commit aa2db722514f10873a15912cf833d93c0282a5b0
Author: Christopher Antila <crantila(a)fedoraproject.org>
Date: Thu Jul 29 02:44:33 2010 -0400
Converted Audacity, Ardour, Qtractor, Rosegarden, FluidSynth
en-US/Ardour.xml | 1141 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
en-US/Audacity.xml | 409 ++++++++++++++++
en-US/FluidSynth.xml | 334 +++++++++++++
en-US/Musicians_Guide.xml | 20 +-
en-US/Qtractor.xml | 572 +++++++++++++++++++++++
en-US/Rosegarden.xml | 260 ++++++++++
6 files changed, 2730 insertions(+), 6 deletions(-)
---
diff --git a/en-US/Ardour.xml b/en-US/Ardour.xml
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+<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8' ?>
+<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd" [
+<!ENTITY % BOOK_ENTITIES SYSTEM "Musicians_Guide.ent">
+%BOOK_ENTITIES;
+]>
+
+<chapter id="chap-Musicians_Guide-Ardour">
+ <title>Ardour</title>
+
+ <para>
+ Somewhere, somehow, I'll need to tell my readers that the "Recording a
Session" section is intended to be done as a contiuous work-flow, which then becomes
the next large section.
+ </para>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Requirements_and_Installation">
+ <title>Requirements and Installation</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Software_Requirements">
+ <title>Software Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ Ardour requires the use of the JACK Audio Connection Kit. It is not possible to use
Ardour with JACK. If you have not already installed JACK, it is recommended that you do
so before installing Ardour. Instructions for installing JACK are available
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Hardware_Requirements">
+ <title>Hardware Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ In order to use Ardour, you will need an audio interface. If you intend to record
external audio with Ardour, your audio interface must be capable of recording, and you
must have external hardware (such as microphones) to allow this recording. If you intend
to record only audio produced by other JACK-aware programs (such as FluidSynth or
SuperCollider), then equipment such as microphones is not required.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Installation">
+ <title>Installation</title>
+ <para>
+ If you have not already installed the JACK Audio Connection Kit, it is recommended
that you do so before installing Ardour. Instructions for installing JACK are available
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ After installing JACK, installing Ardour is as simple as using PackageKit or
KPackageKit to install the "ardour" package, or running the following command in
a terminal [pre]su -c 'yum install ardour'[/pre]
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording_a_Session">
+ <title>Recording a Session</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Running_Ardour">
+ <title>Running Ardour</title>
+ <para>
+ When you run Ardour...
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>If JACK is not started, you will be prompted to start
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You will be prompted to either choose a location to save
your new session, or to open an existing session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you are creating a new session, (?? you can change the
Advanced Options later ??)
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The sample rate in JACK must be the same each time you
open a session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can also go 'Session > New' to create a
new session.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Interface">
+ <title>The Interface</title>
+ <para>
+ This section explains some of the graphical interface components that are unique to
Ardour. Components that are consistent through most DAWs are explained in
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Recording/DAW_Common_Elements#User_Interface|the "Common
Features" section]].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ !! Hidden bonus: link to the GIMP source image !!
+ <!-- [[File:Ardour-interface.xcf]] -->
+ [[File:Ardour-interface-editor_mixer.png|300px|Editor mixer]]
+ This image shoes the editor mixer, located at the left of Ardour's main window.
The editor mixer shows only one mixer strip at a time. It shows the fader and its
controls, in the middle of the mixer strip, the panner and its controls, at the bottom of
the mixer strip, and the "Comments" and outgoing connections buttons.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ [[File:Ardour-interface-session_sidebar.png|300px|Session sidebar]]
+ This image shows the session sidebar, located at the right of Ardour's main
window. In this image, the "Regions" tab is selected, so the sidebar shows a
list of regions currently in the session. You can see blue ones which were directly
imported, white ones which were created from blue regions, and the arrows to the left of
some blue regions, indicating that there are white-coloured sub-regions associated with
those blue regions.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ [[File:Ardour-interface-toolbar.png|300px|Toolbar]]
+ This image shows the main toolbar, located underneath the transport controls, and
above the timeline and its rulers. In the middle of the toolbar are three unlabeled, but
highly useful multiple-choice menus: the "snap mode" menu (currently set to
"No Grid"); the "grid mode" menu (currently set to "Bars");
and then "edit point" menu (currently set to "Mouse"). To the left of
these menus are the tool-selection buttons, the most important of which are the two
left-most buttons: Select/Edit Object, and Select/Edit Range.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Setting_up_the_Timeline">
+ <title>Setting up the Timeline</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>At the top of the main Ardour window, to the right of the
transport's toolbar, are two relatively large clocks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click to choose what you want them to display:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>"Bars:Beats" displays the number of bars and
beats (how to use it?)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Minutes:Seconds" displays the time since
beginning of track (how to use it?)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Timecode" displays frames-per-second timecode
(usually for work with films)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Samples" displays the samples since start
(how to use it?)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set the two clocks as desired (maybe turn one off if you
only want one)</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The "snap mode" menu is located between the
timeline and the clocks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This controls where regions may move. You will need to
change these as you work with a session, depending on the current
activity.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>left menu:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>No Grid: regions can go wherever they
want</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Grid: regions must start on the nearest grid
point</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Magnetic: regions can move freely, but when they are
near a grid point, they will automatically 'snap' to
it</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>middle menu: (how to place the grid-lines)
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>SMPTE things: for
timecode</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>seconds and minutes: for
time</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>beats and bars: for that</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Region stuff: edges of
regions</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Explain the thing to the right, which allows you to move
the playhead by certain amounts.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The timeline (which contains many "rulers"
showing different time-marking scales) is located at the top of the canvas area,
underneath the toolbars.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the right-click menu to select which rulers you want
to display.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The rulers you should choose depends on the clock
settings and the snap mode.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Connecting_Audio_Sources">
+ <title>Connecting Audio Sources to Ardour</title>
+ <para>
+ The name of the track onto which you want to record should be the name of the input
in JACK
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Setting_up_Busses_and_Tracks">
+ <title>Setting up the Busses and Tracks</title>
+ <para>
+ This is what a bus is. By default there's a master bus, to which will be sent
everything you're going to export. Busses don't contain regions. A bus is like a
"batch collecting zone," so for example you send all the audio-to-be-exported to
the master bus, where you can subject the whole project to a particular filter or
volume-adjustment.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Add a track for recording:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Track > Add
Track/Bus'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>ensure that "Tracks" is
selected</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>set the number (probably
1)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>select the number of input channels (probably
"Stereo" meaning 2)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>select the mode
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>"Normal": creates a new Region for each
recording "take"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Tape": will destructively record of whatever
is already recorded (like a tape)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Add' to create
them</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Rename the tracks, so that you know what's on them:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>easiest way is click on the track name on the box-thing
on the left side of the big area</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>erase what's there and put in a better
name</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>when you're done, press
"enter"</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Adjusting_Recording_Level">
+ <title>Adjusting Recording Level (Volume)</title>
+ <para>
+ Unless you're just learning or doing quick, personal-use experimentation, it is
important to properly set the level of the inputs betfore recording.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The nature of audio equipment (including our ears, I think?) is such that it can only
perceive sound pressures (perceived as volume) within a certain range. If a sound is too
quiet, it will not be perceived, and if it is too loud, it will not be perceived
accurately. Furthermore, and this is most important when thinking about one's own
ears, if a sound is far too loud, it may permanently damage the audio instrument.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The nature of digital audio is such that there is a distinct number of volume levels
at which something can be recorded. If a sound is either below or above that range, then
it will not be correctly recorded. When such an improperly-recorded sound is played back,
whether too quite or too loud, humans will usually perceive it as "nothing but
noise."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ It's easy to imagine how Ardour acts when it records silence. When Ardour thinks
that a portion of audio is too loud, it outlines the wave-form representation in red, as
shown in this image:
+ [[Ardour-red_peaks.png|This audio is too loud.]]
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ There are three simple strategies that can be used to change the input level of an
audio signal:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Move the microphone closer or farther from the
source</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Route the microphone through a mixer before it hits the
audio interface</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Route the audio through a bus in Ardour before it gets
recorded</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here are the pros and cons of each approach.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ There are some circumstances where it is either impractical, impossible, or not
advisable to move the microphone or route it through a hardware mixer. In these cases,
you can use a bus in Ardour to modify the volume of the input signal before it is
recorded.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new bus by 'Track > Add
Track/Bus'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select "busses" in the window that pops
up.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Choose the number of busses that you wish to add. You
will need one for every track that you are recording, and of which you want to adjust the
volume. It's also possible to record at several different
volumes.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set the number of channels that youw ant int he
bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Once you have the new bus, change its name by doing
whatever. I suggest naming it something that makes it obvious you are using the bus for
recording, rather than exporting, like "REC-Bus."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ardour automatically sets up busses to be used with audio
being outputted. Furthermore, the volume/level control only works on audio beign
outputted from a track or bus. This is why you cannot use the track's volume/level
control to adjust the input volume for that track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You will need to use QjackCtl (or a similar application)
to re-connect as follows (reading "Routing Audio and Managing JACK Connections"
for help)
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Disconnect all of the connections to/from the bus you
want to use for recording ("recording bus").</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that nothing is connected to the input of the
track onto which you want to record ("recording
track").</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Connect the microphone (the input source) to the
recording bus' input</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Connect the input bus' output to the recording
track's input.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that the recording track's output is
connected to the "master" input (this is the master output bus, which should be
present in all projects, and through which all output audio should be
routed).</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ Remember: only one track-to-be-recorded can be routed through a bus for this purpose,
because a bus can only output one stream of audio.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here is an algorithm to test whether your tracks are set at a good recording volume.
This should be done before arming any tracks for recording. Unfortunately, you can never
know that you have chosen the best input level until after a region is recorded. It takes
both instinct and experience to be able to choose good input levels reliably.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Set up all microphones as
required.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set up connections in JACK as
required.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set up any recording busses as required (see
above).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>On the audio tracks being recorded, set the
"metering point" to "input" (here's how to do
that).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ask the performers to demonstrate the loudest passages
they will be doing in the session. Adjust the input level so that the maximum level falls
between -3 dB and -6 dB (by looking here). You can reset the
maximum-level-seer by clicking on it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ask the performers to demonstrate the quietest passages
they will be performing in the session. Adjust the input level so that this does not fall
below -40 dB; it should probably be between -30 dB and
-20 dB.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ask the performers to demonstrate an average passage from
what they will be performing in the session. This is usually less important than the
previous two checks, but if most of the performance will be quieter, it may be worth
risking a higher input level in order to capture more detail. Nevertheless, a
"moderate" volume level should result in and input level reading of
-20 dB to -10 dB.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you are more experience both with the kind of group
you are recording, and the software and equipment being used to do it, you may not need to
do these level-checks every time. It's better to be safe than sorry, however, because
once a musical moment has passed, it is impossible to
re-create.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Recording_a_Region">
+ <title>Recording a Region</title>
+ <para>
+ As you progressively record a session, you will create at least one region. Warning
about audio being put out the "audition" output by default (use headphones)
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that the inputs, timeline, and tracks are properly
set up.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>if there is nothing to the left of the editor window,
press Ctrl+E or 'View > Show Editor Mixer'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the track you're recording
onto</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>set the metering point to "input" and verify
that it's working correctly and connected to the right thing (say what this does, and
why you want to do it now)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>See "Adjusting Recording Volume" below, and do
it now</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm the track for recording: either press
"Record" in the track's mixer in the left, or press the small red record
button on the track itself</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>the buttons will remain lighted to show that the tracks
are armed</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>arm Ardour for recording by select the big red record
button on the transport</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>start the transport in in the normal way (big play
button)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>when you're done recording, stop the transport with
the big stop button</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>each time you start and stop the transport, a new
"region" is produced</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>each time you stop the transport, Ardour
"un-arms" itself, but any tracks that you selected are still
armed</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you've finished recording a region, use the
"Regions" box-thing on the right of the interface to rename the region:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Find the region that you just recorded (by default they
are named like "Audio 1-1" which is the name of the recording track followed by
a hyphen, then a number in ascending sequeuence representing the "take"). Select
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click on the title, and a box should surround
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Change the name to what you
want.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press enter to finish editing the
name.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Recording_More">
+ <title>Recording More</title>
+ <para>
+ After you have recorded one region, you will probably not have everything that you
want. There are many ways to continue recording, depending on what still remains to be
recorded.
+ </para>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Continue_the_Same_Session">
+ <title>To Continue the Same Session</title>
+ <para>
+ This is what you'll want to do if, for example, you were recording a session and
decided to take a ten-minute break. It will work for any situation where you want to
continue a session that already started recording.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>move the transport to somewhere after what you've
already capture. You can do this either by using the forward/reverse and play/stop
buttons on the transport, or by finding the point in the timeline where you want the
transport to be, and then left-clicking somewhere in the
time-line.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Verify that the connections and levels are still set
correctly.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Verify that the recording tracks are still
armed.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm the transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Start the transport when ready to
record.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Capture_Additional_Parts">
+ <title>To Capture an Additional Part of Something That Is already
Recorded</title>
+ <para>
+ A technique often used for studio recordings is to separately record parts that
would normally be played together, and which will later be made to sound together (see the
"Prepearing a Session" section, below). For example, consider a recording where
one trumpeter wants to record both parts of a solo written for two trumpets. The
orchestra could be brought into the studio, and would play the entire solo piece without
any trumpet solo. Ardour will record this on one track. Then, the trumpet soloist goes
to the studio, and uses Ardour to simultaneously listen to the previously-recorded
orchestra track while playing one of the solo trumpet parts, which is recorded onto
another track. The next day, the trumpeter returns to the studio, and uses Ardour to
listen to the previously-recorded orchestra track and previously-recorded solo trumpet
part while playing the other solo trumpet part, which is recorded onto a third track. The
recording engineer uses Audacity's mixing
and editing features to make it sound as though the trumpeter played both solo parts at
the same time, while the orchestra was there.
+
+ !! I'll probably also want to write about a "click track" in here. !!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To do this:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Record the first part. The order in which to record
parts is up to the recording engineer (that means you). It will probably be easier to
record whoever plays the most, or whoever plays the most rhythmically consistent part,
before the others.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Add the track/s onto which you will next
record.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set up the connections for the new
track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Do a level check to ensuer that the new track is neither
too loud nor soft.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set the transport to the beginning of the passage where
you want to begin recording the next track. You do not need to set up the start of the
track very precisely, since you can change that later. You will need to make sure that
the next player has enough time after the transport is started to hear where they are
supposed to enter, and at what tempo.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You will need to set up some way for the performers (or
somebody conducting/leading them) to hear the already-recorded material. It is probably
best to do this with headphones.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm the tracks that you want to record. Make sure that
already-recorded tracks are no longer armed, especially if they are in "tape
mode."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm the transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you are ready to record, start the transport
rolling.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Redo_a_Take">
+ <title>To Capture a Better Recording of Something That Is already
Recorded</title>
+ <para>
+ If you have already recorded all or most of a session, you can re-record *part* of
the session in order to "fix up" any issues. Ardour allows you to record onto
the pre-existing tracks, keeping the first take, putting the newly-recorded region over
it. Later, you will get to choose the exact points at which the outputted recording is to
switch between regions/takes.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Record the session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that you have the connections and levels set as
they were during the first time you recorded the regions over which you're recording
now.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You will need to set the transport location. Choose a
place that is before the segment which you want to replace. The performers should
probably also start playing before the section to be replaced, so you will need to start
well enough in advance that they can pick up the tempo, get in the groove, and then start
playing *all before* the part that needs replacement.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click in the time-line to move the
transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that the correct tracks are
armed.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm the transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Start the transport and record the revised section of
music.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ At some point, you will have recorded everything that you need, and you will want to
progress to mixing and editing.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Routing_Audio">
+ <title>Routing Audio and Managing JACK Connections</title>
+ <para>
+ Ardour will automatically save the state of JACK connections when it saves a
session.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Ardour will offer the following output ports, assuming a stereo (two-channel) setup:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>two channels per track, called "track_name/out
1" and "track_name/out 2". These will usually be connected to the master
bus, or to a sub-mixing bus, when you are using one.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels per bus, called "bus_name/out 1"
and "bus_name/out 2". These will usually be connected to the master bus, unless
you are using two levels of sub-mixing busses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels for the auditioner, called
"auditioner/out 1", which represents the channels used to audition a region;
when you want to import it, for example, or in the "Regions" box on the
right-side, when you select one and right-click and choose "Audition". These
should not be connected to the master bus, but to an output device that you want to use
when auditioning regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels for the click-track, called "click/out
1", which represents the channels used to play the click-track when recording. These
should not be connected to the master bus, but to an output device that you want to use
for the click-track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels for the master bus, called "master/out
1", which represents the output used by the master output bus. These should be
connected to an output device that you wish to use for listening to the session when the
transport is moving.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Ardour will offer the following input ports, assuming a stereo (two-channel) setup:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>two channels per track, called "track_name/in
1" and "track_name/in 2". These should both be connected to the same input
device. If you are using a recording bus, then these should be connected to that
bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels per bus, called "bus_name/in 1"
and "bus_name/in 2". These should be connected to whatever channels you want to
be mixed into them. If you are using it as a recording bus, then these should be
connected to the same input device.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>two channels for the master bus, called "master/in
1", which represents the input used for the master bus. These should be connected to
all of the tracks. If you are using sub-bus mixing, then all of the tracks should connect
to the master bus' input either directly or through a
sub-bus.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In most setups, Ardour will automatically set the channel connections correctly.
There are ways to change the connections from within Ardour, but they offer limited
flexibility. For this reason, it is recommended that users use QjackCtl to monitor
connections, since through QjackCtl it is also possible to monitor and change many other
features of JACK.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Learning to make the right connections is a valuable trick for people using Ardour.
The fact that Ardour uses JACK for both its internal and external connections allows
tricks such as the earlier-mentioned recording bus (which adjusts the input level of a
source), flipping the left and right audio channels, and creating a multi-channel audio
output by combining many input channels. Undoubtedly, other tricks exist.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Recording-Importing_Existing_Audio">
+ <title>Importing Existing Audio</title>
+ <para>
+ When you record audio, Ardour automatically save it to disk and adds a representation
of that file in the program as a "region." You can also use pre-existing audio
files as regions, which can then be added to any track.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To import an existing audio file:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Whip out the "regions" part of the panel on the
right-hand side of the interface</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click anywhere in the
box</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select "Import to Region
List"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The "Add existing audio" window will be
opeend</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can use three different tabs to select an audio file
to add:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>"Browse Files" (does this) (covered
here)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Search Tags" (does
this)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Search Freesound" (does
this)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Using "Browse Files," navigate to a sound that
you want to add. Although certain other file formats are supported (like FLAC), it is
probably best to add WAV or AIFF files.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Certain information about the audio file will be
displayed on the right-hand side of the window. This portion of the window also allows
you to "audition" the file before importing it (that is, you can hear it by
using the "Play" and "Stop" buttons in the window, without affecting
your current project.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If the file that you selected has a sample-rate that is
not the same as that of the current project, then the sample-rate will be highlighted in
red. You can choose to import it anyway, in which case Ardour will warn you again. If
you import a file in a different sample rate than that of the current project, it will be
played back in the project's sample rate. This will result in incorrect speed and
pitch.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There are a number of other options, displayed along the
bottom of the window.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can choose to add files:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>"as new tracks," which puts each file in its
own track, set to normal mode, then adds it to the region
list</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"as new tape tracks," which puts each file in
its own track, set to tape mode, then adds it to the region
list</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"to region list," which puts each file in the
region list, but does not automatically put it in any
tracks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Note that when you choose to automatically create new
tracks, Ardour will add the region to the new track, with the region starting at the
current location of the transport.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The other options in this list are self-explanatory. It
is usually best to convert using the best quality, since quality can always be reduced
later (which saves space).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you chose not to automatically create tracks, then you
will need to add the imported regions into a track before they will be played in your
session. You can do this easily by selecting the region from the "Regions" box
on the right, and dragging it to a track.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Tutorial_Files">
+ <title>Tutorial Files</title>
+ <para>
+ !! Links to tutorial files !! These tutorial files represent the material required to
create a finished version of a song called "Here Is How," written by Esther
Wheaton. The song was released as part of her first album, "Not Legendary," and
she has released the source files for this song under !! this licence (probably CC-BY-SA)
!! For more information on the artist, please refer to her
[
http://www.myspace.com/estherwheaton MySpace page].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The material presented for your use is a folder containing an Ardour file and the
associated audio files required to start the tutorial. The tutorial itself comprises the
following sections about editing, mixing, and mastering (or exporting). The program used
to record the audio files split the left and right channels into separate files, so they
are imported into Ardour as separate regions. Therefore, the setup is more complex than
it would be if the song were originally recorded in Ardour, but this gives the opportunity
to learn in greater detail about busses, creating and using the stereo image, and volume
level adjustments.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The unique setup also means that none of the audio regions are in the right place on
the timeline, and most of them require extensive editing. This would be bad if the
objective of the tutorial were to create a finished version of the song as quickly as
possible; but the objective is to learn how to use Ardour, and this is almost guaranteed.
