When I encountered my first software sequencer more than a decade ago, I was blown away. As a young music educator, the appeal of the technology was irresistible: I could produce electronic realizations of the music I was teaching by creating multiple tracks of musical-performance data to trigger sounds from a synthesizer. As a composer, I also liked the potential to quickly create mockups of new pieces for prospective clients, performers, and publishers.

Soon, however, I began to understand the musical limitations of sequencing software and of the synthesizer sounds it could trigger. A symphonic realization I'd sequenced sounded like the score from a low-budget kung fu film, and a brass quintet came off like a cheesy background track for an old video game. Musical associates who were undisposed toward technology would say that a MIDI sequence could never replace the musicality of real musicians playing real instruments. Sometimes that is true, but it doesn't always have to be so. With a bit of effort, you can make sequences sound much like a real ensemble.

LET'S START AT THE VERY BEGINNING

The first thing to understand about a MIDI sequence is that it does not include audio. Rather, a MIDI sequence records which notes you played, when you played them (the tempo and rhythm), how quickly you struck each note, and when you released the note. It can record a lot of other information, as well, and we'll discuss that later, but these are the basics. Most of today's sequencers also can record audio, but not with the MIDI part of the program.

A typical sequencer also includes transport controls, so called because they emulate the Play, Stop, Rewind, and other transport features of a tape deck. You also usually get a Tracks window that emulates a multitrack tape recorder so you can see what's happening in each track.

MAKING IT REAL

How can something using recording performance data rather than actual acoustic instruments in order to trigger a synthesizer, sound real?

To start with, if you are a good player, you can record your real-time (live) performances into the sequencer. There are limits as to how smoothly this works, because MIDI divides most things into 127 steps, whereas audio changes smoothly and continuously. But if you use good sounds when playing back your performance, the results can fool most people. You don't even have to be a keyboard player; you can find guitar, percussion, violin, wind, and other MIDI controllers. (A controller is the part of the instrument you play, but without the sound-generation electronics, such as a keyboard that controls a separate synthesizer module or software.) The technology isn't perfect, but it's often quite good.

Second, as I noted earlier, most modern sequencers can record audio, as well as MIDI; therefore, they are often called digital audio sequencers. You can record sound with them much as you would with a tape recorder, but with far more editing options. Sequencers' audio features, however, are beyond the scope of this article; we're going to focus on MIDI because MIDI files are small, and consequently are easy to save to a computer drive, post on a Web site, and attach to e-mails. They allow you to change a track's instrument without playing the part again, so that a piano part can become a harpsichord part. In some ways, MIDI files are easier to edit than audio tracks are.

Over the years, I've created fairly convincing and expressive MIDI sequences by drawing on the same principles of traditional orchestration that I encountered in my formal study of composition. Educators and their students can use these principles to produce more musical and interesting MIDI sequences. I call these principles sequence-stration.

SEQUENCE, SCHMEQUENCE — WHY BOTHER?

Before I offer tips on how to make your sequences sound good, let me first say that it's worth the trouble. Many educators sequence (the verb for creating a sequencer file) accompaniments for use with their students in class, rehearsals, and performances. It's like having a virtual accompanist at your disposal. You don't even need to be a proficient keyboard player to do it. Playing notes from your MIDI keyboard or other controller, you can record the music for each track at as slow a tempo as you like, and then have it all play back at full speed. You can even enter one note at a time using a MIDI controller or a computer keyboard and mouse, which is called “step recording” or “step entry.”

Software sequencers allow you to record as many tracks as your computer's RAM (memory) will allow, and you can choose sounds for each track from among the many timbres available on your synthesizer. If you make a mistake or just want to try something different, making edits is a breeze. Notes can be altered individually or in groups in a variety of graphic and text-based modes, at least one of which will seem intuitive to you. Because the data doesn't take up much space (unlike digital audio), you can create lots of tracks without needing the latest, fastest computer.

