midi Christmas/EssexMedia-ChristmasMusicInMIDIFormat.iso/docs/mchristm.txt

Text File | 1995-12-24 | 25KB | 628 lines

MIDI Christmas

    Christmas is a time for celebration; celebration of family, blessings,
and most of all, celebration of giving.  The symbolic gesture of giving at
Christmas may come from two examples of giving as illustrated in the story of
Christmas.  The first example may be the more obvious to most, where the
three traveling wise men bring gifts for the new born King. The more
important gift, however, is the gift to the human race of the Messiah.

    No matter what your religious or spiritual beliefs are, there is
little doubt that the Christmas story has had a profound impact on humanity.
This influence ranges from the political to the personal, to every corner of
the globe, even to our everyday lives, since our Western calendar marks the
years since the birth of Christ.

    The music in this collection includes favorites from both secular and
sacred music for the season.  Below is a table of filenames with corresponding
titles for each piece.  A brief description of each piece follows.  As with
most traditional music, there is usually an interesting story behind the
music.  Since Christmas is celebrated around the world,  Christmas music from
Africa and Mexico, as well as American Black spirituals and eastern European
carols have been included.  Christmas is for everyone.

    We hope you enjoy this collection and that it will bring holiday
cheer to you and your computer.

Filename                        Title
ANGELSWE.MID            Angels We have Heard on High
AULDLANG.MID            Auld Lang Syne
AWAYMANG.MID            Away in a Manger
C-ISHERE.MID            Christmas Is Here
COVENTRY.MID            Coventry Carol
DECKHALL.MID            Deck the Hall
FIRSTNOE.MID            The First Noel
FOR-UNTO.MID            For Unto Us a Child is Born (from The Messiah)
GODREST.MID             God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (Greensleeves)
GOTELLIT.MID            Go Tell It on the Mountain
HALLELUJ.MID            Hallelujah Chorus (from The Messiah)
HARKHERA.MID            Hark the Herald Angels Sing
HOLLYIVY.MID            The Holly and the Ivy
HOLYNITE.MID            Oh Holy Night
IHRDBELL.MID            I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
ISAW3SHP.MID            I Saw Three Ships
ITCAMEUP.MID            It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
JINGLE-B.MID            Jingle Bells
JOLLYSTN.MID            Jolly Old Saint Nicholas
JOYTOWLD.MID            Joy to the World
LA_POSAD.MID            Las Posadas (Mexican Christmas Song)
LIT-TOWN.MID            O Little Town of Bethlehem
MARYHADB.MID            Mary Had a Baby
OCOME-EM.MID            O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
OCOMEALL.MID            O Come All Ye Faithful
SHOESFOR.MID            Shoes for Baby Jesus (Zapatos para el Nino Jesus)
SILENTNI.MID            Silent Night
SINGHALL.MID            Sing Hallelu
SINGNOEL.MID            Sing Noel
SINGWEAL.MID            Sing We All Noel
TANBAUM.MID             O Tannenbaum, O Tannenbaum ( O Christmas Tree)
UPONHOUS.MID            Up On the Housetop
WASSAIL.MID             Wassail
WE3KINGS.MID            We Three Kings
WEWISHU.MID             We Wish You a Merry Christmas
WHATCHLD.MID            What Child is This?


Angels We Have Heard on High is a French carol, arranged here for brass and
organ.  As is apparent in this collection, the French wrote many carols for
the season. This carol was first published in the mid 19th century.

Auld Lang Syne, while not a Christmas song, is included here because of its
association with New Years Eve, which is one week after Christmas.  This
Scottish song is commonly used for reunions and other sentimental occasions,
as well as for New Year's Eve celebrations.

Away in a Manger is a long time favorite of children.  Though Martin Luther
is attributed with its composition, this has been disputed. The text was
first published in the mid 19th century in Philadelphia.

Christmas is Here is a Christmas folk song from Sweden.

Coventry Carol is an English melody from the sixteenth century.  The text
was written by Robert Croo.

Deck the Hall was taken from a Welsh air. Its text indicates that it
originated in early times in the British Isles.

The First Noel is another traditional carol based on an English tune. It was
first published in 1833 by William Sandys in his Christmas Carols, Ancient
and Modern.

