Band-In-A-Box version 2 Help Appendix A : List of valid chords accepted by Band-In-A-Box (major chords) C,CMAJ,C6, CMAJ7, CMAJ9,CMAJ13, Cb5, Caug,C+, CMAJ9#11, CMAJ13#11, (minor chords) Cm,Cm6,Cm7,Cm9,Cm11,Cm13, Cmaug,Cm#5, CmMAJ7, (half diminished) Cm7b5, (diminished) Cdim, ( dominant 7th chords ) C7,7+, C9+, C13+, C13, C7b13, C7#11, C13#11, C7#11b13, C9, C9b13, C9#11, C13#11, C9#11b13, C7b9, C13b9, C7b913, C7b9#11, C13b9#11, C7b9#11b13, C7#9, C13#9, C7#9b13, C9#11, C13#9#11, C7#9#11b13, C7b5, C13b5, C7b5b13, C9b5, C9b5b13, C7b5b9, C13b5b9, C7b5b9b13, C7b5#9, C13b5#9, C7b5#9b13, C7#5, C13#5, C7#5#11, C13#5#11, C9#5, C9#5#11, C7#5b9, C13#5b9, C7#5b9#11, C13#5b9#11, C7#5#9, C13#5#9#11, C7#5#9#11, C13#5#9#11 ( sustained 4 chords ) Csus ,C7sus,C9sus, C13sus, C7susb13, C7sus#11, C13sus#11, C7sus#11b13, C9susb13, C9sus#11, C13sus#11, C9sus#11b13, C7susb9, C13susb9, C7susb913, C7susb9#11, C13susb9#11, C7susb9#11b13, C7sus#9, C13sus#9, C7sus#9b13, C9sus#11, C13sus#9#11, C7sus#9#11b13, C7susb5, C13susb5, C7susb5b13, C9susb5, C9susb5b13, C7susb5b9, C13susb5b9, C7susb5b9b13, C7susb5#9, C13susb5#9, C7susb5#9b13, C7sus#5, C13sus#5, C7sus#5#11, C13sus#5#11, C9sus#5, C9sus#5#11, C7sus#5b9, C13sus#5b9, C7sus#5b9#11, C13sus#5b9#11, C7sus#5#9, C13sus#5#9#11, C7sus#5#9#11, C13sus#5#9#11, Note1: it is not necessary to type upper or lower case. the program will sort this out for you. Note2: Any chord may be entered with an alternate root ("SlashChord") eg: C7/E = C7 with E bass Note3: Separate chords with commas to enter 2 chords in a 2 beat cell eg: Dm7,G7 here is a one page summary to get you going 1. The program is not copy protected . None of the files are archived or compressed . BB.EXE is the program HELP.BB is the on line help file to access *.SG? files are the song files (chord files ) 2.Suggest that you copy all files to your hard disk ( suggest a :\bb subdirectory ) 3.Type BB to run the program Move around screen with cursor or page up/down keys Escape out of options , Hit enter key to choose options. Set your desired MIDI channels at top right of screen. 4.Drums default to Roland drum notes. If your not using a Roland Drum machine move to the DrumKit section at top right of screen ,choose the define drum kit option and then type in the MIDI drum notes that correspond to your machine. When saving the file (Function key 2), suggest you name it MYSETUP then it will automatically be loaded every time you use the program ( along with the MIDI channels you had selected and the bass/piano octaves) 5. Load in some of the songs that come with the program by hitting FunctionKey 3 for a menu of all songs or for menu of only songs in currently selected style. 6.Play the songs by key. If octave for bass/piano is too high or low -adjust these in top right of screen. 7.Create a Standard MIDI file by key 8.Blank the worksheet by B.lank 9.Type in your own chords/songs. help key gives summary of entering chords . to save songs . 10. to quit . If you've saved a drum kit with name of MYSETUP ( .DK extension added by program) your configuration of drum kit,channels, and bass/piano octaves will be auto-loaded next time you run the program. HAVE FUN, Peter Gannon SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE PROGRAM Band-In-A-Box (version 2) is a MIDI program for IBM compatible computers with an MPU 401 compatible MIDI interface. The program provides automatic accompaniment of bass,piano chording, and drum parts in a wide variety of popular styles of music (including Jazz swing ,Rock ,Country, Ethnic and more ). This program was designed and programmed by a musician.The concept is to provide the fastest means possible to provide a complete piano,bass and drum accompaniment to any song . To play a song all the program requires is : - the chords of the song ( as typed in by the user onto the screen using standard chord symbols-eg:C13b9 ) and - the form of the song (ie. the looping points for the chorus to begin and end , number of choruses to play , tag ending) and - part markers placed throughout the song to indicate new parts and locations for drum fills. and - the desired style (chosen by the user from a menu of 14 available styles ) A typical song may be entered in about 2 minutes . This allows the user to quickly build up a large library of songs in many styles of music . Examples of situations where the program is most useful include: 1. Play along in home MIDI studio . No more need to buy "Play along Jazz/Pop records".Now you can input your own songs very quickly,transposing, changing tempo,styles,trying different chord substitutions, and saving to disk as chord file or performance file (Standard MIDI File). Improve your playing regardless of instrument . Each of the instruments (bass,drums,piano) may be turned off so applicable to all musicians . 2. Useful for non Keyboard players (eg:vocalists) to enter chords directly out of Song books and generate accompaniment. Also educational as bass and piano parts are displayed on piano keyboard drawn on the screen , as well as 'bouncing bar' indicating which bar is playing . 3. Professionals will appreciate the abilities of the program to quickly generate sequences of popular songs . The song can then be saved as a sequence using a Standard Midi File . This file can then be loaded by most other IBM MIDI sequencers (such as Cakewalk v3.0 or Voyetra) and can be edited or tracks added).The sequences can then be used in live situations . 4.Entering a song as a series of chords has many advantages over creating a sequence : - about 20 times faster entry of song - can switch styles with touch of a key - storage of chords takes less than 1K per song ( 360 songs/floppy , 30,000 songs per hard disk !! ) - can change chords at will - no need for user to be aware of all kinds of drum beats and fills - as future versions of program increase sophistication your 'old' song files will sound better and better whereas a sequence sounds the same. The suggested retail price of Band-in-A-Box is $59. Peter Gannon PG MUSIC 111-266 Elmwood Ave BUFFALO NY 14222 1-416-528-2368