Inside Multimedia 1995 January/IMM0195.ISO01.iso/demo/music/muzktime.z/README.TXT

Text File | 1994-03-15 | 16KB | 435 lines

PASSPORT DESIGNS

MUSICTIME 2.0 Demo

Welcome to Passport's MusicTime 2.0.  MusicTime is the most
entertaining way to make music if you own a sound card or
MIDI instrument. It gives beginners all the tools to get
started and musicians the features they need.  MusicTime
lets you compose, play and learn music on your computer.
MusicTime displays the actualnotes you play from your
computer's QWERTY keyboard or MIDI instrument.  Watch as
MusicTime instantly creates beautiful,publisher quality
sheet music right before your eyes!

The perfect tool for your music

MusicTime is used by all kinds of people doing all kinds of
music. Hobbyist who want to get started with music on their
computer.  Teachers and students who want to create their own
sheet music.  Choirs and Marching Bands who need too arrange
and alter existing scores. Groups who want to tranpose music
into any key for othe musicians and singers.  Even if you can't
play, you can start using MusicTime today.  Choose from a large
selection of pre-recorded MIDI files and import them into
MusicTime.  You can edit, play back and print music.  Whether
you're a beginner or a professional, MusicTime gives you the
power to make great music.

For Dealer and ordering information about MusicTime and other
Passport Products call 1-800-443-3210.



GUIDED TOUR - HOW TO USE THIS DEMO DISK
Please Note: This demo will not print or save files.

INSTALLATION GUIDE:
Installing the MusicTime Demo is easy. You simply run Windows
and then run the MusicTime Setup program. In addition to the
MusicTime application, you can install sample music files and
"device lists" (instrument lists) for popular MIDI
keyboards and sound modules. After you install the
program, you will need to install the fonts that MusicTime
uses to print music.

Installation
The MusicTime Demo Setup program makes installation
relatively painless. You should, however, read entirely
through the following sections to familiarize yourself
with the various options available to you before you
actually install the program. It may save you some time.


To install the MusicTime Demo:
1. Run Windows.

2. Insert the MusicTime Demo Disk in your computer's floppy
disk drive.

3. From the Windows Program Manager's File menu, choose
Run. The Run dialog box appears.

4. Enter A: SETUP in the dialog's text box (or B: SETUP if
the MusicTime Demo disk is in drive B:) Click OK.

5. The MusicTime Demo Setup dialog box appears. This dialog
box tells you which files will be installed from the
MusicTime program disk, where (drive and directory) they will
reside, and how much space they will occupy on your hard
disk.

The recommended files are preselected. All you have to do
is click Install. You also have the option of customizing the
installation.

You can change the drive and directory to which MusicTime
will be installed by clicking the Set Location button.

You can choose which of the sample files you'd like to
install by clicking the Select Files button.

6. After you click Install, the Setup program will create
a new MusicTime Demo program group and install the selected
files to the designated directory. If you selected the
TrueType fonts, they were copied to the EncDemo directory.

7. When installation is complete, click OK to exit the
MusicTime Demo Setup program and return to the Program
Manager. Before you run MusicTime, you need to install the
fonts.

If you have customized your installation, you can run the
MusicTime Demo Setup program again to install options that
you didn't install previously (such as the sample files or
Type 1 fonts).



INSTALLING THE FONTS:

You must install the Anastasia font to run MusicTime.

1. Locate the Windows Control Panel icon (typically found
in the Main program group) and double-click it.

2. When the Control Panel window opens, double-click the
Fonts icon. The Fonts dialog box appears.

3. Click the Add... button. The Add Fonts dialog appears.

4. The TrueType fonts are located in the MusicTime Demo
directory.

5. From the list of available fonts, select Anastasia,
FretsA, FretsB, and FretsC. Click OK to install the fonts.

6. When you're returned to the Fonts dialog, click Close.
You can now run the MusicTime Demo.

Before You Begin:
Pull down the View Menu and choose "Size to Fit". This
fits the score horizontally in the window. If you are
using a MIDI keyboard make sure your MIDI setup (under the
Setup Menu) is correct for your equipment. Select a MIDI
driver for Port A and the Record Port. If your only Record
In choices are NONE or MIDI Mapper, you will need to
install the MIDI Driver for your card using the Drivers
applet in the Windows Control Panel.


Entering Notes:
You can put notes on an MusicTime staff in six ways:

1) inserting with the mouse

2) using the on screen keyboard in step time

3) playing the QWERTY keyboard

4) inserting with a MIDI keyboard in step time

5) playing a MIDI keyboard in real time

6) importing a MIDI file or Master Tracks Pro sequence
To insert notes with the mouse:

In the Notes palette to the left of the score window,
click on the note duration you want.