For Unto Us a Child is Born is a chorus from George Frideric Handel's
masterpiece, The Messiah.  The text is taken from the Bible, the book of
Isaiah, chapter 9, verse 6.  The Messiah is remarkable is several respects.
It has endured as one of the most performed, recorded, and listened to works
in the classical repertoire.  More remarkable, however, is that this work
was written in twenty four days.  Since it consists of fifty three sections,
one can imagine the labor involved in composing it in just over three weeks.
The soprano, alto, tenor, and bass parts have been assigned double-reed
instruments (oboe, English horn, and bassoon) in this transcription.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen is another old English melody. It dates from the
18th century, and was first published in 1827.

Go Tell It on the Mountain is a Black spiritual from the United States.
Spirituals were made popular in the years following the Civil War by choirs
from colleges built to educate Black students.

Hallelujah is a chorus from George Frideric Handel's Messiah.  This melody
is well known to most, and is a favorite at both Christmas and Easter.

Hark the Herald Angels Sing was written by Felix Mendelssohn in 1840,  The
text by Charles Wesley, was written in 1739, and adapted to the music by W.H.
Cummings in 1855.

The Holly and the Ivy is another old French Christmas tune.

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day is from the mid 19th century.  Text is by
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and music was written by J. Baptiste Calkin.
Although this song was written over 100 years ago, its words still hold a
message of hope today.

I Saw Three Ships is a traditional English tune, which refers to the "ships of
the desert" ridden by the three wise men.

It Came Upon a Midnight Clear was written by Richard Willis, with text by
Edmund Sears, and was written in the mid 19th century.

Jingle Bells is one of the most popular children's Christmas songs.  It was
written in the 19th century by James Pierpont.

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas is a traditional American song from the 19th century.

Joy to the World was written by Lowell Mason, with text by Isaac Watts.  The
music was previously attributed to George Frideric Handel, but it has recently
been discovered that Lowell Mason is actually the composer.

Las Posadas, or The Mexican Christmas Song, is a traditional song used in a
procession from home to home, seeking shelter. This melody is also known as
El Nombre del Cielo.

Mary Had a Baby is a Black spiritual from the United States.

O Come, O Come Emmanuel is an ancient hymn, with original text in Latin. The
text dates from the 9th century and the music is from the 13th century. The
English translation is provided below.

O Come All Ye Faithful, also known as Adeste Fideles, has been attributed to
at least two different composers.  Research has led musicologists to
attribute it to J.F. Wade, an Englishman who lived in Douay, France, in the
18th century.

O Holy Night was written by Adolphe Charles Adam, with English text by John
Sullivan Dwight.  Adam is best remembered for his ballet, Giselle.

O Little Town of Bethlehem was written by Lewis Redner in Philadelphia in
1868.  The text is by Phillips Brooks.

O Tannenbaum is a German tune, which has also been sung as O Christmas Tree
and O Faithful Pine.  It is a very old German song, based on the centuries
old German tradition of decorating an evergreen. Its melody is also used for
several state songs in the United States.

Silent Night was written by Franz Gruber, with text by Joseph Mohr.  Mohr was
a local Catholic priest in the tiny Austrian village where Franz Gruber lived.
Silent Night was written originally for  tenor, bass, and two guitars.

Sing Hallelu is another American Black spiritual.

Sing Noel is a round from Liberia.  Although meant for voices (as are all
these works), a shakuhachi is used here.

Sing We All Noel is a very old French carol.

Up On the Housetop is attributed to Benjamin Hanby, a 19th century American
composer.

Wassail Song is another ancient English carol. It is also known as Here We
Come A-Caroling.  Wassail means to wish good health.

We Three Kings was by J.H Hopkins in 1857, for a Christmas pageant at General
Theological Seminary in New York City.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas is another English tune. It dates to the time
in England when waits, or licensed municipal singers, sang for public service.

What Child is This? is based on the old English tune Greensleeves. The text is
by William Dix.

Zapatos para el Nino Jesus, or Shoes for Baby Jesus, is a Christmas song from
the Spanish speaking regions of the world.


    All selections are in three types of files, Standard MIDI File
formats Types 0 and 1,  and WAV format.  Below are explanations of each type
of file format.


MIDI

    MIDI is an abbreviation for Musical Instrument Digital Interface.
MIDI was created in the early 1980's as a means for musical instruments to
communicate with each other.  During the early years, MIDI was used primarily
by musicians for performances and data storage.  As the usefulness of MIDI
became apparent, it has been integrated into many more areas of the
entertainment industry.  MIDI is being used to control lighting and other
stage equipment for theater and live performance.  MIDI has also become part
of the basic multimedia PC, which is now a mass market item.

