Composition tools - Music generators |
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Basic principle [Professional] [Composition Pro]
The music generator is an object that can be created, modified
and manipulated inside a document or in the library. Its purpose
is to generate scores that can be used as building blocks in a
music composition. The scores created are displayed like other
scores, inside the node of the music generator and they may be
seen, played and used by dragging and dropping them inside your
composition. All kinds of criterias can be given to construct a
music score generator and to influence the type of scores that
will be generated. Let us start with a practical example.
- Open the Ex086 example in configuration 2,
examples folder. You can see the following:

The icon with some circles in it is the music generator
icon. Its name is here Random notes. This generator
has been designed to create 10 series of 7 random notes taken
from the set [ C3 - D3 - E3 - F3 - G3 - A3 - B3] with each
note being used only once in a given score.
- To see the generated scores, click on its "+"
sign, in front of the icon. You get:

- Use the method explained previously to see the content of
each of these scores (drag the mouse over the blue
background icons and see the content displayed in the
main part of the conductor view; click on it to hear it
play). You have for instance the first score:

The exact content may be different on your computer,
because the scores are generated on a random basis. But each
score will have 7 notes, in random order, with each of the 7
notes being used only once.
As compared to the normal scores that are used in a
document, the icon of these generated scores have the same
icon (2 notes with opposite stem directions) but with a blue
background to differentiate them. These scores are only
potential scores and they are in fact generated "on the
fly" when you drag and drop them or when you display
them as above.
- Double-click on the music generator
icon (or click with the right mouse button and select the
Modify... menu item). The music generator
definition dialog box appears:

This generator contains one musical structure represented
by its main icon (top left) and it contains 7 scores, each
one being a simple score with one specific note in it. The
parameters you see on the right part of this window determine
how the 7 scores will be used in that main musical structure.
We will explain these parameters and the musical structures
in the remainder of this lesson.
The musical structure [Professional] [Composition Pro]
A music generator is built on two basic blocs. The musical
structure and the score. A musical structure may contain one or
more scores and/or other musical structures.
A musical structure is like a folder. It can contain other
folders and also scores. But it also has properties that
determine how its content will be combined.
The scores used in a musical structure are only links to
existing scores in the library. As you will see in a future
lesson, the basic library of Pizzicato contain notes, chords,
rhythms and various combinations of them. They form the basic
elements of music and they can then be used in music generators
to build more sophisticated music materials.
To use a score from the library inside a music structure is
quite easy: you just drag and drop it from the tree library into
the structure as displayed here above. Indeed, this dialog is not
modal. You do not need to close it to continue to work with
Pizzicato. You may even open several music generators and drag
and drop scores and musical structures from one to the other.
We will create a new music generator that has the following
purpose: create all combinations of drum scores, each one having
some patterns of bass drum, cymbal and snare drum.
- Close the music generator dialog. In the library, go
inside the My library folder (in configuration
3). If the document named Tests is not in it
(you should have created it in a previous lesson), then
create it by clicking on the My library folder
with the right mouse and select the New document...
item. Name it Tests and expand its node (with
the "+" sign in front of it).
- Right-click on the Tests document and select the
New music generator... item. You get:

- Double-click the music generator icon. An empty music
structure is shown in the main part of the dialog:

- When a music structure is selected (in blue), the
corresponding parameters are displayed in the right part
of the dialog. As this first music structure is the main
structure (the one that will contain all others), the
following parameters are displayed. They are applicable
for the music generator itself and they will not appear
for the sub-structures that we will create in a moment:

Here are the explanations:
- The Calculate button may be used to generate
the scores and update them in the library node,
without the need to close this dialog box. This is
useful to test the results of the music generator you
are designing.
- The Sorting menu is used to specify how the
various scores will be presented. According to how it
is designed, a music generator may generate thousands
of scores in one shot. You can sort them in
sub-folders of 100, by the number of notes that are
generated in the score or with no sorting at all.
With the second choice, it means that Pizzicato will
for instance create a sub-folder that contains all
the scores generated that contain only one note, a
score for two notes, three notes,...
- As the combinations may be innumerous, you may
specify to Pizzicato that it has to stop after
generating the Maximal number of results. If
you keep this value equal to 0, Pizzicato will limit
it to its internal capabilities as needed.
- If there is any random choice inside one of the
musical structures of this generator, and if the Random
sequence base number is equal to 0, the results
will each time be different, as the random number
generator used internally will use the computer clock
value to start the random sequence. If you specify a
fixed number in that box, it will use it as its root,
so that the random sequences will be the same each
time.
- The next two text boxes are used to specify the time
signature used in the generated scores.
For this example, we will leave these parameters to their
default values.
- The following part of the dialog displays the parameters
that are relevant to a musical structure:

Here are the explanations:
- The Name text box is used to specify a name
to the musical structure. The name of the main
musical structure is used as the name of the music
generator. The name of an internal musical structure
may be used to remind you what each sub-structure
means in your design, but it is optional.
- The next popup menu is very important. It will
determine how the scores and sub-structures placed
inside this structure will be combined to create a
musical content used in the generated scores. To
figure out the following possibilities, just imagine
that 7 scores of one note each are put in this
musical structure, as it was the case in the first
example seen in this lesson. Here are the possible
choices:
- Full sequence: the items placed inside
this musical structure are used in the exact
order.
- Inverted sequence: the items placed
inside this musical structure are used in the
reverse order.
- Sequence of N item(s): the items are
used as a sequence of N item(s). In this case and
the following containing N, the value of N may be
specified with an additional text box that
appears below the popup menu when you select that
option. Pizzicato will compute all possible
sequences that contain N items.
- Sequence of N item(s) w/o doubles: same,
but the sequence may contain each item only once.
- Random sequence of N item(s): N item(s)
will be used, taken randomly
- Random sequence of N item(s) w/o doubles: N
item(s) will be used, taken randomly but each
item may only be used once.
- Simultaneous playing: In all the
previous cases, the items were used in sequence,
which means that they will be played one after
the other. In this case, all items will be played
simultaneously.
- Simultaneous playing of N items: In this
case, N item(s) will be played simultaneously.
Pizzicato will work out all possible combinations
of N item(s).
- Simultaneous playing of N random items:
Same, but the set of N item(s) will be choosen in
a random way.
- Exact rhythmic combinations: All
possible sequences of the rhythmic values of the
items will be analysed and only the ones with the
exact total duration will be used. The duration
is the one specified below the Maximal total
duration title in the above dialog (see
further).
- Exact rhythmic combinations w/o doubles:
Same, but one item may only be used once in any
combination.
- N notes combinations: All possible
sequences of the items will be analysed and only
the ones with the exact total number of notes
will be used. N is specified in the same way as
above.
- N notes combinations without doubles: Same,
but each item may only be used once in a
combination.
- The Maximal number of staves will limit the
number of staves put in the generated scores. This
may affect the score if there is a Simultaneous
playing option used.
- Domino effect and Start and stop are
respected are two options used in a very
specific case. The purpose is to create sequences of
items (chords or notes) based on elementary
sequences. For instance, take some basic sequences of
chords that are respectively [C - F], [F - G], [G -
C], [C - G], [G - A],.. For each sequence, we create
a sub-structure containing the two individual chords.
For the main structure, we may check the Domino
effect and use the Sequence of N item(s).
The program will then try to find all possible
combinations of these basic chord sequences and place
them in such a way that the last chord of one
sequence will always be followed by a sequence that
begins with that same chord, like a domino game. The Start
and stop are respected check box will force
Pizzicato to start the sequence with the first
sequence and end it with the last one. This principle
may also be applied to create all kinds of melodies
that start with one specific note and finish on
another specific note. Pizzicato may then compute all
possibilities of combinations of the basic melodic
sequences that you should put in the main musical
structure. This is quite experimental work for
advanced users... don't worry!
- In the Maximal total duration, you can
specify the number of measures, beats and units (one
quarter note is 480 units) used as a maximum for any
results coming from that musical structure. If you
keep it to 0, no maximum will be used.
- The Use all items ... time(s) is used to
specify that the all set of items will be used more
than one time. After the last item is used, Pizzicato
starts again with the first item.
- The Use each item ... time(s) is used to
specify that each individual item will be used more
than one time. The first item will be used several
times before the second item will be used.
- The next two text boxes are used to multiply / divide
the durations of the items. They are only applied to
rhythmic values.
- The Time flow may be normal or inverted. In
the last case, the results are played backwards.
- Transposition : all notes and chords are
transposed by so much half tones. When used on
chords, positive values will be interpreted with
sharps and negative values with flats (at least when
there is an ambiguity like C# or Db).
- For this example, select the Simultaneous playing
in the popup menu, set the name to Drums and
leave all other options as they are. The left part of the
generator displays:

The node is shown with its name and the type of
combination that has been selected.
A structure inside a structure [Professional] [Composition Pro]
In our example, we want all combinations of basic rhythmic
patterns of three percussion instruments. That is why we selected
the Simultaneous playing as in each combination, we need
one pattern of each instrument, played at the same time. We will
now create a new musical structure for each instrument.
- Right-click on the main node in the left part of the
generator dialog box and select the New musical
structure... menu item. The display becomes:

- Click on the Full sequence node so that the
parameters of this new musical structure will appear to
the right. Select the Sequence of N item(s) and
leave N to 1 by default.
- We will now drag and drop some cymbal patterns inside
this musical structure. Open the library folders on the
left of the conductor view, so as to have:

- One after the other, drag the Cymbal 1, Cymbal 2,...
Cymbal 9 scores ON the Sequence of 1 item(s)
node inside the music generator. You will finally have:

- Right-click on the main node of the generator dialog box
and select the New musical structure... menu
item again. Another musical structure is created. Click
on that new node so that the parameters of this new
musical structure will appear to the right. Select the Sequence
of N item(s) and leave N to 1 by default. Then drag
the 8 first prepared patterns that you will find in the Snare
drum library folder:

- and put them ON the new node of the generator and you
get:

- You may now do the same with the third instrument. Create
a new musical structure in the main node and drag the 9
first Bass drum patterns found in the Bass drum -
Prepared patterns library folder. Your generator now
contains the following structures:

Parameters of a score [Professional] [Composition Pro]
- When you drag a score inside a structure, some parameters
are also associated with it and apply for that score
alone. Click on the first score of the generator, named Cymbal
1. The left part of the dialog displays the
following:

- The first parameters are exactly the same as explained
for the musical structures, except that they only apply
to that specific score.
- The last 4 check boxes are used to specify which aspects
of the score are used in this music generator. You may
independently select to use the rhythmic values, the
notes, the chords and/or the instruments specifications.
The aspects that are selected will be used within the
musical structure it is included in.
Here are some other operations that you can use while working
with the music generator:
- Right-click a score or a music-structure and a menu item
lets you delete it.
- You can drag a musical structure from its position to
another musical structure, for instance to include it in
it. The same holds true between two different music
generator dialog boxes. You can then take a musical
structure that you have created and use it in another
context in another music generator.
- When you navigate through the library, you can drag and
drop scores inside a musical structure but you may also
drag and drop a group of scores. If you hold down the
CTRL key while doing this, Pizzicato will automatically
create another musical structure and copy all the scores
that are in it. Otherwise, the scores of the group will
be added to the target musical structure.
- You can display and play a score from inside the music
generator dialog box, just like you can in the library.
Move the mouse over the score and click to hear it.
Now let us see what is the practical result of our
experimentation...
The generated scores [Professional] [Composition Pro]
- Close the music generator dialog box. In the My
library folder, inside the Tests document,
you may see the following:

- If you did it exactly as described until here, Pizzicato
has generated 648 scores (= 9 x 8 x 9) of drums. All
combinations have been created, that combine one of the
cymbal patterns, one of the snare drum patterns and one
of the bass drum patterns. You may now display them one
by one if you want and hear them playing. Pizzicato has
placed these scores in series of 100 in various
sub-folders. If you find some that are interesting, you
can drag and drop them in your library folder to use them
later in a composition. Or you can just use them directly
from that generator.
- Be aware that the scores you drag inside the music
generator are only references to the original scores. If
you modify the original score and use the generator
again, the resulting scores will follow the new content
of the original scores.
This example is quite simple and shows the power behind this
kind of tool. With some more imagination, you will be able to
create very interesting musical structures for oriented random
melodies, rhythmic patterns, instrumental setups, chords
progressions and many more combinations of all the basic music
blocks available in the Pizzicato library. Don't forget that you
can also create scores and use them in the music generators.
Possibilities are innumerous. You just need to imagine and put it
in practice with the composition tools of Pizzicato.