Importing Piano Phrases (Example)
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Get an idea how to import piano music into Synfire, harvest individual phrases into a library, so you can use them for new songs.
The process of creating a Figure off a recorded Take
Get an idea how to import piano music into Synfire, harvest individual phrases into a library, so you can use them for new songs.
Learn how to build your own libraries from collecting phrases from other songs and sketches, or from MIDI file import.
Make the most of your recorded or imported figures by optimizing them for best performance in any harmonic context.
The first thing you probably want to do with Synfire is to get more phrases into it to work with. The quickest way to do this is to import them from MIDI files.
Under Windows, problems may occur if multiple programs attempt to use the same USB MIDI driver for input at the same time. Especially prone to this issue are “cheap” drivers that often accompany inexpensive MIDI hardware. If you wonder why Synfire is unable to receive MIDI input from your hardware keyboard, there is probably another program already using and blocking the USB driver.
Sometimes you want to import a midi file into Synfire that you created yourself for your specific studio setup, for example one that you just exported from a DAW and want to further refine with Synfire. In this situation, it is important for you to keep the devices and channels exactly as in the file. This ensures the imported file plays back correctly in Synfire after the import.
When the import dialog pops up (see picture), Synfire first assumes the file uses GM Standard and estimates the sound of each track by the GM program numbers it finds in the file.
For MIDI File Import, you basically have three options how to proceed, depending on the level of detail and control you want to get:
If you want to export your Synfire arrangement as a MIDI file (for example to edit it at the DAW) and re-import it afterwards into Synfire you should use the option File >> Import >> Standard MIDI File (Using My Private Sounds) to get back the previously used sound assignment.
This video (made with an older version of Synfire, but still true) shows how this feature works:
Build chord progressions from pressing keys on your keyboard. Synfire estimates the most likely chord in a sequence of chords.
Unlike the recording of static MIDI in a DAW, recording with Synfire involves the conversion of static MIDI input into a dynamic Figure. This procedure requires user interaction, as outlined here.
