IV. Useful Midi Tools

The most useful midi editor I've ever tried is GNMidi. Thanks to the author for this unique software designed for all midi musicians, so managing and editing your midifile is easy at your fingertips and menus are very straightforward. But the coolest thing I like in this program is the batch processing editor, obviously powerful enough to polish and enhance all your midifiles at one shot. Simply assign the parameters, click the button and things will run automatically.

Not all media players are able to support SoundFont for midi playback. Of course, there are ways or methods, but the result may vary and some virtual routing  is needed or what we call "Virtual Midi Port."  to run in your operating system.

If you want fast and simple application, you should try either Spider Player Pro or Midi Converter Studio. These are stand-alone players that allow you to load SoundFont bank straight without using any additional plug-in which is often used in Cubase or other DAW. Some softwares are quite similar, but these two programs are just my great choices that doesn't look cheap to use at all.  SynthFont is also another great player, it's only that I wasn't used with the interface.  But the feature that I like most in this program is the ability to load individual SoundFont bank for each track.  This is great especially when your auditioning the quality of a SoundFont Instrument.

Both Spider Player Pro and Midi Converter Studio support playback of midifile using GM SoundFont in real time and conversion to MP3 or Wave format as well. Though they aren't free, it's worth spending few dollars to either one of them. Next thing is, converting your midifiles into an MP3 or Wave format may be a little bit better and has some advantage.

Obviously, filesize may increase but turning your midifile into this format, you'll have wider options producing a great backing track. Apart from queueing your song similar to DJ, playing is really enjoyable and fun. You'll definitely love it. You can even apply EQ, or other DSP audio plug-ins supported by MP3 so long you don't overdo it. DJ softwares has more advantage for a non-stop music playback and I regularly use it on disco and party occasions.

For MP3 playback, one of my top pick  is Virtual DJ Pro and my next list is J.River Media Center, this program helps you cut the gap between your songs, fair enough and all your music just plays non stop. Really cool, I would say.

After all it's your choice which one really suits you.There are dozens of softwares I've tried in the past, yet only pick up the best, simple but easy to understand and most important, practical in every areas you want to do in your setup.  From menus, navigation and shortcut keys, you should consider these things when buying a software of your choice.

As an aspiring musician, "Learning from zero is just a beginning,  it is your passion  that should rather motivate and make you successful."

I never realized that I would still be on this line after so many years.  No matter how much I try to quit the music industry, I'm still hooked into this profession and hobby.  My friends always tell me, it's just about time to retire, share something and inspire young musicians..

All I can say is, "wish you all the best and good luck to your career"

V. Performing On Stage

Now that you're ready, keep the idea of practicing regularly with your backing tracks. If you're a piano. keyboard or guitar player or a sax player, it's rather convincing to watch you play the instrument section live on your own.

Playing along with your backing tracks is no other like a karaoke version, so let's try to make it less obvious and treat it in a professional way. Mute the midi track of the instrument you're playing, so you can naturally fill in and express your style as you play your music instrument. "Treat yourself as the real performer not your midifile which normally does the backing part.” As a piano or keyboard player, I usually delete this track and rather play straight on my instrument. 

But if you intend to keep the original music without muting or deleting a midi track, use a different chord progression so your playing blends well on the music.

Another good factor is, on any special gig, I occasionally add a guitar player to join my group. It's a good combination, more people, more appealing on the stage and you'll  get a rich and thicker sound as well. Whatever combination, either drums, bass or guitar, you can always think of something else.  With this setup, you can treat your group as semi-live performers.

Audience doesn't just listen, always remember that. They do watch and observe how unique is your style and performance. While the good part is, you can also inspire young musicians watching you perform on the stage.  At younger age, I've watched a lot of bands and that's how I got my first inspiration and slowly joined my first group. Keep in mind that your audience can be influenced by your talent, by starting to learn some tips or  techniques, it's natural for a person to  get motivated.  Remember, it's fun and challenging to build a cool image as it can boost your confidence even more especially when audience supports you.

"Don't pretend when you're not”, it can spoil your image or even identity of the group. You can either watch videos or clips of those professional musicians and artists.  I'm pretty sure you will learn the techniques and slowly get to know the right attitude, position of each chord as you play your own instrument.

"Read more music books or other materials” about various styles of playing. Slowly you will pick up and develop once you absorbed and compiled those great ideas even when you're not that talented and skillful. It's necessary to have at least basic theory in music, not only practical experience which majority does.

If you're an amateur or beginner, always remember that this is one key to improve yourself. And believe or not, I don't have a music degree nor qualification either, but I'm proud to achieve all the experiences I had for the last  25 years in the music scene.

It's true, here in Singapore, to qualify for a job or get a career in music, you should have at least the right diploma, no matter how good or smart you are, you won't get the job, trust me.   And it's funny, I remember those companies who interviewed and auditioned me in the past are either amazed or surprised, they never expected that I am actually a self-learner.  You need to have at least certificate to teach music in any reputable school.  I actually graduated with a degree but not in music so unfortunately, I still didn't passed the job requirement.  With this experience, It made me felt good.  I've tried to prove myself that I can and it was indeed challenging.

"Be simple, humble and true to yourself” because people will appreciate you more this way. Of course, always play from your heart as you perform on stage, we all know money is just a second priority but keeping a low profile will eventually make you build more friends and support. I believe this is the right attitude that every musician should carry on even as you get older.  "You should always have the right value" even if you wish to retire one day.

VI. Additiomal Resources

As I mentioned earlier, everything depends on your interest and which application to choose, whether you are keen to learn Midi or MP3 or Wave, any music software or audio tools should help you improve your skills either as an midi- arranger or as a performing artist or even both.

I'll include some lists of the best ones I've tested in the past few years and used in my setup. This is to help amateurs understand what we are discussing about and how to make use of them.
I'm sure most of you are familiar with these applications, but for those who has little knowledge, this is a good place to develop your interest and adapt yourself to SoundFont Technology.  Knowing the importance is one good way of increasing your exposure to other music sources.

I've categorized them to Midi and MP3, though there are several audio formats supported by midi conversion, I realized that MP3 nowadays is very common, but it's a lot easier for beginners to understand how the application actually works.  I bet you'll probably learn and discover more things as you continue your journey in the music industry.

More to come...

Jazman GMSoundFont.com™