Good pianists may want to record accompaniments in real time so they can use them in class or in rehearsals. Freed from the piano, they can give their full attention to conducting, attend to classroom-management issues, or assist students in other ways.
Sequencing software also allows you to alter parameters that you don't normally get to fiddle with when using CD-based accompaniment tracks. For instance, you can slow the tempo without lowering the pitch — useful when first teaching a song. You can mute all but one track to help strengthen that part, or mute a single part for a Music Minus One effect. You can even post your sequences to the Web for students to access and work with at home. Students can use sequencing to experience composing and arranging in a new way. There are many more ways educators can use sequences, but you get the idea.

The educator who does the extra tinkering required to improve his or her sequences will be well rewarded. Students are motivated to achieve excellence when they sing or play with better musicians; they will respond similarly when working with a compelling sequence. Good-sounding sequences can also be used in performances, not just rehearsals; many professional acts use sequences in concert. Finally, you'll get the same aesthetic satisfaction that composers and arrangers get when they create as you work at your sequenced creations.

SOUND ADVICE

One of the easiest ways to get better-sounding music from your sequences is to play them back using quality sounds, such as those found on more sophisticated hardware and software synthesizers. Each instrument has its good sounds and its bad sounds. It is usually a lot easier to synthesize percussion, keyboard, and electronic instruments. Despite the improvements of physical modeling, wind instruments are the toughest to synthesize because their spectrum evolves over time in complex ways. Arco string sounds may sound attractive at first but generally come across as synthetic when overused. Pizzicato strings are easier to synthesize because of their percussive quality. Try to feature your synthesizer's best sounds in your sequences. Use necessary but less-convincing sounds in the background.

That said, following the guidelines presented here will make sequences played back on the average educator's General MIDI (GM) synth or sound card more musical and enjoyable. In fact, there is an advantage to sequencing with GM sounds: you can rely on hearing more or less the same instrument sound from any GM synth, so you retain a high degree of sonic consistency when moving between the various locations where you teach.

There are 128 General MIDI sounds, organized by category (see the sidebar “General MIDI at Your Service”). For each sequence-stration principle, I'll offer specific examples using GM programs, referred to by number. (Creating synthesizer sounds requires programming the instrument, so the resulting sounds are generally called “programs.” Sometimes they are called “patches,” a reference to modular analog synthesizers, in which sounds are created by connecting separate modules with patch cables.)

IDIOMATIC WRITING AND PLAYING

I enjoy playing a game with participants in my music-technology courses. I perform short examples on a keyboard synthesizer to see who can guess which program I am using. At first I play instrument-appropriate examples with the appropriate program: a Bach-like contrapuntal passage on Harpsichord (GM 7) or funky octaves with Slap Bass 1 (GM 39). Armed with a list of GM sounds, almost everyone correctly guesses the programs chosen, and the general reaction is that the sounds on the synthesizer are fairly good — even if I use an unconvincing program, such as when I play “Dance of the Ballerina” from Petrushka on Trumpet (GM 57).

Then I turn the tables, playing various programs in uncharacteristic ways. Perhaps I'll play something in the high register with Timpani (GM 48) or perform a chorale using Fretless Bass (GM 36). Now it is much harder to guess which programs are being used.
The point is that when striving for realism when sequencing an instrument part, try to make it as idiomatic as possible. Stay in that instrument's range and employ typical gestures associated with it. Think things through from a player's viewpoint. For instance, if you are using a MIDI keyboard to enter a guitar part, ask questions like “How many strings do I have to work with?” and “How would they be played — in a pick pattern or strummed?” That will tap into the listener's expectations, and they will find your sequences more convincing. (Of course, if you're lucky enough to be able to use a guitarist playing a MIDI guitar controller you'll get an even better result.)

