3.5

Table Of Contents
5MainStage User Guide
Get started with MainStage
Overview of getting started with MainStage
Welcome to MainStage. For users new to MainStage, this chapter provides a brief guided
“walkthrough” of the application and presents some basic tasks to help you get started.
For more about the design and functionality of MainStage, see What is MainStage?.
Before you start working in MainStage, you should connect the hardware equipment you
plan to use, such as a keyboard controller, an audio interface, and any instruments or
microphones, to your computer. Any keyboard controllers or other MIDI devices should
be capable of sending standard MIDI messages. In case you’re not sure about a particular
device, consult the owners manual or the product website. See Overview of connecting
MIDI devices to MainStage and Overview of connecting audio devices to MainStage to
learn more.
You start by opening MainStage and creating a new concert from a template. After the
concert opens, you can try out patch settings to find the ones you want to use.
MainStage includes templates for different musical instruments, including Keyboards,
GuitarRigs, Drums, Vocals, and more. You can choose a concert template in the Choose
Template dialog, which appears the first time you open MainStage and when you create or
close a concert.