November 30, 2016 User Showcase Song - Storm Boy

Here`s a Canadian folk song based on characters in W.O Mitchell`s novel Who Has Seen The Wind, about a young lad growing up on the prairies.
I hope you enjoy!

Key=C , Tempo 106, Length (m:s)=4:33
8 bar intro, 109 bar chorus, from bar 9 to bar 117. Repeat x1 chorus
No Melody
No Soloist track.
Song is saved with Volume, Pan, Reverb, Chorus, Bank0,
Style is _BCJG110.STY (Boom Chick Joe Solo Guitars 110)

RealTracks in song: ~685:Harmonica, Background Pop Ev 120
RealTracks in style: 2518:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking BoomChickJoe Ev16 110 (Simple)
RealTracks in style: 2517:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking BoomChickHighJoe Ev16 110 (Simple)
RealDrums in style: CountryTrain: a: Brushes Soft b: Brushes Hard

Posted at 08:58 AM

November 29, 2016 Band-in-a-Box® for Beginner's - New Forum!

New to Band-in-a-Box® ? We've created a Beginner's Forum that's the perfect place to post resources ideal for those starting with Band-in-a-Box®.

If you're not new to Band-in-a-Box®, that doesn't mean you can't join in the action! Pop over to the new forum to join in the discussion & share your knowledge too!

Posted at 12:21 PM

November 29, 2016 User Showcase Song - Autumn Gallop

Hi. On a roll at the moment ...

This describes the fun of walking down a country lane on a crisp Autumn morning and kicking up the leaves and being cheerful.

It has a comic feel to the middle and a bit old fashioned in it's sound.

Started off as a simple composition in BIAB and then got developed in FL Studio where it was mixed and mastered (too much compression methinks but it was so quiet).

As usual ... Normalized in Audacity.

Posted at 08:50 AM

November 28, 2016 #MusicMonday - Listen to All These Great Songs!

Check out our Band-in-a-Box® Radio page... there are hours of songs to listen to - all shared with us by our Forum Members!

Like what you hear? Each song playing includes a link to the original forum post, so you can leave a comment if you'd like! Found an artist you want to hear more from? There is also an option to visit the Artist SoundCloud page!

Posted at 12:41 PM

November 28, 2016 User Showcase Song - What Could I Do?

This is actually a 16 bar blues for those that care about such things, with a middle-8.

The band:
Drums - BluesRockSlowEv8
Bass - 572
Organ - 673

I played the guitar parts, lead guitar played on a strat and two rhythm guitar parts played on my tele.

Still tweaking the mix, any comments pro and con appreciated!

Posted at 08:39 AM

November 25, 2016 Get the Most Out of Band-in-a-Box® with Add-ons!

Get the Most Out of Band-in-a-Box® with Add-ons!

We offer a huge selection of Add-ons to help you get the most out of Band-in-a-Box®!

On top of RealTracks & RealDrums, we offer sets of MIDI SuperTracks, MIDI Styles, MIID Soloists, MIDI Melodists, MIDI Essential Phrases & Riffs, MIDI Fakebooks, Video Tutorials, and more!

Choose your OS to learn about all the Add-ons available:
Band-in-a-Box® for Windows Add-ons
Band-in-a-Box® for Mac Add-ons

Not sure if what Add-ons you already have? Within Band-in-a-Box®, choose Help | What Add-ons do I have? - there you'll see a list of what is installed already!

Posted at 01:13 PM

November 25, 2016 The "I just heard Band-in-a-Box on YouTube" Forum is a HIT!

If you've been watching videos on YouTube and come across one that had music from Band-in-a-Box (or a Band-in-a-Box tutorial), we now have a Forum you can share this too!

The new "I just heard Band-in-a-Box on YouTube" Forum is a great place to see, hear and help to publicize how Band-in-a-Box is used on YouTube and other sites (tutorials, backing tracks, etc.).

This special forum was created in September 2016, and since then more than 30 videos have already been shared! Have a look here.

Posted at 12:47 PM

November 25, 2016 User Showcase Song - Crimson Snow

This is a original song that I just finished. Hope you enjoy it. HAPPY THANKSGIVING

****** Song Summary *************
Title: Untitled Song
Key=C , Tempo 130, Length (m:s)=3:02
No intro. 32 bar chorus, from bar 1 to bar 32. Repeat x3 choruses
No Melody
No Soloist track.
Song is saved with Volume, Pan, Reverb, Chorus, Bank0,
Style is _BGMEDLY.STY (Bluegrass Ev 130 Solo MultiStyle)

RealTracks in style: ~427:Bass, Acoustic, Bluegrass Ev 130
RealTracks in style: ~426:Banjo, Bluegrass Ev 130 (Rhythm)
RealTracks in style: ~431:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Bluegrass Ev 130
RealTracks in style: ~428:Fiddle, Rhythm Bluegrass Ev 130
RealTracks in style: ~432:Mandolin, Rhythm Bluegrass Ev 130