Many sequencing programs provide a “humanize” feature that, by adding slight, random variations to note timing, key velocity, and duration, goes a long way toward making your sequenced music sound less sterile. Doing this is as simple as highlighting the notes you want to alter and then choosing “Humanize” from a menu. Unless you have developed the skill to play parts from a keyboard in a natural, realistic manner — which can be done with practice — it can be difficult to sequence a good snare drum or timpani roll without humanizing.

Another idiomatic concern is whether you are sequencing a solo-instrument part or a section part. If you're writing for sections, try using Synth Brass 1 (GM 63) rather than Trumpet (GM 57) or Synth Brass 2 (GM 64) instead of French Horn (GM 61). Also, try using String Ensemble 1 or 2 (GM 49 or 50) in place of Violin (GM 41) or one of the other individual string instrument programs.
Where you need a string- or brass-section program but don't have a good one, you can copy and paste notes into duplicate tracks, then shift the timing of those new tracks slightly so there is deliberate, though fine, phasing just as there would be with real players. Most sequencing programs have a Shift or Slide Data feature. Be sure to humanize each offset track as well! (Another way to get a section sound from an individual program is to apply chorus to a track.)

Better yet, if you have good keyboard skills, you can record each part in the section separately, using solo-instrument programs. That way, you won't need to humanize, shift, slide, or pull any other fancy tricks.

One more thing: using programs in deliberately unidiomatic ways can yield some great sonic results. For example, I love to use the Rock Organ (GM 19) in the extreme low range to punctuate a phrase. The program no longer carries its pop connotations in that register, but instead sounds like a rich and ominous effect pad.

TIMBRAL CONNOTATION

The style of a piece may suggest its instrumentation; capitalizing on that will go a long way toward convincing your audience.
This is similar to idiomatic writing and playing in that it draws on the listener's associations and expectations.

Our band performed an arrangement a while ago of Elmer Bernstein's theme from the movie The Magnificent Seven. I sequenced all the instrument parts, and for fun I doubled the melody on Picked Electric Guitar (GM 28, low register) and Harmonica (GM 23, midrange). Immediately, the kids sensed the spaghetti-western association, and they enjoyed rehearsing with it. For “Bile Them Cabbage Down” (a fiddle tune from their method book), I assembled an electronic hillbilly band: Fiddle (GM 111) and Pan Flute (GM 76) doubled the melody; Banjo (GM 106) picked the chords in an idiomatically appropriate way; Acoustic Bass (GM 33) and Bottle Blow (GM 77, the moonshine jug.) doubled the bass line; and the GM Brush Kit provided the percussion (see Web example 1).

A vocal-music colleague of mine created a wonderful performance track for a medley from the Disney classic Mary Poppins by sequencing the piano accompaniment and augmenting it with judiciously selected instruments such as Tango Accordion (GM 24) and String Ensemble 2 (Warm Strings, GM 50) for “Chim Chim Cheree.”

My band recently did an arrangement of “Take Me out to the Ball Game” as an audience sing-along. My 13-year-old son made an excellent suggestion: add a ballpark-style organ sound!

Use your imagination, and don't be afraid to take chances. You aren't going to break anything by experimenting with sounds and styles.

TIMBRAL ALCHEMY

The alchemists of old mixed various elements and chemicals in their quest to fabricate prized metals such as gold. You can do the same thing when sequencing by mixing two synth sounds to produce a more complex timbre. I call this sort of layering “timbral alchemy,” but really it's just doubling using synth sounds. Here's how to double them the easy way.

Create a track and assign it to a good, basic sound. Copy the contents of this track into a neighboring empty track. Then assign this duplicate track to a synth program you feel enhances the timbre of the original sound. Finally, adjust the levels of each until the desired mix of the two is achieved. That is essentially the idea behind the combination sounds on many keyboards. Note that combinations don't always sound as you expect, because parts of one sound could mask (cover up) parts of the other sound. You need to experiment.

