User Guide

Chapter 4: The Main Screen
30
which notes to play. (Band-in-a-Box will supply the correct notes; see the next section
for details.)
Recording Using the Wizard
To record the Wizard, press the [Record] button to record, and play the Wizard. This
will be recorded. You can use the feature of recording the Wizard to enter music without
a MIDI keyboard that doesn't sound as stiff as most music entered in step time. This is
how it works:
- Press [Record] to record.
- As the song plays, play the melody that you want on any Wizard key, using the same
key for each note, in the rhythm of the melody. The Wizard notes won't be the exact
melody, but don't worry about that as you record.
- When you're finished, go to the Notation window. You now have the notes with the
correct durations and times, but the wrong pitches.
- One by one drag the notes up to the correct melody note, holding down the Shift,
Control, and Command key for sharps, flats, and naturals respectively. You'll then
have entered a melody that sounds like it was recorded from a keyboard, without the
stiff sound of a melody entered in step time!
Note: If you have the wizard on, the SPACEBAR won't stop playback. You need to press
ESCAPE to stop playback if the Wizard is on. This is because people mistakenly hit the
spacebar while playing the wizard, which would stop the song inadvertently.
The Embellisher
When musicians see a lead sheet that has a melody written out, they would almost never
play it exactly as written. They would change the timing to add syncopation, change
durations to achieve staccato or legato playing, add grace notes, slurs, extra notes,
vibrato, and other effects.
Click on the Embellisher checkbox to enable live embellishment of the
Melody or Soloist part during playback.
If you enable the Embellisher, any Melody will get embellished as it is played so that you
hear a livelier, more realistic Melody - and it's different every time.
Click on the
Embellisher toolbar
button to open the
Melody Embellisher
dialog.
The Memo shows the
current embellishments
that have been applied.
You can change
settings and redo the
embellishment, or you
can make the current
embellishment
permanent.