Posted at 12:32 PM

November 24, 2016 User Showcase Song - Jeremy

****** Song Summary *************
Title: Jeremy Bolero
Key=Gm , Tempo 92, Length (m:s)=5:02
Arrangement: Intro, head in, 1 chorus solo, head out.
Style is _CBOSBOL.STY (Bossa & Bolero Mix Quartet )
RealTracks in style: ~711:Bass, Acoustic, Bossa Ev 085
RealTracks in style: 1904:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm Bolero Ev 090
RealTracks in style: 1903:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm Bolero Ev 090
RealTracks in song: ~1103:Guitar, Nylon, Rhythm BossaGrooveComp Ev 085
RealTracks in song: 2458:Strings, Rhythm CelticWaltz Ev 100
RealTracks in song: 2457:Strings, Rhythm CelticAir Ev 085
RealDrums in style: BossaBrushes: a: Sidestick Brushes b: Sidestick, Ride

mastered in Digital Performer at a now-defunct studio in Monterey CA

Posted at 11:33 AM

November 24, 2016 Happy Thanksgiving from PG Music!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our American customers & friends - we hope that everyone enjoys the holiday!

Posted at 08:58 AM

November 23, 2016 Generate Vocals Using Sinsy!

A new feature added with Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Mac was the feature to hear Band-in-a-Box® singing, with built-in support for the popular online vocal synth "Sinsy."

Tobin explains this feature within our Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Mac New Features video, here.

Have you added Sinsy vocals to your Band-in-a-Box® song yet?

Posted at 12:44 PM

November 23, 2016 Shared UserTracks - Accordion, RhythmWithBass IrishJig Sw 120

Forum User "Icelander" has embraced the UserTracks feature in Band-in-a-Box®, and shared his latest creation earlier this week - Accordion, RhythmWithBass IrishJig Sw 120!

This can be reviewed and downloaded here.

Icelander has described this UserTrack as:
A rich sounding accordion playing a bouncy rhythm reminiscent of the Irish "Jig", including a steady "walking" bass line to complete a full-fledged backing instrumentation. it can thus stand easily on its own as well as alongside other swinging instruments, jig or otherwise.===Over an HOUR of playing data, in uncompressed .wav files for approx. 400 Mb in size!

Posted at 12:10 PM

November 23, 2016 User Showcase Song - Stray

BALADAP.STY. Country Ballad w/ Piano
All RealTracks. Quintet. Tempo=65 (55-100)
RD: NashvilleEven16^5-a:Snare, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride
RT366: Bass, Electric, Country Ev 065 , Dow Tomlin
RT1725: Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm CountryBalladJohn Ev 065
68: Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Ev 065 , Jason Roller
RT367: Guitar, Electric, Background Dreamy Ev 065 , Darin Favorite
Memo: Relaxed country ballad with acoustic Piano. Other RealTracks include acoustic and electric guitars, electric Bass and Nashville RealDrums. T=55-100
ExamplesMandolin Rain, Just One Look

TEMPO 65

Posted at 09:15 AM

November 22, 2016 Speed Up Chord Entry with the K Quick Copy Feature! #TipTuesday

By simply typing "K" at a bar (followed by Enter key), you can instantly copy the last 8 bars to the current position. By adding additional keys in the K command, you can customize this shortcut (e.g. typing K12,3 would copy from bar 3 for 12 bars to current position). The current position is advanced to the bar beyond the copy. This speeds up song entry!

For example, if you're entering a song that has a repeating section of chords for 8 bars, type in the first 8 bars of chords and then move to bar 9, and then type: k [ENTER].

The last 8 bars will be copied to bar 9-16, and the cursor will be moved to bar 17, so you're ready to continue with the tune. If you get to bar 25, and would like the chords from 1-8 to be copied to 25-32, type k,1 and this will copy 8 bars from bar 1 to bar 25.

NOTE: The chords always get copied. The Melody, Soloist, and Lyrics also get copied if these items are set in the Copy Chords and / or Melody dialog (Edit | Copy Special | Copy From.. To..).

Watch the video to see this feature in action: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=A25QaoEUC_E

Posted at 02:09 PM

November 22, 2016 RealTracks Artist Mike LeDonne - Salon Session

Recently, Mike LeDonne sat down with Sheila Anderson of www.wbgo.org/ for a Salon Session - Click here to listen!

Mike has been a RealTracks Artist since 2010, with RealTracks Set 90: Jazz Organ. Learn more about Mike LeDonne when you visit his RealTracks Artist Bio page here.

Posted at 01:35 PM

November 22, 2016 User Showcase Song - If You Have A Friend

A cautionary tale.
Leon lyric and vocal
I sang & played one of the finger picked acoustics, electric rhythm and lead guitars.

The Band
This is close but there is a few patch changes going on
RealTracks in style: ~~684:Bass, Electric, PopHalfNotesSync Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~~405:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~~522:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Ev 120
RealTracks in song: ~686:Organ, B3, Background Pop Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 408:Guitar, Resonator, Background Allis Ev 120
RealDrums in style: NashvilleEven8^5-a:Snare, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride
There is also an Accordion & Tamborine in there.

Posted at 09:26 AM

November 21, 2016 YouTube Find: Band-in-a-Box (DOS!)

Check out this Band-in-a-Box® video we came across on YouTube:
youtu.be/vitbNI2ekxM

Amazing!

Posted at 01:39 PM

November 21, 2016 Visit our Band-in-a-Box® Radio Page!

Our Band-in-a-Box Radio page was launched almost a month ago... have you had a chance to visit it yet?