    Music stored in MIDI form is not a recording of actual sound, but a
representation of the performance.  Each MIDI event in a MIDI file will tell
the MIDI hardware (usually a synthesizer of some sort) what to do.  When a
MIDI device plays music, it is being sent data which tells it what notes to
play, how loud, how long, and with what sound to play them.  There are also
many other MIDI messages which set up aspects of the MIDI performance. These
include settings for pan (placement of the sound in the stereo field), reverb
and other effects, modulation (vibrato and tremolo), sustain (similar to
holding a piano damper pedal down), as well as others which do not affect the
sound in a direct way.

    The Standard MIDI File format is a universal file format which can
be used by almost any MIDI device.  A Standard MIDI file can be used by most
personal computer platforms which have MIDI capabilities.  There are two
major types of Standard MIDI files, Type 0 and Type 1 files.  A Type 0 file
has all the MIDI data stored on one track (please see glossary for a
definition of track).  A Type 1 file has data for each MIDI channel on
separate tracks, and often multiple tracks can be assigned to the same MIDI
channel.  The advantage to a Type 0 file is that it loads into a MIDI device
faster than a Type 1 file.  This can be helpful when using slower computers
or synthesizers with built-in disk drives and sequencers.  The advantage to
a Type 1 MIDI file is that it is much easier to edit than a Type 0 file.
Since all the musical parts are separated, it is easier to cut and paste
parts for arranging.

    Recently, a new standard within MIDI has been adopted.  This standard,
called General MIDI (or GM), makes it possible to distribute music in MIDI
form and have it sound similar on GM compliant devices.  The original MIDI
specification did not assign specific instrument sounds to the 128 possible
patch (please see glossary) locations.  General MIDI has specific instrument
assignments, as well as designations for which MIDI channels can be used for
pitched instrument sounds and which channel can use percussion sounds.  Each
percussion sound on the percussion channel is assigned a note.  For instance,
MIDI note 36 ( C two octaves below Middle C) is assigned to the kick drum.
A table of General MIDI instrument assignments is included in this document.

    MIDI used in Windows often makes use of a MIDI Mapper, which is an
application which controls the flow of MIDI data from Windows' applications
that use MIDI, to MIDI hardware devices installed on your system.  Typical
MIDI Mapper setups will include setups for Basic, Extended, and All MIDI uses.
A Basic MIDI setup will only send MIDI data to MIDI channels 13-16.  An
Extended MIDI setup will only send MIDI data to MIDI channels 1-10.  An All
MIDI setup will allow MIDI data to be sent on all 16 MIDI channels.  After
opening the MID Mapper utility, press the down arrow button to the right of
the  Name: box.

    Select a setup that refers to Extended or All MIDI channels.  This
will insure that the MIDI files on this CD will play properly.


MIDI Glossary

Bank- A group of patches.

Channel- A data path that is analogous to a television channel.  MIDI data
transmitted on one MIDI channel is ignored by devices not set to receive MIDI
data on that channel.

Controller- This can refer to a hardware device, such as a keyboard, or a
software message, which sets certain parameters of MIDI hardware to do
certain things.  In software, MIDI controllers affect volume, modulation,
sustain (like a piano damper pedal), pan, and other aspects of MIDI
performance.

Duration- The length a note is played. With MIDI, a note-on command will
start the note and a note-off command will cause the note to end.  If the
MIDI data flow is interrupted after a note-on is sent, but before a note-off
is sent, the note will continue until a note-off for that note is received,
or until the MIDI device is reset or powered down.

Modulation- Vibrato or chorus are two examples of modulation.  These are used
to make music more expressive.

Note number- The MIDI specification has assigned each key on a musical
keyboard to a MIDI note number. Middle C on a musical keyboard is MIDI note
number 60. Add or subtract 1 for each note up or down from Middle C.

Pan- Short for panorama.  This term indicates a location, from left to right,
in the stereo field.  Placing instruments in various places allows for more
depth in the music.

Patch- Leftover from the old days of analog synthesizers, this refers to a
specific instrument sound.  In some old modular synths, patch cords were used
to connect the various electronic components that comprised the instrument.
These connections were required to get a sound from the synth.

Sequence- A MIDI file.

Sequencer- A software or hardware device used to play, edit and save MIDI
files.

Track- This is a part of a MIDI file that contains data for one or more MIDI
channels. In a broad sense, it could be compared to a line of music.  The
Type 1 MIDI files on this disc contain tracks for each instrument, and each
is assigned to a particular MIDI channel.

Velocity- This refers to how hard (loud) a note is played.  MIDI ranges for
velocity information is from 1-128, with 128 being the hardest (loudest).

