.
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
The C<SMALL>HORD</SMALL> tracks D<SMALL>IRECTION</SMALL> only has an effect when the
S<SMALL>TRUM</SMALL> setting has a non-zero value. In this case the following
applies:
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=3>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">UP</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">The default. Notes are sounded from the lowest tone to the highest.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">DOWN</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Notes are sounded from the highest to the lowest.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">BOTH</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">The UP and DOWN values are alternated.</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">RANDOM</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Ignored (uses UP).</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
You can specify a different D<SMALL>IRECTION</SMALL> for each bar in a
sequence. Repeated values can be represented with a ``/'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Arpeggio Direction Up Down / Both </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
The setting is ignored by B<SMALL>ASS</SMALL>, D<SMALL>RUM</SMALL> and S<SMALL>OLO</SMALL> tracks.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002380000000000000000">
Mallet</A>
</H1>
<P>
Some instruments (Steel-drums, banjos, marimbas, etc.) are normally
played with rapidly repeating notes. Instead of painfully inserting
long lists of these notes, you can use the M<SMALL>ALLET</SMALL> directive.
The M<SMALL>ALLET</SMALL> directive accepts a number of options, each an
OPTION=VALUE pair. For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Solo-Marimba Mallet Rate=16 Decay=-5 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
This command is also useful in creating drum rolls. For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Begin Drum-Snare2
<BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;Tone SnareDrum1
<BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;Volume F
<BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;Mallet Rate=32 Decay=-3
<BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;Rvolume 3
<BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;Sequence z z z 1 1 100
<BR>
End </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
The following options are supported:
<P>
<H2><A NAME="SECTION002381000000000000000">
Rate</A>
</H2>
<P>
The R<SMALL>ATE</SMALL> must be a valid note length (i.e., 8, 16, or even
16.+8).
<P>
For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Solo-Marimba Mallet Rate=16 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
will set all the notes in the ``Solo-Marimba'' track to be sounded a
series of 16th notes.
<P>
<UL>
<LI>Note duration modifiers such as articulate are applied to each
resultant note,
<P>
</LI>
<LI>It is guaranteed that the note will sound at least once,
<P>
</LI>
<LI>The use of note lengths assures a consistent sound independent
of the song tempo.
<P>
</LI>
</UL>
<P>
To disable this setting use a value of ``0''.
<P>
<H2><A NAME="SECTION002382000000000000000">
Decay</A>
</H2>
<P>
You can adjust the volume (velocity) of the notes being repeated when
M<SMALL>ALLET</SMALL> is enabled:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Drum-Snare Mallet Decay=-15 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
The argument is a percentage of the current value to add to the note
each time it is struck. In this example, assuming that the note length
calls for 4 ``strikes'' and the initial velocity is 100, the note will
be struck with a velocity of 100, 85, 73 and 63.
<P>
Important: a positive value will cause the notes to get louder,
negative values cause the notes to get softer.
<P>
Note velocities will never go below 1 or above 255. Note, however,
that notes with a velocity of 1 will most likely be inaudible.
<P>
The decay option value must be in the range -50 to 50; however, be
cautious using any values outside the range -5 to 5 since the volume
(velocity) of the notes will change quite quickly. The default
value is 0 (no decay).
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION002390000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="octave"></A>
<BR>
Octave
</H1>
<P>
When
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> initializes and after the S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>C<SMALL>LEAR</SMALL> command all track
octaves are set to ``4''. This will place most chord and bass notes in
the region of middle C.
<P>
You can change the octave for any voice with O<SMALL>CTAVE</SMALL> command. For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass-1 Octave 3 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Sets the notes used in the ``Bass-1'' track one octave lower than normal.
<P>
The octave specification can be any value from 0 to 10. Various
combinations of I<SMALL>NVERT</SMALL>, T<SMALL>RANSPOSE</SMALL> and O<SMALL>CTAVE</SMALL> can
force notes to be out of the valid MIDI range. In this case the lowest
or highest available note will be used.
<P>
You can specify a different O<SMALL>CTAVE</SMALL> for each bar in a sequence.
Repeated values can be represented with a ``/'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord Octave 4 5 / 4 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023100000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="set-off"></A>
<BR>
Off
</H1>
<P>
To disable the generation of MIDI output on a specific track:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass Off </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
This can be used anywhere in a file. Use it to override the effect of
a predefined groove, if you wish. This is simpler than resetting a
voice in a groove. The only way to reset this command is with a
O<SMALL>N</SMALL> directive.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023110000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="set-on"></A>
<BR>
On
</H1>
<P>
To enable the generation of MIDI output on a specific track which has
been disabled with an O<SMALL>FF</SMALL> directive:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Bass On </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Attempts to enable tracks disabled with the -T command line option
generate a warning (the command is ignored).
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023120000000000000000">
Print</A>
</H1>
<P>
The P<SMALL>RINT</SMALL> directive will display its argument to the screen
when it is encountered. For example, if you want to print the file name
of the input file while processing, you could insert:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Print Making beautiful music for MY SONG </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
No control characters are supported.
