A SmartMusic accompaniment file is essentially
an enhanced MIDI file. Some of the tips below can help you prepare the
best possible MIDI playback (in Finale or SmartMusic) as you notate the
score. Other tips address the unique issues of the SmartMusic enhancements
and limitations.
Tips for
SmartMusic files
- Double-check
the playback of the file. To hear how the music will sound in SmartMusic,
playback the file using Finale’s SmartMusic SoundFont playback.
- Check
the Score Manager to make sure none of the tracks are muted. See Instrument
List.
- Remove
extra or empty measures at the end of the file.
- Tempos
should remain within a range of 20-240 beats per minute for best following.
- Ritards
and accelerandos applied to the file will help the SmartMusic following
create a smoother tempo change.
- Keep
tempo changes conservative to allow the musician to create their own interpretation
and provide a smoother following of tempo nuances for the Intelligent
Accompanist.
- No
Controllers except Volume (#7), Sustain (#64), Room Select (#12), Reverb
(#91) and Pitch Bend are allowed. See Continuous
data.
- Finale
and SmartMusic understand transposing instruments and will adjust accordingly.
If you wish to double-check the sounding or concert pitch, use Display
in Concert Pitch in the Document
menu.
- If
you intend to use Intelligent Accompaniment, you must have at least 2
staves when saving a SmartMusic Public file from Finale: one staff for
the solo or melody line and one staff for the accompaniment.
General tips for MIDI Files
- You
may want to record all tracks by performing them into Finale using HyperScribe
or a sequencer and avoid step-entering notes. Performing tracks adds human
variation to velocities, durations and note placement which creates a
more natural sounding accompaniment. To achieve a similar effect, enable
Human Playback (available in the Playback
Settings dialog box).
- If
you’re importing a MIDI file into Finale, make sure you save it as MIDI
Type 1 (tracks become staves), so that all of the channels or tracks are
separate.
- When
importing a MIDI file, preserve as much of the MIDI information as possible
by checking Include Tempo Changes and Continuous Data. See also To
import a MIDI file.
- Check
your Playback/Record Options. Make sure the four Play Recorded checkboxes are
checked. If you enable Human Playback, set up the HP Preferences to incorporate
all of the User MIDI Data. See Playback/Record
Options dialog box.
- Check
the tempo playback. Many things can affect the tempo in Finale. Start
with the base tempo in the expanded. See Playback Settings dialog box,
Expression
Designer dialog box and Tempo
Tool.
