Check out Sweetwater Sound in Ft. Wayne, IN. They're an all Mac house. I think you'll be really impressed.
From: "Bertie M. Hall" <103137.1277@CompuServe.COM>
I'm not a musician, but once in a while I like to write poetry. I'll write it in Simpletext (even with foreign words sometimes) and have the my PowerBook read the poem back to me using the built in Speech control panel. Maybe this can be used for testing initial lyrics? Just a thought. good luck
From: dbpendergrass@mmm.com (Dan Pendergrass)
Sorry that I can't give you more details, but I just saw a performer at the Hyatt hotel on Grand Cayman who was using a Mac Powerbook as an "invisible band" - he played acoustic guitar with 3-5 instruments as back up. The Powerbook was resting on a foam pad on top of the amp and he would pivot over and use the touch pad to select the next arrangement (mostly steel drum and rhythm instruments in that setting). [He said that if you COULD see the band then you had had too much to drink and if you COULDN'T see it you hadn't had enough!]
From: Tom Rossen
Just curious - I live in Chicago and have some blues-player friends who are somewhat interested in computerizing. Is your friend a blues musician? If he goes for a Mac it might help me sell my friends on it....
Tom
From: Rick Ledbetter <"smalldog"@netdoor.com>
I am sure you will be swamped with replies, but I will add my views. How about composing a piece in Chicago and e-mailing it, in either score, MIDI data, or audio file form? This allows co-writing, no matter where the partners are, or to send rough scores back to a producer. Live in Vienna, write for Broadway! This is non- platform and non-software specific, BTW. I have a program- Steinberg's Cubase VST, that allows a PowerMac to record MIDI sequences and up to 24 tracks of digital audio, along with 4 channels of digital effects, plus automated mixdown and external synch. It will also follow a human tempo. It will also produce pretty good scores, with most of the instrument specific notations. If your friend is interested, Steinberg has a web site at http://www.steinberg-us.com . It has a downloadable demo copy of Cubase VST for Mac. I use mine to record my own music, to edit sounds for CD Rom production, and to send and receive MIDI and audio files via the Net. I can synch to MIDI timecode, SMPTE, and quicktime movies. If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask.
Rick
From: Rick Kellis
About 5 years ago I equipped my recording studio with lots of stuff, including a used Mac Plus, switching from my AT. The one item that gets the most use is my current Mac Quadra 700.. for everything these days. I'll soon be picking up a PowerPC when I sell my Akai S1000 sampler. On the PowerPC (and on this Quadra, for that matter) I'll be implementing hard disk recording, Sample Cell for sample playing-- it will easily replace the functions I used the S1000 for. I've done a whole bunch of sequencing on Mac, using the Vision sequencing program, and recently Performer has been added to the arsenal for delivery in that format. Yesterday I finished another vocal arrangement for ALL-4-One, a pop group that I've gotten several Platinums for. This was an arrangement of Bridge Over Troubled Waters, for a benefit telethon they will soon do. I printed out the blank music sheets on the computer, did the pencil and paper arrangement, then scored the MIDI arrangement on Vision, with the vocal tracks also scored. I exported the MIDI vocal parts to Overture, put in the lyrics and such, printed it out. I laid down a SMPTE track on my ADAT, then the music bed, then each part. All this stuff uses the Mac. In addition, I do MIDI Karioke for corporations like JVC, Yamaha, and most recently Sega.. these are heavily computer-based. The final product I deliver is a Standard MIDI File-- a computer disk, or just a file over the Internet. Also, I play private parties taking a sequencer-module setup. The files are quite good, with click tracks for drummers and audio background tracks programmed for the Digitech Vocalist II. I can subtract any live performance from the sequence, like, say drums, while performing. So it sounds live, with all the sweetening parts there that are on the record. The parts can be printed out for the musicians. The private party scene does not allow for rehearsing so you get a great, tight sound by using "computer enhancement". Most times the public doesn't even know-- they just get great music that is faithful to the original. Thus we can compete with the ever widening barrage of DJs taking over the turf. That's some of the things I use the Mac in music for...
Best, Rick
From: "James "Mac" Read"
Have your friend contact Llew Humphreys at the Utah Symphony. He is the personnel manager, as well as, a horn player there. USO's number is 801-533-5626. He is a died in the wool Mac user and I am sure he would love to share his experience. You can e-mail him at UtSymph@aros.net. I'll forward your note to him.
From: eek@escape.ca (Tony Mantler)
ok, here's the deal: though I'm not a professional I am quite talented with both the french horn and singing and I am currently using my mac to help me learn guitar.
though at the moment I use my mac (when using it for music) to tune my guitar and as a chord book, in the future I plan to use it to do such things as help me write music etc...
one of the major benefits of using a mac to compose is that you can replay the music and be much more experimental without needing to involve (and sometimes, be quite embarrassed in front of) the rest of your band.
anyways, the hardware I'd recommend is a PowerBook duo with the duodock securely fastened inside the tour bus or what have you with some nice speakers and so forth.
an option that would be good to look into would be midi equipment for composing and possibly performing, in fact a friend of mine won an award for his all mac music work in a theatrical group - an achievement worth noting.