    Please note that there are many more aspects to the various MIDI
    specifications than is presented here.  This document is meant as an
    introduction to MIDI, not as a complete guide.  There are many good
    books on the subject available at your local bookstore or library.
    Also included below are addresses for two industry groups which can
    provide complete specifications for MIDI standards.  They provide
    these documents at a reasonable cost.

MIDI Manufacturers Association
P.O. Box 3173
LaHabra, CA 90632
[phone]

International MIDI Association
23634 Emelita St.
Woodland Hills, CA 91367
[phone] voice
[phone] fax


General MIDI Patch Assignments
001-Acoustic Grand Piano
002-Bright Acoustic Piano
003-Electric Grand Piano
004-Honky Tonk Piano
005-Rhodes Piano
006-Chorused Piano
007-Harpsichord
008-Clavinette
009-Celeste
010-Glockenspeil
011-Music Box
012-Vibraphone
013-Marimba
014-Xylophone
015-Tubular Bells
016-Dulcimer
017-Hammond Organ
018-Percussive Electronic Organ
019-Rock Organ
020-Church (pipe) Organ
021-Reed Organ
022-French Accordion
023-Harmonica
024-Tango Accordion
025-Nylon String Guitar
026-Steel String Acoustic Guitar
027-Jazz Guitar
028-Clean Electric Guitar
029-Muted Guitar
030-Overdrive Electric Guitar
031-Distortion Electric Guitar
032-Guitar Harmonics
033-Acoustic Bass
034-Fingered Bass
035-Picked Bass
036-Fretless Bass
037-Slap Bass 1
038-Slap Bass 2
039-Synth Bass 1
040-Synth Bass 2
041-Violin
042-Viola
043-Cello
044-Contrabass
045-Tremolo String Section
046-Pizzacato String Section
047-Orchestral Harp
048-Tympani
049-String Section
050-String Section with slow attack
051-Synthesized Strings 1
052-Synthesized Strings 2
053-Choir Aahs
054-Choir Oohs
055-Synthsized Voice
056-Orchestra Hit
057-Trumpet
058-Trombone
059-Tuba
060-Muted Trumpet
061-French Horn
062-Brass Section
063-Synthesized Brass 1
064-Synthesized Brass 2
065-Soprano Saxophone
066-Alto Saxophone
067-Tenor Saxophone
068-Baritone Saxophone
069-Oboe
070-English Horn
071-Bassoon
072-Clarinet
073-Piccolo
074-Flute
075-Recorder
076-Pan Flute
077-Bottle Blow
078-Shakuhachi
079-Whistle
080-Ocarina
081-Square Wave
082-Sawtooth Wave
083-Synthesized Calliope
084-Chiffer Lead
085-Charang
086-Solo Voice
087-Sawtooth Wave in Fifths
088-Bass and Lead
089-Fantasia
090-Warm Pad
091-Polysynth
092-Space Voice
093-Bowed Glass
094-Metal Pad
095-Halo Pad
096-Sweep Pad
097-Ice Rain
098-Soundtrack
099-Crystal
100-Atmosphere
101-Brightness
102-Goblin
103-Echo Drops
104-Star Theme
105-Sitar
106-Banjo
107-Shamisen
108-Koto
109-Kalimba
110-Bag Pipe
111-Fiddle
112-Shannai
113-Tinkle Bell
114-Agogo
115-Steel Drums
116-Woodblock
117-Taiko
118-Melodic Drum
119-Synth Drum
120-Reverse Cymbal
121-Guitar Fret Noise
122-Breath Noise
123-Seashore
124-Bird Chirps
125-Telephone (warble)
126-Helicopter
127-Applause
128-Gun Shot

Percussion Assignments
MIDI Note Number           Sound
35                         Kick Drum 2
36 C2*                     Kick Drum 1
37                         Side Stick
38                         Snare Drum 1
39                         Hand Clap
40                         Snare Drum 2
41                         Low Tom 2
42                         Closed High Hat
43                         Low Tom 1
44                         Pedal High Hat
45                         Mid Tom 2
46                         Open High Hat
47                         Mid Tom 1
48 C3*                     High Tom 2
49                         Crash Cymbal 1
50                         High Tom 1
51                         Ride Cymbal 1
52                         Chinese Cymbal
53                         Ride Cymbal (bell strike)
54                         Tambourine
55                         Splash Cymbal
56                         Cowbell
57                         Crash Cymbal 2
58                         Vibra-Slap
59                         Ride Cymbal 2
60 (Middle C)C4*           High Bongo
61                         Low Bongo
62                         Mute High Conga
63                         Open High Conga
64                         Low Conga
65                         High Timbale
66                         Low Timbale
67                         High Agogo
68                         Low Agogo
69                         Cabasa
70                         Maracas
71                         Short High Whistle
72 C5*                     Long Low Whistle
73                         Short Guiro
74                         Long Guiro
75                         Claves
76                         High Wood Block
77                         Low Wood Block
78                         Mute Cuica
79                         Open Cuica
80                         Mute Triangle
81                         Open Triangle
82                         Shaker
83                         Jingle Bell
84 C6*                     (none)
85                         Castanets
86                         Mute Surdo
87                         Open Surdo
* Indicates position on standard musical keyboard.  Each change in MIDI note
number is equivalent to one half step on the music keyboard.