Songs that have been uploaded to SoundCloud and shared on our User Showcase Forum have been used to create the playlists for our new Band-in-a-Box Radio page - make sure you check it out! We've made listening easy by creating a few different playlists to shuffle through: Recent, Featured, Country & Folk (1, 2), Jazz (1, 2), Rock & Pop (1, 2), and Song Requests.

Posted at 11:25 AM

November 21, 2016 User Showcase Song - Lundy's Lane

Hello forum members. This is a song that is mostly true. I grew up in a small suburb which is now part of the Silicon Valley. The area was pretty quiet then. Fortunately, the topography was such that the neighborhood could not be built in the normal fashion. There were gullies, big hills, and small canyons through which streets were interwoven. It was a wonderful place to grow up. Lundy's Lane is actually a small cul-de-sac off of my street (Bunker Hill Drive). The steep hill at the end of the cul-de-sac prevented cost effective building of homes there. Things changed when homes in the area became worth 1.5M dollars. Now those spaces, and the few with similar challenges on Bunker Hill Drive have been filled in. I drove through the old neighborhood, in truth, not the day my dad passed away, but instead on a trip to visit him at the VA hospice in Palo Alto. I thought Lundy's Lane just sounded like a good title but the song is more about the area as a whole. The buckeye trees were actually in an open field off Bunker Hill Drive which has also been filled in (we walked our dog there), and the Polywog pond was near the bottom of the street. Now, the whole area is swarmed with people, incredibly expensive, and has little of its original charm. The last verse refers to my best boyhood friend. I believe his mom still lives there but in truth I have never knocked on the door. She was a very sweet lady, a Japanese American who actually was in an internment camp for a period. It was at her house that I first had sushi, before many Americans knew what that was. I'm afraid if I saw her, my emotion would get the best of me. Still trying to work up the nerve. My mom lives in Foster City, about 6-8 miles east of that neighborhood. When I visit her, I feel like a stranger in my own land. It is heart breaking. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the song. Comments very much appreciated. Take care all.

Posted at 09:40 AM

November 18, 2016 Follow us on Facebook - Help Us Achieve 20,000 Likes!

If you're a Facebook user, make sure to follow us on Facebook - we are so close to exceeding 20,000 likes!

Visit https://www.facebook.com/pgmusicinc/ to view & "Like" our Facebook page. You'll stay "in the know" for specials, new releases, contests, and other exciting PG Music Inc. announcements!

Posted at 02:21 PM

November 18, 2016 We'd Love to See Your Band-in-a-Box Video Testimonial!

Have you ever wanted to "shout from the rooftop" how much you love Band-in-a-Box? You might want to create a Video Testimonial too!

Submit your video, and when we use it on our website (and YouTube page) we will send you a FREE Band-in-a-Box EverythingPAK! Click here to learn more.

Check out the Video Testimonials we've received so far: www.pgmusic.com/videotestimonials.php

Posted at 01:13 PM

November 18, 2016 User Showcase Song - Buckaroos

Buckaroos is an original song by Bob Buford, Producer, Summertown Recording Studios, Colorado.

This song is about growing up with Western music and eventually performing with the Western group, The Lazy B Wranglers, Estes Park, CO. But it's not a Western song, merely about the influences of that genre, the cowboy life, and the experience of being a Western singer. I'm not a cowboy although I did have a horse when I was a kid.

The arrangement starts out with all acoustic instrumentation and advances to a much fuller production with electric instruments and drums, including a House Techno drum loop for drive. Hard to imagine that working, but it does. All vocals and baritone electric guitar are my own performances.

This production uses multiple RealTracks exports from BIAB to Reaper in order to include all of the necessary instrumentation required for the song.

Posted at 10:45 AM

November 17, 2016 Share the Best of YouTube!

If you've come across a great music-related video while visiting YouTube, share it with us!

Our dedicated Best of YouTube forum is quickly becoming one of my favorite places to visit!

Did anyone see Will's recent post, Blind guitarist accompanied by his son on drums? It's amazing! And, I don't think I would have found something like this on my own...

Make sure you share your favorite music-related video with the rest of us here on the Forum - I'm sure we'll love it!

Posted at 02:23 PM

November 17, 2016 Band-in-a-Box® - Japanese Edition!

Band-in-a-Box® is available in fourteen different languages, including Japanese!

Our Band-in-a-Box® Japanese version is available when you visit www.biab.mu/product/

Notice a difference? Instead of "2015" or "2016" for the version number, "23" & "24" are used. The retail packaging isn't the same
either - but, don't be alarmed.... what's included in the package is still the one-and-only Band-in-a-Box®!

To learn more - pick your OS:
Band-in-a-Box® 24 for Windows (equivalent to Band-in-a-Box® version 2016.)
Band-in-a-Box® 23 for Mac (equivalent to Band-in-a-Box® version 2015.)

Posted at 01:41 PM

November 17, 2016 User Showcase Song - Call of the Sea

I started this project with a backing track from 'Coffee Break Grooves' which gave me the idea for the melody line. I added/changed parts of the backing track to get what I needed, using some electric piano and bass from BIAB styles _SJAZZC2.STY and _JFNKPOP.STY. The guitar parts are mine, played on a new Mexican Stratocaster - in Surf Green appropriately!

