Contents

About Rhythm'n'Chords
Features
Installation
Demo Songs
Tutorials
Troubleshooting
Contacting MusicLab
How to register Rhythm'n'Chords

The MusicLab Rhythm'n'Chords™ MIDI FX plug-in is a unique powerful and flexible tool for easy and convenient creation of accompanying guitar parts, as well as any rhythmic harmonic parts (i.e. parts, containing chords played in certain rhythm pattern) in MIDI. The base of our plug-in is a simple idea of separate assigning the chords and creating rhythm structure for playing them. Parts of the technology are protected by Russian Federation patent #2,145,121. Other RF, US, and international patents pending.

The chords are assigned in special Chord Chart view, imitating traditional way of chord assignment for real guitar players. Chords can be entered either using standard symbols (67 chord types and extensions are organized in hierarchical menu), or by assigning certain notes from virtual piano keyboard, as well as by simply dragging and dropping MIDI track from Cakewalk®.

Rhythm is built of prerecorded rhythm patterns being assigned to the Rhythm track in the Chord Chart view. You can select rhythm patterns from Rhythm Library supplied with the plug-in. Rhythm patterns are created as specially pre-recorded 1-, 2-, 4-, 8-measure rhythm phrases, which contain various guitar techniques (Strokes), like strumming, muting, picking, plucking, bass and chord, slow strum, etc.

Also Rhythm may be written (or played) as Note events by traditional way in Cakewalk® track. Every event corresponds to a certain Stroke type (the way a chord is played): down strum, upstrum, muted strum, individual voice/bass performance, strum on higher 3-4 strings, grace strums, etc. (in all 22 Stroke types).

Chords and rhythm patterns can be assigned in real time from MIDI keyboard. This lets you quickly play rhythm and/or chords into the song, simultaneously auditioning resulting guitar part.

Resulting rhythm/chord part is controlled with several groups of parameters.

• Velocity (balance between chord voices, depending on type/strength of a Stroke).
  

• Arpeggiation (time between the first and the last chord notes, depending on type/strength of a Stroke).
  
• Voice control (number of voices for various Stroke types, settings for automatic chord voice constructing and smooth transition between chords, automatic voice hold options for more precise emulation of guitar strumming).
  

Using those parameters any musician, even the most demanding professional can achieve the desired maximally close to the real sound guitar track.

The principle of separate chord/rhythm assigning lets you organize guitar rhythm pattern libraries (in the way drum pattern libraries are organized). Then all you have to do to create an accompaniment guitar part is to select and copy the rhythm pattern you like, previously having assigned a chord scheme for the certain part.

• Technology of independent chord/rhythm editing.
  

• Large updating Rhythm Library containing numerous guitar rhythm phrases and techniques, copied from real guitar parts performed by famous musicians.
  
• Even the beginning users can quickly and smoothly create an accompaniment guitar track of any complexity.

• Enter chords from convenient hierarchical menu, MIDI or PC keyboard.
  

• Drag & drop chord exchange between Cakewalk® MIDI track and Chord Chart view.
  
• 67 types and extensions of chords plus user chords.
  
• Thousands of guitar-type chords available.
  
• Automatic smooth chord connection.
  
• Convenient and quick search for appropriate chords inversions and their transition.
  
• Control over chord range and polyphony.
  
• Displaying and editing chords on virtual keyboard.
  
• Displaying chord position (upper voice note) in Chord Chart with correct alteration signs.
  
• Chord auditioning while editing.
  
• Ability of creating User chord libraries.
  
• Multiply Undo/Redo.
  
• Chord Chart import/export.

• Large Rhythm Library containing prerecorded guitar rhythm patterns.
  

• Style Filter for quick finding the appropriate pattern in the Rhythm Library
  
• Special Rhythm track for convenient assigning and editing rhythm patterns in the Chord Chart.
  
• Displaying rhythm pattern content in the Rhythm Library and Rhythm track
  
• Auditioning and selecting rhythm patterns right from the Library
  
• Drag and drop patterns from Rhythm Library to the Rhythm track
  
• Guitar playing textures emulation (strumming, plucking, bass and strum, muted strum, glissando, slide, etc.).
  
• Note Map with 22 Stroke types for convenient creating rhythm part in Cakewalk track.
  
• Ability of creating User rhythm pattern libraries.
  
• Manually playing rhythm pattern from a MIDI keyboard.

• Complete intuitive control over time and velocity related parameters of resulting sound (arpeggiation, voice velocity balance, voice control, etc.).
  

• Precise adjusting of every parameter for the most sensitive timbres.
  
• Advanced visualization of playing strums and sounding chord voices.
  
• Maximally close emulation of rhythm guitar sound.
  
• Automatic voice holding for more precise guitar strum imitation.
  
• Creation of non-guitar chord/rhythm parts: vocal, strings, brass, pads, etc.

• Both rhythm and chord editing on the fly.
  

• Advanced chord/rhythm assigning via MIDI in real time with simultaneous auditioning of the resulting sound.
  
• Performing a guitar part from a MIDI keyboard completely in real time.
  
• Momentary reflecting of any parameter change.

• Saving Chord Chart and all other parameters inside Cakewalk® documents.
  

• Piano Roll view Note Map with guitar Stroke names for convenient creation/editing of a rhythm pattern.
  
• Simultaneous auditioning of the results while rhythm track editing (draw & scrub tools).
  
• Total synchronization of Chord Chart with Cakewalk®.

