Band-in-a-Box Auto-Harmonizing Plug-in

How to get there

Select a region containing at least one note with the Selection Tool (for best results, the region should contain at least one Chord Symbol). The notes selected can be of any duration and rhythm. From the Plug-ins menu, choose Scoring and Arranging, and then Band-in-a-Box Auto Harmonizing.

What it does

The Band-in-a-Box Auto Harmonizing plug-in will add a number of new voices to an existing melody, based on chord symbols (or based on the key signature of the piece if no chord symbols exist in the selected region). The plug-in’s harmonies are based on those found in the PG Music software Band-in-a-Box. The resulting music is generally homophonic, meaning all harmonies will be the same rhythm as the melody. Exceptions, such as piano/guitar presets, will be detailed below.

• Number of Voices. Use this drop-down list to determine how many voices (including the input melody) your harmonized music will include. You’ll also notice that changing this selection affects the available harmonizations. After choosing the desired number of voices, select a type of harmonization from the list below the menu.
• Style. Select a preset style of harmony. For a list of all available presets, see Harmony Presets in the Appendix.

Here are the naming conventions used in the Generic presets:

Drop Two- Transposes the first harmony note below the melody down an octave

Drop Three- Transposes the second harmony note below the melody down an octave

One Above, Two Above, Two Below, etc.- The number (One, Two) represents how many (non-octave) harmony voices are placed above or below the melody

3rds Above- Typically adds a note a third above the melody

3rds Below- Typically adds a note a third below the melody

6ths Above, 6ths Below- Typically adds a note a sixth above or below the melody

3rds & 6ths- Harmony typically uses a mixture of thirds and sixths

Alt- Provides an alternative harmonization including sevenths and ninths

8va- Double the melody an octave above.

8vb- Double the melody an octave below.

8va & 8vb- Double the melody both an octave above and below.

#1, #2, #3- Some harmony stacks have alternate permutations. For instance, in a dense harmony preset, Variation #1 might play a third interval, while Variation #2 plays a sixth, and Variation #3 plays alt tones.

Examples:

1. Three Part, 3rds & 6ths Below 8vb
2. The first harmony voice is a mixture of 3rds and 6ths below the melody. The second harmony voice is the melody transposed down one octave.
3. Four Part, 6th Above 8va #2
4. The first harmony voice is a sixth interval above the melody. The second harmony voice is below the melody. The third harmony voice is the melody transposed up one octave. This preset is the second variation of this harmony stack.
5. Six Part, 3rd Above 8va & 8vb

The first harmony voice is a third interval above the melody. Two harmony voices are below the melody. The remaining two harmony voices double the melody an octave above and an octave below.

Instrument Preset Names, such as Guitar or Super Brass, create harmony stacks typical for the instrument. These presets may also be useful on other instruments.

Guitar and Piano presets will harmonize long notes without harmonizing short notes. This emulates performance techniques when it is artistically undesirable (and difficult on the fingers) to harmonize all notes in a melody. The following presets are Guitar/Piano harmonizations: Two Part: Guitar 3rds and 6ths; Three Part: Guitar; Four Part: Jazz Piano, Guitar Drop 2, Swing Guitar; Five Part: Jazz Piano; Six Part: Guitar. Remember to place the notes into the appropriate number of staves.

Some Instrument presets limit the low and high note range of harmonies. For instance, if a Drop Two harmony note extends below an instrument’s range, this low harmony note might be transposed up to fit in the instrument range.

Most of the Generic Presets harmonize all melody notes, and the harmony high-low note ranges are not restricted.

• Place New Voices Into: Selected Staff (all Voices) · Staves Added to Bottom of Score · Existing Staves Starting with Staff. The Band-in-a-Box Auto Harmonizing gives you the option to place the new harmony voices into any of three places. Choosing Selected Staff (all Voices) will place the harmony voices into the same staff as the melody staff. This option is required for Piano/Guitar harmonizations. Staves Added to Bottom of Score will create one staff for each harmony voice. The number of staves is one less than the Number of Voices because the Auto Harmonize plug-in is only interested in placing the new voices, and will leave the melody (considered one of the voices) alone. Note that these added staves will need to be subsequently defined in the Instrument List for optimal playback. Existing Staves Starting With Staff allows you to choose consecutive staves already in your document. For instance, if you are working on an arrangement for Jazz Ensemble, and already have your score set up, you can enter a melody and chord symbols in your Trumpet 1 staff, then automatically harmonize to your Trumpets 2-4 staves.

Tip: Note that the plug-in relies on the Set Play values assigned to chord suffixes. If your file contains chord suffixes that have been created without a Set Play value defined, the associated chords will not have any impact on the harmony. See Chord symbols and Suffix Keynumber Offsets dialog box.

• More Info · Cancel · OK. Click More Info for a brief summary of what the plug-in does. Click Cancel to dismiss the dialog box without making any changes, or Click OK to make the selected changes.

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