!! what about the singers !!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing">
+ <title>Editing a Session (Tutorial)</title>
+ <para>
+ This section covers the basics of preparing "Here Is How." The focus is on
trimming the regions and placing them in the right position on the timeline. Since the
goal is to replicate the form of the original song, there is little room for artistic
freedom.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To get the most out of this section, you should use the tutorial files provided above.
By following the instructions with the tutorial file, you will be able to use real
editing, mixing, and mastering techniques to create a real song. The contents of the
tutorial files, along with information on how to get them, are posted above in the
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Recording/Ardour#Tutorial Files|Tutorial Files]] section.
+ </para>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Add_Tracks_and_Busses">
+ <title>Add Tracks and Busses</title>
+ <para>
+ The program used to record these tracks was configured to record onto a separate
track for the left and right channels, so Ardour will also have to be configured this way.
It requires more setup, more memory, and more processing power, but it offers greater
control over the stereo image and level balancing. We will use one track for vocals,
clarinet, and strings, and two tracks for the marimba. This needs to be doubled to handle
the stereo audio, so a total of ten tracks are needed. It might still be useful to
manipulate the stereo tracks together, so we're going to combine them with five
busses. This gives us the option of modifying both stereo channels or just one -
you'll see how it works as the tutorial progresses. All of these actions take place
within Ardour.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>There is already a master bus, named "master".
All audio being outputted should be fed through this bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create five new busses:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select 'Track > Add
Track/Bus'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the options to add five stereo
busses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Add'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Five busses should appear in the canvas area, named
"Bus 1" through "Bus 5", underneath the master
bus.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Change the busses' names:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>At the left-most side of the canvas area, each bus has a
space with controls, including a box with the bus'
name.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To rename a bus, use the mouse to left-click inside the
box with the bus' name.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The box will turn into a text-editing box. Erase the
contents, and write the new name.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you have entered the new name, press
"Enter" on the keyboard to set it in Ardour.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The box will no longer be a text-editing
box.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Bus-marimba1</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Bus-marimba2</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Bus-voice</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Bus-strings</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Bus-clarinet</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create ten new tracks:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select 'Track > Add
Track/Bus'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the options to add 10 normal mode mono
tracks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Add'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ten tracks should appear in the canvas area, named
"Audio 1" through "Audio 10", underneath the
busses.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Change the tracks' names in the same way as you
changed the busses' names. Remembering that each track here will hold only the left
or right audio channel, each one should be pre- or post-fixed with a "0" or
"L" for the left channel, or a "1" or "R" for the right
channel. They should be called something like:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>marimba1-L</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>marimba1-R</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>marimba2-L</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>marimba2-R</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>voice-L</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>voice-R</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>strings-L</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>strings-R</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>clarinet-L</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>clarinet-R</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Finally, we'll re-arrange the order of the tracks and
busses. This isn't strictly necessary, and you can user whichever order you think
makes the most sense. You might choose, for example, to put the marimba at the bottom,
since it will be playing through most of the song.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Find the session sidebar, to the right of the canvas
area.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There are five tabs to choose: Regions, Tracks/Busses,
Snapshots, Edit Groups, and Chunks. Select
'Tracks/Busses'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>All of the tracks and busses are shown in a list, along
with a check-box that will show or hide that track or bus in the canvas area. Now you can
see why it's a good idea to keep the word "bus" in the names of the
busses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To change the ordering of tracks and busses, use the
mouse to click and drag the name of the track or bus that you want to
move.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you start dragging a track or bus, a line will
appear in the list, marking where the track or bus would go. It can be helpful to move
the track or bus that you are dragging to the side a bit, so that you can see the list
itself.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The interface makes it seem like you can move a track or
bus on top of another track or bus. This is not the case. If it looks like a track or
bus is going to be put on top of another track or bus, it will actually be placed into the
list just above that track or bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>For editing, it is helpful to have each bus next to the
tracks it will control. This can always be changed later.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Connect_Tracks_and_Busses">
+ <title>Connect the Tracks and Busses</title>
+ <para>
+ Although we have created a system of busses in our mind, we still haven't told
Ardour about it. You can use QjackCtl to confirm this: all of the additional tracks and
busses are connected to output audio to the master bus. Worse still, the additional
busses have no input signal at all. There are two approaches to letting Ardour know how
we want to connect the tracks and busses. They will both be demonstrated, and you will be
left to fill in the rest.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>One way to connect tracks and busses is more suitable for
small-scale connection changes.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the "marimba1-L" track by clicking in
the track's control area, underneath the controls.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The editor mixer to the left of the canvas area should
display the track's name near the top, and the track's colour (probably green in
this case).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you can't see the editor mixer, open it by using
the menu. Click 'View > Show Editor Mixer' so that it is checked. You can
also press 'Shift + E' on the keyboard to toggle its
display.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After confirming that the editor mixer is showing the
control for the "marimba1-L" track, look at the button on the bottom of the
editor mixer, above 'Comments'. It should say "master", which means its
output is connected to the master bus. This is not what we want, so click the
"master" button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you click the 'master' button, a menu pops
up, allowing you to choose a different output. We want to connect the track to the
"Bus-marimba1" bus, which isn't in the list, so choose 'Edit' from
the menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The connection window that appears looks confusing, but
it isn't. Here's how it works:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The left side, labeled "Outputs," contains
two output channels, "out 1" and "out 2," along with a list of
everything to which those outputs are connected.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The 'Add' button adds an output channel.
We're outputting the signal to a stereo bus, so two is
enough.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The 'Remove' button removes an output
channel.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The 'Disconnect All' button removes all of the
track's output connections.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Clicking a connection in this list will remove
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The right side, labeled "Available
connections," contains a list of all of the inputs offered by
JACK.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Each JACK-aware application has a tab with its
connections listed underneath.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Clicking a connection in this list will add it to the
last-selected output channel.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click the 'Disconnect All'
button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click in the empty "out 1"
list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>From the "Available connections" list, click
on the "Bus-marimba1/in 1" connection. It will be added to the "out
1" list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then click on the "Bus-marimba1/in 2"
connection. It will be added to the "out 2"
list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The appearance of the connection lists will change to
indicate that you've added a pair of connections.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Close' to enable the connection
change.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Note that the "master" button now says
something like "Bus-ma," because the track's output connection has
changed.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The other way to change connections is much faster for
large-scale changes like the ones required here.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select 'Window > Track/Bus
Inspector'
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The "Track/Bus Inspector" window will appear.
It has a list of the tracks and busses on the left side, and four tabs of information on
the right side.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The "Inputs" and "Outputs" tabs
allow you to view and configure the input and output connections of the selected track or
bus. The two "Redirects" tabs allow you to configure plug-in settings, which
are not discussed in this tutorial.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the "Bus-marimba1" bus from the list.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>You should recognize the "Input" and
"Output" tabs.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Verify that the "marimba1-L" track is
connected to this bus' input, and that the bus' output is connected to the
"master" bus' inputs.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Add both outputs of the "marimba1-R" track to
the bus' input list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Check the outputs of the "marimba1-R" track.
This isn't quite what we wanted, so remove the master bus
connection.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the remaining tracks so that they are connected
as described in the table below.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Verify the connections by viewing the busses'
"Input" tabs.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Verify that only the five busses are connected to the
master bus' inputs.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ !! table (SVG graphic?) of how the tracks/busses are connected !!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Edit_Groups">
+ <title>Creating Edit Groups</title>
+ <para>
+ Explain how to do that, and why.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Add_Regions_to_Tracks">
+ <title>Add Regions to Tracks</title>
+ <para>
+ The next step is to add the regions into the tracks. It would be faster if we also
cropped the regions at this point, but there are many reasons that it can be helpful to
have longer regions, or rests (nearly silent space) within a region, so we'll keep
them in tact for now.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>In the session sidebar (to the right of the canvas area),
select the "Regions" tab. This list contains all of the regions in the session.
Each region is listed once, regardless of how many times it appears in the timeline, or
if it's even used at all.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To add a region to the canvas area, simply click on the
region's name, and drag it onto a track. The cursor will change as you do this, so
that the vertical line of the cursor shows the point where the region will begin in the
timeline.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Adding regions is just that easy!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ You guessed it though - there's more to it than that, and it mostly has to do
with the setup of this particular file. You will notice that the region list has many
similarly-named regions, and that most of the names correspond to particular tracks and a
bus. The files are named so that you know what's on them. They are given a number so
that you know the sequence in which they're to be added ("Marimba_1" regions
before "Marimba_2"), and a letter "L" or "R" at the end to
signify whether the region is the left or the right channel. Furthermore, the regions
that start with "ens-" belong on the "voice" tracks ("ens"
is short for "ensemble," meaning that those regions contain a small vocal
ensemble, whereas the "Voice... " regions contain just one singer). The
"Here_Is_How" regions belong before the "Create_the_Inconceivable"
regions. Remember: there is no technical reason that the regions are named as they are.
The names are there to help you edit and mix the song. W
e don't need to use the "marimba2" tracks or bus yet, so just add all of
the "Marimba_" regions to the "marimba1" tracks.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ As you add the regions, you will learn a lot about manipulating regions in Ardour.
Here are some tips to help:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Use the mouse's scrollwheel (if you have one) to
scroll vertically, seeing all the tracks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Hold down the 'Ctrl' button on the keyboard and
use the mouse's scrollwheel to adjust the amount of time visible in the canvas
window.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Hold down the 'Alt' button on the keyboard and
use the mouse's scrollwheel to scroll horizontally, moving along the
timeline.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After placing a region, you can move it around anywhere
in the canvas area. You'll need to use the "Select/Move Objects" tool:
click the pointing hand icon in the toolbar underneath the transport
controls.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you are moving a region, be sure to click and drag
from the large area above the coloured bar. If you click in the coloured bar at the
bottom of the region, you will reduce the region's
size.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you're just adding tracks like this, it's
not important that they are synchronized perfectly. But you can use the
"magnetic" snapping feature to automatically align the beginning of tracks to
the second. As you slowly drag a region, when the start nears a second (indicated by
vertical lines through the canvas area), the region will seem to "stick" to the
second. Later, you may want to turn off this feature.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Since we're just adding the regions imprecisely for
now, put them into the appropriate track as tightly as possible, without
overlapping.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Cut_Regions_Down_to_Size">
+ <title>Cut the Regions Down to Size</title>
+ <para>
+ Now it's appropriate to cut some of the regions down in size. We're going to
do this by removing some of the nearly-silent space before and after the material that was
intended to be recorded. There are a few special cases, so first there will be specific
instructions on how to do this to a region, and then general instructions for each
region.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Let's start with the clarinet:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>First, set the clarinet bus to "solo" mode by
pressing the 's' button on the bus' control space. This will allow us to hear
only the clarinet bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the first clarinet region by pressing
"Home" on the keyboard to set the transport's playhead to the beginning,
then pressing the space key to start the transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There is approximately 20 seconds of near-silence before
the clarinet starts to play. If you listen carefully, you can hear the room, and somebody
counting measure numbers.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If the channels aren't synchronized, you'll need
to adjust their placement in the timeline. Use the yellow clock that appears when you
drag regions - it's set to the same units as the secondary clock, and shows you the
time of the beginning of the file. It's important to get it synchronized before the
next step!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Choose either the "L" or "R" region.
If you're using edit groups, it doesn't matter which you choose, because Ardour
will realize that the regions in both tracks are "group equivalent" (that is,
they're basically the same, so they probably belong
together).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the mouse to click in the coloured bar of the region,
close to where the clarinet starts.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ardour will automatically move the start of the region
''in both tracks''.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move the playhead by clicking in the rulers at the point
where you want the playhead to be, so that you can listen to the regions to ensure that
you didn't cut out any of the useful audio.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you want to adjust the beginning of the region,
carefully move the mouse cursor to the start of the region, in the coloured bar. The
cursor should turn into a double-ended left-and-right arrow. If you happened to
accidentally remove some of the useful clarinet sound, you'll notice that it's
still there. In fact, the beauty of trimming regions in this way is that it's
"non-destructive," meaning that the entire original region is still
there!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Notice that when you made the first adjustment, Ardour
put an arrow beside the region name in the region list of the session sidebar. If you
click on the arrow, you will see that there is another copy of the same region underneath,
but it's white. Ardour wants you to know that the white-coloured region is a
modification of the blue-coloured region. If you drag the white-coloured region into the
canvas area, you'll notice that it starts at the same time as the region you just
modified. It can ''also'' be dragged out to the full size of the original
region, which would create another modified version of the original. While it seems like
Ardour stores multiple copies of the region, it actually just stores one copy, and the
information required to make it seem like there are many.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the end of the region so that there isn't too
much silence after the clarinet. Be extra careful with this, so that you don't cut
out any of the clarinet, which gets very quiet at the end of the region. There isn't
much to cut off! Note that you cannot click in the coloured bar when adjusting the end of
a region, so you'll have to click-and-drag.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here are the instructions to edit the rest of the regions. As you trim the regions,
you may find it helpful to move them all towards the start of the session. Remember to
change the bus that's in "solo mode" when you move to different tracks, or
else you won't be able to hear the tracks you're trying to edit You may also
notice that some of these regions contain identical or nearly-identical music, which
we'll deal with later.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Clarinet
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Clarinet_2:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Starts with sound, but it's not useful, so cut it
out, along with the silence after it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>End has a good chunk of silence to cut
out.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Clarinet_3, Clarinet_4: the silence at the beginning and
end can be removed, but leave the silence in the middle.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Strings:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Strings_1: Starts with grumbling noise, which was not
intended to be captured. You can keep it or discard as you please - Esther decided to
keep it in, and so will I.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Strings_2, 3, 4: Silence at the beginning, but only a
little at the end. You can cut out the talking, or deal with it
later.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Voice:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Voice_1, 2, 3, 4: Simply remove the silence from
beginning and end, leaving the mistakes, which we'll take care of
later.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>ens-Here_Is_How-1, 2, 3: It's too difficult for now
to trim all of the extra noise, so just get most of it. The breating and shuffling can be
removed later.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>ens-Create_the_Inconceivable: For now, keep both of the
attempts. Later, we'll choose which one we prefer.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Marimba:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Marimba_1: Don't trim the beginning of this region;
we'll use it to time the start of the session. You can trim the silence at the end,
but be sure that you don't clip it while the sound of the marimba is still
ringing.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Marimba_2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7: Trim the silence around these
as desired, still being careful not to clip the marimba while it's still ringing.
This may require cautious listening at high volume
settings.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Now that we have roughly trimmed the silence surrounding the portions of audio that
we really want, we'll have an easier time putting them in the right order.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings">
+ <title>Compare Multiple Recordings of the Same Thing</title>
+ <para>
+ Part of the power of recording with a DAW is that the same material can be capture
multiple times. Mixing and matching like this allows us to seek the "perfect"
performance of a piece of music. A few of the regions in this file are multiple takes of
the same material. There are a few occasions where we can definitively say that one is
better than the other, and there are a few occasions where it depends on your personal
taste. This section covers techniques that can be used to further cut up the audio, in
this case with the end goal of comparing and choosing preferred sections. Not all choices
will be made yet.
+ </para>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Clarinet_1_and_2">
+ <title>Clarinet_1 and Clarinet_2 Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the Clarinet_1 and Clarinet_2 regions.
They're the same musical material, and they're nearly identical, so it's too
early to decide which one to use. But, let's label them so that we know they're
the same.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the "Clarinet_1--L" region from the
region list in the session toolbar by left-clicking on the triangle to the left of the
blue name, so the white name appears, and left-clicking once on the white name. Remember
that the white region was created when you trimmed the empty area out of the original
(blue) region.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then click again on the white name, and a text box will
appear.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Change the textbox so it says
"Clarinet_1A--L"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press 'Enter' on the keyboard to set the
name.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Rename the following regions as shown:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>"Clarinet_1--R" becomes
"Clarinet_1A--R"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Clarinet_2--L" becomes
"Clarinet_1B--L"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>"Clarinet_2--R" becomes
"Clarinet_1B--R"</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Since Clarinet_1 and Clarinet_2 represent the same
musical material, we've renamed them to show it. Now, they're both Clarinet_1,
with two versions, "A" and "B."</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There will be some naming inconsistencies at this point:
the blue-coloured regions still have their original names, and the canvas area doesn't
have any region called "Clarinet_2"! If this bothers you, you can rename the
other regions to suit.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Clarinet_3_and_4">
+ <title>Clarinet_3 and Clarinet_4 Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ Listen to the Clarinet_3 and Clarinet_4 regions. Clarinet_4 starts with the same
material that's in Clarinet_3, and ends with the same material that's in
Clarinet_1A and Clarinet_1B. First rename the "Clarinet_3" regions to
"Clarinet_3A," and the "Clarinet_4" regions to
"Clarinet_3B." Then, we'll extract the Clarinet_1-like portion from the
Clarinet_3B regions.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Under the transport toolbar, select the
"Select/Move Ranges" tool, which looks like a double-ended left-to-right arrow
with vertical lines at the sides.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The cursor will change to look like a text-editing
"I"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Scroll to the end of the "Clarinet_3B"
regions, so you can see the part the sounds like the "Clarinet_1"
regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click and drag the mouse over the
"Clarinet_1"-like region in one of the tracks, to select
them.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Because of the edit group, Ardour will automatically
select the same area of both tracks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>We have to be sure to select all of the
"Clarinet_1"-like material, so after you've selected a range, right-click on
the range, and select 'Play Range' from the menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you want to adjust the selected range, use the darker
squares at the top corners of the range-selection box. When you put the cursor over one
of these boxes, it will change into a double-ended, left-to-right
arrow.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now create a new region from the range. Right-click on
the selected range, and select 'Bounce range to region list' from the
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The range will appear as independent regions in the
region list, called something like "clarinet-L-0-bounce-1". This isn't very
helpful, so rename the regions to "Clarinet_1C--L" and
"Clarinet_1C--R". Notice that the new regions are coloured
white.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>We no longer need the range tool, so select the
"Select/Move Objects" tool, which is the hand-shaped icon just to the left of
the range tool, underneath the transport toolbar.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The selected range will no longer be selected. Trim the
end of the "Clarinet_3B" regions down to size, past the material that we just
bounced to the region list, and past the near-silence before
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now move the "Clarinet_3" regions back, to
make room for the newly-created "Clarinet_1C"
regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Drag the new "Clarinet_1C" regions onto the
canvas after the other "Clarinet_1" regions, and adjust the spacing of the other
regions, if you wish.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Strings_1">
+ <title>Strings_1 Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>These regions start with the grumbling noise that was
accidentally recorded. If you decided to leave it in, you could bounce the grumbling to
the region list, so it can be controlled independently of the strings that
follow.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The new regions are probably called something like
"strings-L-0-bounce-1". Because I know that the sound is chairs being moved
across the floor in a room upstairs from the recording studio, I'm going to call the
regions "Chairs--L" and "Chairs--R".</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then remove the noise of the chairs from the Strings_1
regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Since the marimba2 tracks aren't yet being used, we
can put the Chairs regions there - at least for now - just to remember that we have
them.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the Strings_1 region. You'll notice that
the noise of the chairs continues throughout the region. We can remove it
later.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You wouldn't know this without carefully listening
to the song, or having the sheet music for "Here Is How," so I'll tell you:
the musicians make a mistake near the end of this region, which is why the violinist says,
"sorry," just after that.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>We'll need to remove the error, so adjust the end of
the track to make it about six seconds earlier. In the canvas view, you want to put the
end of the region just before the second-last
"blob."</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Strings">
+ <title>Strings Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ These four regions are all tied together, and the material overlaps between them.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Strings_2 covers most of the same material as Strings_1,
and goes for a bit longer. It doesn't have the noise of the chairs, but there is a
playing mistake after about the first minute and 20 seconds (1:20), so we can't use
the end.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Trim the last 32 seconds or
so.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Rename this region to
"Strings_1B"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Rename the "Strings_1" regions to
"Strings_1A," to match with 1B</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>We'll decide which of these regions to use
later.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Strings_3 is also the same material, so rename it to
"Strings_1C."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Strings_4 starts with the place where Strings_1A went
wrong, and goes on from there. Let's keep it as it is, for
now.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Voice">
+ <title>Voice Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ These regions contain some overlap, but it is relative simple to sort out.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Voice_1 contains two chunks of audio. The first one is
good, but the singer had a problem making the second one clear, so we're not going to
use it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Voice_2 contains the second chunk of audio that was
recorded poorly in Voice_1. She also has a bit of a problem in Voice_2. Let's fix
this up now.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Trim the Voice_1 regions to remove the second chunk of
audio, and the near-silence that precedes it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>One way to deal with the Voice_2 region is simply to
cut off the first part of the region, which contains the words "I have your
flax-" and some near-silence.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The second time the singer sings, "I have your
flax-," it sounds a bit rushed, so I'm going to combine the first "I have
your flax-" with the following "golden tails to ... "
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Use the "Select/Move Ranges" tool to select
the first time the singer says "I have your flax-," being careful to capture all
of the word "flax," but none of the near-silence that
follows.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the loop function of the transport to ensure
you've got the right range selected:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select a range, then right-click on the range and
select 'loop range'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you want to make an adjustment, stop the
transport, and adjust the range as desired.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To listen again, right-click on the range and select
'loop range'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You may need to zoom in so that you can adjust the
range with sufficient detail. Hold the 'Ctrl' key on the keyboard, and use the
scrollwheel to zoom in.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you're done with the looping function,
remove the looping markers from the timeline. They look like green triangles with the
word "Loop" written beside. Move the cursor over a triangle, so that it changes
colour. Then press the 'Delete' button on the
keyboard.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you are happy with the range that you've
selected, right-click on the range and choose 'Consolidate range' from the
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ardour will create a region from the range that you
selected, leaving it in-place. It will also divide the space in the region before and
after the new region, leaving you with many smaller regions, all conveniently collected in
the session toolbar's Regions list, under the blue-coloured "Voice_2--L" and
"Voice_2--R" regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Trim the rest of the original Voice_2 region, so that
it starts with "golden," and does not contain any of the previous word
("flax-"). You don't need to use the range tool, but you can if you
wish.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then, push the two regions together, so that it sounds
like "I have your flax-golden tails to... "</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This isn't going to sound perfect, but you might
prefer it to simply trimming the beginning off the Voice_2
region.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>It's important to remember to move both regions
together. If they are accidentally separated, then you can easily enough move them back
into place.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Voice_3 contains two chunks of audio. We'll leave
it alone for now.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Voice_4 contains the same two chunks of audio as
Voice_3, but goes on to include more. We can't yet determine whether to use Voice_3
or Voice_4 for those two chunks, so we're going to leave them in both
regions.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Here_Is_How">
+ <title>ens-Here_Is_How Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>ens-Here_Is_How-1 contains two chunks of similar audio,
both correct.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>ens-Here_Is_How-2 contains two chunks of similar audio.
