Bars&Pipes Professional 2.5 Demo (c) 1994



We hope that this demo intrigues you to the possibilities with Bars&Pipes Professional 2.5. B&P Pro is an ever expanding environment. New Tools and Accessories are continually forthcoming. Please call or write to us if you have any questions or require further information. Vertrieb der Version 2.5 mit deutschem Handbuch: OCTAVE 2, music-media Karl-Neuhaus-Str. 8 Postfach 435 CH-2501 BIEL (Schweiz) Tel 032 22'01'09 Fax 032 22'01'18 Dieses Demo ist leider nur mit englischem Text verf�gbar. The Blue Ribbon SoundWorks, Ltd. Venture Center 1605 Chantilly Drive Suite 200 Atlanta, GA 30324 USA (404)-315-0212 tel (404)-315-0213 fax (404)-315-0211 bbs blue.ribbon@genie.geis.com (email) 72662.352@compuserve.com (email) Welcome to the Bars&Pipes Professional 2.5 Demo! Bars&Pipes Professional 2.5, with multi-media support, is the Amiga sequencer of choice for composing, playing back, and syncing music to animations, slide shows, the Video Toaster (tm), and various other third party software and hardware. Obviously, B&P Pro is a big program. It would be impossible to include the contents of the 370+ pages manual with this demo. We will try to point out some of the basic features, but much of the exploration is left up to you. Experiment! This demo incorporates most of the features of the real program, with the exceptions of saving and printing. If you have questions, feel free to call the Blue Ribbon SoundWorks at 404-315-0212. Getting Started Double-click on the Bars&Pipes Professional icon. You will need a MIDI interface attached to your serial port, or the One-Stop Music Shop soundcard. B&P Pro starts with the Tracks window open so that you can begin recording immediately. Most windows can be opened by selecting their title from the Windows menu or by clicking on the their icons located at the right side of the screen. 1) If using MIDI, test whether or not you've implemented MIDI properly. To test MIDI, do the following: Make sure that the Input Arrow (a red arrow) points to the MIDI In Tool on Track 1 by clicking on the gray box to the right of the words "Track 1." Make sure that your sound module or MIDI keyboard receives on MIDI channel 1. If not, change the Output channel, the blue number on the far right side of a Track, to the correct number by clicking on it and moving the mouse to the appropriate channel. Also, if your keyboard supports local on/off, turn the local to off. Play a note with your MIDI input device - typically a keyboard. If a note sounds, then you're ready to try out the demo. If you hear nothing, check your MIDI set-up to ensure that you've connected things correctly. The Metronome 2) Set up the Metronome so that you can hear the beat as you record. To access the metronome, select Metronome from the windows menu. The Metronome window opens. Let's use the Amiga's internal sounds as our click source. Notice that the Internal button is already depressed. (In general, if a button contains red type, it is active; if it contains blue type, then it is inactive.) 3) Change the click resolution from 1/4, or 4 clicks per measure in 4/4 time, to 1/8, or 8 clicks per measure. To do so, click on the Note button and select an eighth note from the pop-up menu. 4) Adjust the Lead In: slider to provide two measures of beats before B&P Pro starts to record. Use the arrows or move the slider so that the number "2" displays. 5) Test the Metronome. To do so, click on the Start Button at the top of the Tracks window (the square and triangle). If your Amiga's internal sounds capability is enabled, you'll hear the metronome. The metronome conveniently clicks in three different ways: loudest on the first beat of each measure, softer and lower in pitch on each beat within the measure and even softer still on each subdivision of the beat. We designed this feature to enable you to "feel" the beat. To stop the metronome, click on the Stop Button (the solid rectangle). 6) Close the Metronome window by clicking on the "close window" button on the top left side of the window's title bar. Tempo 7) Set the tempo. By default, B&P Pro sets the tempo at 120 beats per minute. In order to change it, click on the Tempo Display, located on the upper half of the Track window, with the mouse. Drag the mouse up to raise the tempo, and down to lower it. To select a tempo, do the following: Click on the Start button (or press the 0 key on the Amiga's keypad.) Immediately, you'll hear the internal metronome. (If you don't hear it, make sure that the internal sounds capability is enabled on your Amiga, your monitor has speakers, and the volume is up.) With the metronome clicking, use the mouse to find a tempo to your liking. Recording 8) Put Track 1 in Record mode. Do this by clicking on the "P" button once, which causes it to display an "R." Make sure that the Input Arrow points to Track 1. 9) Click on the "R" button at the upper right of the Tracks window. This places the Sequencer into Record mode. You're now ready to record. 10) Press the Start button to begin the metronome Lead In. After two measures, B&P Pro will begin recording. 