Posted at 09:52 AM

November 16, 2016 Learning is FUN with Pitch Invasion!

Ear training on-the-go! Download the Pitch Invasion Free App on iTunes to make pitch learning fun and easy!

Pitch Invasion is based on old-style classic arcade games. Aliens descend upon your home planet, intent on destroying your prized collection of musical instruments. It′s your job to blast them out of the sky by recognizing the pitch that they are playing, and by playing that pitch yourself before they reach the ground. If they reach the ground, one of your 15 musical instruments will be destroyed. Once your instruments are all destroyed, it's Game Over! As you blast the aliens, you can move up to harder, faster levels. Points are awarded for blasting aliens and the higher the level, the more points you get. Bonus points are also awarded in other areas throughout the game.

Note: Pitch Invasion is also included with a Band-in-a-Box for Windows purchase! To access the game from the program, go to the Window Menu and select "Practice Window" (also accessed by Alt Shift L) and choose the [Pitch Invasion] button!

Posted at 02:16 PM

November 16, 2016 The UserTracks Feature in Band-in-a-Box®

In 2014 we introduced the UserTracks feature for Band-in-a-Box® & RealBand.
UserTracks allow anyone to create their own audio styles for use in Band-in-a-Box®. With a UserTracks style, you can type in any chords into Band-in-a-Box®, and the UserTracks style you made will play that chord progression! For example, if you've made a UserTracks style by recording yourself playing a guitar groove, you can then type any chords into Band-in-a-Box®, and the result will be that it will play your guitar groove over these completely new, original chord changes! You can even change the tempo, or enter songs in ANY key, and it will still be able to play it!

We created a tutorial page, titled Make Your Own UserTrack!, that can be viewed here - it includes some templates to download, how-to videos, and detailed step-by-step instructions!

It's not just us making tutorials though... forum user Pipeline shared his steps for UserTracks creation with his recent post: Creating Rapid UserTracks With RapidComposer - thank you for sharing it with everyone!

Have you created your own UserTracks? Feel free to share them to our UserTracks Forum.

Posted at 11:14 AM

November 16, 2016 User Showcase Song - Tallows Beach

A few months back when I bought BIAB I figured I would keep production simple and concentrate on songwriting. I used stock Logic presets even on vocals and moved fairly quickly from one song to the next. Then I got dissatisfied in small ways with the presets, started customising them. Then I found some 3rd party plugins, liked em and started using those. A familiar story? The upshot is I'm not knocking out songs as quickly as I used to. This is the first in a while, not for want of putting in the hours.

RealTracks in song: 1162:Bass, Acoustic, CelticReel Ev16 110
RealTracks in song: ~686:Organ, B3, Background Pop Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~~406:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Ev 136

Logic Pro x: vox, acoustic fingerstyle gtr, electric gtr, custom drum samples

Posted at 09:02 AM

November 15, 2016 Congratulations RealTracks Artist Ron Carter!

Ron Carter, a RealTracks Artist & Jazz legend, is scheduled to receive an honorary degree (Doctor of Music) from the University of Michigan during winter commencement on December 18, 2016!

Learn more about this upcoming event here.

If you check out Ron Carter's website, his schedule is looking pretty busy! Visit roncarter.net/JazzMaster/performances-calendar/ to see if there's an upcoming performance near you!

Learn more about Ron Carter & listen to demos of his RealTracks when you visit his RealTracks Artist Bio page, here.

Posted at 02:04 PM

November 15, 2016 Generate a Guitar Chord Solo with Band-in-a-Box®! #TipTuesday

You can generate a guitar chord solo for any melody when you use the "Generate Guitar Chord Solo" feature in Band-in-a-Box®!

From within the Guitar window, choose the [Ch Sol…] button the Generate Guitar Chord Solo window will appear, allowing you to set your criteria! Choose the guitar, select Melody (or Soloist), confirm the Guitar patch, select the range and preferred fret position, and press [OK]!

Once you have generated a guitar chord solo, the chord solo is now part of the notation track. You can edit it like any other part, by deleting/ inserting notes etc.

See the steps for this feature when you watch our video: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=qxOHUCZkoMU

Other ways to access this window:
-the "Chord Solo" button in the main screen of Band-in-a-Box®
-within the Melody menu: select Edit Melody Track | Geherate Chord Solo

Posted at 11:02 AM

November 15, 2016 User Showcase Song - Where the Water is Clean

On this new tune, I came up with a cool acoustic guitar lick, but I didn't know what to do with it. This was truly a case where the Band in a Box Style helped me interpret my idea and truly "bring it to life"--both sonically and arrangement wise.