It's different from ens-Here_Is_How-1, but the second of these chunks has incorrect
pitches, but the timing between the two chunks is correct.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>* ens-Here_Is_How-3 contains the second chunk of audio
from ens-Here_Is_How-2, with the correct pitches. Since we want to maintain the correct
timing from ens-Here_Is_How-2, simply drag ens-Here_Is_How-3 over top of
ens-Here_Is_How-2. Align the regions so that the wave-form shape of -3 is as close to
covering that of -2 as possible. These regions will also have to be carefully moved
together.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Create_the_Inconceivable">
+ <title>ens-Create_the_Inconceivable Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ There are two takes of the same material in this region.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to them both, and decide which you prefer -
it's up to your preference. Remember, you can also reverse your choice later, because
Ardour won't delete the material that you remove by trimming the
region.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the range tool to select the range which includes
the take that you prefer.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the transport's looping mechanism, if you wish,
to be sure that you selected the right range.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click on the range, then choose 'Crop region
to range,' which will automatically trim the region for
you.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Compare_Multiple_Recordings-Marimba">
+ <title>Marimba Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ All of the Marimba regions are continuous and correct. We will need to do some
fancy work in the next section to coordinate and synchronize them.
+
+ !! You discovered later that this is incorrect !!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Compare Multiple Recordings" Section -->
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange">
+ <title>Arrange Regions into the Right Places</title>
+ <para>
+ We're going to start by arranging the marimba, since it plays a relatively
consistent rhythm throughout most of the song. It is a good idea to start with something
like this, so that the following tracks and regions can be related to it.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ All of the times here are given in minutes and seconds. The tutorial file is
configured to use this unit by default, but if you have changed it, you will need to keep
that in mind. Also, I have not cropped or trimmed the "Marimba_1" region, and
it is located in the "marimba1" track, starting at 00:00:00.000. If you have
modified that region, I suggest restoring it to the original size.
+ </para>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange-Marimba">
+ <title>Start with the Marimba Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>When you have made sure that the "Marimba_1"
regions are not cropped or trimmed, and that they start at 00:00:00.000, we can lock it in
place.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click on the regions, and navigate to the
'Selected regions' menu, then click 'Lock' from that
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Notice that Ardour puts > and < around
the name of the region, in the canvas area.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Also notice that you can no longer move the region with
the "Select/Move Objects" tool.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now place a marker to show the exact moment when it
starts: six seconds into the session.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Zoom in appropriately so that you can see where the
six-second mark on the ruler should go (but you needn't see it yet). Hold the
'Ctrl' button on the keyboard, and use the mouse's scrollwheel to zoom in, or
press the '=' button on the keyboard to zoom in and the '-' button to zoom
out.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move the cursor to near the six-second mark (again, not
important to be precise yet), and right-click in the "Location Markers" row.
Select 'New location marker' from the menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click-and-drag the yellow-green arrow that appears, so
that the yellow clock shows 00:00:06.000, indicating six seconds precisely. Release the
mouse.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move the cursor over the marker, so it changes colours
from yellow-green to red-tan (coral). Right-click and select 'Lock' from the
menu, so that the marker will not be accidentally moved.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Again, right-click while the cursor is over the marker.
Select 'Rename' from the menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>A small window will appear. Write the name of the
maker, "marimba-start," and click 'Rename' to set the new
name.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Since we will be adjusting the placement of regions in
the timeline very precisely, we will need to use different "Snap/Grid Mode."
Each setting is useful for a different kind of task.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>We can change the mode using the toolbar just above the
canvas area. The pop-down menu probably says "Magnetic," indicating that
it's in "Magnetic Snapping Mode," but it might also say "No Grid"
or "Grid."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>No Grid: This mode gives the user full control over
where they will place a region. It is useful for doing highly-precise alignment, as
we're about to do.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Grid: This mode only allows the user to place regions
where they will start on a grid-line. Unless you changed it, your grid is set to two
seconds, so you can only start regions in two-second intervals - Ardour will not allow you
to place a region so that it starts on an odd-numbered second, or anywhere in
between.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Magnetic: This mode allows the user to place a region
wherever they like, but when the start of the region is near a grid-line (an even-numbered
second, in this session), the start of the region will automatically "snap" to
that point. It behaves as if the start of regions were magnetically attracted to the grid
lines.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the snap/grid mode to "No
Grid."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move the "Marimba_2" regions so that they are
in the "marimba2" tracks, so that the sound in "Marimba_2" starts at
about 15 seconds (00:00:15.000) on the timeline. You'll have to move the grinding of
the chairs out of the way, if you decided to keep it. Move it to the "strings"
tracks, before the "Strings" regions.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that both the "marimba1" and
"marimba2" busses are on solo mode, so you will be able to hear them
both.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now here's the difficult part: you'll have to
align the two tracks, so that they start together.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The sound in the "Marimba_2" regions should
start at the same time as the second pattern in the "Marimba_1" tracks, which is
at about 15 seconds on the timeline.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You'll need to zoom in - it helps to be able to see
the wave-form shapes of the regions. More importantly, zooming in allows you to adjust
the placement of the regions with greater precision.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You may want to select a range, and use the loop mode
of the transport. This will allow you to hear the start of the regions again and again,
ensuring that they are aligned.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you feel like you've got it close, but not quite
together, then try moving it far away, listening, then adjusting it closer
again.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Once you have aligned the first few seconds of this
pattern, it will eventually become unsynchronized, which is okay. The beginning will be
the most noticable part; when the listeners become accustomed to the sound of the two
marimba tracks together, they will stop paying close attention. Furthermore, they are
likely to be focussing on the words by the time the marimba tracks become
unsynchronized.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Remember to lock the "Marimba_2"
region!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the rest of the regions together. The end of
the regions, at about 00:02:20.000, should be aligned, if you aligned the start correctly.
The higher and lower marimbas will alternate.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now, move "Marimba_3" and
"Marimba_4," so that they start at approximately 00:03:20.000, with
"Marmiba_3" in the "marimba1" tracks, and "Marimba_4" in the
"marimba2" tracks.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>They will eventually need to be aligned with each other,
but we can't set them in place yet.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The rest of the Marimba tracks can be removed from the
canvas area.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ !! Deleted Marimba_4, Marimba_5, Marimba_6, M_7 here !!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange-Voice">
+ <title>Continue with the Voice Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ Throughout this section, you will need to move un-placed regions out of the way,
farter down the session, so that they don't interfere with the alignment process.
Remember to lock the regions once you put them in place. They can be unlocked and
re-aligned later, if you choose. Finally, it will help if you place a marker (like the
"marimba-start" marker that we placed earlier) where each region will start.
When you place a marker, you can click on it, and move the blue place-marker line. This
will help you to align the start of sound in a region to the place where you want it to
be.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Enable "solo" mode on the "voice"
bus, so that you can hear it as well as the marimba busses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "Voice_1" regions so that the singer
starts at about the same time as the higher marimba.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "Voice_2" regions so that the singer
starts at about 00:00:48.00</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "ens-Here_Is_How-1" regions so that
they start singing at about 00:01:33.300</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "ens-Here_Is_How-2" (and the
adjoined "ens-Here_Is_How-3") regions so that they start singing at about
00:02:11.500</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After playing closer attention to "Voice_3"
and "Voice_4," you realize that the singer misses a word ("plan
'''in''' you spider's ear") in "Voice_4."
Because "Voice_3" doesn't contain the second part of "Voice_4,"
we'll need to trim the "Voice_4" region, and use both.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The singer should start singing in "Voice_3"
at about 00:02:24.500</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The signer should start singing "and here is
how" in "Voice_4" at about 00:02:43.000</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "ens-Create_the_Inconceivable"
regions so that they start singing at about 00:02:59.000</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange-Marimba_at_End">
+ <title>Align the Marimba at the End</title>
+ <para>
+ Now that we have roughly placed all the singers' regions, we can figure out
where to put the concluding marimba passage.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the "ens-Create_the_Inconceivable"
regions. We're going to start the marimba's ending regions somewhere after the
highest singer has said "if you know what I mean," but before she stops singing
the word "mean."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>It's up to you exactly where to re-start the
marimba. Pick a place, and move the two "Marimba_3" region to that place in the
"marimba1" bus, and the "Marimba_4" region in the "marimba2"
bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You may need to set up a range and use the
transport's looping function to get the alignment
exact.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This particular entry is going to be difficult, because
the low marimba enters quietly and blooms into sounding, while the higher marimba has a
hard attack that dies. This means that, if you start both marimba tracks at the same
time, the listener will perceive the lower track as starting after the higher track. If
you don't believe me, try it out!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To solve this problem, the original editor (Esther) had
the upper marimba start a bit later than the lower
marimba.</para></listitem></orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you were to listen to the session so far, you would notice that the marimba is
way too loud compared to the singers, and that everything sounds very narrow. This is
because we're only arranging regions, and we haven't done any of the mixing yet!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange-Strings">
+ <title>Align the Strings Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "Strings_1A" regions so that they
start playing at about 00:00:28.00, which should leave plenty of room for the sound of the
chairs, if you decided to keep it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The "Strings_4" region begins in the same way
that the "Strings_1A" regions end. Listen to both, and choose which you prefer,
then use the position of the sounds in the "Strings_1A" region to guide your
trimming and alignment of the "Strings_4" region.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The other two strings regions contain the same musical
material as the "Strings_1A" region. We can't decide between them yet, so
move them both past the end of the concluding marimba regions, so they won't be
heard.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Arrange-Clarinet">
+ <title>Align the Clarinet Regions</title>
+ <para>
+ As with the Strings regions, we will simply pick a suitable clarinet region, and
move it into place, leaving the choice between multiples until later. When you're
moving regions a long distance like this, it helps to zoom out for a bit.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "Clarinet_1A" region so that the
sound begins just after 00:01:06.200</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slide the "Clarinet_3A" region so that the
sound begins just after 00:01:35.000</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Arrange Regions into the Rgith Places" Section
-->
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Editing-Listen">
+ <title>Listen</title>
+ <para>
+ Before moving on to the mixing stage, listen to the whole song, to make sure that the
ordering makes sense. When you're listening, remember that the volume levels and
balances will sound off, and that the whole session will sound very "centred" in
the stereo image.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Editing" Section -->
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing">
+ <title>Mixing a Session (Tutorial)</title>
+ <para>
+ The next stage is called "mixing," and it primarily involves two tasks:
setting volume levels, and adjusting the stereo pan settings. We'll use automation to
store our fader and panning adjustments, and see how handy it can be to have left and
right channels recorded on separate tracks, combined with sub-master busses.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In terms of producing a recording of a live musical performance, it is the mixing
stage where the audio engineer (in this case, you) has the most creative influence.
Careful adjustment and tuning of the tracks will greatly affect the listeners'
experience.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Finally, it should be noted that, moreso than in the editing stage, the mixing stage
should ''not'' be understood as progressing in a linear manner. This
means you should not be following the tutorial from start to finish, but jumping between
sections are desired. You should set up the tracks for stereo output first, and then read
through all the sections and follow their advice as you wish, but sometimes returning to
previous activities to re-tune those settings. When one setting is changed, it tends to
have an effect on other settings, so if you set the level of a track once, then change its
panning, you should check that the levels you set are still desirable - they'll
probably need some tweaking, however minor it may be.
+ </para>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing-Enabling_Stereo_Output">
+ <title>Setting the Session for Stereo Output and Disabling Edit
Groups</title>
+ <para>
+ Part of the reason that the session sounds so bad is that all of the audio has been
routed through both the left and right channels equally, making it a "mono"
recording, even though we have the material of a "stereo" recording. This could
easily have been done sooner, but it wouldn't have made much of a difference until
now. Whereas mixing was focussed on getting the regions assembled so that they are like
the song, mixing is about fine-tuning the regions and tracks so that they make the song
sound great.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Disabling the edit groups is also a good idea, because leaving them enabled actually
''reduces'' functionality in this stage of production. With edit groups
enabled, any change that we make to one of the tracks will automatically be made to the
other track, too. We want to be able to adjust the tracks independently; for cases where
both tracks need the same adjustment, we will use the sub-master bus to which they're
attached.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ These steps will disable the edit groups, and re-configure this session's tracks
for stereo output.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>We need to adjust tracks independently, so the edit
groups must temporarily be disabled.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Flip to the "Edit Groups" tab of the session
sidebar.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Uncheck the "Active" button for all the groups.
If you want to re-enable an edit group later, simply re-check the "Active"
button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Open the mixer window by selecting from the menu
'Window > Show Mixer'. If you have a multiple-monitor setup, it can be very
useful to keep the mixer window on a separate monitor from the main editor window. If you
don't have a multiple-monitor setup, you can keep the mixer window on a separate
virtual desktop. Of course, these are both optional steps.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Near the bottom of each track's mixer, above the
buttons, is a small black rectangle with three grey triangles and a green vertical line.
Each of the busses have two of these rectangles. This controls the panner, which adjusts
a track's left/right position in the stereo image.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can adjust the panner by click-and-dragging in the
panner display. You don't need to click on the green line, but the line will show you
the approximate placement of the track in the stereo image.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Each "left" track, ending with a capital
"L," should have the green line set all the way to the
left.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Each "right" track, ending with a capital
"R," should have the green line set all the way to the
right.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Each bus is probably already set correctly. The bus'
upper window represents the left channel, and the green line should be all the way left.
The bus' lower window represents the right channel, and the green line should be all
the way right.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The mixer control located above the panner is called the "fader," and it
allows you to adjust a track's level.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing-Set_Initial_Levels">
+ <title>Set Initial Levels</title>
+ <para>
+ As with editing, the point here is to get the levels set into the right general area,
so they work for most of the track. When you start using an automation track later, the
levels can be fine-tuned, and changed within the session. Here is one possible procedure
to use for an initial level adjustment:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Open the mixer window with the menu, by choosing
'Window > Mixer'. As mentioned earlier, it can be convenient to put the mixer
window on another monitor or virtual desktop.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Set all of the faders to 0 dB. They are probably already
set to this level, unless you changed them earlier.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Take the quietest track, when set to 0 dB, as the
limiting factor on how loud the other tracks should be. Since it's generally safer to
avoid amplifying audio signals, if we use the quietest track as the "base-line,"
then we'll have to adjust the level of the other tracks ''down'' to
suit. In this case, the voice tracks are the quietest.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>At this point, it's best to stick with adjusting the
busses' faders. If you adjust the faders on the tracks, this will affect the panning,
and could lead to confusing problems later.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Play through the session, and adjust the faders of the
busses so that all of the tracks can be heard equally well. Remember that you're just
aiming for ''most'' of the session to be balanced at this point; a single
fader setting is unlikely to be acceptable for the entire
session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can adjust the fader setting in two ways:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Click-and-drag the vertical, dotted control strip to the
left of the level meter (which lights up as a track is
playing).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the indicator box as a text field: click in the box,
erase the number that it shows, and write in a new number. Press 'enter' on the
keyboard to set the new value.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You might wish to change the order of tracks and busses
in the canvas area, which will change the order in the mixer window. Putting all of the
busses together makes it easier to see them.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You could also choose to not display the tracks, again
allowing you to focus on the busses that you will be changing. Do temporarily hide a
track or bus in the mixer window, use the toolbox on the left side of the mixer window.
Un-check the "Show" box for each of the tracks or busses that you want to
temporarily hide.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The "maximum level" indicator on the fader tool
might help you to judge how loud each track is. This indicator is located above the
meter, underneath the "Solo" button. The indicator displays the highest level
produced by the track since the indicator's last reset. You can reset the indicator
by clicking on it.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing-Set_Initial_Panning">
+ <title>Set Initial Panning</title>
+ <para>
+ Setting up the initial panning takes quite a bit more thought than setting the
initial levels. Different music will have different requirements, but the main purpose of
adjusting the panning for this sort of recorded acoustic music is to ensure that each
performer has a unique and unchanging position in the stereo image. When humans are
listening to music, they implicitly ascribe a "location" to the sound - where
their brain thinks it should be coming from. When listening to recorded music, we
understand that the sound is actually coming from speakers or a set of headphones, and
that the performers are not actually there. Even so, it can be difficult, tiring, and
unpleasant to listen to music where the imagined position of a performer or sound is
constantly changing - just as it's difficult and tiring to listen to music which is
has poorly balanced levels.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ As if it weren't already difficult enough, the stereo image is created in our
minds as a complex combination of many factors: quieter sounds and later sounds seem to be
farther away than louder and earlier sounds. Although the DAW's panner can only put
the signal somewhere in a straight line between "all the way left" and "all
the way right," our brains process sound as existing in a three-dimensional world. A
master audio engineer will be able to control these factors with relative ease, but for us
it's going to involve much more trial and error.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ A particular obstacle with this session is that the regions with the soloist put her
in a different imagined position than the regions where the soloist is singing with other
singers. Because these happen in the same tracks, we'll use automated panner and
fader tracks to help solve this problem. Listen for yourself: start at about
00:02:40.000, and pay attention to where the soloist seems to be standing in the
"Voice_4" regions and the "ens-Create_the_Inconceivable" regions. It
seems to me like she moves from nearby on the right to a farther distance just to the
left; somehow without bumping into the other people in the vocal ensemble, or the strings,
which also seem to be in the way! You might argue that most listeners would not pick this
up, and that's probably the case. Even so, I would counter that the drastic change of
level and panning would be passively detected by those same people, even if they only
consciously perceive it as being "not quite right."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here's one way to start:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the session as needed, and see if you can place
the location of the instruments/singers throughout most of the session. You'll need
to remember this, so consider writing it down, or drawing a
map.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now, draw a map of where you think everything should be.
Especially in non-standard ensembles like this, there is no pre-defined seating or
standing arrangement. Some tracks will need very little adjustment, but others may need
extensive adjustment. In general, the less tweaking required, the better the session will
sound - so if something seems like a track already has a consistent location, and it
doesn't conflict with other tracks, then it's probably better to leave it
alone.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Here's what I hear. It may be different from what
you hear, especially if you happened to do your initial level-setting differently:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Both of the marimba tracks are consistent throughout.
The "marimba1" tracks seem to be about 5 metres in front of me, of to the left a
bit. The "marimba2" tracks seem to be about the same distance away, but almost
directly to my right.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>All of the strings regions seem to be consistent, with
the violin placed just left-of-centre, and the 'cello just right-of-centre. They seem
to be a bit closer than the marimbas.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The clarinet seems to be on the opposite side of the
higher marimba; about 5 metres away, half-way between in front and to the
left.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The vocal ensemble seems to be standing in the same
place as the strings, but extending a bit more to the
right.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The solo vocalist seems to be standing in the same place
as the male singers in the vocal ensemble.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Here's how I plan to fix it; directions are given
assuming the listener is looking north:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Establish two rows of performers, surrounding the
listener in a semi-circle.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The strings will be in the closer row, to the
north-west. This requires moving them to the left a bit.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The vocal soloist will be in the closer row, just east
of north (the middle). This requires moving her to the left ''just'' a
little bit.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The vocal ensemble will be in the closer row, spread
from north to north-east, allowing the soloist to remain in the same place. This will
mostly require fader adjustment, to make the ensemble seem
closer.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The lower marimba will be in the outer row, to the
north-west. This may not require any adjustment, but perhaps a slight move to the
left.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The higher marimba will be in the outer row, to the
north-east. This requires a slight move to the left.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The clarinet will be in the outer row, to the north.
