Creating a new instrument in instruments.xml

• Feb 16, 2022 - 05:48

I was looking to create a new instrument to use for auxiliary percussion for marching shows to avoid many different change instrument texts and to have multiple instruments on one staff, while there is a version of this option it does not suffice my needs. I attempted to make a new instrument by editing the built-in marching symbols. When implanted into musescore I am just missing all of the sounds. Note: I have yet to change the noteheads so as of now they clash but when I have the sounds figured out I will change their look and position. You can find the instrument I created by searching for new instrument in the file linked.

<Instrument id="auxiliary">
                  <family>batterie</family>
                  <longName>Auxiliary</longName>
                  <shortName>Aux.</shortName>
                  <description>Auxiliary Set</description>
                  <musicXMLid>metal.cymbal.crash</musicXMLid>
                  <stafftype staffTypePreset="perc5Line">percussion</stafftype>
                  <clef>PERC</clef>
                  <drumset>1</drumset>
                  <singleNoteDynamics>0</singleNoteDynamics>
                  <Drum pitch="57"> <!--Crash Cymbal 2-->
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Crash Cymbal 2</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>A</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="68">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Brake Drum</name>
                        <stem>1</stem>
                        <shortcut>B</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="51">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Ride Cymbal 1</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>C</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="53">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Ride Bell</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>D</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="36">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>7</line>
                        <voice>1</voice>
                        <name>Concert Bass Drum</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>E</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="55">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Splash Cymbal</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>F</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="83">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Sleigh Bells</name>
                        <stem>1</stem>
                        <shortcut>G</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="54">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Tambourine</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>H</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="52">
                        <head>cross</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Tam Tam</name>
                        <stem>1</stem>
                        <shortcut>I</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="80">
                        <head>cross</head> <!--Mute Triangle-->
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Mute Triangle</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>J</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="81"> <!--Open Triangle-->
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Open Triangle</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>K</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="69">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Wind Chimes</name>
                        <stem>1</stem>
                        <shortcut>L</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="52">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>0</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Chinese Cymbal</name>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                        <shortcut>M</shortcut>
                  </Drum>
                  <Articulation>
                        <gateTime>100</gateTime>
                        <velocity>100</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="sforzato">
                        <velocity>130</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="marcato">
                        <velocity>500</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <channel>
                        <controller ctrl="0" value="1"/>
                        <program value="58"/> <!--Marching Cymbals-->
                  </channel>
                  <genre>marching</genre>
            </Instrument>

Attachment	Size
instruments.xml	573.93 KB

Comments

Jojo-Schmitz

• Feb 16, 2022 - 07:43

Are you sure about this?

                  <channel>
                        <controller ctrl="0" value="1"/>
                        <program value="58"/> <!--Marching Cymbals-->
                  </channel>

Is this where your (?) soundfont has the sounds for that instrument?

Edit: ah, now I see in the standard instruments.xml (in the master branch) it has

                  <Channel>
                        <!--MIDI: Bank 128, Prog 58; MS General: Marching Cymbals-->
                        <controller ctrl="0" value="1"/> <!--Bank MSB-->
                        <program value="58"/> <!--Non-GS drum kit-->
                  </Channel>

Kinka Lane

• Feb 16, 2022 - 15:38

Truthfully I am not sure of anything with this, I am completely unfamiliar with how this part of musescore functions. I wondered if there were multiple sound banks which all had different pitch numbers and if that was the case how I assigned the proper sound bank to the correct subinstrument as there would be multiple sound banks for Auxiliary instrument.

Kinka Lane

• Feb 16, 2022 - 17:01

Update: Half of the sounds have been fixed but both ride sounds, and china cymbal sounds sound like drums. Also, tam tam will not show in the instrument drumset list at all.