11) Play a few measures of music, then click with the mouse on the Stop button (the red square in the upper right of the Tracks window) to stop the recording process. Once you've recorded a few notes, B&P Pro displays them as small dots in the Sequence Display. (If the Track is highlighted, the dots are blue. If not, the dots are yellow.) 12) Press the Start button to hear your recording and the Stop button to stop playback. Tools 13) Open the ToolBox. Do so by double-clicking on the ToolBox icon, a hammer, located on the right side of the screen. 14) Get the Echo Tool. Do this in one of two ways: Click on the "?" button in the ToolBox and select Echo from the scrolling pop-up menu. Find the Echo Tool icon among the other Tools in the ToolBox, click the mouse button down, and hold it. 15) Drag the Echo Tool to Track 1's Output PipeLine, located to the right of Track 1's Sequence Display. To drag this Tool, hold it with the mouse while moving the mouse over to Track 1's Output PipeLine. Lift up with the mouse once you've reached your destination. 16) Open the Echo Tool's Control window. To do so, double-click on the Echo Tool in the PipeLine. 17) Change the Echo Tool's delay to "000.00.96" by moving the Delay: prompt slider to the left or right until the number "000.00.96" appears in the display. 18) Change the Echo Tool's repeat to "1." Do so by dragging the Repeat: prompt's slider until the number "1" appears in the display. 19) If you like, close the Echo Tool's Control window or drag it to another location. 20) Click on the Start button to hear the effect of the Echo Tool on your pre-recorded Track. Notice that, even though nothing has changed in the Sequence Display, your Track now plays back with an echo effect. 21) Move a copy of Track 1's Echo Tool to Track 2's Input PipeLine. To do so, click down on Track 1's Echo Tool with the mouse and drag it to Track 2's Input PipeLine. 22) Rename Track 2. Do this by double-clicking on the words "Track 2," deleting the words "Track 2" from the Name: prompt and entering a new name. You may also enter something in the Notes: prompt. Once you've entered a new name, click on Okay to accept your changes. 23) Move the Input arrow to Track 2. Do so by clicking on the gray box to the right of "Track 2." 24) Record on Track 2. (Follow the same instructions as in steps 8 through 11.) Notice that this time, the notes you play pass through the Echo Tool and into the Sequence Display. The Sequence Display actually shows the echo graphically. Tools placed on the Input PipeLine affect notes upon recording. Tools placed on the Output PipeLine effect notes upon playback only. 25) Remove the Echo Tool in Track 1's Output PipeLine. To do so, click on the Tool with the mouse, then press the Delete key on your Amiga keyboard. Basic Editing 26) Open Track 1's Edit window. You can do this in two ways: Double-click on Track 1's Sequence Display. Click once on Track 1's Sequence Display, then press the Return key on your Amiga keyboard. 27) Use the Expansion Gadget to expand the Sequence Editor window. Do this by clicking on the gray triangle on the Sequence Editor window's title bar. 28) Look at a note on either the Piano Roll or Hybrid Staff with the Magnifying Glass. To do so, click on the Magnify button located on the Command buttons strip at the top of the window, which causes the mouse pointer to take the shape of a Magnifying Glass. Pass the Magnifying Glass over a note. As you do so, the note turns red and the Magnify window reveals statistics about that note. 29) Change the velocity of your selected note. Do this by entering a new number (between 0 and 127) after Velo:. 30) Draw a new note. To do so, access the Pencil by clicking on the Pencil button, located to the right of the Magnify button. The mouse resembles a pencil when you select the Pencil button. Select the note value, modifier, articulation and dynamic level by choosing from the four Note buttons across the top right of the window, then click on the area in which you want to draw the note. 31) Lengthen a note. Do so by selecting the Magic Wand from the Command buttons. This causes the mouse to resemble a Magic Wand. Click down on the note, then drag the mouse to the right which stretches the note in length. When used in conjunction with the Bounding Box button, the Magic Wand ties two notes of the same pitch together. 32) Erase a note. To do this, select the Erase button from the Command buttons. Using the Erase pointer, move the mouse over the note you wish to erase. When used in conjunction with the Bounding Box button, the Erase pointer erases a group of notes. 33) Load a Tool into the ToolPad. To do this, first reduce the size of the Sequence Editor window by either: pressing the Contraction Gadget, the triangle located in the Sequence Editor window's title bar, or using the window sizing gadget located in the bottom right corner of the Sequence Editor window. Then, open the ToolBox and drag the Echo Tool into the ToolPad, found in the Command button strip, to the right of the Eraser. 34) Edit the Echo Tool's parameters. To access the Echo Tool's Control window, either: hold down the Amiga's shift key while clicking on the Echo Tool in the ToolPad with the mouse, or use the Edit PadTool Controls... command found in the Display Options menu of the Sequence Editor. 