This will require significant adjustment to the right.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ I chose that particular layout because it requires relatively minimal adjustment, and
it makes a certain amount of sense in terms of traditional instrumental ensemble seating
patterns. Also, the notes played by the clarinet in this song seem suitable to appear as
if from far away, and the passages are played with good expression, so I think it will be
relatively easy for me to acheive that effect. The most important consideration was the
placement of the vocal ensemble and the solo vocalist within it. Although the solo
vocalist sings the highest part in the ensemble ("soprano"), the stereo
recording seems to indicate that she was not standing at the left-most position in the
ensemble (I also know this because I was present during the recording). This adds an
extra difficulty, in that the fader and panner settings for the whole voice track must be
based on the moment in the "ens-Create_the_Inconceivable" region where the
second-highest singer ("alto") sings just after
the highest singer, who is the soloist.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Make rought adjustments to most of the tracks, to place them in approximately the
right space in the stereo image. You may wish to adjust an individual track's panner
setting, in addition to the busses' panner settings; they will have a slightly
different effect. For the marimba tracks, you may wish to fine-tune things now, adjusting
the fader settings. Because these tracks are so consistent, they will require relatively
little automation, and therefore will benefit more from a more thorough initial set-up
procedure. Remember that it's better to be turning down the fader than turning it
up!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ It's probably easier to avoid working with the voice tracks for now.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing-Automation_Tracks">
+ <title>Make Further Adjustments with an Automation Track</title>
+ <para>
+ So far, we've been crudely adjusting the fader and panner settings manually.
This won't work if you want to change the settings while a session is playing; you
would have to change all of the settings by yourself, every time you play the session.
This quickly becomes complicated - not to mention difficult to remember.
"Automation" allows effects (like the panner and fader) to be moved
automatically during session playback. An automation track is simply a track that
contains no audio, but rather instructions to adjust a particular effect. Automation
tracks usually resemble audio tracks, but they hold lines and points, to show the settings
changes. Automation tracks can, in effect, be "recorded," but we're going
to use a more basic editing method. Automation tracks can be assigned to busses and
tracks.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here's how to create an automation track, and fill it in. We're going to
adjust the fader on the lower marimba, so that it is louder in the introduction, and
becomes quieter as the higher marimba and solo vocalist join in.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>In the canvas area, click the 'a' button on the
"Bus-marimba1" bus' control box, to open the "automation"
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click 'Fader' in the automation
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>An automation track, which controls the fader, will
appear underneath the bus.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you click in the automation track, a point will
appear. Each point represents an absolute setting for the control. After the point
appears, if you click-and-drag it, the yellow numbers by the cursor will tell you the
fader's setting at that point.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If there are two or more points in the automation track,
lines will appear to connect them. The fader will be moved gradually between absolute
settings, as shown by the line connecting the points.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you make a mistake and want to start over, you can
press the 'clear' button on the automation track's control box.
Unfortunately, you can't remove a single point. This isn't really necessary
anyway; if you accidentally add too many points, simply use the extra one to keep a
setting constant.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Add one point to the beginning of the automation track,
with a setting of 0.0 dB</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Add one point at about 00:00:15.000, with a setting of
0.0 dB</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Add one point at about 00:00:16.500 (where the singer
starts), with a setting of -10.0 dB, or whatever you set
earlier.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now you've set up an automation plan, but the fader
is still in "Manual" mode, so the automation track will have no effect. Change
the automation track's setting by clicking on the mode button in the track's
control box. The button currently says "Manual."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select "Play," which will cause
the automation settings to be played. In "Manual" mode, you have to adjust all
settings manually. In "Write" mode, changes that you make as the session plays
will be recorded into the automation track, over-writing previous settings. In
"Touch" mode, changes that you make as the session plays will be incorporated
into the pre-existing automation settings.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Finally, listen to confirm that you like the automated
panner change. If you don't, you can always adjust it now or
later.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Now - here's the difficult part! Use automation to change the fader and panner
settings throughout the session. In particular, ensure that the voice tracks are
consistent.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mixing-Other_Things">
+ <title>Other Things You Might Want to Do</title>
+ <para>
+ The mixing stage involves a lot of minor (and major) tweaking. Here are some things
that you might want to do, which aren't adjusting the fader and panner settings:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Re-align tracks to ensure that they're
synchronized.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Find a meaningful way to incorporate the region with the
sound of the chairs.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Compare the currently-unused clarinet regions with the
in-use ones. Try different combinations of the regions, and remove the unused regions
from the session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Compare the currently-unused strings regions with the
in-use ones. These regions are much longer than the clarinet regions, so you might even
want to pick and choose ranges of regions to switch back and
forth.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Have a friend - or at least somebody else - listen to the
mix you're preparing. Get their opinion on difficulties that you may be having, or
use them as a more generic listener.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the mix on different kinds of reproduction
equipment (speakers and amplifiers). The same audio signals will sound different when
played on different equipment.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Mixing" Section -->
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mastering">
+ <title>Mastering a Session (Exporting)</title>
+ <para>
+ To be a true master at mastering sessions requires years of experience and careful
optimization for the target format. Knowing just the right equalization and filtering
settings to apply is an art in itself, worth a full user guide. This section is concerned
with getting the audio out of a session, to a useful format.
+ </para>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mastering-Ways_to_Export">
+ <title>Ways to Export Audio</title>
+ <para>
+ There are three ways to export audio from an Ardour session:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>by region,</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>by range, or</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>by session.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To export a region:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure the region is placed in the canvas
area.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click on the region.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the region-name's menu, then
'Export'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Continue with the Export
window.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To export all audio in a range on the timeline:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the range with the "Select/Move Ranges"
tool. Regardless of which track you select, all tracks can be
exported.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click on the range.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select 'Export' from the
menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Continue with the Export
window.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To export all audio in a session:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select 'Session > Export >
Export > Export session to audiofile', or on the keyboard, press 'Ctrl + Alt +
e'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Continue with the Export
window.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mastering-Using_Export_Window">
+ <title>Using the Export Window</title>
+ <para>
+ Regardless of which export method you choose, the "Export" window is
similar. When you export a region, you do not get to choose which tracks to export (by
definition you are only exporting that region's track).
+ </para>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mastering-Choosing_Tracks_to_Export">
+ <title>Choose Which Tracks to Export</title>
+ <para>
+ By default, Ardour will export all audio in the range or session being exported.
What it actually exports is all audio routed through the master output bus. You can see
the list of tracks to export on the right side of the "Export" window. If you
click the 'Specific Tracks' button, you will be able to choose from a list of all
the tracks and busses in a session. Choosing specific tracks only makes sense if you do
not want to export the master bus' output, so you should probably de-select that
first.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Ardour-Mastering-Choosing_Export_Format">
+ <title>Choose the Export Format</title>
+ <para>
+ Ardour offers quite a variety of output formats, and knowing which to choose can be
baffling. Not all options are available with all file types. Fedora Linux does not
support MP3 files by default, for legal reasons. For more information, refer to
[
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Multimedia/MP3 this web page].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The tutorial's regions have 24-bit samples, recorded at a 48 kHz rate.
Exporting any part of the session with a higher sample format or sample rate is likely to
result in decreased audio quality.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Recommended File Types:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>WAV: An uncompressed format designed by Microsoft.
Recommended only if further audio manipulation is intended. Carries only audio data, so
information like title, artist, and composer will be lost. Playable with almost any
device.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>AIFF: An uncompressed format designed by Apple.
Recommended only if further audio manipulation is intended. Carries only audio data, so
information like title, artist, and composer will be lost. Playable with almost any DAW
and some audio players.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>FLAC: An open-source compressed format. A
"lossless" format, meaning no audio information is lost during compression and
decompression. Audio quality is equal to WAV or AIFF formats. Capable of carrying
metadata, so information like title, artist, and composer will be preserved. Widely
supported in Linux by default. For other popular operating systems, refer to
[
http://flac.sourceforge.net/download.html this web page] for a list of applications
capable of playing FLAC files. This is usually the best choice for distributing
high-quality audio to listeners.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ogg/Vorbis: An open-source compressed format. A
"lossy" format, meaning some audio information is lost during compression and
decompression. Audio quality is less than WAV or AIFF formats, but usually better than
MP3. Capable of carrying metadata, so information like title, artist, and composer will
be preserved. Widely supported in Linux by default. For other popular operating systems,
following the instructions on [
http://www.vorbis.com/ this web page]. This is a good
choice for distributing good-quality audio to listeners.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ A higher number of bits per sample allows a greater amount of audio information to
be stored per sample. A higher !!sample format!! also means larger audio files. You may
find 8 bit samples to be insufficient, and virtually all hardware is capable of
16 bit samples. 24 bit samples are becoming increasingly useful, but
they will only be worthwhile with high-end audio interfaces. 32 bit support is
virtually non-existant, but and you will probably not need to use this format in the near
future. The "float" format stores samples in a different internal format, about
as useful with current technology as 32 bit format. "Sample format" is
sometimes called "bit rate."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you are expoorting audio for high-end equipment, or for further processing,
choose the 24-bit format. Otherwise, choose the 16-bit format, which is the sample format
of audio CDs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ "Sample endianness" is a difficult concept to understand, and it has no
effect on the resulting audio - just the format. Unless you are using a rare PowerPC
computer, choose the "Little-endian (Intel)" option.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ A higher !!sample rate!! allows a greater amount of audio information to be stored,
but increases the size of audio files.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>22.05 kHz: A low sample rate, and possibly
insufficient.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>44.1 kHz: A good, standard sample rate. This
is the sample rate of audio CDs, and it is always a safe
choice.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>48 kHz: Slightly higher quality than
44.1 kHz. Relatively well-supported, widely used for audio recording. This is
the sample rate of audio in DVD videos.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>88.2 kHz: Double the sample rate of audio CDs.
Relatively uncommon.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>96 kHz: Double the sample rate of
48 kHz, and rarely used but for recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>192 kHz: Very high sample rate, and rarely used
but for recording.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ '''Convesion quality''' and '''dither
type''' are not available options for the file formats offered in Fedora
Linux.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The '''CD Marker File Type''' allows you to export a CUE- or
TOC-format list of CD tracks in the exported file. This is most useful when exporting a
whole session, which contains a whole CD, that would be subsequently burned to disc.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Mastering (Exporting)" Section -->
+
+</chapter>
diff --git a/en-US/Audacity.xml b/en-US/Audacity.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..62a4405
--- /dev/null
+++ b/en-US/Audacity.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,409 @@
+<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8' ?>
+<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd" [
+<!ENTITY % BOOK_ENTITIES SYSTEM "Musicians_Guide.ent">
+%BOOK_ENTITIES;
+]>
+
+<chapter id="chap-Musicians_Guide-Audacity">
+ <title>Audacity</title>
+ <para>
+ There are no clearly-defined roles that '''Audacity''' can
play. Once you have used the program for a while, and especially if you become familiar
with other audio-processing software, you will begin to realize that certain situations
are more or less suited for '''Audacity's''' capabilities than
others.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ '''Audacity''' was designed to play the role of a simple,
multi-functional, integrated audio editing program. It is less sophisticated but easier
to learn than the other digital audio software in this Guide
('''Ardour''', '''Qtractor''', and
'''Rosegarden'''). As such, it can be appropriately classified as
an ''Audio Editing'' program.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you have ever used a consumer-market audio recorder, based on either flash memory or
tape, then you can think of '''Audacity''' as being roughly the
equivalent to those hardware devices. '''Audacity''' offers some
additional features that make it more useful and flexible than those devices, and can
therefore be used to do things which hardware recording and editing devices cannot.
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Knowing_When_to_Use">
+ <title>Kowing When to Use Audacity</title>
+ <para>
+ '''Audacity''' should be the program of choice for most people
interested in recording audio because it is fast, flexible, and easy to use. It
doesn't require advanced setup of audio hardware, or more than basic knowledge of
audio recording techniques. It is capable of recording and producing audio files of the
same quality as any other audio software. If you want to plug in the microphone, record,
and export your work to show your friends, then '''Audacity''' is
the program for you.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ '''Ardour''' is an advanced recording program, requiring some
specialized knowledge of audio hardware and recording techniques, as well as more
intensive setup of system hardware. '''Ardour''' also has basic
''MIDI'' capabilities. If you are using audio with more than two
channels, recording multiple tracks in multiple takes, and looking for the most
fine-grained control of levels, panning, and your hardware, then
'''Ardour''' is the program for you.
'''Ardour''' must be used with '''JACK''',
and it is therefore recommended to also use a ''real-time enabled'' kernel
(SEE SOME SECTION SECTION).
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ '''Qtractor''' and '''Rosegarden'''
are both best-suited for work as ''MIDI'' sequencers, although they are
capable of working with audio in ways similar to '''Ardour'''.
Since '''Audacity''' is not intended for use with
''MIDI'' signals, users looking for this capability are encouraged to
investigate the differences between these two programs, and choose whichever suits their
needs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ !! link to "Which DAW to Use" !! In fact, perhaps this whole section could
simply be a reference or transclusion?
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Requirements_and_Installation">
+ <title>Requirements and Installation</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Requirements">
+ <title>Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ In addition to '''Audacity's''' files, the program
requires the installation of several other libraries and applications. These will be
installed automatically with '''Audacity''', so there is no need
to install them yourself.
+ !! clear this up; focus on letting the reader know that the dependencies will
automatically be taken care of !!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The '''JACK Audio Connection Kit''' is required by
'''Audacity''', even if you do not intend to use it. This
software package is relatively large (at 11 MB), but is a requirement. If you have
installed the Planet CCRMA repositories, and not already followed the
'''JACK''' Guide's installation procedures, then you are
strongly encouraged to do so immediately after installation of
'''Audacity''', for security reasons. An explanation and
instructions are available [[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Installation">
+ <title>Installation</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Run [pre]su -c 'yum install audacity'[/pre] or
use '''PackageKit''' or '''KPackageKit'''
to install the <code>audacity</code> package.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Review the requirements list, and approve
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>It is a good idea to test
'''Audacity''' before using it for a real recording. If you
don't test it first, then '''Audacity''' may not record what
you want. !! explain why !!</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Testing_Playback">
+ <title>Post-Installation Testing: Playback</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Locate an audio file that you want to use to test the
playback.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Files in ''*.WAV'' or
''*.AIFF'' format will be the easiest to use at this
point.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The file should not be especially quiet; you should
easily be able to know whether it is playing correctly.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The file can be located anywhere on your computer, as
long as you have permission to read it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you do not already have a file, you can use
<code>/usr/share/sounds/alsa/Noise.wav</code>, which is intended for test
purposes like these.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After starting '''Audacity''',
you can find and select a file by selecting ''File >
Open''.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Play the file repeatedly, as needed. Adjust the volume
levels on your speakers and audio interface, if necessary.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If playback does not work as intended, first verify that
your hardware is setup correctly. If it is, then verify that
'''Audacity''' is setup correctly - see the !!"Configuring
Audacity to Use Your Hardware" section!!.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Testing_Recording">
+ <title>Post-Installation Testing: Recording</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Set up your microphone (or other audio source) so that it
is connected to the input of the sound card you are using.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Start '''Audacity''' with an
empty session (no audio file is open).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In the toolbar, there should be two volume level meters.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>During the playback test, one of them should display
green bars.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The other one will display red bars, representing the
input level from your audio interface.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you do not see it, it may have been accidentally
closed. You can ensure that it is displayed by selecting ''View > Toolbars
> Meter Toolbar''. There should be a check mark next to
it.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There is a small, downward-pointing arrow next to the
microphone icon on the level meter. Click the arrow, then choose ''Start
Monitoring''.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that your source is producing an audio signal. If
your source is a microphone, then sing or talk into it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The recording level meter should react to the
input.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press the ''Record'' button on the
toolbar to start a test recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After a few seconds, press the ''Stop''
button on the toolbar to stop the test recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press ''Play'' on the toolbar to start
playing the test recording. The playback should represent the sound that you wanted to
record.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If recording does not work as intended, first verify that
your hardware is setup correctly. If it is, then verify that
'''Audacity''' is setup correctly - see the "Configuring
Audacity to Use Your Hardware" section.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity_Configuration">
+ <title>Configuration</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-First_Use">
+ <title>The First Time You Use Audacity</title>
+ <para>
+ When you run '''Audacity''' for the first time, you will be
asked to select a language to use for the interface. Also, if you have installed the
Planet CCRMA repositories, and have not already followed the JACK Guide's installation
procedures, then you are strongly encouraged to do so before using
'''Audacity'''.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Before recording for the first time, you are encouraged to test
'''Audacity''' to ensure that it is set up correctly. SEE ABOVE.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Configure_to_Use_Your_Hardware">
+ <title>Configuring Audacity to Use Your Hardware</title>
+ <para>
+ Especially in cases where your computer has multiple sound cards, or where a single
sound card provides multiple, independent input and/or output busses (streams),
'''Audacity''' may not correctly guess which busses you want to
use.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>After starting '''Audacity''',
select ''File > Preferences.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Choose ''Devices'' from the left
tab-list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The ''Host'' should usually be
'''ALSA,''' unless you want to use
'''Audacity''' with
'''JACK'''.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The right setting is for both recording and playback
devices is probably ''default.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If ''default'' doesn't work, then the
next best choice is any of the devices that have names ending with something like
<code>(hw0:0)</code>
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>If you cannot make an educated guess, then try the
devices systematically.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This connects '''Audacity''' to
your audio interface(s) in such a way that '''PulseAudio''' will
not be able to use the devices at the same time, but it gives
'''Audacity''' the greatest amount of
control.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>As a last resort, you can use the
''pulse'' devices, which connects '''Audacity'''
to '''PulseAudio.''' Because
'''Audacity''' does not have direct control of the audio hardware
in this case, it can lead to poor performance.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Setting_Sample_Rate_and_Format">
+ <title>Setting the Project's Sample Rate and Format</title>
+ <para>
+ The related concepts of ''sample rate,'' and ''bit
rate,'' are explained IN THIS CHAPTER (Sound Cards).
'''Audacity''' refers to ''Bit Rate'' as
''Sample Format.''
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>After starting '''Audacity''',
select ''File > Preferences'' to open the
''Preferences'' menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Quality'' from the left
tab-list.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the settings that you wish to use.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>CDs hold audio with a sample rate of
44 100 Hz, and a sample format of 16 bits. This is sufficient for most
uses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Setting 96 000 Hz and 24 bits should
be enough for almost any use.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You should not provide settings that are greater than
your audio interface can provide. It is probably not dangerous to do so, but it may
decrease sound quality. If nothing else, it will use extra space on your hard drive, with
no added audio quality.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Interface">
+ <title>The Interface</title>
+ <para>
+ This tutorial could use a picture of the interface, with an explanation of what the
buttons do. Now that I've written the "DAW" chapter about the interface, I
wonder if it wouldn't be just as useful to "hijack" that section. I
don't think the differences would be alarming, and it would be a good way to save time
- we'll see.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial">
+ <title>Tutorial: Creating a New Login Sound</title>
+ <para>
+ To follow this portion of the tutorial, it is strongly recommended that you download
the '''Audacity''' working-file, and begin doing the actions
described, as instructed in the tutorial.
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Files">
+ <title>Tutorial Files</title>
+ <para>
+ The following files will be useful, if you choose to follow along with the tutorial.
Only the ''Starting State'' file is necessary; the other two are provided
as possible completed forms.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>[[File:FMG-audacity_start.tar.lzma|Tutorial Starting
State]]</para></listitem> <!-- (audacity-1) -->
+ <listitem><para>[[File:FMG-audacity_end.tar.lzma|Tutorial Finishing
State]]</para></listitem> <!-- (audacity-6) -->
+ <listitem><para>[[File:FMG-audacity_final.flac|Exported
FLAC]]</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <!-- Files on FWT:
+ * "audacity.aup" is what you've got after several recordings
+ * "audacity-1.aup" is time-shifted
+ * "audacity-2.aup" is time-adjusted
+ * "audacity-3.aup" is volume-adjusted
+ * "audacity-4.aup" has a part removed
+ * "audacity-5.aup" has a part echoed
+ * "audacity-6.aup" is phased -->
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Scenrario">
+ <title>Scenario</title>
+ <para>
+ You were telling a friend about Fedora Linux's open-source audio programs, and
you mentioned that '''Audacity''' makes it easy to create and edit
audio files. The friend reminds you of their long-standing desire to create a new sound
to be played whenever they log in to their computer, and suggests that
'''Audacity''' can be used to make just a sound. You decide to
work on it together.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Inspiration">
+ <title>Inspiration</title>
+ <para>
+ You choose a starting-point for your new login sound. After thinking about it for a
while, you decide to record some clips from a CD that you own, and mix them together.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Starting_Out">
+ <title>Starting Out</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Make sure that your system is set up to record (with
hardware and sample/bit rates properly selected).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can use the level meter to monitor the input level.