From: lengoff@mcs.net (Len Goff)
Saw your request on the EvangeList. Since I'm not a musician, I can't quite help with your request, *but* my wife dragged me to the Neil Diamond concert at the United Center (Chicago) a week ago, and I noticed three monitors at the control panels, all three running a Macintosh desktop behind the software windows. They must have had the whole concert programmed into those computers.
Imagine this sight, my wife's using the binoculars to check out Neil and I'm using them to check out the computers! Viva la differance...
--- Len Goff
From: "Angel's"
I'm not sure I understand what kind of info you want, but I am a musician too and I use a 7100 (new bus) with Pro Tools Project (8 tracks) by DigiDesign. They also have ProTools 3 which is 16 tracks. This is the state of the art for digital recording and editing, you can also use it for AV editing. Of course its Mac only. They just came out with a PCI version too. Check out the DigiDesign web site.
Jon Angel
From: Scott Goldstein
I use a PowerBook 520 on my one-man-band gigs to run a sequencer. I use Vision software by Opcode. I do my sequencing at home on a Quadra 650, and use the PowerBook for performances. I can give more details if you're interested.
I also use the Mac to design my business cards and promotional material, as well as publishing a web page (http://www.li.net/~henrod/spin.htm) that advertises my act, what I play, where I play, etc.
From: "R.T. Arakaki"
I'm a 'retired' rock musician currently working on my master's degree in music composition.
If powerbooks were available when I was gigging, I would have used one with sequencing software to run our keyboard gear. At the time, the only thing available to us was hardware music sequencers with no monitor... the only visual cues we had were measure numbers and beats. But with the Powerbook, you can now actually *see* the notes and rhythms on the screen.
There is also software available to run stage lighting scenes, efx modules through midi, etc.
For composition, I use a notation program on my Mac at home, with a midi interface running the midi keyboard. This facilitates note entry and playback, and with the Mac, you can even playback on the internal speaker via Quicktime Musical Instruments. Having this setup has improved my productivity by zillions of percent as compared to plunking away at an acoustic piano and writing with pencil and staff paper.
If your friend needs to print out parts for other musicians, Finale (the notation program I use) has automatic part extraction; all he or she would need to do is select a few things in various menus, and viola, the parts will extract and print out in no time flat. Saves hours of part-copying by hand!
Finale will also transpose, layout scores, and do almost anything else you can think of notationally.
If your friend doesn't work with printed music, a sequencing program such as Performer or Master Tracks Pro will turn his computer into an 8 to 16 track sequencer, with sophisticated editing features.
From my experience and discussions with Windows-based computer users, I believe that the Mac is the way to go. The Mac interface is *so* intuitive; the Windows versions of software that I use don't seem to be as easy to use. It might be just me, but I've always had a difficult time getting around on an IBM-based machine; Macs are just more user friendly!
Hope this info helps your friend make a good decision. Oh, you might also let him know that most music software for Mac is available in Power Mac native versions as well as standard 040 versions.
Aloha, Renee MMus Composition University of Hawaii
From: David
Hey Greg, The guys in Motley Crue are big into Macs. I don't remember the web address but you can find it through yahoo. Even their web page was designed on a Mac.
From: "Michael G."
Always nice to meet another musician (and singer) on the net. :-) I've been singing and writing stuff for session work here in Tokyo for the past 10 years, and another 5 or so prior to that in the LA area. I had never had *any* kind of computer until 2 years ago, and THANK GOD I bought a Mac! For a million reasons way beyond the musical usages, there's just nothing else I'll work on. Now I've got two: an 8500 speedy desktop, and a 5300c PowerBook for travel. You will never be sorry upon purchasing a Mac. The same can rarely be said for PC clones.
Basically, most of the world's professional musicians are using Macs for sequencing live and in the Studio. There's really no other way to go. Just ask Sting or Pete Gabriel! If you'd like more information, or just a contact here in Tokyo, drop me a line.
Sincerely,
Michael G.
P.S. The address immediately below is my office (I set it up to primarily manage myself, but we also represent the top foreign singers in town), and the one at the bottom is my home address. Probably the latter is the best place to catch me, since I'm rarely in the office. :-)
From: sd@compumedia.com (Jeff Beeghly)
I would suggest the following: Look at what software is available, then ask yourself, what do I want to do with it RIGHT NOW (not a year from now). Is your friend's interest in computer generated music (like Band-In-A-Box), sequencing (like Performer or MasterTrack), Scoring (like Encore), or audio mixing?
There is a vast amount of software out there and what kind of hardware and software your friend should get depends completely on what their interest is.