Getting the mix right is just as important as selecting complementary programs. Sometimes you'll want a fairly equal blend, and sometimes you'll want just a hint of one timbre. Set your levels using the track's volume slider or the sequencer's virtual mixing console.

Many successful combinations are traditional in conception. Add definition to a String Ensemble 2 (Warm Strings, GM 50) part by mixing it with Violin (GM 41). Try low-register French Horn (GM 61) as a substitute for cello, or mix it with Cello (GM 43) for a warm, continuo effect. Acoustic Grand (GM 1) can add weight to the low register of String Ensemble 1 (Attack Strings, GM 49) and Synth Brass 1 (GM 63).

You also can be inventive with layering. I like the way that Pan Flute (GM 76) improves the onset transient of the Flute (GM 74) and the way that Taiko Drum (GM 117) gives traction to the attack of Rock Organ (GM 19). Add interest to one of the more traditional GM instrument programs by combining it with one of the GM synth programs, set at a low level.

For the theme to some instructional videos, I used a mixture of three mallet-percussion programs: Vibraphone (GM 12), Marimba (GM 13), and Xylophone (GM 14). I've created several successful world-music lead instruments over the years by mixing varying levels of Pan Flute (GM 76), Bagpipes (GM 110), Fiddle (GM 111), and Tango Accordion (GM ). This works well when suggesting Celtic, Eastern European, Middle Eastern, and other music (see Web example 2).

Layering is not only one of the most effective ways to add interest to a sequence, it's also one of the most fun. Experiment with various combinations to uncover some surprising and engaging timbres.

OCTAVE DOUBLING

Your music-theory professor frowned upon parallel octaves, but octaves can really open up the sound of your synthesized orchestrations. That's because the sound that results from copying a violin part up an octave or a brass part down an octave is more a function of acoustics — reinforcing the second partial — than of part writing.

I often use layering and octave doubling together. For instance, if I were to sequence an orchestral piece with a exciting bass line, I might use three or four tracks assigned to various sounds. I could double Contrabass (GM 44) and String Ensemble 1 (GM 49) in two separate tracks for the written bass part. I'd probably double it an octave higher in a third track assigned to either String Ensemble 1 (GM 49) or Cello (GM 43). Finally, I might double the original part at the unison, or an octave lower, on Grand Piano (GM 1). What's cool is how simple all of that is to do. After you record one track of data, just use your sequencer's copy, paste, and transpose features to get the notes where you want them in the other tracks.

Since synthesizers can play only a finite number of sounds and notes simultaneously, there are limits to how much layering and octave doubling you can do. You'll know you've exceeded the limit if you hear parts dropping in and out.

TAKING CONTROL

The MIDI specification allows users to record or program an assortment of controller messages that let you vary parameters such as volume and pan position (setting the sound's left/right location) to make sequences more expressive. If you've ever used your keyboard's sustain pedal or pitch-bend wheel, you've already sent controller messages without knowing it. Imagine a piano part with no sustain pedal, and you can sense how vital these controllers are to producing a convincing sound.

There are several types of MIDI controller messages. Some of the most commonly used are Pitch Bend, Velocity (how fast you strike a key), and several of the 128 numbered Control Change (CC) messages. Many of these messages have obvious uses. Volume (CC 7) messages work like a fader on a mixer; use them to set initial and changing levels. Other controllers, such as Reverb (CC 91), add timbral interest. Web example 3, an excerpt from Country Dance (an original work for youth band) uses Volume and Reverb messages, as well as humanizing, to add realism. Other commonly used controllers include Pan (CC 10) and Chorus (CC 93).

What a given controller message does generally depends on how the synthesizer sound you're using has been programmed. With a GM synth, the sounds have been preprogrammed to respond to controllers based on the most common usage. For instance, Modulation (CC 1) is most often used to create a vibrato effect. However, with a programmable synthesizer, Modulation can be used to change the decay time for a reverb or even to do several things at once.