Before recording, you should test the input level, adjusting the audio interface as
required.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To begin the recording, hit the circular red
''Record'' button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you have finished recording, hit the square orange
''Stop'' button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After recording a portion of audio, it should show up in
the main portion of the window, with a blue, sound-wave-like shape representing the volume
level of the recording.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Continuing_to_Record">
+ <title>Continuing to Record</title>
+ <para>
+ There are three main ways to record something additional:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>You want to continue recording from the end of the
already-recorded material.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Hold the '''[Shift]''' key as
you click ''Record'' </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>'''Audacity''' will continue
recording in the last-selected track, from the end of all already-recorded
audio.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You want to record something new to go along with what
you already have, starting at the beginning.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Move the transport to the start: press
'''[Home]''' on the keyboard or select ''Transport >
Skip to Start.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The transport is the vertical line, which represents the
place where '''Audacity''' will begin playback or recording if the
''Play'' or ''Record'' buttons are
pressed.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you click ''Record'',
'''Audacity''' will record onto a new track, and not erase what
you have already recorded.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You want to record something new to go along with what
you already have, starting somewhere else.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Locate the place from where you want to continue
recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the cursor to left-click on that place in an
already-recorded segment.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you click ''Record'',
'''Audacity''' will record onto a new track, and not erase what
you have already recorded.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Aligning_Tracks">
+ <title>Aligning Tracks</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-1 -->
+ <para>
+ At this point in the tutorial, you can begin to follow along by modifying the
'''Audacity''' working-file.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you accidentally record something at the wrong time, or if you change your mind
about when a track should be playing, you can easily move it.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the ''time shift tool'' from the
toolbar.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click on the track you want to move, then slide it left
or right to adjust it as desired.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>To align the start of one segment to the end of another,
drag the later track so that its start is near the end of the earlier one; move it slowly
around that area until a yellow line appears, showing that the segments are
aligned.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To align a segment so that it begins at an arbitrary
point, use the ''selection tool'' to move the transport to that point.
Then, from the menu select ''Tracks > Align Tracks > Align with
Cursor.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>There are other alignment options in the
''Tracks > Align Tracks'' menu, and they apply only to the
currently-selected tracks. To select multiple tracks, click on the portion of the track
at the left, which has information about it. Then, hold down
'''[Shift]''' on your keyboard, and select the
others.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the selection tool from the toolbar.
</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click to place the transport just before the splice, then
press ''Play'' to hear it. Adjust again if
necessary.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Stretching_Tracks">
+ <title>Stretching Tracks</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-2 -->
+ <para>
+ You can stretch or compress tracks, so that they take up more or less time. There
are two tools which do this:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The ''Change Tempo'' tool, which adjusts
speed but not pitch. This degrades sound quality quite a
bit.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The ''Change Speed'' tool, which adjusts
both speed and pitch. This does not degrade sound quality as
much.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To stretch or compress a track,
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select that track by clicking on the portion at the left,
which has information about that track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Effect > Change Tempo'' or
''Effect > Change Speed''.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the window to adjust the degree of
stretching/compression:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Positive values increase speed and compress the
audio.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Negative values decrease speed and stretch the
audio.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can use the ''Preview'' button to get
an idea of the speed change that will happen with your selected
settings.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After clicking ''OK'', it may take a few
seconds for '''Audacity''' to process and apply the changes you
requested.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Adjusting_Volume_and_Removing_Noise">
+ <title>Adjusting a Track's Volume, and Removing Noise</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-3 -->
+ <para>
+ If you want to make a track louder or quieter, you can adjust the volume of
individual tracks, or portions of tracks.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The bottom-most track in the tutorial file is hardly
audible. You press the ''solo'' button on that track to hear it alone,
and realize that it's mostly very quiet humming.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You use the ''selection tool'' to select
part of the track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Effect > Amplify'', which is
a tool that, in effect, adjusts the volume level of an audio segment. If you enable
clipping, then you will be able to adjust the level much higher than if you don't.
However, you may lose part of the audio signal, and the sound quality may deteriorate.
You may have to experiment to find an acceptable balance.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This track still has a lot of ''noise,''
which was created by the recording tools, rather than what was supposed to be recorded.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select about a second of audio, which is going to serve
as a the model of ''noise'' that should be removed. Ideally this portion
of audio will contain only noise, and no signal that you wish to
save.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Effect > Noise Removal'' to
open the ''Noise Removal'' tool. </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In the ''Noise Removal'' window, click
''Get Profile'', so that the tool will take the selected portion of
audio.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now select the whole track, which is the portion of
audio from which you wish to remove the
''noise.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Return to the ''Noise Removal''
tool's window, and select ''OK''.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now you realize that the end of the upper-most track is
too loud, so it interferes with the other.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the last two seconds of that
track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Effect > Fade Out'' to use
the ''Fade Out'' tool.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You think that the third track's entrance is too
quiet, so you select the first portion, then 'Effect > Fade In'
(huh?)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>there's a bit of noise in the fourth track at about
13:00 that you want to bring out, so you amplify it
(double-huh?)</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Removing_Audio">
+ <title>Removing a Portion of Audio</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-4 -->
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The fourth track, after the noise-bump that we just
amplified, is just noise. We don't need it, and it sounds strange, so let's take
it out.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Place the transport at the start of the segment that you
wish to remove, by left-clicking in the existing audio
track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Edit > Select > Cursor to Track
End,'' which will select the portion of audio in the currently-selected track
between the transport and the end of the track. There are many other options for
selecting audio available in that menu.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>On your keyboard, press
'''[Delete]'''.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Repeating_a_Segment">
+ <title>Repeating an Already-Recorded Segment</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-5 -->
+ <para>
+ While you like the beginning of the sound, the end doesn't seem
''busy'' enough. You decide to repeat a portion of the second track, to
make it seem as though it "just won't leave."
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Use the cursor to select the last second of the second
track from the top, then select ''Edit >
Copy.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Place the transport arbitrarily, later in the track, and
select ''Edit > Paste'' from the menu. Repeat this, so there are two
copies.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the ''Time Shift tool'' from the
toolbar, and adjust the time of the two copied segments as
desired.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You might also wish to adjust the volume of a segment,
depending on whether it sounds too loud for you.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Using_the_Phaser">
+ <title>Add a Silly Effect: Using the Phaser</title>
+ <!-- Audacity-6 -->
+ <para>
+ !! make it more clear that this is supposed to show the various effects and plug-ins
available; consider explaining what the Phaser settings do !!
+ !! maybe link to a page which explains what the most popular effects/plug-ins do !!
+ The third track has a significant portion of audio after the end of every other
track. You decide to experiment with a tool called ''Phaser'', so that
you can make it more interesting.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the portion of the third track which begins after
the last occurrence of the second track, and goes to the end. There are a few different
ways to do this.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''Effect > Phaser'' and
experiment with the settings. Use the ''Preview'' button to sample the
outcome of your currently selected settings.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can use whatever settings seem appropriate. The
tutorial file uses these settings:
+ [pre]Stages: 2
+ Dry/Wet: 128
+ LFO Frequency: 0.4
+ LFO Start Phase: 0
+ Depth: 128
+ Feedback: 90[/pre]</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Tutorial-Further_Comments">
+ <title>Further Comments</title>
+ <para>
+ If you followed along with the '''Audacity''' working-file,
the chances are that your result is different from the completed model available above.
There are a few reasons for this:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The tutorial's instructions are intentionally vague.
This allows you to easily see how they apply to different
uses.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The tutorial's instructions allow room for creative
experimentation. This allows you to create a different result from the same starting
material, by harnessing your own creative power.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>While the model completion was being created, some extra
steps were used to modify the sound. While the result was reached with all of the same
tools and techniques described in the tutorial, they were used many more times than the
tutorial explains. In particular, the tracks were time-shifted between most
steps.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Saving_and_Exporting">
+ <title>Saving and Exporting</title>
+ <para>
+ When you save a file in '''Audacity''' with the
''Save'' or ''Save As'' commands, it is saved in an
Audacity-only format. This is good, because it allows
'''Audacity''' to save extra information about the audio, which is
impossible to store in conventional formats like ''OGG'',
''FLAC'', or even ''AIFF'' and ''WAV.''
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you want to share your audio work, or use it with another application, you will
need to ''export'' it. This means that all of your tracks will be reduced
to one track, and all of your channels will be reduced to stereo audio (with two
channels). When you export, '''Audacity''' may warn you that your
audio is being mixed into two channels. This will only affect the exported audio file,
not the Audacity-format file.
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Exporting_Part_of_a_File">
+ <title>Exporting Part of a File</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Use any means to select a portion of audio. You can
click-and-drag with the cursor, or place the transport and select ''Edit >
Select,'' or use another means.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''File > Export
Selection.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para># Use the ''Export File'' window to
choose the format of your exported audio, and to configure advanced options of the format.
Not all formats have advanced options.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After clicking ''Save'' in the
''Export File'' window, some formats will provide a window where you can
configure ''metadata'' about the file. ''Metadata'' is
information about information - in this case, it describes qualities about the audio in
the exported file, like Artist, Title, Genre, and so on. You can leave the fields blank,
or complete as many as you prefer.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Audacity-Exporting_a_Whole_File">
+ <title>Exporting a Whole File</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select ''File >
Export.''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the ''Export File'' window to choose
the format of your exported audio, and to configure advanced options of the format. Not
all formats have advanced options.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After clicking ''Save'' in the
''Export File'' window, some formats will provide a window where you can
configure ''metadata'' about the file. ''Metadata'' is
information about information - in this case, it describes qualities about the audio in
the exported file, like Artist, Title, Genre, and so on. You can leave the fields blank
or complete as many as you prefer.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+</chapter>
diff --git a/en-US/FluidSynth.xml b/en-US/FluidSynth.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5ac2f14
--- /dev/null
+++ b/en-US/FluidSynth.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,334 @@
+<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8' ?>
+<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd" [
+<!ENTITY % BOOK_ENTITIES SYSTEM "Musicians_Guide.ent">
+%BOOK_ENTITIES;
+]>
+
+<chapter id="chap-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth">
+ <title>FluidSynth</title>
+ <para>
+ FluidSynth is a software-based MIDI synthesizer. FluidSynth accepts MIDI input from
programs like Qtractor and Rosegarden, and uses SoundFont technology to create audio
signals. This makes FluidSynth a very flexible tool; it can be used even on low-power
computers, doesn't require specialized hardware, and can take advantage of a wide
selection of high-quality MIDI instruments. When used with the Qsynth graphical
interface, FluidSynth becomes even more powerful: users can easily control basic effects
like chorus and reverb, and they can start multiple FluidSynth synthesizers, each with
their own settings and MIDI instrument assignments. Finally, because Qsynth was created
and is maintained by the same developers as Qtractor and QjackCtl, it provides a familiar
interface, and integrates well with these other applications.
+ </para>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-SoundFont_Technology_and_MIDI">
+ <title>SoundFont Technology and MIDI</title>
+ <para>
+ SoundFont technology was developed in the early 1990s, and comprises a file format and
certain hardware technologies designed to allow the creation of MIDI instruments that
sound like acoustic instruments. It would be virtually impossible to make an
electronically-synthesized instrument sound identical to an acoustic counterpart, but
SoundFont technology enables the gap to narrow considerably. Heard in the right context,
most people would not notice that music was recorded by a SoundFont-capable MIDI
synthesizer, but results can vary widely.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ What FluidSynth enables users to do is eliminate the hardware component of using
SoundFonts, so that any computer becomes capable of synthesizing from SoundFont files,
which are often simply referred to as "a SoundFont." As fonts change the look
of text characters, SoundFonts change the sound of MIDI notes - the overall meaning is the
same when conveyed by any font (or SoundFont), but the particular nuance is changed.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Fedora offers a few SoundFonts in the default repositories. By default, FluidSynth
installs the FluidR3 General MIDI ("GM") SoundFont, which contains a wide array
of conventional (and some non-conventional) "patches." To see the other options
that are available, use PackageKit, KPackageKit, or yum to search for
"soundfont".
+ </para>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-How_to_Get_a_SoundFont">
+ <title>How to Get a SoundFont</title>
+ <para>
+ There is a large selection of SoundFonts available for free on the internet, and some
are also available for purchase, including a few very high quality SoundFonts. The
following three websites have links to SoundFont resources, and some SoundFonts available
for paid or free download. No guarantee is made of the quality of the material provided,
or of the quality and security of the websites.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <
listitem><para>[http://www.schristiancollins.com/generaluser.php S.
Christian Collins' "GeneralUser" SoundFont]</para></listitem>
+ <
listitem><para>[http://www.hammersound.net/cgi-bin/soundlink.pl
HammerSound SoundFont Library]</para></listitem>
+ <
listitem><para>[http://soundfonts.homemusician.net/
homemusician.net's SoundFont Library]</para></listitem>
+ <
listitem><para>[http://www.synthzone.com/soundfont.htm Synth
Zone]</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ See the "Optional Installation: SoundFont ..." below for installation
instructions.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-MIDI_Terms">
+ <title>MIDI Instruments, Banks, Programs, and Patches</title>
+ <para>
+ A "MIDI instrument" is the synthesizer itself. If the synthesizer uses
SoundFonts, then the SoundFont also constitutes part of the instrument. Each instrument
can be thought of as a library, which stores books.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Each instrument offers at least one, but possibly several "banks," which
store programs. If a MIDI instrument is a library, then a bank is like a particular
shelf. You must first select a shelf before choosing a book.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Each bank offers between one and one hundred and twenty seven "programs,"
(also called "patches") which are the sounds themselves. If a MIDI instrument
is a library and a bank is a shelf, then a program is a book. Programs need not
necessarily be related, but banks with a large number of programs (like the "General
MIDI" bank) usually follow some sort of order. It is the program alone which
determines the sound of the synthesized audio; the bank and instrument simply limit the
possible choices of program.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-MIDI_Channels">
+ <title>MIDI Channels</title>
+ <para>
+ A MIDI synthesizer will accept input on multiple channels. Although each
"instance" of the synthesizer can only have one MIDI instrument assigned to it,
each channel can be assigned a program independently. This allows the synthesis of a
virtual instrumental ensemble.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The General MIDI ("GM") standard, used partially by the default FluidR3
SoundFont and by FluidSynth itself, further specifies that there will be 16 channels, and
that channel 10 will be used for (mostly unpitched) percussion instruments. Any program
change message sent to channel 10 will be ignored, and although FluidSynth can be
configured to use a non-percussion program on channel 10, this use is discouraged.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ For cases where FluidSynth does not adhere to the General MIDI standard, it is adding
functionality, rather than removing it.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Requirements_and_Installation">
+ <title>Requirements and Installation</title>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst-Software_Requirements">
+ <title>Software Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ FluidSynth requires the JACK Audio Connection Kit. If you have not already installed
the JACK packages from the Planet CCRMA at Home repository, then it is recommended that
you do so ''before'' installing FluidSynth. Follow the instructions
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst-Installation">
+ <title>Thare Are Two Ways to Install FluidSynth</title>
+ <para>
+ There are two ways to install FluidSynth. The first, to install FluidSynth with
Qsynth, allows FluidSynth to be used with the Qsynth graphical interface. It also
installs a default SoundFont, which can be used by any SoundFont-aware application (like
<code>timidity++</code>). This installation method does not - by default -
allow FluidSynth to be used from a terminal, although this ability can be easily added
later. This is the installation method recommended for most users.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The second way to install FluidSynth is without the Qsynth graphical interface. This
method allows FluidSynth to be run from a terminal, and does not install a default
SoundFont. This installation is recommended only for advanced users.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst-Installation_with_Qsynth">
+ <title>Installation with Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ This installation method is recommended for most users, and will install everything
you need to start using FluidSynth.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Use "PackageKit" or "KPackageKit" to
install the "qsynth" package.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Review and approve the proposed installation:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>If the "jack-audio-connection-kit" package is
listed, it is recommended that you follow
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|these instructions]] to install the JACK
Audio Connection Kit before installing Qsynth.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The installation may include the
"fluid-soundfont-gm" package, which is quite
large.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ <para>
+ If you wish to use FluidSynth from a terminal, without the Qsynth graphical
interface, you can enable this capability by installing the "fluidsynth"
package. This package is not needed if you only intend to run FluidSynth with Qsynth,
because Qsynth only uses files in the "fluidsynth-libs" package, which is
automatically installed with Qsynth. If you are unsure of whether you should install the
"fluidsynth" package, you can safely install it, even if you never use it. It
only uses a small amount of hard drive space.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst-Installation_without_Qsynth">
+ <title>Installation without Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ This installation method is recommended only for advanced users. You will have to
use FluidSynth from a terminal. You will also have to install a SoundFont file before
using FluidSynth.
+ # Use PackageKit or KPackageKit to install the ''fluidsynth''
package, or use a terminal to run <code>su -c 'yum install
fluidsynth'</code>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst-">
+ <title>Installation of SoundFont Files</title>
+ <para>
+ Qsynth automatically installs a SoundFont for use with FluidSynth, but if you did not
install Qsynth, or if you want to add additional SoundFont files with additional programs,
you will need to install them separately. The Fedora package repositories offer a small
selection of SoundFont files, which you can find by searching for "soundfont"
with PackageKit, KPackageKit, or yum. These files will automatically be installed
correctly. If you wish to install additional SoundFont files, it is recommended that you
install them in the same location - and with the same security settings - as the ones
available from the Fedora repositories. If you do this, then you enable all users of the
computer system to access the files, you will not "lose" them if you forget
where they are stored, and you help to minimize the potential security risk of using
software downloaded from the internet.
+
+ The following steps will move a SoundFont file called "myFont.sf2" to the
default folder (<code>/usr/share/soundfonts</code>), and correctly set the
security settings. Note that you will need the system administrator's password
(belonging to the "root" account) to complete this operation. If you do not
have this password, it is best to ask the system administrator to install the files for
you. Alternately, you may simply use the SoundFont file from your a sub-folder in your
home folder.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Start a shell or terminal and navigate to the folder where the
SoundFont file is currently stored.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Run <code>su -c 'cp myFont.sf2
/usr/share/soundfonts'</code></para>
+ <substeps><step><para>Modify the command as necessary to copy
your SoundFont file, rather than "myFont.sf2".</para></step>
+ <step><para>You will be asked for the "root"
password.</para></step>
+ </substeps>
+ </step>
+ <step><para>Run <code>cd /usr/share/soundfonts</code> to
change to the directory of the SoundFont</para></step>
+ <step><para>Run <code>su -c 'chmod 644
myFont.sf2'</code></para>
+ <substeps><step><para>Modify the command as necessary to refer to
your SoundFont file, rather than "myFont.sf2".</para></step>
+ <step><para>This will set the file-system permissions to
"read-write" for the owner (the "root" user, in this case), and
"read-only" for all other users. This way, only the system administrator should
be able to change the file, but all users will be able to use
it.</para></step>
+ </substeps>
+ </step>
+ <step><para>Run <code>ll myFont.sf2</code> to verify that the
permissions were set correctly.</para>
+ <substeps><step><para>Modify the command as necessary to refer to
your SoundFont file, rather than "myFont.sf2".</para></step>
+ <step><para>The output should resemble this: <code>-rw-r--r--. 1
root root 9 2010-06-23 02:28 myFont.sf2</code>, but with a different date, time, and
filename.</para></step>
+ </substeps></step>
+ <step><para>Highly-observant users may notice that the SELinux context of
the new file is different from that of any Fedora-installed SoundFont file. As long as
the type is "usr_t", which it should be by default, then there is no practical
difference (no difference in enforcement) between this and a Fedora-installed SoundFont
file. If you don't know what this means, or if you hadn't noticed it, then it
means that this additional SoundFont file should not create a new potential security
problem.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Requirements and Installation" Section -->
<!-- FluidSynth-Req_and_Inst- -->
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-In_a_Terminal">
+ <title>Using FluidSynth in a Terminal</title>
+ <para>
+ This is not the recommended way to use FluidSynth, because the Qsynth graphical
interface is much easier to use. Qsynth automatically configures most of FluidSynth's
settings by default, allowing you to avoid focus on how you want to use FluidSynth, rather
than on how to use FluidSynth.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you want to use FluidSynth in a terminal, you can use the
<code>fluidsynth</code> command. The default sample-rate is 44.1 kHz, so if
you want to use JACK at a different sample rate, you need to use the
<code>-r</code> flag, like this: <code>fluidsynth -r 48000</code>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ When you start FluidSynth from a terminal, it will normally start a shell of its own.
How to use this shell is beyond the scope of the Musicians' Guide, but you can get
basic help by running the "help" command from the FluidSynth command line.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring">
+ <title>Configuring Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ When you quit Qsynth, all settings are preserved, and re-used when Qsynth is
re-started. This includes settings for additional instances of Qsynth (described below),
which are also re-created when Qsynth is re-started.
