MIDI Import - Need Help Please
Hi, I'm long time recording musician/songwriter, and I'm brand new to MuseScore. I installed it yesterday, and my primary use will be just to create a one staff sheet for my original songs, with just the melody and chord changes above the staff (kinda like fake book sheet music style).
Just to try out MuseScore, I played the vocal melody using a midi piano sound on a track in my song project in Cakewalk by BandLab. I then exported the file in general midi format. In this particular song, the melody has a few pickup notes before the music starts, so the pickup notes start on the 2nd beat of the first measure. So there's a 1 beat rest, then the melody notes play.
When I imported this midi file into MS, it put the first pickup note on the 1st beat of the 1st measure. So I tried to put in a quarter rest on the first beat of the 1st measure, but it just replaced the first note instead of pushing everything forward by one beat. Is there a way to get this midi file to start on beat 2 so that the pickup notes are in the right place?....or should I prepare the midi file differently in my DAW prior to exporting the midi file?
Also, not all the notes' values transferred properly, there were some 8th notes that came in as 16th or 32nd notes. I guess that's another issue altogether.
Any assistance would be appreciated, thank you!
MM
Comments
When you record the song, consider leaving out the pick up and add it manually later. Can Cakewalk export Musicmxl?
In reply to When you record the song,… by bobjp
Thanks for the reply bobjp. ..Yeah if I have to prepare it differently in CW prior to exporting, then that's a good suggestion, either that, or I thought maybe add an extra note to the first beat and just replace that note with a rest once in MS
Yes, Cakewalk can export Musicmxl. Would that be a better choice than exporting it as a standard midi file?
Cakewalk Documentation:
https://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=Cakewalk&language=3&help…
In reply to Thanks for the reply bobjp. … by musikmaker1
I think that an extra note will just confuse MuseScore.
Consider that midi is an audio playback format. Mxl basically has more notation information, and should be a better choice. Give it a shot.
In reply to I think that an extra note… by bobjp
It's just that I noticed that MS will replace any notes I delete with a rest of the same value. The pickup notes play during beats 2, 3, and 4 of the first measure. (The first pickup note is on the 2nd beat of the first measure.) There should be a quarter rest, then the pickup notes play. So if I add an additional quarter note on beat 1 before the first pickup note, then export from my DAW and import to MS, and then delete that quarter note on the first beat, MS will replace it with a rest. If it works then the first measure will have the rests in the proper place and the pickup notes should land where they belong as well. I'll get a chance tomorrow to try it. I will give the Mxl format a shot as well.
In reply to It's just that I noticed… by musikmaker1
I just tried exporting mxl out of my DAW and into MS and it worked, the pickup notes landed right where they were supposed to, with a quarter rest on beat 1 and the pickup notes on beats 2,3, and 4. I also did quantize the track in my DAW first, but I think the mxl file was what brought it in properly.
I noticed when setting up a blank score, the page that has Additional Score Information, where you can select time sig, tempo, and key sig, there's also a "measures" tab. Under that measures tab it looks like it gives an option for pickup notes that says "Create Pickup Measure", although I'm not exactly sure what the numbers do in those given boxes. I'll have to check the documentation on that. I would think the first box is for maybe setting how many beats rest?....not sure what that second box next to it is for yet though.