Click on the staff where you want the note. Use the number
keys on your computer keyboard for selecting durations.

Example: 1= whole note, 2= half note, 3= quarter note,
etc.

Make sure the Auto Space function under the Setup Menu is
on. If this item is not checked, MusicTime will ignore normal
spacing and timing cosiderations and place notes exactly
where the mouse is clicked.


To insert chords with the mouse:
Enter the first note of the chord (any note you like) by
clicking as you did for single notes. Click directly above
or below the first note, on the appropriate line or space,
to write the remaining notes of the chord.


To make a note sharp or flat:
In the note palette, click on the sharp, flat, double
sharp, double flat or natural icon, or press "s", "f" or
"n" on your computer's keyboard. Use the shift key for
double flats/sharps.

Click on the head of the note in the score.
Click again to remove the sharp or flat from the note.

To play notes from the Computer(QWERTY) Keyboard:
Select the Keyboard Window from the Windows Menu.
Check the QWERTY input box.
You can now play your computer keyboard as an instrument.
Use the letters on your keyboard from (A) to (') to play.


To insert notes with a MIDI keyboard in step time:
Press "a" or click on the arrow icon.
Click on the spot in the score where you want to insert
the first note.
Click on any note duration in the Notes palette.
Play either single notes or chords, one at a time, on your
MIDI controller.
Click on different note values in the Notes palette to
change durations.
Use the "r" key to change to rests, of the selected
duration, instead of notes. It acts as a toggle.

Use the number keys on your computer keyboard for
selecting durations.


Example: 1= whole note, 2= half note, 3= quarter note, etc.


To import a Master Tracks Pro sequence or a MIDI file:
Pull down the File menu and choose Import... MusicTime will
open Master Tracks Pro, Trax and MIDI files from this
menu. Select the BACH-MIDI File from the Songs directory
inside MusicTime Demo. MusicTime will automatically guess
the note durations and beam the notes after you import or
play a piece of music (as long as "Auto Beam/Guess" is
 selected in the Setup Menu).

To record in real time:
Click the arrow pointer on the first bar of the score.
From the toolbar, click the Record button (or press the
Enter key). After the 4-beat countoff, play a few bars of
music on your MIDI instrument. Click the Record button
again (or press the Space bar) to stop recording.



To play the score:
Press "a" on your computer to get the arrow pointer.
Click the arrow pointer on the first bar of the score.
Press the space bar or click the Play button on the
toolbar. Any music you've placed in the score will play
back over MIDI channel 1.



EDITING
There are three primary ways to edit a score in MusicTime:
using the Staff Sheet, by clicking and dragging, and by
using menu items to edit notes you've selected.


Staff Sheet Editing:
Use the Staff Sheet (Control + /) to set the play status,
size, playback key (part transposition), MIDI channel,
MIDI program number and volume for each staff.


Setting MIDI Channels:
Each staff can be set to a different MIDI channel and
program number. This allows different instruments or
patches to play back on each staff. MusicTime supports two
ports of MIDI (A and B) for 32 MIDI channels. Pull down
the Windows menu and select "Staff Sheet", (or press
Control + /). The Staff Sheet window appears. Click on the
box below "Chan" (A1 is the default). You'll see the
"Choose Channel/Port" dialog box. In voice 1, select a
checkbox for any MIDI channel from 1 to 16. Note: Each
voice in a staff can contain a different MIDI channel and
program number assignment. This allows you to play
multiple instruments on the same staff. The default has
all voices set to the same MIDI channel. Click OK. This
causes staff 1 to play over the channel you designated.
Follow the same procedure to set the MIDI channel for any
additional staves.



Program changes:
Using the Staff Sheet window, you can enter a MIDI program
change number for any staff you want. When MusicTime plays
the score back from the first bar, it will automatically
set your MIDI instruments to the program change numbers
you've entered. You can view the program change as numbers
or expand the column to a text field of program names. In
the Staff Sheet (Control + /), click on the heading of the
"Prog" column. The column expands to show program names
rather than numbers. To choose a program name for a staff,
click in the column below the word "Program" in the
appropriate staff line. From the "Choose Instrument"
dialog box, click on the "Device" button and choose your
synthesizer if it is listed - if it's not, then leave it
set to "Generic". Click on the desired sound or program
number to send the preset change to your instrument. Click
OK. The music in Staff 1 will now play with the synth
patch you've designated. You can also use the Staff Sheet
to change the overall volume and playback key of a staff,
in much the same way.



Click and Drag Editing

To move a note, chord or rest:
With the arrow pointer, click on any note-head or rest and
drag it. To nudge a note, chord or rest left or right:
From the Edit Menu there are four commands which allow you
to nudge (move) objects one pixel at a time.

Select the item(s) you wish to move.

