Working with yamaha styles in Synfire Express

I can import this midi in Synfire Express and have one long rootcontainer with all songsections on a row..but i cannot reorganise ( pick out)  this rootcontainer in interesting songsections to use in the arrangement

To pick out interesting parts of the rootcontainer you just have to place a new empty container at the appropriate measures below the rootcontainer and make a snapshot. Then the relevant part of the root container (for example a songsection) will be stored in this new container. This procedure can be repeated with all the other songsections and at the end you will have a couple of containers, each filled with a different part of the root container. 

Why it is not possible to import midi sections in the rootcontainer at a choosen measure and chance the position of the imported songsections too?.. you can easily rearrange the order of the imported songsections in the rootcontainer ( you can divide the rootcontainer ) 

At the MIDI import it is possible to select the measure number of the start point and the total number of measures you want to import. This way you can select the specific part of the MIDI file you want to import. 

change the ".sty" to ".mid"  and you're good to go..  Import into arrangement as one long file.. Pack it.. then divide it up, copy and past sections.. Or import into library.  If it doesn't cut up in desired sections, use the mastertake, drag to a phrase pool, and make new phrases from there.

Hi janamdo, in synfire pro you only have options to say at what measure in the midi file to start reading and how many measures you want to import. The imported data is stored starting at measure one in the container.
There are options to import into libraries, and I think I remember an option to import into a container but don't quote me on that.

As said before you can import the whole midi piece then snap shot the bits you want into new child containers. After you've done that you can remove the contents of the root and copy paste bits back into the root to create your song structure assuming you want every thing in the root.

@Mark ... Where do you learn about Yamaha styles if you don't have a Yamaha keyboard?

I found a few downloads on google and did as you said, changing the file type to '.mid.' But the way they imported seemed funny with 3 bars of music playing together and then 'gaps' ... although the drums rolled right along.

Where can you find high quality ones?

Prado

Hi Prado:

I own a Yamaha Tyros 4 and A Motif XS rack.. But basically I've just been using the Tyros currently.  What the file consists of is 3 intros, 4 main sections, 3 endings..  Not all styles will have all of that.. Home made and old ones might just have 2 main parts.. 

Each main variation in one bar long.  Basically what happens is some one recorded the part in the key of C.  When the Tyros 4 plays it has 12 sequencers playing in real time. Eight are parts (drums, bass, chords, pad, phrases).  There are also 4 multipads (I think they can be longer).. When you play the Tyros (or any arranger kbd) it looks at the left hand chords, and transposes each of its sequencers to that key in real time.. The multipads do a similar thing they are less complicated.  

The intro and outros are real MIDI parts, written in a specific key.. Hence on some songs, you must play in the same key for the song to sound right, or play the first chord in the key the styles were written in. .  There are styles that have the word (session) attached, they are busier, and more clever, but to sound right you must play in the key they were recorded in..

So if you change the ".sty" to ".mid" you can load the file in, and there will be a bunch of one bar sections,  So in general you would import one of the one bar sections into SFP/SFE.

There's a work around to deal with minor keys, I forget the explanation.  You can also do this with Band In A Box styles.  Just rename them. I think the other arranger kbds use a similar precedure, cause there are a bunch of Roland, Ketron, and other manufactors styles converted to Yamaha.  

Here are a couple of sites with styles

(http://www.psrtutorial.com/sty/index.html)

(http://www.craftymusic.net/Forum_2/index.php?board=60.0)

(http://www.thelonearrangers.com/share-your-styles-multipads-registratio…)

(http://varranger.com/vforum/index.php/board,4.0.html?PHPSESSID=26d3e8ae…)

(http://tyrosmania.com/styles.php)

This site is a goldmine of information - 

(http://www.jososoft.dk/yamaha/index.htm)

There are a bunch of PC programs that are free to help you create and work with styles..

Instead of editing Yamaha styles on the machine itself, (pure drudgery) I have discovered a process, where I can record each instrument (in Logic or any DAW) playing any style for however long I want.. (you can't hear the seams where 8 instruments go to a new pattern).  You can hear some of that at

(http://www.psrtutorial.com/perf/markStyles.html)

The bottom line, yes the arranger styles, can be of some use, but using SFP/SFE MIDI import gives you more bang for amount of work to do.  The key is finding well recorded MIDI files. 

Send me an email, and I can give you a more personal response.

mstyles@nyc.rr.com

@markstyles

Send me an email, and I can give you a more personal response.

Watch your spam filter for bienpegaito@yahoo.com

Thanks.

Prado