Demonstration of Midi for Singers

(Make sure your computer can make sounds before you look at this)

Here's a midi file:  mess44.mid   You can download it if you like (right-click, usually).

This is what the first few bars sound like:

Voices are replaced by "wind-instruments" in this midi file, and there are some "strings" in the background. (None of these are real, of course!) 

Now we're going to alter the volumes of some of the "voices" using software like Midiplay. In the mixer, there's a separate volume-control slider for each part.

Suppose we want to study the tenor part. We make the other voices a little quieter, and turn up the volume for the tenors:

We could do the same for the alto part:

Oh dear, the basses are having problems with their part. They need to hear it slower - so we turn the tempo down for them:

The sopranos (of course!) know their part - but can each one sing it alone, without prompting from the others? We listen again, but this time with the soprano part silenced: a real test!

All of the above clips were made from the same midi file: the one linked to above. If you have a midi player with the right controls, it takes VERY LITTLE SKILL to produce effects like these.

(If this demo doesn't work on your equipment - it's probably not your fault. I'm sorry, but it's not mine, either.)

Copyright © Don Taylor. All rights reserved.