More and more I find BIAB to be a songwriting "partner" and composing tool. There are deep wells of endless fascination in this amazing product for sure.
****** Song Summary *************
Title: Where the Water Is Clean

Key=G , Tempo 80, Length (m:s)=3:48
Style: Reunion Style (Xtra Syles)

RealTracks in style: ~1636:Bass, Electric, JazzFunkBreezy Ev16 075
RealTracks in style: 2334:String Quartet, Rhythm PopChamber Ev 085
RealTracks in style: 2552:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Songwriter16ths Ev16 075
RealTracks in style: 1761:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Pop16ths Ev16 085
RealTracks in style: 1947:Mandolin, Rhythm PopModernGrooveAndy Ev16 075
RealDrums in style: NashvilleBrushesBalladPushEv16: a: Sidestick, Brushes b: Brushes
_________________________

Posted at 08:06 AM

November 14, 2016 Video - Using Band-in-a-Box® to Supercharge Pro Tools

Want to learn how the powerful combination of Band-in-a-Box® and Pro Tools can boost your music creativity? Check out this video: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=otq-sgUhyWk

Posted at 01:29 PM

November 14, 2016 YouTube Find: Melody Based Composing

We just found this video posted to YouTube - it's a simple step-by-step tutorial using the "Pyctus Melody Sketch Pad" and Band-in-a-Box®.

Video link: https://youtu.be/h-S9Rl-8Amc

The YouTube description for this video: Taking a melody based approach to composition. Nothing wrong with chord progression based but I always think that the melody is the centerpiece and should be the focus rather than trying to fit a melody into a progression.

Posted at 10:01 AM

November 14, 2016 User Showcase Song - A Million Lies

Hard Core, Traditional Honky-Tonk 4 Chord American Country Music.

MIDI SuperTracks in song: 1888:Piano, Solo-Accompaniment CountryPopJohn Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 410:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Country Cowboy Ev 165
RealTracks in song: ~406:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Ev 136
RealTracks in song: 600:Fiddle, Background Train Ev 130
Royalty Free Loops, Multitrack Instrument and Song Files and Multitrack Drums from Drums on Demand

Vocals, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Pedal Steel, Tom Adams

Posted at 09:25 AM

November 10, 2016 #TBT - Band-in-a-Box® 7: Windows 95 MIDI Setup

Take a look at another blast from the past with this archived video regarding a Windows 95 MIDI Setup for Band-in-a-Box®!
Video link: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=Jk92N7LP7oM

Interested in looking at a list of the Band-in-a-Box® 7 New Features? These can be viewed here.

Posted at 10:02 AM

November 10, 2016 Limited Availability on Remembrance Day (November 11, 2016)

Friday, November 11th is Remembrance Day (Veterans Day in the USA).

-Our Technical Support department will be closed.
-Our Sales & Customer Service department will be open from 8am - 4pm PST.

The Marketing Department will not be available on Friday.

All of our available hours and contact information lists here.

Posted at 09:28 AM

November 10, 2016 User Showcase Song - When The Curtains Fall

Couple of my songs have received a comment sounding like a James Bond movie theme song. This gave me an idea to imagine what kind of a song I would write if I were asked to compose the Bond theme. And here is the end result - Most likely it won't sound like a movie theme at all to you

I hired the vocals again from RnAM and they made fantastic job, especially the chorus part really makes the song fly

MIDI tracks, used GPO4, ST3 VSTi plugins:
Majesty1.sty: ChoirAahs, French Horn, Strings, Timpani, Drums
Mind1.sty: Nylon Guitar
Uplift1.sty: Acoustic Bass, Strings
Waveheal.sty: Harp, Synth Strings
Insight.sty: Sitar

Loop: Beatbox_sweet_cheeks_110a
RealDrums: Soul70sPerc, TechnoSamb
Realtracks:
Acoustic Bass Bowed #2489
Acoustic Piano #1949, #811
Electric Piano #2526, #2157
Piano SynthLayer #1410
Cello #1856
Electric Bass #2607
Electric Guitar #998, #1436, #2535, #1258, #1650, #1401, #1404, #867, #2618
Horns #2346
Sax #2411
String Quartet #2334
Synth Delay Sync #2282

Vocals: RnAM
Additional Vocals VSTi: Cantus, Shevannai

Mixed in Adobe Audition (and RnAM mixed the vocals to the song)

Posted at 09:04 AM

November 09, 2016 Get to Know the StylePicker in Band-in-a-Box® 2016!

Have you tried out the new StylePicker included in the Band-in-a-Box® 2016 version?

The StylePicker has been redesigned and enhanced with new features, including:
-The window is now sizable by dragging the corner.
-The font size for the styles list is selectable.
-The styles list can be easily sorted by clicking on a column name.
-There is a button to quickly set a style in the list as your favorite.
-Quick filter. Type a text and/or select a category, time signature, feel, tempo, etc., and you will immediately see the filtered list.
-There is an automatic intelligent sorting of "best style" for the current song.
-4-bar preview allows you to hear the first 4 bars of the current song using the selected style.
-There are buttons to find all style files and rebuilt the list.
-The style list can be exported to a spreadsheet.
-The StylePicker Options dialog has been added for additional display options for the StylePicker.

There's also the new Intelligent Style Suggestion feature... you just type a familiar song title, and the StylePicker will list styles whose genre, feel, and tempo are similar to that song!

Check out this video to learn more about the new feature: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=_eqADUKt71A

Posted at 01:25 PM

November 09, 2016 User Tutorial - Lyric Techniques

Forum User Noel96 recently shared his Lyric Techniques as two very detailed forum threads in our Woodshedding - Learning to Play! forum!

If you're wanting to learn more about his technique, click through the forum links below:
Link 1: Lyric techniques found in songs: "I Got Rhythm"
Link 2: Lyric Techniques: "I Got Rhythm" (Part 2)

This technique was applied when he created the song Tomorrow I'll Be Fine - head to this forum post, where you can listen to the song and post your comments.