<P>
This can be useful in debugging input files.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023130000000000000000">
PrintActive</A>
</H1>
<P>
The P<SMALL>RINT</SMALL>A<SMALL>CTIVE</SMALL> directive will the currently active
G<SMALL>ROOVE</SMALL> and the active tracks. This can be quite useful when
writing groove files and you want to modify and existing groove.
<P>
Any parameters given are printed as single comment at the end of the header line.
<P>
This is strictly a debugging tool. No P<SMALL>RINT</SMALL>A<SMALL>CTIVE</SMALL> statements
should appear in finalized grooves or song files.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023140000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="scale-type"></A>
<BR>
ScaleType
</H1>
<P>
This option is only used by S<SMALL>CALE</SMALL> tracks. It can be set for
other tracks, but the setting is not used.
<P>
By default, the S<SMALL>CALE</SMALL>T<SMALL>YPE</SMALL> is set to A<SMALL>UTO</SMALL>. The settings
permissible are:
<P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<TABLE CELLPADDING=3>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">CHROMATIC</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Forces use of a chromatic scale</TD>
</TR>
<TR><TD ALIGN="RIGHT">AUTO</TD>
<TD ALIGN="LEFT">Uses scale based on the current chord (default)</TD>
</TR>
</TABLE>
</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>
When this command is encountered in a S<SMALL>CALE</SMALL> track the start
point of the scale is reset.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023150000000000000000"></A>
<A NAME="seqnumber"></A>
<BR>
Seq
</H1>
<P>
If your sequence, or groove, has more than one pattern (i.e., you have
set SeqSize to a value other than 1), you can use this directive to
force a particular pattern point to be used. The directive:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Seq </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
resets the <SPAN CLASS="textit">sequence counter</SPAN> to 1. This means that the next bar
will use the first pattern in the current sequence. You can force a
specific pattern point by using an optional value after the directive.
For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Seq 8 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
forces the use of pattern point 8 for the next bar. This can be quite
useful if you have a multi-bar sequence and, perhaps, the eight bar is
variation which you want used every eight bars, but also for a
transition bar, or the final bar. Just put a <SMALL>SEQ 8</SMALL> at those
points. You might also want to put a <SMALL>SEQ</SMALL> at the start of
sections to force the restart of the count.
<P>
If you have enable sequence randomization with the S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>R<SMALL>ND </SMALL>O<SMALL>N</SMALL>
command, the randomization will be disabled by a S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>
command.<A NAME="tex2html75"
HREF="#foot10756"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">1</SPAN></SUP></A> However,
settings of track S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>R<SMALL>ND</SMALL> will not be effected. One difference
between S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>R<SMALL>ND </SMALL>O<SMALL>FF</SMALL> and S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL> is that the current sequence
point is set with the latter; with S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>R<SMALL>ND </SMALL>O<SMALL>FF</SMALL> it is left at a
random point.
<P>
Note: Using a value greater than the current S<SMALL>EQ</SMALL>S<SMALL>IZE</SMALL> is not
permitted.
<P>
This is a very useful command! For example, look at the four bar
introduction of the song ``Exactly Like You'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Groove BossanovaEnd
<BR>
seq 3
<BR>
1 C
<BR>
seq 2
<BR>
2 Am7
<BR>
seq 1
<BR>
3 Dm7
<BR>
seq 3
<BR>
4 G7 / G7#5 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
In this example the four bar ``ending groove'' has been used to create
an interesting introduction.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023160000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="strum"></A>
<BR>
Strum
</H1>
<P>
By default
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> plays all the notes in a chord at the same time. To
make the chord more like something a guitar or banjo might play, use
the S<SMALL>TRUM</SMALL> directive. For example:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord-1 Strum 5 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
sets the strumming factor to 5 for track Chord-1.
<P>
Setting the S<SMALL>TRUM</SMALL> in any track other than a C<SMALL>HORD</SMALL> track
will generate a warning message and the command will be ignored.
<P>
The strum factor is specified in MIDI ticks. Usually values around 10
to 15 work just fine. The valid range for S<SMALL>TRUM</SMALL> is 0 to 100.
<P>
You can specify a different S<SMALL>TRUM</SMALL> for each bar in a sequence.
Repeated values can be represented with a ``/'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord Strum 20 5 / 10 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Note: When chords have both a <SMALL>STRUM</SMALL> and <SMALL>INVERT</SMALL> applied,
the order of the notes played will not necessarily be root, third,
etc. The notes are sorted into ascending order, so for a C major scale
with and <SMALL>INVERT</SMALL> of 1 the notes played would be ``E G C''. That
is, unless the <A HREF="#scale-direction">D<SMALL>IRECTION</SMALL></A> has been set to ``DOWN'' in which case
the order would be reversed (but the notes would be the same).