35) Adjust the Echo Tool in whatever manner suits you. Then, if you like, close the Echo Tool's Control window. 36) Toolize a note. To do so, click on the ToolPad with the mouse. As a result, the mouse will resemble a wrench with a note in its "mouth." Then touch a note with the mouse. Notice that you've created an echo with the notes you've touched. Updating 37) Save your editing. Do this by either: clicking on the close window button located on the left side of the title bar, or selecting Update from the Edit menu of the Sequence Editor window. (This updates the Sequence Display without closing the Sequence Editor window.) If you are unsatisfied with the changes you've made, select Abort from the Edit menu and the Sequence Editor will close without keeping your changes. Playing the Demo Songs Now that we have gone through some of the Bars&Pipes environment, let's load one of the demonstration songs. To load a song, choose Open... from the Song menu. The file requester opens. You should see several songs listed. If you do not, you need to tell the file requester where the songs are. The songs are located in the Bars&Pipes Pro Demo/Songs/ directory. If you wish to hear a song that uses the Amiga's built in internal sounds, load in the Internal song. Otherwise, if you wish to hear a song that uses MIDI, choose one of the other songs. Click the Start button to listen to the song. Playing MIDI Files You can also play MIDI files. First, you need to install the sMerFF Accessory. From the main Bars&Pipes Professional screen, choose the Windows/Accessories menu command to open the Accessories window. Then, choose the Accessories/Install menu command. Load the sMerFF Accessory from the Bars&Pipes Pro Demo/Accessories drawer. You'll see the sMerFF icon appear in the Accessories window. Double-click on the sMerFF icon. Click the Load MIDI File button to load a MIDI file. Media Madness B&P Pro 2.5's Media Madness concept provides a platform for multi-media presentations. The easiest way to get to understand Media Madness is to use it, so let's create a simple multi-media track that performs a slide show. (You will need your own IFF slides to create this track.) Close the main Tracks window by clicking on the close gadget in the upper left hand corner. Open the Media Madness window by double-clicking on the icon that looks like a film strip, or choose Media Madness from the Windows menu. Open the ToolBox by double-clicking on the icon that looks like a hammer. Drag a copy of the Last Slide Show tool from the ToolBox and put it after the faucet of an empty track in the Media Madness window. Double-click on the Last Slide Show tool. The control window opens. Click on the "No Slide" button after the C0: prompt. The Last Slide Show "Load Slide" file requester opens. To load a slide, click on the volume name of the disk or partition that contains your slides. Then, find the directory that contains your slides. Click on a slide and then click the Load button. The C0: prompt advances to the next note, C#0:. You will notice that your slide name appears after the C0: prompt in the list of slides. Continue loading as many slides as you wish in this manner. When you finish, close the Last Slide Show control window. Click on the Pencil in the Media Madness window. With the Pencil, click in the Track that contains the Last Slide Show Tool. If you have loaded several slides into the Last Slide Show Tool, a scrolling list pops up. Select one of the slides from the list. The name of the slide appears in the Media Madness Track. This name has a line beneath it that signifies how long to display the slide. To change this length, or the position of the slide, click on the Hand button. With the Hand, grab the end of the line beneath the slide name. Drag the line to the right to lengthen the amount of time that the slide will be displayed. Click on the left side of the line to reposition the slide name, if you wish. Use the Pencil and Hand to input and adjust your other slides so that they play in sequence. For more specific editing, double-click on the track to open the List Editor. Or, click on the Magnifying Glass and then click on a slide name to see and adjust its parameters. When you are ready to play back your slides, press the 'M' key on your Amiga keyboard to open the mini-transport. These controls are the same ones that are in the upper right hand corner of the main Tracks window. Click on the Start button to watch the show. Installing Tools and Accessories The Bars&Pipes Professional 2.5 Demo comes with many Tools and Accessories that are not automatically installed. This is to save memory and loading time. You can install these Tools and Accessories, and they will then automatically load each time you run the Demo. To install a Tool, open the ToolBox. Choose the install command from the ToolBox menu. Find the Tool that you wish to install. Tools are stored in the Tools/ directory on your hard drive or second floppy disk. To install an Accessory, open the Accessories window. Choose the install command from the Accessories menu. Find the Accessory that you wish to install. Accessories are stored in the Accessories/ directory on your hard drive or second floppy disk. </plaintext></body></html>