WAV Files

The files in the WAV directory are digital recordings of the MIDI files.
They are 16-bit stereo files, with a sampling rate of 22.05 kHZ.  If you have
an 8-bit sound card, such as the Sound Blaster Pro*, you will need to convert
these files to 8-bit format to use them. This will require that you copy the
digital files onto your hard drive. Please note the size of these files.
Digital audio requires a huge amount of storage space for high quality
resolution.

There are many utilities that will convert and edit digital files, from
inexpensive shareware titles available on commercial online services and BBSs,
to commercial software titles ranging from $80 to $500.  Please see
TECHNOTE.TXT for information about tools used for this production.

Audio CDs use a 16-bit format with a sampling rate of 44.1 kHZ, and require
about 10.5 megs per minute of playback time for storage.  Thus, a 60 minute
audio CD will hold over 600 megs of data.  Each time you lower the resolution
of digital audio by one half, you lower the amount of storage space required
by one half.  For instance, if you were to take one minute of CD audio
(10.5 megs) and make it mono rather than stereo, you would need 5.25 megs to
store the data.  Take that reduced file and make it 8-bit and it would then
require 2.625 megs to store. Again, reduce the sampling rate to 22.05 kHZ and
the same file would then be 1.3125 megabytes in size.


*Although a Sound Blaster Pro requires a 16-bit ISA slot, it will record and
play only 8-bit audio.


Troubleshooting

This section will answer several common problems that occur with MIDI and its
use in the Windows environment.  Driver and other software, and hardware
installation problems should be referred to the specific company who markets
the software in question. This section assumes that your computer has a
working sound card installed.

Problem: There is no sound when I try to play the MIDI files.

Solutions:
1. Turn up the volume on your speakers or amplifier.
2. Open mixer application for your sound card and make sure all volume
   controls are at full volume.
3. Open your MIDI Mapper applet, found in the Control Panel application.
   Make sure you have a setup that refers to Extended or All MIDI channels.


Problem: Notes "drop out" or sound chopped off while playing.

Solution:
You are probably using the files authored for wavetable sound cards on your
FM card.  Please use the MIDI files from the FM directories.  FM cards will
typically not play as many notes at once as wave table cards will.

Problem: The music sounds like the wrong instruments are playing.  The track
is labeled as a recorder but doesn't sound like one.

Solution:
These MIDI files are authored for use with General MIDI compliant devices.
Your installed driver is probably not GM compliant, which means it will not
play the instruments called for in these files.  Please install a GM driver
for your sound card.  The manufacturer of your card should have one available.

Problem: There is a delay from the time I start MIDI playback until the music
starts.

Solution:
This is not really a defect, but the way the files were processed.  These
files were processed using Roland software which inserts MIDI messages at
the beginning of each file to initialize the MIDI hardware.  Since this data
must be sent before the music begins, there will be a slight delay.

Problem: The MIDI files take too long to load on a slower computer or
hardware sequencer.

Solution:
Use the MIDI files from the Type0 directories.  Although these files are
slightly larger than Type 1 files, they will usually load faster than Type 1
files.


WAV troubleshooting

Problem: There is no sound.

Solution:
As with the solution for this problem in the MIDI section, make sure all
volume controls are turned up, including the software mixer for your sound
card.

Problem: On my slower 386, parts of the music drop out, making the music
sound choppy.

Solution:
The data flow is too much for the machine to handle. You will need to convert
the files to 8-bit to use.

Problem: I have converted the file to 8-bit and there is hiss.

Solution:
This is an inherent problem with 8-bit audio.  The best you can do is to
reduce the amount of treble in playback using your software mixer controls
and/or the treble controls on your speakers or amplifier. Another solution
is to upgrade your card to a 16-bit model.





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