You can enter controller data with the mouse or with a control device such as a pedal, pitch-bend wheel, or modulation wheel. Some controller data is easier to understand when viewed graphically, so most software sequencers also allow you to draw or paint controller messages into a track. Many musicians use a combination of entry methods.

Let's say you are not a skilled pianist, so instead of playing a piano part live, you step-record the part one note at a time. You have the notes and rhythm right, but it still sounds lackluster. Perhaps the sound is too dry — that is, there is no natural room ambience. Just a single Reverb controller message at the start of the track can fix the problem. You can also add crescendo ramps up and decrescendo ramps down at various points in a track by using the pencil tool to draw in Volume data.

Add Sustain (CC 64) data by overdubbing sustain-pedal depressions where you want them. Overdubbing allows you to record new material to a track without erasing what's already there from previous takes, like the notes you've just step-entered. Making sure that the sequencer is set to Overdub Record mode, record-enable the piano track, and press the Record button. As the piano part plays back, press the sustain pedal, and Sustain data will be entered. When you play that track back, it will sound as though you had used the sustain pedal when recording. Because you're using the pedal to enter the Sustain data, you don't even have to know the CC number. Pitch Bend works the same way, using the pitch-bend wheel.

Many dynamic changes can be made according to the velocity with which you strike the keys. Be sure to take advantage of this when playing in parts. The MIDI Velocity message is actually part of the note message, but it can be edited separately.

THE 100 PERCENT RULE

If you take an arranging class, you'll probably learn about the 100 Percent Rule. The idea is that if 100 percent of your players are playing 100 percent of the time throughout an arrangement, that arrangement is a loser because you will have no timbral contrast or changes of texture to lend a sense of movement. Instruments with similar ranges may stay in the same frequency space, making the sound cluttered and uninteresting.

On the other hand, if you plot out an interesting organization of your performing forces, perhaps building from a transparent to a full texture, or passing material from one instrument (or group) to another, the listener will want to follow the drama of your arrangement. The same rule applies to electronic arrangements: try not to overload your sequences with lots of instruments playing all of the time. Listen to Web example 4, an excerpt of Tito Puente's “Oye Como Va” for the beginning of an arrangement using the 100 Percent Rule.

START SEQUENCING!

If you've had experience working with MIDI sequencing, it should be fairly easy to implement these tips for improving the sound of your sequences. Start with sequences you've already done and try applying a few of the principals.

If you're new to sequencing, these suggestions may seem more difficult than they really are. Don't despair, and definitely don't give up on the idea of using sequencing in your teaching. Teachers can obtain great benefits for their students from using even the most basic sequenced accompaniments. Some even have their students do the sequencing for them.

If you're creating a sequence to use with a high-school chorus selection, for instance, concepts like layering and the 100 Percent Rule aren't that important anyway. You'll probably record five tracks: the written piano accompaniment (using Grand Piano, GM 1) can go in Track 1, and you can use Tracks 2 through 5 for the soprano, alto, tenor, and bass vocal parts, using Synth Vox, GM 55, or any distinct program your kids can follow.

In rehearsals, you can use your sequencer to play the piano accompaniment only, or just the voice parts, or just the piano with a selected voice part. You can use a track's volume slider to emphasize a voice part, as well. As your sequenced accompaniment plays back, you'll be free from the piano to conduct phrasing and dynamics, make more eye contact, move about the room to control a potential discipline problem, or mirror the choreography your ensemble is using. And you can do all of that at any tempo you choose.

When you're ready do more, the principles of sequence-stration can take your MIDI sequences to the next level of musicality and expression.

Scott Watson teaches elementary band and university music technology courses in the Philadelphia area. His music for band is published by Alfred Publications and Shawnee Press. You can contact him at watsons@parklandsd.org.

