New drums

• May 5, 2020 - 10:11

Hi,
I am going out of my tree here and really hoping someone can help as I have been all around the internet and nothing can seem to answer my question. I am creating a new drum set but cannot get the new sound file to play. Let me explain:

  1. I have created a new instruments list and added in my pitched percussion as so:
<Instrument id="pipeband-bass-drum">
                  <longName>BD</longName>
                  <shortName>BD</shortName>
                  <description>Pipe Band Bass Drum</description>
                  <musicXMLid>drum.pbbass-drum</musicXMLid>
                  <stafftype staffTypePreset="perc1Line">percussion</stafftype>
                  <clef>PERC</clef>
                  <drumset>1</drumset>
                  <singleNoteDynamics>0</singleNoteDynamics>
                  <Drum pitch="30">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>1</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Bass Drum L</name>
                        <shortcut>l</shortcut>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="31">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>-1</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>Bass Drum R</name>
                        <shortcut>r</shortcut>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                  </Drum>
                  <Articulation>
                        <gateTime>100</gateTime>
                        <velocity>100</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="sforzato">
                        <velocity>130</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="marcato">
                        <velocity>500</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <channel>
                        <program>59</program>
                  </channel>
                  <genre>marching</genre>
            </Instrument>

and this works fine, I can write the score as I intended.

  1. I have created a sample of my drum as a wav and created a sound font in polyphone. The sample plays fine and I have created the instrument (I am using the pitch in the xml as my key range that may be wrong):
    instrument.PNG

  2. I created presets and set the bank to 128
    preset.PNG

  3. I installed the sf2 file and added it to the synthesizer. and it appears in mixer
    mixer.PNG

However, no matter what I do now when I insert a beat or try and play the score back it is silent.

Any advice on what I have missed or misunderstood would be most welcome!

thanks
Magnus


Comments

update: just found out that by deselecting drumset in the mixer I can hear my sample! however the tenor drums (my 2nd instrument) make no sound at all. soooo confused!

In reply to by Magnus Tullock

Make sure you have both channels for both instruments added and named in the xml file. Load the sf at the top of the synth and save it. The "bass drum" channel program value should be "0" and the "alto" drum should be "1" reflecting 128:000 and 128:001. The number "59" may be resetting it to "000" rather than "128." That is why you are hearing it with the drumset box unchecked. The load and save of the synth is so you have a record of the sf name should it be deleted or unloaded from the synth. You can track all of this with the mscx file. Just open it in a text editor.

In reply to by ramblinj

Can i ask an additional question, my sounds are now working which is great. However, for this instrument I have:

<Instrument id="BassandTenor11-BassDrum">
                  <longName>PBBD</longName>
                  <shortName>PBBD</shortName>
                  <description>Pipe Band Bass Drum</description>
                  <musicXMLid>drum.bass-drum</musicXMLid>
                  <!-- <stafftype staffTypePreset="perc1Line">percussion</stafftype> -->
                  <clef>PERC</clef>
                  <drumset>1</drumset>
                  <singleNoteDynamics>0</singleNoteDynamics>
                  <Drum pitch="74">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>1</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>BassDrumL</name>
                        <shortcut>l</shortcut>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                  </Drum>
                  <Drum pitch="73">
                        <head>normal</head>
                        <line>-1</line>
                        <voice>0</voice>
                        <name>BassDrumR</name>
                        <shortcut>r</shortcut>
                        <stem>2</stem>
                  </Drum>
                  <Articulation>
                        <gateTime>100</gateTime>
                        <velocity>100</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="sforzato">
                        <velocity>130</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Articulation name="marcato">
                        <velocity>500</velocity>
                  </Articulation>
                  <Channel>
                       <program>1</program>
                  </Channel>
                  <genre>marching</genre>
            </Instrument>

and in my soundfont I have pitch/key 73 and 74 pointing to the same sample (i need the sound to be the same in my score). However, in MuseScore the two beats are distinctly different pitches even though they are both pointing to the same sample in the soundfont. Is there a way to negate the pitch in MuseScore and just play the same as is?

btw I am sure this makes no musical sense to anyone, but its the nature of the scores I write that I happen to need drum beats aboe and below the line to be the same pitch :)

cheers

In reply to by Magnus Tullock

Most drum definitions I can see use

                  <Channel>
                        <controller ctrl="0" value="1"/>
                        <program value="0"/> <!--Standard Kit-->
                  </Channel>

some use

                  <Channel>
                        <controller ctrl="0" value="1"/>
                        <program value="48"/> <!--Orchestra Kit-->
                  </Channel>

for some reason a few, esp, marching percussion, use

                  <channel>
                        <program>56</program>
                  </channel>

(or 58, 59, 96)

And I believe the shortcuts to be restricted to A-G (maybe H too, not sure)

In reply to by Jojo-Schmitz

Excuse my ignorance here. I assumed that if I assigned a drum (lets say baritone tenor) to no 71 and 72 in MuseScore Drum set (this is left hand and right hand), that would relate to pitch 71 and 72 in the instruments file which would then relate to key 71 and 72 in my soundfont (the channel is 1 as per the preset in the sound font as well). I assumed that with all of that set, muse score would just play the sample I asked for (i.e. the same sound for 71 and 72). I cant therefore see why these two pitches are actually different in musescore? I have attached my files for anyone to see if they can tell me what I am doing wrong.

This is for a pipeband where there is a bass, baritone, tenor and alto. The reason for right and left being on separate lines is so that we can note the flourishing (spinning of the sticks) on the other hand,

cheers

Attachment Size
instruments.xml 4.81 KB
PBDrumsChannelAdjuested2.zip 552.16 KB

Do you still have an unanswered question? Please log in first to post your question.