The "Nudge" quickeys are as follows:
Up:     (Control  = )  Hold the Control key and the equal key.
Down:   (Control  - )  Hold the Control key and the minus key.
Right:  (Control  ]  ) Hold the Control key and the left bracket.
Left:   (Control  [  ) Hold the Control key and the right bracket.

To edit beams:
Click the arrow pointer on the center of any beam. Drag
the beam up or down to the desired height. Click the
pointer on either the left or right corner of any beam.
Drag the corner until the beam is at the angle you want.

To delete with the eraser:
In the toolbar, click on the eraser icon. (or press "e"). This turns the
pointer into a crosshair.
Click on any note, rest or graphic; it will go away.


To insert chord symbols, guitar chord symbols, text,
lyrics or graphics in a score: Select the Graphics palette
from the Windows menu. (You can also Click on the right
side of the word "Notes" in the palette until you see the
word "Graphics. ")


Entering lyrics:
Click on the "L" in the Graphics palette. On the score,
click on the note head of the first note where you wish to
begin adding lyrics. A blinking cursor will appear below
the note. Type lyrics. Use the tab key to move the
lyrics pointer to the next note.  To adjust the vertical
position for a lyric line, select the lyric tool and click
on the staff you wish to adjust. An arrow will appear to
the left of the staff. Click and drag this arrow up or down
to adjust your lyrics. To add a second line of lyrics, use
the voice pop-up menu in the top left of the toolbar. In
lyrics mode, voices 2 through 4 are used for extra lines of
lyrics. Choosing one of these voices will allow you to
enter additional lyrics below the first lyric line.



Entering text:
Click on the "T" in the Graphics palette. Click and drag
on the score to define a "text box". Type text. You can
move the text by dragging it from the center with the
arrow tool. You may also combine multiple fonts and font
sizes in a single text box. The same is true for lyrics.

Entering chords:
Clicking on the "C" icon lets you add chord symbols
to the score; clicking on the "G" icon lets you add guitar fret
chord symbols to the score. Click on the "G" icon. Click
on the score where you want the chord symbol to appear.
Select the root, bass note and quality of the chord then
Click OK. Using the arrow pointer, you can adjust the
horizontal position of chords after they have been input
by clicking and dragging on the chord symbol. To adjust
the vertical position for a chord, select the chord tool
and click on the staff you wish to adjust. An arrow will
appear to the left of the staff. Drag it up and down. If a
staff containing chord symbols is transposed, the chord
symbols will automatically change to the new key.


Entering graphics:
Select the square tool in the Graphic palette. Click in
the score at the point where you want to place either the
end of the symbol. Drag the pointer in any direction to
stretch the symbol onto the score.


Slurs:
Select the Tools palette from the Windows menu.
Click on the slur icon. This is the first item in the top
left corner of the Tools palette. Click on the score three
times: once where you want the left end of the slur, once
in the center, and once at the right end of the slur. You
can edit the slur by clicking and dragging the control
points on the slur with the arrow pointer. You can also
automatically slur between two notes by highlighting a
range of notes and using (Control + L). See selection
editing below.



Selection Editing:

You can edit in MusicTime by selecting items, then use the
menu commands to alter them.

MusicTime has many ways of selecting (using the arrow pointer
selected): Select a measure by double-clicking on any
blank spot in that measure. Select an entire staff line by
clicking once in the margin to the left of the staff.
Select an entire staff to the end of the score by double-
clicking in the margin to the left of the staff.

Select a range of notes by clicking and holding on a blank
spot in the score, and then dragging a rectangle around
the group of notes. Select several discontinuous areas by
holding the Shift key as you select additional regions.
Select one or more individual notes by holding the Shift
key and clicking on the note heads. After you make a
selection, MusicTime's menu commands can alter the selection
in many ways.

Beam notes:
To add beams to any group of notes, select the notes to be
beamed. From the Notes menu, choose "Beam Group" from the
"Beam Notes" sub-menu. MusicTime will beam all appropriate
notes together. Note: if any of the selected notes have
been beamed, the beam command will unbeam the notes with
the first command. Select Beam Group again and all the
selected notes will then be beamed.

Changing note durations:
Select any note, group or groups of notes.
From the Notes Menu, choose "Change Duration".
Click in the box labeled: "Set note type to:"
Click the button for any note value.
Click OK. The selected notes will change to the value you
designated.



MusicTime is available at computer and music retailers
worldwide.

FOR DEALER AND ORDERING INFORMATION ABOUT MUSICTIME AND OTHER
PASSPORT PRODUCTS,


PLEASE CALL OR WRITE:
PASSPORT DESIGNS, INC.
100 Stone Pine Rd.
Half Moon Bay, CA 94019
phone [phone]
fax [phone]