Thanks for sharing your tutorial Noel96!

Posted at 01:13 PM

November 09, 2016 User Showcase Song - Hope and Despair

I just posted this piece to Soundcloud. It was just an experiment in using major and minor chords to make a progression. The result is what you hear.

The style is 80's Soundtrack with Mark Douthit's RealTrack on Tenor Saxophone.

I hope you enjoy the listen.

Posted at 09:45 AM

November 08, 2016 Guitar Window Improved in Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Windows!

A few of the improvements with the Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Windows release focused on the Guitar Window:

-Dynamic Resizing of the Fretboard. Now resizing the Guitar Window dynamically resizes the fretboard.
-Guitar Capo support added. Set a capo value, and capo gets drawn and guitar display reflects the capo setting.
Capo is set within the Chordsheet Display drop down menu - "Guitar Capo (visual transpose)..."
-Tablature in Notation Window will adjust the fret numbers based on the capo setting in the transpose menu.

To launch the Guitar window in Band-in-a-Box®, press the [Guitar] button in the toolbar, head to the Window menu and select Guitar Window, or use Ctrl+Shift+G on your computer keyboard.

Posted at 11:48 AM

November 08, 2016 PowerTracks Pro® Audio 2016 Tips! #TipTuesday

Do you have your "Tip of the Day" feature in PowerTracks enabled? This little window will appear when you first open up the program, and can also be accessed in the Help menu (Help | Tip of the Day...), and it's full of handy little tips to help you get the most out of the program!

Here are just a few:
-You can load and play videos that you have already downloaded from YouTube or elsewhere into PowerTracks Video Window. Click on the [Video] toolbar button and open a video (mp4, wmv or AVI file).
-You can use your 64-bit VST plugins and VSTi instruments with PowerTracks using jBridge. JBridge is a third party product, either available from PG Music or directly from jBridge.
-When WAV files are written, you can now write Acidized information such as tempo, root note, and whether the file should be tempo stretched and transposed.
-In the Notation window, you can easily change bars per line. Press the [Bars] button on the Notation window toolbar to set the number of bars per line to a different value.

...and that's just the beginning - there are over 200 tips currently available with this feature!

You can also access the tips for PowerTracks when you locate and open the ptw.tip file within the program folder (PT).

Posted at 09:54 AM

November 08, 2016 User Showcase Song - Tomorrow I'll Be Fine

Not so long ago, I wrote a post analysing Ira Gershwin's lyrics for his brother's melody, "I Got Rhythm". That post can be found at this link if anyone is interested.

As a result of the above post, I found myself stuck with "I Got Ryhthm" endlessly recycling through my mind. In the end, and in an effort to remove it from my brain, I decided to use it as a starting place for a composition. I wrote the lyrics first and then added music.

Here's the result...

BIAB...
540: Bass, Electric, Pop Sw 165
616: Mandolin, Rhythm Bouncy Sw 165
373: Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming Hank Sw 165
812: Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Western Swing Sw 165
1871: Fiddle, Soloist WesternSwingAndy Sw 165
1710: Guitar, Electric, Soloist WesternSwingBrent Sw 165

RealDrums: Nashville2BeatSw8^01-a:Sidestick , b:Snare, Ride

Posted at 09:20 AM

November 07, 2016 Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Mac - Fake Sheet Mode Added!

We released over 50 new features with our recent release of Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Mac, including the addition of Fake Sheet mode!
-Fake Sheet mode allows display of repeats, 1st/2nd endings, DS/DC al Coda, and more!
-You can add your own repeats and endings by right clicking on the Chord Sheet, Notation, or Lead Sheet window and selecting the Repeats/Codas/1st-2nd Endings option in the context menu.
-There is an auto-detect feature that analyzes the song and adds repeats and endings for you!

Check out this video to learn more about the new feature: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=_eqADUKt71A?t=1263

Posted at 01:40 PM

November 07, 2016 Keeping Up with PG Music Inc.

Stay up-to-date with us!

Newsletter:
Sign up for the PG Music Inc. newsletter and you'll receive notifications for new versions of Band-in-a-Box, as well as any other new products we release! If you purchased from us directly, you're already signed up!
Sign up here: www.pgmusic.com/newsletter.htm
The PG Music E-Newsletter is filled with information about new products, special deals and all sorts of PG Music Inc. product related information.

Facebook & Twitter:
Follow us on Facebook & Twitter and you'll stay "in the know" for specials, new releases, contests, and other exciting PG Music Inc. announcements!

Our Forum:
Our Forum is one of the first places we post announcements for a new release, patch update, new video tutorial, contests, etc...
If you're not already a member of our forum, Register Here and join the conversation!

Posted at 11:03 AM

November 07, 2016 User Showcase Song - Doxy

Here is a Jazzstandard of Sonny Rollins

My Sax is an Inderbinen Sax, played with a Ambika Mouthpiece by Theo Wanne.
I'm using Legere Signature Reeds strengh 2 3/4

BiaB Setup is:
Bass: 533
Piano: 2167
Drums: RealDrums Nashville
Guitar: 528
Guitar: 372
Loop: Dubstep armz_Drumm_loop
Loop: Dubstep rocket launcher

Posted at 08:34 AM

November 04, 2016 Chord Sheet "Layers" in Band-in-a-Box® 2016!

