Keyboard Patch Program?

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 9/28/16 at 8:52pm

So I'm playing Synthesizer for a production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. I have to program the sounds for the show, and I can't find a program that will allow me to program the patches ahead of time, and cycle through them during the performance. I'm hoping to find a software or windows app that will allow me to do such. My show doesn't have the budget to get the rental company's program, and I need to get something that is supported on a PC. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.

[trpguyy]

Posted: 9/28/16 at 10:11pm

Mainstage has become more or less the industry standard, though it's a Mac-only program. If you can scrounge up a Macbook with the appropriate horsepower, that may be your best bet, as the software costs only $30 and includes libraries of sounds/patches.

On the PC side, Forte by Brainspawn will do the trick, though some folks prefer Cantabile, and you'll still have to buy/license libraries of sounds.

Updated On: 9/28/16 at 10:11 PM

[trentsketch]

Posted: 9/29/16 at 9:02am

trpguyy has it right. Forte is the way to go for Windows. It's more work than renting the MTI package, but you have a lot more customization.

I will say I've had very good results renting the Keyboard Patch Solutions from MTI in the past. They do a nice job on shows that have very weird sound descriptions in the books. I'm talking things like Seussical or Aida where there's no rhyme and reason beyond the original MD's own MIDI setup. You can pretty easily program your own setup for ...Spelling Bee and get the right sounds for the show.

Good luck. Make sure you have enough time to practice and adjust for any delay. I've been stuck using a pretty beat up computer before and having to anticipate the beat for fast runs before to be in time with the rest of the orchestra. It's not fun. Make sure you exceed the suggested requirements for the Forte software and any external hardware you're using to run the sound through.

Also make sure you practice with whatever keys you program to advance through the effects. It's no fun jumping cues during a performance and scrambling through the setlist on the computer to go back if you reach for the wrong key. Make sure you program to keys you are not otherwise using for the performance.

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 9/29/16 at 9:11am

^ Even if they're not going to provide him with something as basic as the Mainstage application, I would hope his production company is resourceful enough to at the very least offer him a patch pedal, which would make the perils of maneuvering between the keys and laptop more or less irrelevant. If not, you can also re-program a volume & expression pedal, which is much more easy to access, to work in the same fashion although it does require a programmer with fairly sizable experience to make it so. 

[trpguyy]

Posted: 9/29/16 at 9:41am

This also leads us to the discussion of compensation. In the professional world, keyboard programming is the job of at least one person. In regional/stock/educational situations, that person is often the keyboard player, but s/he should be compensated for the (substantial) time it takes to program the book.

Right now it seems that you'll purchasing the software and VST libraries out of pocket, potentially purchasing an audio interface and additional pedals (if you don't already have them), and then volunteering your time to program it all. If you're fine doing this and see it as an investment in your own future, then that's awesome. But if you're doing it just to save the producers a couple bucks, it might actually be cheaper for them to rent the keyboard patch solutions from MTI.

If you're on Facebook, there's a group called Theatre Music Directors - the folks there will be able to help out a lot with guidance both on the keyboard/programming aspect of this as well as the "business" side. 

[Liza's Headband]

Posted: 9/29/16 at 10:14am

trpguyy and I don't agree on much, but I'm in total agreement with you here. It seems like the OP hasn't really addressed the issue in greater significance with the producers. You shouldn't be paying for anything out of pocket, whether it be pedals or software. 

[DooWahDiddy]

Posted: 9/29/16 at 11:47am

Everything that has been said is true (and I also didn't realize how many MDs/keyboardists there were on this board!), but I'll also add that Spelling Bee is a MONSTER of a keyboard book, in terms of programming.  If you're not familiar with Mainstage or Forte, it could take you DAYS of programming, possibly even weeks.  And yes, you'll definitely need a patch change pedal, so make sure the keyboard you're using has enough input jacks for that. 

Without knowing more specifics it's hard to give you advice (what rig you'll be playing on, what the budget/professional level of this production is, etc.), but the bottom line is that this will be a tough show for you to dive into keyboard programming on.  I recommend seeing if the theatre will spring for the Keyboard Patch Solutions that trentsketch mentioned.  Then after this show closes you can learn Mainstage or Forte on your own time and be ready for the next one!

[trentsketch]

Posted: 9/30/16 at 8:19am

And I'll apologize right now. I didn't realize how many extra little sounds there were for Spelling Bee in the keyboard part. Yes, try to convince your company to pay for the Keyboard Patch Solutions. It's a really good bargain for what you get. You should not be doing that much programming for free. You could get by without it, but if the book is straight up called a Synthesizer part, you're going to want all the help you can get.