General MIDI at Your Service

The General MIDI (GM) sound set was developed to answer the demand by users for a consistent and predictable set of synthesized sounds, primarily instruments but also effects. This is crucial not only for distributing music in the form of MIDI files but also for such applications as computer games that use MIDI music tracks. It's a lot easier to ensure that everyone hears your music correctly when you know that program 60 on any keyboard's GM bank will be a Muted Trumpet, for instance, and program 106 will be a Banjo.

Most percussion sounds are included in a separate part of the GM sound set, but that's another story. The GM Level 1 percussion map can be found on the MET Web site.

Most keyboards, PC sound cards, and Internet browser MIDI plug-ins employ GM sounds. A second-generation, expanded version of General MIDI, GM Level 2, has been devised to add 87 more instruments and sound effects, but GM Level 1 is still the standard sound set for most synthesizers.

GM Level 1 Sound Set

PC#	INSTRUMENT	PC#	INSTRUMENT	PC#	INSTRUMENT	PC#	INSTRUMENT
	PIANO		BASS		REEDS		SYNTH EFFECTS
1	Acoustic Grand	33	Acoustic	65	Soprano Sax	97	Rain
2	Bright Acoustic	34	Electric (Finger)	66	Alto Sax	98	Soundtrack
3	Electric Grand	35	Electric (Pick)	67	Tenor Sax	99	Crystal
4	Honky Tonk	36	Fretless	68	Baritone Sax	100	Atmosphere
5	Electric Piano 1	37	Slap Bass 1	69	Oboe	101	Brightness
6	Electric Piano 2	38	Slap Bass 2	70	English Horn	102	Goblins
7	Harpsichord	39	Synth Bass 1	71	Bassoon	103	Echoes
8	Clav	40	Synth Bass 2	72	Clarinet	104	Sci-Fi
	CHROMATIC PERCUSSION		STRINGS		PIPE		ETHNIC
9	Celesta	41	Violin	73	Piccolo	105	Sitar
10	Glockenspiel	42	Viola	74	Flute	106	Banjo
11	Music Box	43	Cello	75	Recorder	107	Shamisen
12	Vibraphone	44	Contrabass	76	Pan Flute	108	Koto
13	Marimba	45	Tremolo Strings	77	Blown Bottle	109	Kalimba
14	Xylophone	46	Pizzicato Strings	78	Shakuhachi	110	Bagpipe
15	Tubular Bells	47	Orchestral Strings	79	Whistle	111	Fiddle
16	Dulcimer	48	Timpani	80	Ocarina	112	Shanai
	ORGAN		ENSEMBLE		SYNTH LEAD		PERCUSSION
17	Drawbar	49	Strings 1	81	Square	113	Tinkle Bell
18	Percussive	50	Strings 2	82	Sawtooth	114	Agogo
19	Rock	51	Synth Strings 1	83	Calliope	115	Steel Drums
20	Church	52	Synth Strings 2	84	Chiff	116	Wood Block
21	Reed	53	Choir Aahs	85	Charang	117	Taiko Drum
22	Accordion	54	Voice Oohs	86	Voice	118	Melodic Tom
23	Harmonica	55	Synth Voice	87	Fifths	119	Synth Drum
24	Tango Accordion	56	Orchestra Hit	88	Bass plus Lead	120	Reverse Cymbal
	GUITAR		BRASS		SYNTH PAD		SOUND EFFECTS
25	Acoustic (Nylon)	57	Trumpet	89	New Age	121	Guitar Fret Noise
26	Acoustic (Steel)	58	Trombone	90	Warm	122	Breath Noise
27	Electric (Jazz)	59	Tuba	91	Polysynth	123	Seashore
28	Electric (Clean)	60	Muted Trumpet	92	Choir	124	Bird Tweet
29	Electric (Muted)	61	French Horn	93	Bowed	125	Telephone Ring
30	Overdriven	62	Brass Section	94	Metallic	126	Helicopter
31	Distortion	63	Synth Brass 1	95	Halo	127	Applause
32	Guitar Harmonica	64	Synth Brass 2	96	Sweep	128	Gunshot