There were over 50 new features added with the Version 2016 release of Band-in-a-Box®!

One of the Chord Sheet enhancements with this release was the "Layers" option. "Layers" are optional rows of information shown above each bar:
-The Bar Lyrics layer is for editable bar-based lyrics (up to 255 characters per bar) that are loaded and saved with the song.
-The Section Text layer is for editable text (up to 255 characters per bar) that is loaded and saved with the song.
-The Section Text and Bar Lyrics layers will attempt to intelligently separate your lyrics into different bars.
-There is an option to automatically open or close the Bar Lyrics and the Section Text layers when opening songs.
-The Bar Settings layer shows information about any changes that occur for that bar, as set in the Bar Settings dialog (e.g. tempo changes, key changes, etc.).
-The Additional Chord Display layer shows the chords using an alternative mode of showing root notes. There are 4 modes: Roman Numeral, Nashville Notation, Solfeggio Notation, and Fixed Do (Italy/Europe).

All layers can be customized with font and color!

Learn more when you check out our YouTube video:
Windows: youtu.be/iKUE4vSfISc?t=22m03s
Mac: youtu.be/_eqADUKt71A?t=20m50s

Posted at 01:43 PM

November 04, 2016 National Saxophone Day is November 6th!

November 6th is National Saxophone Day! The inventor of the Saxophone, Adolphe Sax was born November 6, 1814. 32 years later his creation (the Saxophone) was patented, and music hasn't been the same since!

Along with a number of Saxophone MIDI Styles, MIDI Soloists and MIDI Melodists, we also offer over 150 different Saxophone RealTracks. To learn more about our Saxophone RealTracks Artists and listen to their demos, visit their Bio page by clicking on their name:
Eric Alexander
Eric Marienthal
Gary Smulyan
Jack Stafford
Jim Clark
Mark Douthit
P.J. Perry
Phil Woods
Tom Keenlyside

Posted at 01:09 PM

November 04, 2016 User Showcase Song - Between Funk and Bluegrass

I like to put together different musical styles, here's a mix of funk and bluegrass.

RD FunkSlightSwingEv16
RT 514 Slap Bass
RT 380 Acoustic Guitar
RT 381 Electric Guitar
RT 594 Fiddle
RT 595 Fiddle
RT 596 Fiddle
RT 597 Acoustic Guitar
RT 821 Mandolin
RT 2618 Electric Guitar
VST Accordion (Soni Musicae).

Posted at 08:57 AM

November 03, 2016 A look back... Band-in-a-Box® 2008 #TBT

This morning the office was talking about the past release of Band-in-a-Box® 2008, and how it including the introduction of the RealTracks feature... it all started with Real Pedal Steel, Real Acoustic Guitar, and Tenor Sax Soloing (RealSax)!

Peter Gannon explained this new feature, and all the other new features added with Version 2008 in this video: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=fiwtv2hPhuY

A complete list of the New Features released with Band-in-a-Box® 2008 for Windows can be read here.

Posted at 11:15 AM

November 03, 2016 Congrats to Brent Mason and Paul Franklin - CMA 2016 Awards

CMA 2016 awards in Nashville Nov. 2, 2016

http://variety.com/2016/music/news/cma-awards-winners-list-2016-country-music-association-1201907279/
http://www.cmaworld.com/cma-awards/nominees/
Musician of the Year
Jerry Douglas (dobro/lap steel guitar)
Paul Franklin (steel guitar)
Dann Huff (guitar) (WINNER)
Brent Mason (guitar)
Derek Wells (guitar)

Special congrats to Brent Mason and Paul Franklin (both are Realtracks Artists!)
More info here:
Brent Mason www.pgmusic.com/realtracks.artists.php?a=17&os=win&sortby=name
Paul Franklin www.pgmusic.com/realtracks.artists.php?a=65&os=win&sortby=name

Posted at 10:53 AM

November 03, 2016 User Showcase Song - 冬のセレナーデ (Translation: Winter Serenade)

This is a classic-style song like a German Lied.
I blended Dvorak, Schubert, Mozart and Chopin together to make this song.
I wrote it when I was young.
Comments encouraged.
Have at it.

Best Regards.

Shigeki Adachi

Link:
https://soundcloud.com/animarorecords/winter_serenade

冬のセレナーデ (Translation: Winter Serenade)
Vocal: Chizuko Yoshida (my music circle friend)
Accompanied with piano, cello and the chamber orchestra

Style is ORKALB34.STY
Style MIDI Instruments are:
Acoustic Bass (33) assigned to Contrabass (Piz.),
Acoustic Piano (1) assigned to Grand Piano,
French Horn (61) assigned to French Horns,
Strings (49) assigned to Strings,
Additional piano and cello by myself
All instruments played with Miroslav Philharmonik except piano with Steinberg The Grand

Posted at 10:20 AM

November 02, 2016 How To... Purchasing Band-in-a-Box® Upgrades

If you previously owned an older copy of Band-in-a-Box® and you're ready to purchase the newest Band-in-a-Box, but it's been so long that you don't have your old version installed - don't fret... You still qualify for upgrade pricing!

