Practical MIDI

Last year I submitted this column to Vin (some of you know him as Flash) for his input and he reminded me that the Cybermidi site has a forum for this sort of thing. Is this a case of Cybermidi's forum not being utilized to its full advantage or could there be a better format for us MIDI file users to interact with each other? At any rate, what follows is the original column as written. Let's hear some opinions from the rest of you out there in MIDI land.

When I read this last column by Dave “Quimby” Gash, it started my creative wheels to turning. Dave is one of several performers I know of that utilizes MIDI files in their act. I use them to full advantage in my act as well, and I remember reading that Cybermidi’s own Vin (Flash to some of you) does, too. That’s three that I know of and there has to be many more out there who do the same thing. With that in mind, I got to thinking about a support group, for lack of a better term, for MIDI users.

I don’t mean just a place like Cybermidi where we can all come to get MIDI files, read columns and listen to the latest demos. I mean a bulletin board or sorts where people using these files can chat, exchange ideas, offer tips, discuss the latest sequencing software options or just talk about some of their favorite MIDI files.

Personally, every now and then I find that I need to talk to another MIDI user to help me work through a sequencing problem I may be having. I don’t believe there is such a place on the web YET, but I hope to change all that with this idea. I frequently visit a site called Mayberry.com to join in on the chat regarding The Andy Griffith Show. There I can read about opinions or share ideas about the show, whether it’s sharing photos of the Mayberry set, or asking another poster what kind of guitar Andy played on the show.

With a place like The Cybermidi MIDI File User’s Club, I could, for example, start a thread asking questions about the use of MIDI controllers and hope for someone more knowledgeable to come to my aid. If there are several theories on the subject, I could try them all and stick with the best solution. If someone started a thread about which sequencing software to use, I could at least talk intelligently about MidiSoft’s Recording Studio, which is what I use to sequence songs. On the other hand, I’m not too familiar with Cakewalk and if there was a better way to accomplish a task with that package that mine couldn’t handle, I’d need only to post a question and hope for a helpful response.

Not being all that knowledgeable on the ins and outs of starting a bulletin board like this, I wouldn’t know if it’s something Vin would even want to construct or moderate. I know it probably takes a fair amount of time to maintain a board, not to mention what goes into creating it in the first place. I do know I’d be willing to help out in any way that I could to get something like this started.

Perhaps if this idea is appealing to enough Cybermidi users, we may be able to find a user out there who could help start the board or at least point us in the right direction. I’d like to hear opinions from our readers, good, bad or indifferent on the subject. Is this a reachable goal or am I dreaming? Let’s hear from you.

...I heard from some of you about getting started. Here's my input for topics we could cover. Let me know if you have others you'd like to see discussed.

MIDI File Editing
Sequencing Software Help
Sequencing Software Choices
Cut & Paste
Voice Changing
"Borrowing" Drum Patterns
Starting From Scratch Sequencing
Learn From Others' Mistakes

©2007 Bill Bernico for CYBERMIDI.com Downwind Publications