1. Insert supplied Rhythm'n'Chords™ Installation CD and launch setup.exe from Setup folder.
   

2. Follow onscreen instructions.
   
3. Restart the computer (if required during the installation process).
   
4. The Rhythm'n'Chords™ plug-in installation is complete.

Any sequencer with support of MIDI Plugins (MFX) technology (Cakewalk SONAR™ 1,2, Pro Audio™ 8 and higher, Guitar Studio™ 2, etc.)
Minimum
Windows 95^**/98/ME: Pentium 200 MHz, 48 MB RAM.
Windows NT/2000: Pentium 300 MHz, 64 MB RAM.
Recommended
Windows 95^**/98/ME: Pentium 300 MHz, 96 MB RAM.
Windows NT/2000: Pentium 400 MHz, 128 MB RAM.

* Some real-time features ((chords auditioning, user patterns from CW track & MIDI keyboard) are available only with supported Cakewalk builds. Check http://www.musiclab.com/downloads/releases for Rhythm'n'Chords update which support of your Cakewalk product. Version 2.031 supports SONAR® 1.0-1.31, Pro Audio™ 8, 9, Home Studio™ 9

** If you have unpatched Windows 95 (i.e. without Internet Explorer 4.01) you may need to install Common Controls update (http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/ieplatform/ie/comctrlx86.asp) and DCOM95 (http://www.microsoft.com/com/dcom/dcom95/dcom1_3.asp)

1. Launch Cakewalk.
   

2. Create a MIDI track.
   
3. Assign Rhythm'n'Chords™ plug-in to the track and open it (in SONAR right-click in Effect bin and select MusicLab/Rhythm'n'Chords plug-in; in Cakewalk 9 double-click in the Effects bar, right-click and select MusicLab/Rhythm'n'Chords plug-in, double-click Rhythm'n'Chords name; in Cakewalk 8 open Console view, right-click in track Effects zone and select MusicLab/Rhythm'n'Chords plug-in, double-click Rhythm'n'Chords name).
   
4. You can now work with the Rhythm'n'Chords™ plug-in.

Number of demo songs are installed with the plug-in. Demo songs are musical clips showing the Rhythm’n’Chords™ Pro plug-in's abilities in guitar parts creation.

You can audition them with Cakewalk® Pro Audio™:

- Demo songs with Rhythm Track built of patterns taken from Rhythm Library of the plug-in (Spanish Reminiscences.wrk, That's A Plenty.wrk, etc.) Demo Songs (Library)

- Demo songs with rhythm written in Cakewalk track: (01.Dolly.wrk, 02.House of Rising Sun.wrk, etc.) Demo Songs (Strokes)

- Demo song Guitar techniques.wrk shows the main features of Rhythm'n'Chords™ Pro plug-in in guitar texture creation. Look at the Piano Roll view of plug-in track while playing back. You can see how the various Stroke types are used to create rhythm structures such as: strumming, bass and strum, plucking, riffs, some guitar effects, etc.

All demo songs were made by V. Borilov.

Tutorials

Quick Guide
Tutorials Index
First Steps
Manual Playing
Playing Along with the Sequencer

1. Assign Rhythm'n'Chords to the empty Cakewalk track and open its Chord Chart window.

In Cakewalk Pro Audio	In Sonar
a) Double-click the Effects bar of the track, the black field for calling the plug-ins list appears. b) Right-click the black field to call the popup menu and select MusicLab/Rhythm'n'Chords:	Right-click the track’s Fx field to call the popup menu and select MIDI Effects/MusicLab/Rhythm'n'Chords:
The plug-in is now assigned to the track and its name appears in the Effects bar. c) Double-click the Rhythm'n'Chords title to open the Main window

2. Enter chord symbols into the appropriate measures of the Chord Chart:



3. Open Rhythm Library page and select the appropriate guitar Style containing a set of rhythm patterns:



4. Start Cakewalk and audition patterns of the Style set within your song selecting them with a mouse click or cursor keys:



5. Stop Cakewalk and drag the convenient pattern from the Library view to Rhythm Track under the chord symbols:



6. Copy the pattern to the appropriate measures by simply dragging its right edge:



7. Play Cakewalk and adjust sound controls on the Main page of the plug-in if necessary:



 

8. Select the Cakewalk track with the plug-in and use Apply MIDI Effects command to transform the part to MIDI notes:

In Cakewalk Pro Audio	In Sonar
Open the Console view in Cakewalk and click FX button (Apply MIDI Effects):	Choose Apply MIDI Effects command from the Edit menu:

9. The guitar part is ready



Tutorials
First steps

• Creating guitar part

• Tutorial 1. Assigning the plug-in to a Cakewalk track

• Tutorial 2. Assigning chord progression in the Chord Chart view window

• Tutorial 3. Creating Rhythm Track with Rhythm Library

• Tutorial 3A. Creating rhythm pattern with Stroke Map

• Tutorial 4. Controlling the guitar part performance parameters

• Tutorial 5. Exporting parts to MIDI track

• Understanding Stroke Map

• Demo songs

Manual Playing

• Tutorial 6. Getting started with manual playing

• Tutorial 7. Articulation. Strumming

• Tutorial 8. Chord changes

• Tutorial 9. Playing with String keys

• Tutorial 10. Bass & Chord performing

Playing along with the sequencer

• Playing along with the sequencer

• Tutorial 11. Rhythm and Articulation mode

• Tutorial 12. Rhythm Only mode

• Tutorial 13. Chords Only mode

• Tutorial 14. Recording a manual performance






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