Editing "Instruments.xml" creating problems
Hello!
I'd like to start by saying how impressed I am with musescore. I am volunteer percussion instructor at my local high school, and have been using the software to write parts for my students, and it has been a great tool.
I'm looking to explore more of musescore's capabilities, by using a soundfont to create files that I can play back. In order to do this, I have made my own modifications to the TimGM6mb3 soundfont to include some marching sounds. That soundfont is working very well.
The problem that I'm having is with notation. What I have done is made alterations to the instrument.xml file to accomodate the marching percussion. Basically, I treat each instrument (e.g., the Snare Drum) as its own drumset, and each sound the instrument can make is assigned its own drum pitch and notation. For example, a rim shot is placed on line 4, with notehead style "1" (an "X"). This continues down the line for the multitude of sounds each instrument can make, e.g. rim shots, rim knocks, shell knocks, buzzes, stick shots, stick clicks, backsticks, etc... etc... etc... ad nauseum, ad infinitum.
What happens is when I save the updated instruments.xml file, and then go to the "drums" palette for each instrument, not all of the individual pitches or notes are displayed. The number of pitches varies from instrument to instrument, and does not seem to follow any pattern. Is there an explaination or a workaround?
I have attached a copy of the xml file that I have altered, as well as some screenshots from musescore. I am using musescore version 0.9.6.3, revision 3507. My computer is a HP laptop running Windows Vista Home Premium with Service Pack 2. Any input you can provide will be welcome!
Sincerely,
Mike Schorsch
mrs1@lbwl.com
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| instruments2.xml | 153.5 KB |
| Screenshot1.jpg | 100.47 KB |
| Screenshot2.jpg | 106.76 KB |
Comments
Mike, You have several drums using the same pitch (see below). Each drum you add to the palette needs to have a unique pitch.
<Drum pitch="50"> <head>0</head> <line>4</line> <voice>0</voice> <name>Battery Snare</name> </Drum> ... <Drum pitch="50"> <head>3</head> <line>4</line> <voice>0</voice> <name>Visual (BS,X-Over,Etc)</name> </Drum>In reply to Pitch by David Bolton
David,
Thank you for the prompt response. I will try that solution tonight.
Since the pitch is associated with a particular key in the soundfont, I will also make sure the particular sound is duplicated on a different key. I'm certain that will work out.
Out of curiosity, is there a "maximum" (given of course, that a particular soundfont bank is limited to something like 126 sounds) number of drum sounds that can be placed within the drum palette?
Sincerely,
Mike S.
In reply to Will Try by mschorsch
David,
That solution worked like a charm! No missing pitches or anything. Next up is recording the complete soundfont. I'll submit samples when complete!
Cool, Cool, Cool!
Mike S.
In reply to Success! by mschorsch
That will be such a help to all of us that write for high school or college drumlines, or drum corps. Thanks for the effort Mike and I hope that it can be implemented into this wonderful program.
In reply to That will be such a help to by Carl Hittner
Carl,
I'm not much of a programmer, but I know what drumline sounds I like. To be clear, I'm working on Battery percussion only: marching snare with Kevlar head, marching tenors (quints), bass drums, and cymbals. No front ensemble instruments. All samples will come from my local high school's instruments, so just like VDL comes with real sounds of the SCV, this one will be sounds of a rural high school in the American Midwest.
As soon as I have the soundfont and the xml file modified to a point where I am satisfied with it, I will be sure to make it available for all. I will accept review comments as well to help improve.
Thanks!
Mike S.
In reply to That will be such a help to by Carl Hittner
For drumline sounds and instruments, replace instruments.xml and whatever soundfont you are using with the files posted here:
http://sites.google.com/site/mhsbulldogdrumline
Navigate to the "Composition" page.
Good Luck!
Mike S.
In reply to Drumline Soundfont by mschorsch
I am using the TimGM6withDL soundfont that you provided for the marching percussion sounds. Today I was trying to make a two octave chromatic scale sheet for Alto Sax going from D below the staff to D two ledger lines above the staff. The B, C, & C# above the staff do not sound as Alto Sax notes - the B and C sound as two different pitches of whistles, and the C# sounds as some electronic sound (possible a much lower whistle). I switched back to the default TimGM6 soundfont, and the three notes sounded correctly, so it's in the soundfont that you modified.
Any idea what the problem could be?
In reply to Problem with Soundfont by newsome
Newsome,
That's a strange one, because I left the rest of the soundfont alone. Perhaps the editing software (Viena freeware) somehow damaged the file. The only thing that occurs to me is that somehow multiple samples were referenced to the same note in the bank (stranger things have happened!). Especially if that instrument's root key is not consistent, a mismapped sound can easily sound very nasty!
Does the range of chromatic scale have incorrect sounds for other instruments, or just the Alto Sax? In addition, do you get those strange notes at the B, C, & C# above the staff, or do those errors show up in other octaves as well?
I'll try with my version to see if I can reproduce the error. I'll also open up the soundfont to see if for any reason the banks are linked, like sharing samples or something for those particular notes. If they are, then I will repair it and re-post. I'll keep you informed!
Mike S.
In reply to Problem with Soundfont by mschorsch
Those are the only three notes that I find that have any problems - just the B, C, and C# above the staff in the Alto Sax part. I couldn't find any problems in any other notes, octaves, or instruments. I tried it on my work and home computer, and had the same problem on both.
In reply to Those are the only three by newsome
Okay, problem found. Apparently my freeware soundfont editor corrupted the sample for the Alto Sax. I repaired it and uploaded the soundfont to http://sites.google.com/site/mhsbulldogdrumline/composition. Alto sax seems to be working okay, but I noticed some quirks in the program when I did the fix. In any event, I'm not confident that this fix didn't create a problem elsewhere, so if you find any other problems please let me know. I have the feeling that the time is coming for me to open my wallet and get a commerical soundfont editor!
Sincerely,
Mike S.
In reply to Fixed by mschorsch
Thanks for taking the time to find the problem! If I run into anything else like this, I'll let you know. Thanks again....
In reply to Fixed by mschorsch
I went through the two octave chromatic scale for the common band instruments (the ones I already had the scale written for), and I didn't find any more errors. That's not to say an error didn't creep in somewhere on a more obscure instrument in the list, but for now the soundfont is back to working perfectly.
Thanks again for all your hard work!