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023170000000000000000"></A> <A NAME="synchronize"></A>
<BR>
Synchronize
</H1>
<P>
The MIDI tracks generated by
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> are perfectly ``legit'' and should be
playable in any MIDI file player. However, there are a few programs
and/or situations in which you might need to use the <SMALL>SYNCHRONIZE</SMALL>
options.
<P>
First, when a program is expecting all tracks to start at the same
location, or is intolerant of ``emptiness'' at the start of a track,
you can add a ``tick note'' at the start of each
track.<A NAME="tex2html76"
HREF="#foot10784"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">2</SPAN></SUP></A>
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Synchronize START </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
will insert a one tick note on/off event at MIDI offset 1. You can
also generate this with the ``-0'' command line option.
<P>
Second, some programs think (wrongly) that all tracks should end at
the same point.<A NAME="tex2html77"
HREF="#foot10786"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">3</SPAN></SUP></A> Adding the command:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Synchronize END </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
will delete all MIDI data past the end of the last bar in your input
file and insert MIDI ``all notes off'' events at that point. You can
also generate this effect with the ``-1'' command line option.
<P>
The commands can be combined in any order:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Synchronize End Start </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
is perfectly valid.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023180000000000000000">
Transpose</A>
</H1>
<P>
You can change the key of a piece with the ``Transpose'' command. For
example, if you have a piece notated in the key of ``C'' and you want
it played back in the key of ``D'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Transpose 2 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
will raise the playback by 2 semi-tones. Since
<FONT Face="Serif" Color="Navy"><I>MMA</I></FONT> 's author plays tenor saxophone
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Transpose -2 </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
which puts the MIDI keyboard into the same key as the horn, is not an
uncommon directive
<P>
You can use any value between -12 and 12. All tracks (with the logical
exception of the drum tracks) are effected by this command.
<P>
<H1><A NAME="SECTION0023190000000000000000">
Unify</A>
</H1>
<P>
The U<SMALL>NIFY</SMALL> command is used to force multiple notes of the same
voice and pitch to be combined into a single, long, tone. This is very
useful when creating a sustained voice track. For example, consider
the following which might be used in real groove file:
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Begin Bass-Sus
<BR>
Sequence 1 1 1 90 4
<BR>
Articulate 100
<BR>
Unify On
<BR>
Voice TremoloStrings
<BR>
End </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
Without the U<SMALL>NIFY </SMALL>O<SMALL>N</SMALL> command the strings would be sounded (or
hit) four times during each bar; with it enabled the four hits are
combined into one long tone. This tone can span several bars if the
note(s) remain the same.
<P>
The use of this command depends on a number of items:
<P>
<UL>
<LI>The V<SMALL>OICE</SMALL> being used. It makes sense to use enable the
setting if using a sustained tone like ``Strings"; it probably
doesn't make sense if using a tone like ``Piano1''.
<P>
</LI>
<LI>For tones to be combined you will need to have A<SMALL>RTICULATE</SMALL>
set to a value of 100. Otherwise the on/off events will have small
gaps in them which will cancel the effects of U<SMALL>NIFY</SMALL>.
<P>
</LI>
<LI>Ensure that R<SMALL>TIME</SMALL> is not set for U<SMALL>NIFY</SMALL> tracks
since the start times may cause gaps.
<P>
</LI>
<LI>If your pattern or sequence has different volumes in different
beats (or bars) the effect of a U<SMALL>NIFY</SMALL> will be to ignore
volumes other than the first. Only the first N<SMALL>OTE </SMALL>O<SMALL>N</SMALL> and the
last N<SMALL>OTE </SMALL>O<SMALL>FF</SMALL> events will appear in the MIDI file.
<P>
</LI>
</UL>
<P>
You can specify a different U<SMALL>NIFY</SMALL> for each bar in a sequence.
Repeated values can be represented with a ``/'':
<P>
<Table Hspace="40%" CellSpacing=0 CellPadding=10 BGColor="OldLace" Border=3>
<tr><td>
<B>Chord Unify On / / Off </B>
</td></tr>
</Table>
<P>
But, you probably don't want to use this particular feature.
<P>
Valid arguments are ``On'' or ``1'' to enable; ``Off'' or ``0'' to
disable.
<BR><HR><H4>Footnotes</H4>
<DL>
<DT><A NAME="foot10756">...
command.</A><A
HREF="node23.html#tex2html75"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">1</SPAN></SUP></A></DT>
<DD>A warning message will also be displayed.
</DD>
<DT><A NAME="foot10784">...
track.</A><A
HREF="node23.html#tex2html76"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">2</SPAN></SUP></A></DT>
<DD>Timidity truncates the start of tracks up to the
first MIDI event when splitting out single tracks.
</DD>
<DT><A NAME="foot10786">... point.</A><A
HREF="node23.html#tex2html77"><SUP><SPAN CLASS="arabic">23</SPAN>.<SPAN CLASS="arabic">3</SPAN></SUP></A></DT>
<DD>Seq24 does strange looping if all tracks
don't end identically.
</DD>
</DL>
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<ADDRESS>
bob
2008-09-28
</ADDRESS>
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