Or, maybe you used to own the Windows version, but you now have a Mac... that's not a problem either!
(or if you owned the Mac version, and now you have a Windows computer)

In both cases, you would purchase from the "Upgrade from 2014 or earlier or crossgrade" row here for a new Mac version, or here if you want the newest Windows version.

When you purchase your upgrade from this row, you will receive a complete installation - just follow the steps of the setup, and your Band-in-a-Box® will be ready to use!

Posted at 12:49 PM

November 02, 2016 Album Release - Joanne Cooper!

Forum Member Joanne Cooper has just released her new album! Read Joanne's announcement for the album, titled Alice Band 20 years on..., here: www.joannecooper.co.za/music

Joanne also posted an announcement to our forum - Click here to review this thread, and let her know your favorite song on the album!

Posted at 10:40 AM

November 02, 2016 User Showcase Song - Here To There

Been a while since I posted a song here. Have wanted to record this song for years!

Created only using BIAB 2016
Style: _POPPNOL.STY Pop Piano Liverpool Ballad

I transferred it to Sonar for mastering...don't profess to be the greatest "masterer" so any advice would be appreciated! thanks all.

Posted at 09:27 AM

November 01, 2016 Band-in-a-Box® 2016 for Mac - Build 146 Update!

Click here to download this patch.

Summary of changes for build 146 (since build 145) (Nov 1, 2016):

Fixed: "Melody > Edit Melody Track > Transpose > Transpose Melody" always transposed the entire song, instead of letting user to choose a specific range.
Fixed: "Soloist > Edit Soloist Track > Transpose > Transpose Soloist" always transposed the entire song, instead of letting user to choose a specific range.
Fixed: Bar-based section letters were not showing on the chord sheet.
Fixed: Bar-based section letters were not displaying correctly in the lead sheet & notation windows.
Fixed: Pedal bass was not displaying on chord sheet when PG Chords font was used (eg. "(P1)").
Fixed: If a slash chord used a sharp or flat note, and pedal bass was used on the same chord, the accidental symbol would be missing (eg. "E/G#(P1)" displayed as "E/G(P1)").
Fixed: Clicking on bar #255 in the chord sheet would cause Band-in-a-Box to crash.
Improved: If a VST plugin fails to load, it will automatically be added to the exclude list so future plugin scans will not keep repeating the same error messages.
Fixed: Opening some MusicXML files would cause Band-in-a-Box to crash.

Posted at 02:00 PM

November 01, 2016 YouTube Find: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry

This video was recently uploaded to YouTube, and is a great example of how you can use Band-in-a-Box® as accompaniment for your own projects!

Watch it here: www.pgmusic.com/?vid=3z6ShT8zvfo

Posted at 11:24 AM

November 01, 2016 #TipTuesday - Storing Your RealTracks & RealDrums

Do you have loads of RealTracks & RealDrums installed on your computer? Did you know that you can store these to an external hard drive, and Band-in-a-Box® will still be able to access them?

You just need to point Band-in-a-Box® in the right direction! There are a couple of ways to do this:

Windows users:

1 - Go to Opt. | Preferences, and click on the[RealTracks] or [RealDrums] button. This opens the Settings dialog. Select the "Use a custom folder location" checkbox, then click the Select Folder button. Locate and select your RealTracks or RealDrums folder, then press OK.

-or-

2 - Ctrl-Click on the RealTracks or RealDrums button in the main screen of the program, which opens up the Settings dialog. From there, select the "Use a custom folder location" checkbox, then click the Select Folder button. Locate and select your RealTracks or RealDrums folder, then press OK.

Mac users:

1 - Go to Windows | RealTracks, and Windows | RealDrums and specify the custom location in the Preferences dialogs.

-or-

2 - Ctrl-Click on the RealTracks or RealDrums button in the main screen of the program, which opens up the Settings dialog. From there, specify the custom location.

If you've opted for this setup, make sure that your external drive that you've stored your RealTracks & RealDrums is connected to your computer when you are using Band-in-a-Box®!

Posted at 10:57 AM

November 01, 2016 User Showcase Song - 1972

Most of us (on this forum) grew up in a totally different world.
This song looks back to that time.
To what the world was when we were coming of age...
We watched a TV with only 3 channels. Only recently in color.
Our telephone was attached to the kitchen wall or sat on a living room table. It had a cord.
Think 1969...'70...'71...'72...
Remember?

My CCR-like band...

RealTracks in style: ~684:Bass, Electric, PopHalfNotesSync Ev 120
RealTracks in style: ~686:Organ, B3, Background Pop Ev 120
RealTracks in style: 2499:Guitar, Baritone Electric, Rhythm PopCountryBrent Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 1607:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Pop16thsGritty Ev16 110
RealTracks in song: 691:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming AcRockBright Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 698:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm ElecRockDirty Ev 120 (A:muted)
RealTracks in song: 632:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm PopAmericanMuted Ev 120
RealDrums in Song: PraiseWorshipShine^01-a:Snare, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride

2499:Guitar, Baritone Electric, Rhythm PopCountryBrent Ev 120 is the real star of the band here.
The "leads" all come from it.
I used a "chunk" of it to provide the simple repeating signature - in that simple CCR style - so ANY garage band could play it...

Posted at 09:29 AM