+ </para>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring-Starting_FluidSynth">
+ <title>Starting FluidSynth</title>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para># Start Qsynth from the Applications menu, or the K
Menu</para></step>
+ <step><para>The FluidSynth engine will be started
automatically.</para></step>
+ <step><para>The row of buttons at the right of the Qsynth window control
Qsynth. The other settings control FluidSynth.</para></step>
+ <step><para>You can use the "Messages" button to display a
window containing FluidSynth's output. If FluidSynth doesn't work as expected,
you can use this window to view any error message that might have been
produced.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring-SoundFont">
+ <title>SoundFont Configuration</title>
+ <para>
+ The default "FluidR3" SoundFont, installed with Qsynth, is automatically
configured.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To configure an additional Soundfount:
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Click the 'Open' button, and navigate to the path of
the SoundFont you wish to add. This should be
<code>/usr/share/soundfonts</code>, if installed to the standard location
specified !!above.!!</para></step>
+ <step><para>Select the additional SoundFont, then click the 'Open'
button.</para></step>
+ <step><para>To change the SoundFont ID (SFID), use the 'Up' and
'Down' buttons to change the position of the SoundFonts, as desired. This does
not directly change the function of FluidSynth - any SoundFont should work with any
SoundFont ID number.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring-JACK_Output">
+ <title>JACK Output Configuration</title>
+ <para>
+ It is possible to configure FluidSynth to output synthesized audio either to JACK or
to ALSA. The default, and recommended, method is to output synthesized audio to JACK.
This allows the greatest control over audio quality, and the greatest flexibility in terms
of routing and multiplexing (see
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Recording/DAW_Common_Elements#Routing_and_Multiplexing|definition
here]]), which allows you to simultaneously record the synthesized audio signal and listen
to it.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you are having problems, you may wish to confirm that Qsynth is configured
correctly to use JACK.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Open Qsynth's "Setup"
window.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Select the 'Audio' tab, and ensure that "Audio
Driver" is set to "jack".</para></step>
+ <step><para>You should also ensure that the other settings are correct -
especially that the "sample rate" is set to the same sample rate as JACK
(through QjackCtl).</para></step>
+ <step><para>The default settings for most things should work. If you
changed a default setting, they are these:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Buffer Size: 1024</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Buffer Count: 2</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Audio Channels: 1</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Audio Groups: 1</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Polyphony: 256</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ <para>
+ If you are having problems with audio cut-outs, you may wish to increase the buffer
settings. The size should be increased in multiples of 1024, and the buffer count should
not be increased much. The default setting or one "Audio Channel" provides
stereo output, and each additional channel produces another set of stereo outputs.
Increasing the "polyphony" setting will allow a higher number of simultaneous
notes ("MIDI events," really), which will be useful in exteremely complex
situations.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring-MIDI_Input">
+ <title>MIDI Input Configuration</title>
+ <para>
+ FluidSynth will only produce sound as instructed by a connected (software- or
hardware-based) MIDI device. If you are having problems configuring FluidSynth to accept
MIDI input, verify the following options.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Open Qsynth's "Setup"
window.</para></step>
+ <step><para>The "Enable MIDI Input" setting must be
enabled.</para></step>
+ <step><para>There are two settings for "MIDI Driver" that you
would likely want.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>When set to "alsa_seq", the input will appear
on QjackCtl's "ALSA" tab in the "Connect" window. This is useful
if the MIDI generator device that you are using, such as a MIDI-enabled keyboard, is
connected directly to ALSA.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When set to "jack", the input will appear on
QjackCtl's "MIDI" tab in the "Connect" window. This is useful if
the MIDI generator device that you are using, such as Rosegarden, is connected directly to
JACK.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></step>
+ <step><para>You can set the number of MIDI input channels provided by
FluidSynth. Refer to the information below, in !!"Changing the Number of MIDI Input
Channels"!!</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Configuring-Viewing_all_Settings">
+ <title>Viewing all FluidSynth Settings</title>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Open the "Setup" window</para></step>
+ <step><para>Select the "Settings" tab</para></step>
+ <step><para>Scroll through the list to the setting you wish to
see.</para></step>
+ <step><para>The settings in this tab are not editable in this
tab.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Assigning_Programs_to_Channels">
+ <title>Assigning Programs to Channels with Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ The best way to do this is through your MIDI sequencer, like Qtractor or Rosegarden.
If you are using an application which doesn't allow you to send program-change
messages, or if you need to configure programs for another reason, you can follow these
instructions.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>In the main Qsynth window, click "Channels" to open
the "Channels" window.</para></step>
+ <step><para>In the Channels window, each channel will, by default, look
like <code>1 - - -</code></para></step>
+ <step><para>To assign a program to a channel, click on the row of the
channel that you want to assign.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Select the bank and program number that you want, using the
name, SFID, and Soundfont columns to guide you.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Repeat this process for all of the channels that you wish to
assign.</para></step>
+ <step><para>If you are not going to use a channel, there is no harm in
assigning it a program anyway. However, assigning a program to a channel that you will
not use can lead to confusion, especially if you later forget that you intended to not use
that channel.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Remember that channel 10 is reserved for percussion
instruments, and should not be changed from a General MIDI percussion
program.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Changing_Number_of_Input_Channels">
+ <title>Changing the Number of MIDI Input Channels</title>
+ <para>
+ You can increase the number of MIDI input channels offered by FluidSynth. Although
QSynth will let you set any number between 1 and 256, channels will be added and removed
only in sets of 16. Qsynth will automatically create the lowest number of channels that
will allow as many channels as you need. Each set of 16 channels will be indicated in
JACK with an additional MIDI input device. The name of the device indicates which
channels are listening: channels 1 through 16 listen to the device ending in 0; channels
17 through 32 listen to the device ending in 1; channels 33 through 58 listen to the
device ending in 2; and so on.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To change the number of MIDI input channels, follow these instructions.
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Open Qsynth's "Setup"
window.</para></step>
+ <step><para>The "Enable MIDI Input" setting must be
enabled.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Input the number of channels that you wish to use, between 1
and 256.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Saving_and_Reusing_Channel_Assignments">
+ <title>Saving and Reusing Channel Assignments</title>
+ <para>
+ QSynth allows you to save multiple sets of program assignments, which you can restore
later. This means that you will not have to re-configure all of the channels every time
you want to change them.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To save the settings for later:
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Ensure that Qsynth is correctly configured, and working with
the program assignments as desired.</para></step>
+ <step><para>In Qsynth's "Channels" window, erase the
contents of the "Preset Name" text field, and replace it with whatever name you
would like.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Click "Save" to preserve the settings under that
name.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ <para>
+ To restore settings from earlier:
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Open Qsynth's "Channels"
window.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Search through the "Preset Name" drop-down box to
find the name of the preset that you wish to restore.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Select it, and verify that the correct channel assignments
were restored.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Reverb_and_Chorus">
+ <title>Using Reverb and Chorus with Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ While "reverb" (meaning "reverberation") and "chorus"
effects are not part of the General MIDI standard, they are offered by most MIDI
synthesizers. FluidSynth is no exception, and the Qsynth interface provides a convenient
and easy way to adjust settings of the reverb and chorus effect-generators.
Experimentation is the only way to know whether you have chosen the right settings, and
they will probably change depending on the music you are working on, and even during a
piece. Most MIDI sequencers and players (including Qtractor and Rosegarden) allow you to
send MIDI messages changing the reverb and chorus settings while a session is playing.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The reverb and chorus effects can be turned off temporarily if you do not plan to use
them. To do this in Qsynth, uncheck the "Active" check-box underneath the
respective effect generator's settings dials.
+ </para><para>
+ The '''reverb''' effect generator creates artificial
reverberation (like an "echo," but more complex), which occurs naturally in
almost all performing environments. The effect generator works by creating a virtual
room, and pretending that the user is listening within it. These are the settings offered
by Qsynth:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Room: Adjusts the size of the virtual room. Settings
higher than 100 can cause a situation that escalates in volume to dangerously high levels,
even with the lowest possible "level" settings. This is an interesting effect,
but caution is advised so that listener do not incur accidental hearing damage. Remember
also that the reverb effect can accumulate as time goes on, so it may even take many
minutes for the volume level to build to a dangerously high level, depending on the
settings.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Damp: Adjusts the amount of "sound damping" in
the virtual room, affecting not only the time it takes for the sound to die, but the
frequencies which are most affected. The greater the damping, the shorter the higher
frequencies last.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Width: Adjusts the perceived "width" of the
stereo image of the virtual room, and also has a large effect on the volume
level.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Level: Adjusts the volume level of the
reverberation.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ All of the settings interact in ways that make it difficult to describe any sort of
recommended settings. Users are strongly encouraged to experiment with the various
settings to find ones that suit their needs. A wide variety of listening environments can
be simulated, and the settings required do not always reflect the most logical choice - it
is possible to emulate a concert hall with a relatively small "room" setting,
for example. Effective use of the reverb effect can greatly enhance the MIDI listening
experience.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The '''chorus''' effect generator creates the impression that
more than one real-world instrument is playing each MIDI line. The effect generator works
by slightly responding to each MIDI note several times, with slightly inaccuracies in
pitch and time in each response. Although it may seem overly negative to say so, humans
intuitively recognize that this inaccuracy is part of real-world, acoustic music, so the
chorus effect helps to add a realistic sound to some performances. These are the settings
offered by Qsynth:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>N: Adjusts the number of effect "stages," which
allows you to control the approximate number of discrete instruments
perceived.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Level: Adjusts the volume level of the effect.
(??!!)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Speed: Adjusts the speed of the chorus, and so the range
of time over which the notes are spread. (??!!)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Depth: Adjusts the perceived "depth" of the
stereo image. (??!!)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-FluidSynth-Multiple_Instances">
+ <title>Multiple FluidSynth Instances with Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ Rarely will you need more than one instance of FluidSynth, because QSynth/FluidSynth
together offer up to 256 independent input channels, and the ability to control the reverb
and chorus effects independently by channel. The most common use of multiple FluidSynth
instances is if you want to use multiple MIDI instruments. In other words, if you want to
use multiple SoundFonts at the same time, you will need to use one instance of FluidSynth
for each SoundFont.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Thankfully, Qsynth allows us to do this almost effortlessly! Each
"instance" of FluidSynth is created and controlled by, in effect, running the
FluidSynth synthesis application multiple times. The reality is that, since Qsynth
controls the FluidSynth engine directly, it simply starts the synthesis engine directly,
creating multiple instance of that engine. This is much more efficient than actually
running Qsynth multiple time, or even than running FluidSynth directly from a terminal.
Each such instance is represented in Qsynth by a "tab," displayed at the bottom
of the Qsynth window.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To create an additional instance of FluidSynth:
+ </para>
+ <procedure>
+ <step><para>Press the green "+" button in the bottom-left corner
of Qsynth's main window</para></step>
+ <step><para>Adjust the settings as desired, by using the Setup window that
pops up.</para></step>
+ <step><para>Press "OK" to start the additional
instance.</para></step>
+ <step><para>To close an additional instance, use the red "X" near
the lower-right corner.</para></step>
+ </procedure>
+ <para>
+ Each instance of the FluidSynth engine has its own settings in the "Setup"
window. Qsynth supports a theoretically unlimited number of FluidSynth instances, but
your computer's memory will probably not allow many more than ten, depending on the
SoundFonts used.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+</chapter>
diff --git a/en-US/Musicians_Guide.xml b/en-US/Musicians_Guide.xml
index 60ab481..f320c42 100644
--- a/en-US/Musicians_Guide.xml
+++ b/en-US/Musicians_Guide.xml
@@ -7,12 +7,20 @@
<xi:include href="Book_Info.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
<xi:include href="Preface.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
<!-- Start Chapters -->
- <xi:include href="Sound_Cards.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
- <xi:include href="Sound_Servers.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
- <xi:include href="Planet_CCRMA_at_Home.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
- <xi:include href="Real_Time_and_Low_Latency.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
-
- <xi:include href="Digital_Audio_Workstations.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <!-- Linux Audio Basics -->
+ <xi:include href="Sound_Cards.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Sound_Servers.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Planet_CCRMA_at_Home.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Real_Time_and_Low_Latency.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+
+ <!-- Audio and Music Software -->
+ <xi:include href="Audacity.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Digital_Audio_Workstations.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Ardour.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Qtractor.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="Rosegarden.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+ <xi:include href="FluidSynth.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
+
<!-- End Chapters -->
<xi:include href="Revision_History.xml"
xmlns:xi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XInclude" />
<index />
diff --git a/en-US/Qtractor.xml b/en-US/Qtractor.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4f79b54
--- /dev/null
+++ b/en-US/Qtractor.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,572 @@
+<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8' ?>
+<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd" [
+<!ENTITY % BOOK_ENTITIES SYSTEM "Musicians_Guide.ent">
+%BOOK_ENTITIES;
+]>
+
+<chapter id="chap-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor">
+ <title>Qtractor</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Features_and_Strengths">
+ <title>Features and Strengths</title>
+ <para>
+ '''Qtractor''' is a relatively new application, created and
maintained by the same developers who are responsible for
'''QjackCtl''' and '''QSynth''' (both
covered in other chapters of this Guide). It offers much more flexibility than
'''Audacity,''' but is still easier to use than
'''Ardour''' or '''Rosegarden'''. As
such, it serves as the perfect starting-point for people first discovering software-based
DAWs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ But '''Qtractor''' is much more than just a starting-point:
its simplicity is its greatest strength. '''Ardour''' and
'''Rosegarden,''' may offer more features, but
'''Qtractor''' takes much less time to learn. After the initial
learning-curve, you will be able to complete almost every audio or MIDI project with
'''Qtractor.''' Its interface offers simple, intuitive,
point-and-click interaction with clips, integrated control of JACK connections, MIDI
control integration with external devices and other MIDI-aware software, and support for
''LADSPA,'' ''DSSI,'' native ''VSTi,'' and
''LV2'' plug-ins. With development progressing very quickly,
'''Qtractor''' is becoming more stable and usable by the minute.
The simple interface allows you to focus on creating music to suit your creative needs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Beginners and advanced users alike will be pleased to see how
'''Qtractor''' can work for them.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Requirements_and_Installation">
+ <title>Requirements and Installation</title>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Knowledge_Requirements">
+ <title>Knowledge Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ Although '''Qtractor''' is one of the simplest software-based
''DAWs'' currently available in Fedora Linux, its interface may not be
straight-forward unless you have previous experience with ''DAW''
software. Reading the [[ser:Crantila/FSC/Recording/DAW_Common_Elements|Common Elements]]
chapter of this Guide will provide enough background information for you to use
'''Qtractor,''' '''Ardour,''' and
'''Rosegarden.'''
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Software_and_Hardware_Requirements">
+ <title>Software and Hardware Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ !! Input standard Spiel about JACK !!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In addition to ''JACK'', if you intend to use
'''Qtractor''' for recording audio, your system's audio
interface should be configured with microphones, as desired. Your system's audio
interface should also be configured for audio output, either with speakers, or preferably
with headphones. Headphones will allow you to listen to a session as it is recorded.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you intend to use '''Qtractor''' for recording
''MIDI'', then your system's ''MIDI'' interface should
be configured with ''MIDI'' input devices, as desired. If you intend to
use '''Qtractor''' for sequencing and synthesizing
''MIDI'' signals into audio signals, then you will need a
''MIDI'' synthesizer. Both hardware- and software-based
''MIDI'' synthesizers are compatible with
'''Qtractor.''' '''FluidSynth''' is a
good, software-based ''MIDI'' synthesizer, and it is discussed in
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Synthesizers/FluidSynth|this part]].
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Installation">
+ <title>Installation</title>
+ <para>
+ !! Qtractor may or may not be available from a standard Fedora repository in Fedora
14. This assumes that it is. !!
+
+ You can install '''Qtractor''' either using the
'''PackageKit''' or '''KPackageKit'''
applications, or by running the following command in a terminal: [pre]su -c 'yum
install qtractor'[/pre] If you will be using '''Qtractor'''
with a ''SoundFont-compatible,'' software-based ''MIDI''
synthesizer (such as '''FluidSynth/QSynth'''), you should tell
'''Qtractor''' about the ''SoundFont.'' See the
!!"Configuring MIDI Channel Names"!! section. You can install the
FluidSynth/QSynth synthesizer by following the instructions !!here!!.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Configuration">
+ <title>Configuration</title>
+ <para>
+ "Qtractor" will work by itself, without further configuration. The options
described here are for the settings you are most likely to want to discuss. To open the
"Options" window, from the menu select 'View > Options'. !! Change to
Click on "View > Options" to open the "Options" window. !!
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Configuration-Audio_Tab">
+ <title>Options Window: Audio Tab</title>
+ <para>
+ The ''Capture/Export'' setting allows you to choose the format in
which "Qtractor" stores its audio clips when recorded or exported. You will be
able to choose a file type, such as "WAV Microsoft" for standard
".wav" files, "AIFF Apple-SGI" for standard ".aiff" files,
or the preferable "FLAC Lossless Audio Codec," format. FLAC is an open-source,
lossless, compressed format for storing audio signals and metadata. See the
[
http://flac.sourceforge.net/ FLAC website] for more information. You will also be asked
to select a quality setting for lossy compressed formats, or a sample format for all
lossless formats. The sample format is sometimes called "bit rate," which is
described [[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Cards#Bit_Rate|here]]. If you don't know which
sample format to choose, then "Signed 16-Bit" is a good choice for almost all
uses, and will provide you with CD-quality audio. Most non-speciality hardware is
incapable of making good use of higher sample formats.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Setting the ''Transport mode'' will allow you to adjust the behaviour
of the transport.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>None : allows "Qtractor's" transport to
operate independently</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Slave : allows "Qtractor's" transport to
accept instructions sent by JACK's transport, which can be controlled by QjackCtl or
another application.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Master : allows "Qtractor's" transport to
send instructions to JACK's transport, which can be viewed by QjackCtl, or used by
another application.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Full : is equivalent to "Master" and
"Slave" modes simultaneously; "Qtractor's" transport will both
send and accept instructions.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ If you are using "Qtractor" alone, or if you don't know which to
choose, then "None" is a good choice. This setting can be adjusted at any time,
if you later decide to link the transport in multiple applications.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The ''Metronome'' section allows you to use a (short) audio file as
the metronome sound, rather than the standard, MIDI-based metronome. You can choose the
same file for "beat," and "bar," if you prefer. The
''Dedicated audio metronome outputs'' option will output the audio
metronome's signal through separate outputs in JACK. This is Ardour's default
behaviour.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Configuration-MIDI_Tab">
+ <title>Options Window: MIDI Tab</title>
+ <para>
+ Adjusting the "File format" allows you to change how MIDI clips are stored.
You will not need to adjust this unless required by an external application. The
[
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musical_Instrument_Digital_Interface#Standar...
Wikipedia article] about MIDI has further information about file formats.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ "MMC" stands for "MIDI Machine Control," and it allows multiple
MIDI-connected devices to interact and control each other. Setting the
''Transport mode'' to a setting other than "None" allows it be
controlled by MMC messages.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>None : will have "Qtractor" ignore incoming MMC
messages, and not provide outgoing MMC messages</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Input : will have "Qtractor" follow incoming
MMC instructions, but not provide outgoing MMC messages</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Output : will have "Qtractor" ignore incoming
MMS messages, but provide outgoing MMC messages</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Duplex : will have "Qtractor" follow incoming
MMC instructions, and provide outgoing MMC messages</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ You can also select a particular MIDI device number with which Qtractor will
interact; if you do this, it will ignore MMC messages from other devices, and not send MMC
messages to other devices. Enabled the ''Dedicated MIDI control
input/output'' will provide JACK with MIDI inputs and outputs that will be used by
"Qtractor" only for MMC messages. "Qtractor" will not send or receive
MMC messages sent on other inputs or outputs if this option is enabled. "SPP"
stands for "Song Position Pointer," and helps MIDI-connected applications to
keep track of the current location in a session (in other words, where the transport is).
This should probably be set to the same setting as "MMC." If you don't know
which of these settings to use, then setting "MMC" to "None" is a good
choice. This setting can be adjusted at any time, if you later decide to link
applications with MMC messages.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The default metronome sound is provided by the "MIDI Metronome," and you
can adjust its settings here. In particular, you may wish to provide a "Dedicated
MIDI metronome output," to help you separate the metronome's signal.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Configuration-MIDI_Channel_Names">
+ <title>Configuring MIDI Channel Names</title>
+ <para>
+ If you're using "FluidSynth" with "QSynth," you should tell
"Qtractor" about the SoundFont that you're using. When you do this, you
enable "Qtractor" to help you choose instruments ("patches").
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu, select 'View > Instruments' !!
change to Click on "View > Instruments" !!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In the ''Instruments'' window, click
"Import."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Navigate to
<code>/usr/share/soundfonts</code></para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the ''SoundFonts'' that you would
like to use. The default is the "FluidR3 GM" SoundFont, but you can choose
multiple SoundFonts to use simultaneously.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Close the ''Instruments'' window to
return to the main "Qtractor" window.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Configuration" Section --> <!--
Qtractor-Configuration- -->
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using">
+ <title>Using Qtractor</title>
+ <para>
+ The "Tutorial" section teaches you how to use Qtractor by example. This
section is designed to serve as a reference while you complete the tutorial, and for
refreshing your memory afterwards. !! These sections will need to be ordered somehow
!!