One thing to look out for: in your message you mentioned a notebook. At one point there was a problem with Macintosh Laptops and using MIDI. Most MIDI interfaces for the Mac are self-powering (except the EXTREMELY high-end rack mount Mark Of The Unicorn ones) and draw the power they need from the computer via the serial port (the same port you plug the interface into). It seems the laptops didn't yield enough power to operate the MIDI interface, and you needed to buy a MIDI interface that had it's own power supply. I don't know if this is the case, but you should look into it before you buy an interface. Come to think of it, your best bet would be to go to a local music store and ask around about software. Unfortunately, some places are "Windows oriented" and will try to convince you to buy a PC (they just carry Windows software). Don't do it! Besides not being "Plug&Play", Windows doesn't feature a multi-tasking MIDI system like Apple's MIDI Manager. On the mac, you can link program to program and route where data goes from one program to another. On the PC... forget it!
From: mcelrath
You might want to have your friend see if he can talk to Chip Davis (founder and head of Mannheim Steamroller). He was doing his composing on Macs back in the days when Mac 512s and SEs were hot stuff! A great quote from him appeared in a Time magazine interview - it went something like "I just type a bunch of stuff into my Macintosh, and the music comes out." I honestly don't know if he still uses Macs - he was still using them about a couple years ago tho' - but I'd bet he still is. All the hardware and software folks used to give him their stuff to try out and recommend changes and modifications - one of the original beta testers, I guess.
His company, American Gramaphone, is located in Omaha.
- Bill
From: glenn@concentric.net (Glenn)
I'm a programmer for Mark of the Unicorn. We write music software for the Mac (and a couple titles for that other operating system as well).
Music software is the tape deck and music paper what a word processor is to the typewriter.
In general, music software breaks down into one of 3 categories:
1) MIDI Sequencing/Digital audio recording. These programs give you an unlimited recording studio inside your computer. You can record in music, cut and paste it, rearrange it, transpose it, fix mistakes, try different arrangements, try different sounds, alter the rhythmic feel. Our flagship products Performer (MIDI only) Digital Performer (MIDI and Digital audio) and FreeStyle (MIDI only, geared towards the non-technical musician) are such programs.
2) Music Notation. These programs let you score serious orchestral works using your computer. They are primarily oriented towards allowing you represent your music in traditional (or non-traditional) notation. Generally they will allow you to play back your music, but do not offer as many sophisticated playback options as MIDI sequencers. The programs are great for tossing off lead sheets, creating scores for orchestras or small ensembles, capturing your musical ideas, and so forth. Mark of the Unicorn's Mosaic (it was around long before the web browser, thank you very much) is a notation package.
3) Music Education. Programs falling into this category let you work on your musical chops, teach you about harmony, teach you sight singing and so forth.
Hope this helps! If you'd like more info, you can call us at 617-576-2760.
Cheers Glenn
From: Alex Pung
Hi!
Read your posting on MACWAY and would be very interested in the responses you receive. I have a friend that has a PC with Windoz and I need ammunition / examples / software that musicians are using on the Mac.
If you remember, please copy me what you post to MACWAY on your responses.
Thanks.
Alex
From: Dan Blaker
I am currently using a PowerBook 5300cs with a Jaz drive and the Deck II program from Macromedia to record multitrack demos of new songs. Deck II is an exceedingly powerful program, allowing me to do with it (a $250 piece of software) what would have cost thousands to do just a few years ago. I would be very interested in hearing some of the other applications of Macs in music as you receive them. I read the EvangeList daily, so I'll see any post there, and I'd be happy to check out any home page you put up regarding the issue.
Thanks,
DGB
From: yugen@ciris.net (Keith G. Rowley)
Hi Greg
I use Macromedia's Deck II 2.5 to record multitracks of my music. It's got automated mixing & pan, real-time EQ & echo, etc. I get 10 tracks consistently on my PowerMac 7100/80 w/a gigabyte external hard drive. The software's like $300 (bundled with Macromedia's audio editing sw SoundEdit 16), the drive another $350.
There are some limitations-- you _can_ use the on-board analog minijack ins/outs, but they are sub-professional quality, at least on the first-generation (NuBus) PMacs. The workaround for me was an $825 Digidesign AudioMedia II Nubus card which gives me better-quality analog ins/outs (RCA jacks) plus S/PDIF digital ins/outs for absolutely pristine, CD-quality audio. The new PCI PMacs apparently have better built-in analog ins/outs than my onboard minijacks.
Deck II works seamlessly with the MIDI sequencer Metro-- so you can have a full MIDI arrangement going along with ten tracks of digital audio.
I also have a couple "digital audio sequencers" (Digital Performer & Studio Vision)-- MIDI sequencing programs that you can also record & arrange live audio right along with. Same user interface, same windows, same programs.
All this software simply helps me produce the sounds i hear in my head, so i can make the recordings i dream about.
I love my setup. Cut-&-paste CD-quality audio! Wd have cost $50,000 ten years ago! Good luck to you and yr friend-- Macs and music mix most melodiously!
peace & love, :)keith http://www.ciris.net/~yugen
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Date created: August 2, 1997
Last modified: August 6, 1997
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