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-JACK">
+ <title>Using JACK with Qtractor</title>
+ <para>
+ Qtractor and QjackCtl are programmed and maintained by the same developers. For this
reason, Qtractor offers a QjackCtl-like interface to modify JACK's connections.
Furthermore, Qtractor preserves all of the connections with every Qtractor file, so there
is no need to use QjackCtl's "patch bay" feature (which does the same
thing). However, if you wish to change JACK's settings, you will need to use
QjackCtl.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To view the JACK Connections window within Qtractor, press
'''[F8]''' on the keyboard, or select 'View >
Connections' from the menu. !! change to or click on "View > Connections"
!! Pressing '''[F8]''' on the keyboard will hide the window again.
Note that Qtractor's "MIDI" tab is equivalent to QjackCtl's
"ALSA" tab.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Qtractor automatically starts JACK, unless it is already running.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-Exporting_Audio_and_MIDI_Together">
+ <title>Exporting a Whole File (Audio and MIDI Together)</title>
+ <para>
+ Qtractor can export all of a session's audio clips as one audio file - !! change
to comma instead of - !! but it cannot export the MIDI clips directly into that audio
file. This is because Qtractor does not synthesize audio from MIDI signals, but uses an
external MIDI synthesizer to do this. Thankfully, there is a relatively simple way to
overcome this, allowing both audio and MIDI to be exported in the same audio file: use
Qtractor to record the audio signal produced by the MIDI synthesizer. This procedure only
works if you use a MIDI synthesizer (like FluidSynth) which outputs its audio signal to
JACK.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new, empty audio track in Qtractor (from the
menu, select 'Track > Add Track') !! Change to To create a new, empty audio
track in Qtractor, click on "Track > Add Track"
!!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that your MIDI synthesizer is set up correctly to
produce output in the usual method (through your speakers).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use Qtractor's "Connections" window (press
'''[F8]''' on the keyboard) to ensure that the output from your
MIDI synthesizer is routed to the input for the newly-created audio
track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move Qtractor's transport to the start of the
session.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that only the newly-created audio track is armed
for recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Arm Qtractor's transport for
recording.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press ''Play'' on the transport, and wait
as the session plays through.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you have reached the end of the session, stop the
transport. Qtractor will not automatically stop the
transport.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Export the file as you normally would (from the menu,
select 'Track > Export Tracks > Audio'). !! change to To export the file as
you normally would, click on "Track > Export Tracks > Audio"
!!</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ After the audio version of the MIDI signal is recorded, and you have exported the
session, you may wish to delete the new audio track.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-Blue_Place_Markers">
+ <title>Using the Blue Place-Markers</title>
+ <para>
+ In addition to the transport, Qtractor provides two other place-markers. They are
blue. Here are some things you can do with the blue place-markers:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>* Mark a range:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Move the cursor to the place where you want the
left-most marker.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Left-click and hold.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Drag the cursor to the location where you want the
right-most marker.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Release the button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The blue markers should mark the particular
range.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>* Mark one particular place:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Move the cursor to the place you want to
mark.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Left-click and hold on the
location.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Drag the cursor to the right just a little
bit.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Two blue markers will
appear.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Instead of leaving them separate, move the second blue
marker over top the first one.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Release the mouse button.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The arrows should be
converged.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>* Move one of the markers:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Place the cursor over the triangular top of the marker,
located in ruler at the top of the track pane.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The cursor should change to show a double-ended,
horizontal arrow.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Left-click and drag the
mouse.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The blue place-marker should follow the mouse. If it
doesn't, then try again. It is sometimes difficult to select the
place-marker.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-MIDI_Tools">
+ <title>Using the MIDI Matrix Editor's Tools</title>
+ <para>
+ Qtractor's matrix editor for MIDI clips offers a collection of useful tools,
available from the ''Tools'' menu in the matrix editor window. These
tools only operate on MIDI notes selected in the matrix editor window before the tool
window is opened. Regardless of which tool you select from the menu, the same options are
available to you each time the window is opened. It is possible to use multiple tools at
a time.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Be careful: the names of the tools may be misleading.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Here is an explanation of what the tools do:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Quantize: This tool can be used to regulate how often
MIDI notes are allowed to begin, and how long they are allowed to last. They are marked
in divisions of a beat.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Time: The default setting, "Beat/4" will allow
notes to begin only on every sixteenth note subdivision. If a note begins somewhere else,
it will be moved to the nearest sixteenth note subdivision. For example, a note that
begins on the first 32nd note of a measure would be moved to begin on the first beat
instead.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Duration: The default setting, "Beat/2" will
allow notes to last only in multiples of eighth notes. If a note lasts for shorter or
longer than an eighth note multiple, it will be adjusted to the closest duration that is
an eighth note multiple. For example, a sixteenth note would be adjusted to an eighth
note.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Swing: This regularizes a "swing" effect on
the rhythm. You will have to experiment with the settings to find one that works for
you.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Common settings, described in simple meter where a
quarter note gets the beat:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Beat : quarter-note
duration</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Beat/2 : eighth-note
duration</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Beat/3 : eighth-note triplet
duration</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Beat/4 : sixteenth-note
duration</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Beat/6 : sixteenth-note sextuplet
duration</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Beat/8 : thirty-second note
duration</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Transpose: This tool adjusts either the pitch (vertical
axis) or the time (horizontal axis) of the selected MIDI notes.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Pitch: Transposes the notes by this many semitones.
Positive values transpose to a higher pitch-level, !! remove comma !! and negative values
transpose to a lower pitch-level.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Time: Adjusts the starting time of MIDI notes, without
affecting duration or pitch. This is most usefully measured as "BBT" (meaning
"Bars, Beats, and Ticks" - each is separated by a decimal point), but can also
be measured as time or frames.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Normalize: This adjusts the loudness of the selected MIDI
notes, called "velocity." There are three ways to use the tool. The value
specified in the "MIDI Tools" window is used as the highest allowable velocity;
all other velocity values are adjusted proportionally.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust "Percent" only: This allows you to set
the velocity to a percentage of the maximum velocity.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust "Value" only: This allows you to supply
a specific value for the velocity. Possible values range from 0 to
127.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust "Percent" and "Value"
together: This allows you to specify a percentage of the indicated value. If you set
"50%" and "32," for example, the resulting velocity will be
"16," which is 50% of 32.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Randomize: This tool adjusts the selected parameters to
pseudo-random values. The values are only pseudo-random for two reasons: computers cannot
produce truly random numbers, only numbers that seem random to humans; the percentage
value allows you to specify how widely-varied the results will be. A lower percentage
setting will result in MIDI notes that are more similar to the pre-randomized state than
if the MIDI notes were randomized with a higher percentage setting. The following
parameters can be randomized:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Note, which means pitch.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Time, which means the time of the beginning of the
note.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Duration, which means
duration.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Value, which means loudness
(velocity).</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Resize: This tool allows you to explicitly specify the
duration or velocity of some MIDI notes. Setting the ''Value'' field will
set the velocity (loudness) of all selected notes to that setting. Valid settings are
from 0 (quietest) to 127 (loudest). Setting the ''Duration'' field will
set the duration (length) of all selected notes to that setting. Duration is most
usefully measured as "BBT" (meaning "Bars, Beats, and Ticks" - each is
separated by a decimal point), but can also be measured as time or
frames.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-Tips">
+ <title>Miscellaneous Tips</title>
+ <para>
+ If you wish to scroll horizontally in Qtractor's tracks pane or the matrix
editor, hold down the '''[Ctrl]''' ("Control") key on
the keyboard as you adjust your mouse's scroll-wheel.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Qtractor files should be saved in an otherwise-empty folder. Unlike Ardour,
Audacity, and Rosegarden, Qtractor will not create a new sub-folder automatically, but
will instead store all of a session's clips in the same folder as the the Qtractor
file itself.
+ </para>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-Tips-Transport">
+ <title>Transport</title>
+ <para>
+ You can move Qtractor's transport to a particular point in a session by holding
'''[Shift]''' on the keyboard as you use the mouse to click on
that point.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ You can choose whether or not you want the track pane to automatically scroll as the
transport moves by selecting from the menu 'Transport > Follow Playhead'. !!
change to by clicking on "Transport > Follow Playhead" !!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Using-Tips-MIDI">
+ <title>MIDI</title>
+ <para>
+ When creating a MIDI track, you can use the "omni" check-box to allow the
track to respond to input from any MIDI channel. If the check-box is unselected, the
track will respond only to signals on its assigned MIDI channel.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In the matrix editor window, you can adjust the "velocity" (loudness) of a
note by using the "Resize" MIDI Tool (see !!"Using the Matrix Editor's
MIDI Tools,"!! above)
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If you find it difficult to work with Qtractor's matrix editor, but you find it
easy to work with LilyPond, you can use this to your advantage. LilyPond will output a
MIDI-format representation of your score if you include a "midi" section in the
"score" section. It should look something like this:
+ [pre]
+ \score
+ {
+ ...
+ \midi { }
+ }
+ [/pre]
+ You can import LilyPond's MIDI output by running the following command from
Qtractor's menu: 'Track > Import Tracks > MIDI'. !! change to You can
import LilyPond's MIDI output by clicking on "Track > Import Tracks >
MIDI" !! You will then be able to adjust and use the MIDI track like any other MIDI
track in Qtractor.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Using Qtractor" Section --> <!--
Qtractor-Using- -->
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial">
+ <title>Tutorial: Creating a MIDI Composition</title>
+ <para>
+ We've created a demonstration of what a first-time user might try for their first
project with Qtractor. The following sequences demonstrate the decision-making, and the
various features that could be learned. This does not attempt to show a generic method
for creation, but rather the specific way that I created a new composition with the
inspiration stated below.
+ </para>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Inspiration">
+ <title>Inspiration</title>
+ <para>
+ The goal of this demonstration is to illustrate a particular strength of Qtractor:
combining audio and MIDI tracks. I decided to start with a portion of one of my favourite
compositions, and to compose a MIDI-based "alter-ego" to go along with it. The
piece is listed below in "Requirements."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Since that particular movement is a "theme and variations" movement, it
starts with a theme, then continues with varied versions of that theme. The theme is in
two parts, each of which is repeated once. Beethoven uses several compositional
techniques that are typical of his time period, and achieves a consistently similar, but
consistently new, movement.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ We are no longer bound by the aesthetic rules of Beethoven's time. We are also
using a very different style of notation with Qtractor - the matrix editor does not even
resemble standard Western musical notation.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Another interesting aspect of this piece is that, unless you have access to the same
audio recording that I used, you will not be able to experience the piece as I do.
Playing the MIDI alone gives a completely different experience, and it is one that I knew
would happen. This sort of "mix-and-match" approach to music-listening is more
common than you might think, but rarely is it done in such an active way; normally, the
"extra sound" of listening to music is provided by traffic, machines like
furnaces and microwave ovens, and even people in a concert hall or auditorium with you.
The fact that my audio files cannot be legally re-distributed forced me to add a conscious
creative decision into every listening of the piece.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Requirements">
+ <title>Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>A recording of the second movement from Beethoven's
Piano Sonata No.23, "Appassionata," either:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <
listitem><para>[http://www.mutopiaproject.org/cgibin/make-table....
MIDI recording from Mutopia Project] (with LilyPond sheet
music)</para></listitem>
+ <
listitem><para><!--[http://www.musopen.com/music.php?type=pie...
Live recording from MusOpen]</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The recording I used, played by Rudolf Serkin, available
on the "Sony" label.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>[[User:Crantila/FSC/Synthesizers/FluidSynth|FluidSynth]]</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Getting_Qtractor_Ready">
+ <title>Getting Qtractor Ready</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Open QjackCtl, and start
JACK.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Open Qsynth, and configure it with one instance, using
the default FluidR3 SoundFont.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Open Qtractor</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Configure the MIDI tracks to cooperate with the default
FluidR3 SoundFont.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Switch to QjackCtl and ensure the proper connections:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Qtractor's MIDI out (on "ALSA" page) is
connected to Qsynth's MIDI in</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Qsynth's audio out is connected to system in (the
speakers)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Qtractor's audio out is conencted to system in (the
speakers)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>No other connections are
necessary.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Import_the_Audio_File">
+ <title>Import the Audio File</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new audio track.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Right-click on the audio track, and go to
''Clip'' (a "Clip" in Qtractor is equivalent to a
"Region" in Ardour) then
''Import''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Locate the audio file that you want to import (in this
case, I imported a recording of the second movement of Beethoven's Op.57 piano sonata,
"Appassionata."</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If the clip doesn't start at the beginning of the
track, then click and drag it to the beginning.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Marking_the_First_Formal_Area">
+ <title>Marking the First Formal Area</title>
+ <para>
+ In addition to the transport, Qtractor has two blue place-markers, which sometimes
merge into one. The best way to learn the behaviour of the blue place-markers is by using
them. They are intended to mark a range in the work area ("main screen").
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>We're keeping the standard tempo of 120 beats per
minute, and the metre is 4/4</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Start from the beginning, and listen until the end of the
first formal section, which I've decided is about the fourth beat of measure 12 (use
the ruler to see).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Mark that point with the blue
arrow.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Mark the beginning of the formal area by left-clicking at
the beginning of the session. If the transport is at the beginning, then it will hide a
blue marker placed at the beginning.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new clip, by clicking !! on !! ''Edit
> Clip > New''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The clip editor will
appear.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Creating_our_Theme">
+ <title>Creating our Theme</title>
+ <para>
+ I want something simple, to match the simple-sounding chorale at the beginning that
is the theme of this movement. What could be simpler than a moment of sound, followed by
some moments of silence?
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>In the MIDI matrix editor window, click on the
''Edit mode'' tool, which looks like a pencil with no other
markings.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>I decided to place a note every three beats (one beat is
marked by one vertical line), on the beat, lasting for one sixteenth note.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Click the pencil where you want the note to appear. A
box will appear. If you drag the box to the right, then the note will sound for
longer.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>I put all of the notes on the same pitch, but it
doesn't matter whether you put them on the same pitches or not - they will be changed
later.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>I also made a mistake when I was inputting the notes, so
there's one place where they are only two beats apart instead of three. This
didn't matter to me, but it might matter to you.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Continue inputting notes until you have filled the whole
pre-selected region (between the blue markers). Qtractor will let you continue beyond
that point, so you need to keep an eye on the marker
yourself.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To scroll sideways, you can hold down either
'''[Shift]''' or '''[Ctrl]''' and use your
mouse's scroll wheel.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move to transport just before the end of the segment you
added: use Shift-click.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the end to ensure that your segment ends with
or before the end of the first formal area.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Close the matrix editor
window.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the main window to view the MIDI segment which you
just inputted. The vertical lines represent barlines, !! remove comma !! and the darker
rectangles represent notes.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If the MIDI segment extends beyond the last note that you
inputted, click-and-drag the end so that there isn't much over-hang. If you
accidentally adjust it too far and remove notes, then simply drag the segment back out -
the notes should still be there.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Return to the matrix editor by double-clicking on the
MIDI segment.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select all of the notes that you have inputted so far:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Press '''[Ctrl+A]''',
or</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click-and-drag to select,
or</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use 'Edit > Select > Select All' !! change
to Click on "Edit > Select > Select All" !!</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Randomize the pitches:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Go to 'Tools > Randomize' !! change to Click
on "Tools > Randomize" !!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para> Ensure that ''Randomize'' is
checked</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Ensure that ''Note'' is checked (this
means "pitch")</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Choose a percentage.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click "OK" to
apply.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You may need to experiment with the percent of
randomization that you allow. Greater randomization means a lower chance of repetition,
but it also means that the pitches will be spread within a smaller
range.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you want to re-try the randomization, use 'Edit
> Undo Randomization' !! change to click on "Edit > Undo
Randomization" !!, and then use the ''Randomize'' tool
again.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you like what happens to most of the pitches, you can
select and move a few of them either individually or together. To adjust pitches as a
group, select the ones that you want to move (either by click-and-drag select or by
'''[ctrl+ click]''' select), and '''[ctrl +
drag]''' them to the desired new location.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now you need to adjust the volume of the pitches. There
are two ways to do this:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>You can select all of the pitches, then use the
"Resize MIDI'' tool, adjusting the "Value"
property.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can select all of the pitches, then use the value
editor portion of the matrix editor window. This is at the bottom of the matrix editor
window, and the height of each pitch shown here tells you the volume at which it will
play. To adjust all of the pitches at once, '''[Ctrl +
click-and-drag]''' to adjust the height as desired. Be careful when doing
this that you don't change the horizontal position, which will change the time that
the notes sound.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>I would suggest at volume of approximately
"32," but this depends on your taste. Also, I adjust the volume of some pitches
to be louder when the audio file is louder.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you are satisfied with your pitches and volumes,
start the transport from the beginning, and listen to the entire segment that you just
created. You may wish to change the section again, !! remove comma !! or simply to move
on to the next step in the tutorial.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Repeat_the_Theme">
+ <title>Repeat the Theme</title>
+ <para>
+ The beginning of this composition opens with a thirteen-measure (in this Qtractor
session) segment that is immediately repeated. If, !! remove comma and add your !! like
me, you chose to create a thirteen-measure theme, you will either need to create a second
MIDI segment to cover Beethoven's repeat, or you can do what I did, and copy-and-paste
to get an exact repetition of your theme.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To repeat your theme exactly:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Click on the first MIDI segment to select it, then copy
it with 'Edit > Copy' !! change to and then copy it by clicking on "Edit
> Copy" !! or
'''[Ctrl+C]'''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Paste it with 'Edit > Paste' !! change it to
To paste it click on "Edit > Paste" !! or
'''[Ctrl+V]'''</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>The cursor will turn into a clipboard icon, and a
rectangle will appear to its right. This rectangle represents the clip that is going to
be pasted, but first you must select a place to put it.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Move the cursor so that the rectangle appears just after
the end (right-most edge) of the first MIDI clip.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can use the scrollbar arrows to scroll the main
window, but it can be difficult, because the cursor has changed.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>You can also scroll the main window by holding
'''[Ctrl]''' and using your mouse's scroll
wheel.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You can also scroll by carefully moving the mouse
cursor to the edge of the main-part-thing.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>It is not important to get the rectangle exactly where
it will stay, but just near where it needs to go.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Left-click when you have placed the rectangle where you
want it.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Position the transport so that you can listen to the
transition from the end of the first clip into the beginning of the second clip. Press
''Play'' on the transport control to listen, then stop it when you are
done.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you need to adjust the position of the second clip,
then click-and-drag it into the desired position. Re-listen to verify that you placed the
clip where you want it to stay.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Compose_the_Next_Part">
+ <title>Compose the Next Part</title>
+ <para>
+ It's difficult to explain, but this part feels more chord-focussed to me, even
though it's very similar to the first part. I decided to show this by using the same
generative idea as the first part, but with two simultaneous pitches instead of one. At
the end of the segment, I included a brief gathering of "randomized" pitches,
with longer durations than before. There is no particular reason that I included this
chord-like incident, but it felt like the right thing to do.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to the next portion of the audio file, and mark
off the next formal section that you want to use (mine is from Qtractor's measure 25
to beat to of measure 38). The portion that I chose is also repeated, like the first
part.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Place the blue markers at the beginning and end of the
segment that you chose.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new MIDI clip.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create the notes separated by three beats, as in the last
segment. This time, be sure to add two notes at the same time, by ensure that they are
aligned vertically. Again, it doesn't matter which pitches you choose, because they
will be randomized.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select all of the pitches, and randomize them by using
the "Randomize MIDI'' tool.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Depending on how the pitches are randomized, each pair of
notes will probably end up in one of the following situations:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>They are too close or share a particular intervallic
relationship that makes them sound like one note.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>They are too far or share a particular intervallic
relationship that makes them sound like two notes.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>They share a particular intervallic relationship that
makes them sound like one chord built of two equal chords.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ Depending on your aesthetic preferences, you may wish to change some of the notes so
that one or some of these situations are avoided.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>I created the tone cluster at the end by clicking
arbitrarily across bar 37. It happened to create six notes with the pitches G, E,
C-sharp, F-sharp, G-sharp, and B. I could have used the ''Randomize
MIDI'' tool, but chose not to.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then I carefully click-and-dragged the right-most
end-point of each pitch, so that they all ended at the same time: the first beat of
measure 38.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you're done, you may need to copy-and-paste the
segment.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_52_to_75">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 52 to 75</title>
+ <para>
+ You already know everything that you need to create this segment, so I will simply
explain the artistic reasoning.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ This corresponds to the "first variation" in the audio file. Since
variations are based on the theme, the rest of my sections are all somehow based on my
theme section. Here, I derived inspiration from the music again: there is a note
(generally) every three beats like the theme, but I extended it to take up two beats, at
the end of which another note briefly sounds. This is like Beethoven's technique in
the first variation. Although I ignored them in the theme, there are small transitions
between the inner-sections of Beethoven's theme, and I chose to add them into my first
variation (you can see it in Qtractor's measure 69).
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_75_to_97">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 75 to 97</title>
+ <para>
+ You already know everything that you need to create this segment, so I will simply
explain the artistic reasoning.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ This section corresponds to the part that we created in the "Compose the Next
Part" section above. I decided to combine the idea of this first variation with the
idea of that "Next Part." As you see, the result here is much like measures 52
to 75, but with more simultaneous pitches, as in the "Next Part."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ At this point, my MIDI accompaniment really begins to take on its own rhythm and
personality, competing with the audio file representing Beethoven's idea. Compared to
the Beethoven, the randomized pitches of the MIDI part sound child-like and trivial. This
might send listeners the message that MIDI is simply trivial and child-like, when compared
to "real classical music," and this is a perfectly valid interpretation.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ However, what I intended to communicate was this: Beethoven wrote a lot of piano
music, much of which is still enjoyed by people today. Nobody will ever be able to
re-create the magic of Beethoven, and I feel that it would be silly to try; this is why I
let the music sound silly, rather than attempting to make it sound serious. I also feel
that taking inspiration from composers such as Beethoven is an excellent way to create new
art for ourselves, which is why I am deriving certain cues directly from the music (mostly
vague stylistic ones), but ignoring others (like the idea that pitches should be somehow
organized).
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measure_97">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measure 97</title>
+ <para>
+ This is a three-beat transitional passage, which I added for no particular reason but
to fill a pause in the audio track.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_98_to_119">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 98 to 119</title>
+ <para>
+ I used one new technique while composing this section: copy-and-paste within the
matrix editor. You can see this around the beginning of measure 103, where the same
pitch-classes are heard simultaneously in a high and low octave. I created the upper
register first, then selected the notes that I wanted to copy. I used
'''[Ctrl+C]''' and '''[Ctrl+V]''' to
create the copy. Like when copy-and-pasting clips in the main window, the cursor icon
changes to a clipboard, and an outline of the to-be-pasted material is shown so that you
can position it as desired. As you will see, you can paste the copy onto any pitch level,
and at any point in the measure. What is kept the same is the pitch intervals between
notes, !! remove comma !! and the rhythms between notes.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ I also used the copy-and-paste technique with the three stepwise-descending-notes
figure in this passage. After building the initial note of each set of four, I randomized
those, and copy-and-pasted the three descending notes after. This way, I was able to
randomize part of the melody, but avoid randomizing another part.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In this passage, I kept the "a note followed by three beats of rest" idea,
then added onto the melody by taking two cues from the audio file. The first was the
increasing surface rhythm of the upper part, which gave rise to the
"three-descending-notes" figures. The second was the fact that the chords are
still going on underneath that melody, so I added a second randomized set of notes
underneath my upper part. At the end of the passage I continued the trend that I started
with a finishing flourish that picks up sustained notes.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_119_to_139">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 119 to 139</title>
+ <para>
+ This passage does not introduce new techniques, but uses some trick manipulation of
volume that are explained at the end of the section.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ This passage sounds much busier because I increased the space between primary notes
from three beats to two. I divided the octaves into four approximate ranges. The lowest
has randomized pitches lasting one beat, which begin on beats that don't have a
"primary note." There is no parallel in Beethoven's music at this point.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The next higher range is meant to mirror the melody in this part of the audio file,
which is slightly lower than it was before. The highest range is connected to this,
because Beethoven wrote some parts of the melody much higher than the other parts.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The second-highest range reflects the quickly-moving accompaniment part in the upper
register of the piano.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Sorting out the volumes for this passage posed a small challenge, because of the much
greater number of notes than in previous passages. Thankfully, the parts are mostly
well-separated from each other in the matrix editor. I was able to use click-and-drag
selection to select each range separately, and adjust its volume using both the
''Resize MIDI'' tool and
'''[Ctrl+click-and-drag]''' in the volume adjustment space at the
bottom of the matrix editor window.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ My sustained-note flourish at the end of this passage was a feeble attempt to
establish A Major tonality in the highest register that I used.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_139_to_158">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 139 to 158</title>
+ <para>
+ There are no new techniques used in this section.\
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ I maintained two-beat spacing of primary notes, !! remove comma !! and began with
only two/three registers. The lowest register is just an occasional reinforcement of the
uppermost, as in the audio file at this point. I used copy-and-pasting to create the
quickly-moving, !! remove comma !! middle line.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ As the section progresses, the middle line gains a simultaneous addition. This
eventually becomes more adventurous, at first jumping into a very high register, then
leading downwards towards its place in the next section, in the lowest register.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_158_to_176">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 158 to 176</title>
+ <para>
+ There are no new techniques in this section. I made extensive use of
copy-and-pasting, and especially of partial randomization: adding the first note of a
flourish, randomizing it, then copy-and-pasting the rest of the flourish into place at the
appropriate pitch-level.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ At this point, I had basically dropped any obvious reference to my theme, as happens
in the Beethoven score. Of course, its influence is still there: every four beats, my
middle voice repeats the same pitches, and sustains them for the next four beats. Also,
the upper voice in my part shares the same sort of "single repeated pitch" idea
that makes up Beethoven's upper voice. There is also a weak rhythmic similarity
between the two.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Near the end of the first sub-section (measures 164-166 inclusive), I included a
long, downward 12-tone scale, which was inspired by the much smaller downward scale in
Beethoven's piece.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ The next sub-section is an exact repeat of ideas, but with different pitches, a
smaller pitch range, and a slightly different ending.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Qtractor-Tutorial-Measures_177_to_the_End">
+ <title>Qtractor's Measures 177 to the End</title>
+ <para>
+ There are no new techniques used in this section.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ This part of piece was intended to mirror Beethoven's score quite obviously. The
only real bit of trickery that I played was looking at Beethoven's score, and
incorporating particular notes: the chord in measure 212 is composed of the same pitches
that are used in the chord in the audio file in measure 210. It sounds very different
because of the "real piano vs. MIDI piano" issue, and because the tuning of the
piano in the recording is different than the tuning of the MIDI piano. Also, the chord in
the second beat of measure 213 is the first chord of the movement following the one
recorded in the audio file. By including this (then "resolving" it, then
re-introducing it), I intend to play with the expectations of a listener that may already
be familiar with Beethoven's sonata.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Tutorial" Section --> <!--
Qtractor-Tutorial- -->
+</chapter>
diff --git a/en-US/Rosegarden.xml b/en-US/Rosegarden.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4c1c44a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/en-US/Rosegarden.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,260 @@
+<?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8' ?>
+<!DOCTYPE chapter PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.5//EN"
"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.5/docbookx.dtd" [
+<!ENTITY % BOOK_ENTITIES SYSTEM "Musicians_Guide.ent">
+%BOOK_ENTITIES;
+]>
+
+<chapter id="chap-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden">
+ <title>Rosegarden</title>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Requirements_and_Installation">
+ <title>Requirements and Installation</title>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Hardware_and_Software_Requirements">
+ <title>Hardware and Software Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ Rosegarden requires the JACK Audio Connection Kit, which helps it to connect to your
audio hardware and other JACK-aware programs. If you have not already installed JACK, it
is recommended that you do so before installing Rosegarden. Instructions for JACK
installation are located [[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Rosegarden's graphical interface uses the "Qt toolkit," like the KDE
Software Collection. QjackCtl, Qsynth, and Qtractor also use the Qt toolkit, but if you
have not installed any of these, and you are a GNOME user, Rosegarden may install the Qt
toolkit. The toolkit may take a while to download, but is useful for a large number of
programs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In order to use Rosegarden, you will need an audio interface. If you wish to record
audio into Rosegarden, the audio interface must be capable of recording, and you must have
external hardware such as microphones to capture the sound. Rosegarden is useful without
recording audio.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Other_Requirements">
+ <title>Other Requirements</title>
+ <para>
+ In addition to the above-listed requirements, you will need to install a MIDI-capable
synthesizer. Rosegarden does not automatically install a synthesizer so that you have the
greatest amount of choice. There are a large number of synthesizers, both hardware- and
software-based, which all have different capabilities and produce different sounds.
Rosegarden is a "MIDI sequencer," meaning that it will trigger and control a
MIDI synthesizer, but without synthesizing audio directly.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Most users, at least when starting out, will find that FluidSynth is a highly
flexible synthesizer. It is recommended by Rosegarden's "Welcome" screen,
and it will be used here for demonstration purposes. The
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Synthesizers/FluidSynth|FluidSynth\Qsynth Chapter]] explains how to
install and use FluidSynth, along with its graphical interface called "Qsynth."
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ In addition to independent MIDI synthesizers, Rosegarden supports the use of DSSI
synthesizer plugins, which is not discussed in this Guide.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Installation">
+ <title>Installation</title>
+ <para>
+ Before installing Rosegarden, you should install the JACK Audio Connection Kit. If
you have not already installed JACK, you can follow the instructions
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Sound_Servers#Installing_JACK|here]].
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ To install Rosegarden, use PackageKit or KPackageKit to install the
"rosegarden4" package. You could also install Rosegarden from a terminal by
running the following command:
+ [pre]su -c 'yum install rosegarden4'[/pre]
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Requirements and Installation" Section -->
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Configuration">
+ <title>Configuration</title>
+
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Configuration-JACK_and_Qsynth">
+ <title>Setup JACK and Qsynth</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Start QjackCtl to control
JACK.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Start Qsynth to control
FluidSynth.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In order to receive MIDI input from Rosegarden, Qsynth
will need to be configured to use the "alsa_seq" MIDI Driver. Instructions for
doing this can be found in
[[User:Crantila/FSC/Synthesizers/FluidSynth#MIDI_Input_Configuration|this
section]].</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You may want to disconnect all JACK connections except
for those that you want to use with Rosegarden. Open QjackCtl's "Connect"
window, and verify the following:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>On the "Audio" tab:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Qsynth's output ports are connected to the
"system" input ports.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you plan to use audio in Rosegarden (in addition to
MIDI), then you will need to connect its output ports to the "system" input
ports, too. The ports labeled "record monitor" are to be used to monitor audio
while it is being recorded. The ports labeled "master out" will be used during
regular file playback. Rosegarden does not need to be connected directly to the system
output ports if you are only using MIDI.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>If you plan to record audio in Rosegarden, then you
will need to connect an output port (probably from "system") to Rosegarden's
input port. Be aware that Rosegarden can record from two independent sources
("1" and "2"), with two channels ("L" for left and
"R" for right) from each, to produce a stereo
recording.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>On the "MIDI" tab:
+ <itemizedlist><listitem><para>Nothing.</para></listitem></itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>On the "ALSA" tab:
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Rosegarden's output ports must be connected to the
"FLUID synth" input port:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>1:sync out (sends MIDI control
messages)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>2:external controller (for the first set of MIDI
instruments in the session)</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>3:out 2 - General MIDI Device (for the second set of
MIDI instruments in the session)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>To make Rosegarden take commands from another MIDI
device, you'll need to connect its output ports to Rosegarden's input ports. I
don't know what they are for yet:
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>0:record in</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>2:external controller</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ If a connection isn't being used, it's better to leave it disconnected, to
avoid making mistakes.
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Configuration-Rosegarden">
+ <title>Setup Rosegarden</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>'Edit >
Preferences'</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Setup "General" as desired.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>On "Behaviour" tab maybe "Use JACK
Transport"</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>On "Extrenal Applications" tab maybe change
those to match what's installed (GNOME users)</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Setup "MIDI" as desired.
+ <itemizedlist><listitem><para>On "MIDI Sync" tab maybe
set to "Send MIDI Clock, Start and Stop" if Rosegarden is the ultimate
controller, or "Accept Start, Stop and Continue" if it's being controlled.
Otherwise "Off" is safe.</para></listitem></itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Setup "Audio" as desired.
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The preview scale will not affect the audio, just its
appearance.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Reducing quality from 32-bit to 16-bit may help
low-power systems keep up.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Changing the external audio editor only affects when you
choose to use an extrenal editor.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Configuration" Section --> <!--
Rosegarden-Configuration- -->
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden_and_LilyPond">
+ <title>Rosegarden and LilyPond</title>
+ <para>
+ Rosegarden and LilyPond can be used together, which can greatly enhace your
productivity. LilyPond will output a MIDI-format representation of your score if you
include a "midi" section in the "score" section. It should look
something like this:
+ [pre]
+ \score
+ {
+ ...
+ \midi { }
+ }
+ [/pre]
+ This MIDI file can then be imported into Rosegarden by selecting from the menu
'File > Import > Import MIDI File'. Unfortunately, this will erase the
current session, so it can be done only once.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ It is also possible to export MIDI tracks to LilyPond format, which can then be edited
further or simply turned into a score. To do this, from the menu select 'File >
Export > Export LilyPond File'. After you select a location to save the file,
Rosegarden allows you to control some score settings while exporting. After exporting a
LilyPond file, you should inspect it with Frescobaldi before relying on it to be correct -
computers sometimes make mistakes!
+ </para>
+ </section>
+
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial">
+ <title>Write a Song in Rosegarden (Tutorial)</title>
+ <para>
+ When using Rosegarden's notation editor, the application may accidentally leave
some notes playing longer than it should. You can fix this, if it bothers you, by
pressing the "panic" button in Qsynth. If you are using another synthesizer
with a panic button, it should server the same function.
+ </para>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial-Bass_Line">
+ <title>Start the Score with a Bass Line</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Start QjackCtl, then Qsynth, then
Rosegarden.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>For this tutorial, we'll be using the default
"Fluid R3" SoundFont, but you can use any General MIDI
SoundFont.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Setup Rosegarden in JACK for MIDI use
only.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>From the Rosegarden menu, select 'Edit >
Preferences'. Click the "MIDI" tab, then the 'General' tab, then
select "Send all MIDI controllers at start of each playback". This will ensure
that the MIDI synthesizer (FluidSynth for this tutorial) uses the right
patches.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a new segment.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Click on the "Draw" tool on the toolbar (it
looks like a red pencil), or press 'F3' on the
keyboard.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In the first track, click-and-drag to select the area
over the first two bars.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you release the mouse, there should be a rectangle
that says, "Acoustic Grand Piano," or something
similar.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Double-click on the rectangle to open the default MIDI
segment editor. It should be the notation editor.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Change the clef. Click on the bass clef on the toolbar
at the left side of the editor window. Then click on the existing clef to replace
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Switch to the note-inputting tools as required.
They're located next to the clef tools, in the toolbar at the left of the notation
editor window.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Input three quarter-notes on c, two eighth notes on c
and g, two quarter-notes on e-flat, and four eighth notes on d, f, d, and
g.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You'll probably make a few mistakes. The easiest way
to fix a mistake is to erase the note/s and re-input the correct note/s. You can use the
eraser tool for this. It's located on the top toolbar of the score editing window, to
the left of the capital "T," and to the right of the red pencil. It looks like
a red and white rectangle, which represents a standard white
eraser.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Listen to your creation by clicking on the 'play'
button in the transport window. The playhead won't stop until you stop it, even
though the visible playhead (the vertical line) will stop.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Close the notation editor - you don't need to click
the 'save' button, because Rosegarden will automatically keep your
changes.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>You should save the file,
though.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Click the "Select and Edit" tool, which looks
like a mouse cursor on the toolbar. You can also select that tool by pressing
'F2' on the keyboard.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the segment you just created by clicking on
it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a copy of it by holding the 'Ctrl' key on
the keyboard, as you click-and-drag the segment.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Place the copy in the same track, immediately after the
first segment.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a few more copies like
this.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the transport to move the playhead to the start
(click the button that looks like a vertical bar with a single-direction arrowhead
pointing towards it).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Name the newly-created track by double-clicking on its
name. A window will pop up, allowing you to rename the track. If you don't know what
to call it, try "Bass line."</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial-Percussion_Track">
+ <title>Add a Percussion Track</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Select the second track, and rename it to
"Percussion" (or something else, if you prefer).</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>In the "Instrument Parameters" portion of the
toolbox on the left side of the editor window, check the "Percussion"
check-box.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Play the transport for just a second, so that Rosegarden
synchronized the re-assignment with FluidSynth</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press 'F3' on the keyboard, or click on the
"Draw" tool, which looks like a pencil.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create a one-measure segment in the second track, then
right-click on the segment, and select 'Open in Percussion Matrix Editor'.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>The percussion matrix editor is like the matrix editor,
but each pitch is labeled with the instrument it triggers.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Experiment with the different instruments and pitches to
find a pattern of four quarter notes that you want to repeat in each
measure.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>When you're happy with your pattern, close the
editor.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the newly-created percussion segment, then from
the menu select 'Edit > Copy'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Move the transport's playhead to the end of the first
measure. First move it to the beginning, then press the "fast forward" button
to advance it to the end of the first measure.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Be sure that the second track is still
selected.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Press 'Ctrl + v' or from the menu choose
'Edit > Paste' a few times, so that the percussion track fills up the same
space as the bassline.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial-Spice_up_the_Percussion">
+ <title>Spice up the Percussion</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Four quarter notes isn't really a suitable percussion
accompaniment, so let's make it more interesting.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Open the first percussion segment in the standard
notation editor by double-clicking it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu select 'Edit > Select Whole
Staff'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Then from the menu select 'Adjust > Notes >
Eighth Note'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>This compressed the notes, which isn't what you
wanted. Undo the change with 'Edit > Undo'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Again make sure that the whole staff is
selected.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>From the menu select 'Adjust > Notes > Eighth
Note (Without Duration Change)'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now there are eighth-note rests between the original
rhythm. You can add off-beat accents as you wish, in the space where the rests are. You
can switch to the percussion matrix editor, or stick with the notation editor - it can be
fun guessing which pitch represents which instrument.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now that you've made a change, you'll have to
delete all the copies and re-copy them. We'll use a better solution instead, but
you'll still have to start by deleting all of the copies of the segment. Remember to
keep the first one!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After removing all but the first segment, from the
"Segment Parameters" box in the left toolbox, check the "Repeat"
checkbox.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Now the segment repeats forever. This can be useful, but
eventually you'll want to stop the song. When you want to change the repeats into
copies, from the menu select 'Segment > Turn Repeats Into
Copies'.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Adjust the first track so that it's repeated,
too.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial-Melody">
+ <title>Add a Melody</title>
+ <para>
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Rename the third track to "Melody," or
something like that.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Change the track's program.
+ <orderedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Look at the "Instrument Parameters" box in the
"Special Parameters" toolbox on the left side of the main editing
window.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Make sure that you have the "Melody" track
selected.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Select the "General MIDI" bank, which is
probably already selected.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>For the program, select whatever you prefer. I decided
to use program 51, called "Synth Strings 1." It reminds me of music from the
1980s.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>After setting the program, press 'play' on the
transport toolbar, and let it go for just a second. This will allow Rosegarden to send
the program-change message to FluidSynth. It isn't strictly necessary, and it would
have been done later anyway, but doing it now helps to avoid confusion
later.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Use the "Select and Edit" tool to create a
segment in the "Melody" track, of four measures
long.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Edit the segment in the default editor by double-clicking
on it.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Create four measures of a melody. It doesn't have to
be complicated, or even interesting.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Close the notation editor, and listen to the the three
tracks. Don't forget to reset the playhead to the beginning of the
session!</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>It sounds a bit silly to have the melody enter at the
very beginning, so add an introduction. With the "Select and Edit" tool (press
'F2' on the keyboard to engage it), click-and-drag the melody segment to a few
bars or beats later. Note that, even if you move it to start on beat 2, 3, or 4, the view
in the notation editor will always start the segment on beat
1.</para></listitem>
+ </orderedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ <section
id="sect-Musicians_Guide-Rosegarden-Tutorial-Ways_to_Continue">
+ <title>Possible Ways to Continue</title>
+ <para>
+ You're on your way to a full MIDI composition. All you need is some inspiration
to continue, and some willingness to experiment with more advanced features and tools. If
you don't know how to continue, try these suggestions. Remember: you're just
starting out, so your first song doesn't have to be interesting or particularly good.
Once you learn how to use MIDI composition tools, you'll naturally learn how to create
better music with them!
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <itemizedlist>
+ <listitem><para>Make a simple ternary form (ABA): you've already
created the first part (called "A"); so make a transition and a second,
different part (called "B"), then another transition and repeat the first part.
It doesn't need to be long, but it can be.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Make a "variations" form: repeat the part that
you've already created several times, but make it slightly different every time. Try
several different ways of modifying it: add another melody to go along with the one you
have; add extra notes to the existing melody; change the percussion track; write a new
bassline; expand the melody so it takes twice as long; combinations of these. Making a
variation of an existing section is a common way of making it take more
time.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Make an expanded version of the existing material, by
following your intuition to add more music.</para></listitem>
+ <listitem><para>Instead of adding a different melody of a repeating
bassline and percussion segment, try repeating the melody over and over, creating a new
bassline and percussion segments.</para></listitem>
+ </itemizedlist>
+ </para>
+ </section>
+ </section> <!-- Ends "Tutorial" Section --> <!--
Rosegarden-Tutorial- -->
+
+</chapter>