Thanks Mark! -- Pianocorder Forum

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Subject: Thanks Mark!

Author:
Tom Lear

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Date Posted: 01:57:50 06/10/01 Sun

Hi Group,

Tom Lear here from San francisco, Ca. When I discovered Mark Fontana's fabulous software for converting midi to Pianocorder, a couple of years back, it was an answer to my dreams of archiving my old piano rolls.

I have transferred a couple of hundred rolls by playing them on a rebuilt/upgraded 1964 Dynavoice pneumatic key-top roll-player placed upon an 88 note midi keyboard, recorded into PowerTracks editing software. After that, it's an easy step to translate them into Pianocorder data using Mark's Midi-Pianocorder software.

Using a cd-cassette adapter in the Pianocorder tape deck allows direct play from the "line out" of the computer. The advantage to this over recording to tape, is that you can have batch music files as long as you wish. It's nice to just click on a file and have several hours of music, non-stop, with no interruptions to change tape, etc.

I see a few inquires about how it might be possible to translate Pianocorder data into midi.

It is possible to do this is you are a computer programmer and understand how the system functions. With my limited understanding of computers, that was not an avenue open to me. However, I have been able to translate Pianocorder data into midi files by a simple mechanical means, that has yielded very good results. I use the following:

1) A Pianocorder Vorsetzer (Obensetzer actually)*
2) An 88 note midi keyboard
3) Power Tracks editing software

Place the keyboard on a sturdy table-top of the proper height that the Vorsetzer may engage the midi keyboard correctly.

Record into PowerTracks playing the tape at the slowest speed possible. (Tempo fix is recommended - see below)

Add the sustain pedal yourself as the tape plays, or if you are mechanically inclined , you can build a simple mechanical arrangement to transfer the output from the sustain pedal solenoid to the pedal of the midi keyboard.

Edit the resultant midi file for tempo(s), mis-strikes, etc.

I highly recommend PowerTracks, because even as a new computer user, I was able to record and edit music files within minutes of installing it.
I found it intuitive and easy to learn. Also, they have a very good tech line. They are actually reachable and have personnel who can readily answer your questions. See examples, samples, tutorials at www.pgmusic.com. Very reasonable too at about thirty bucks!
(And, No, I do not have stock in the company) :o)

My Vorsetzer is actually and "Obensetzer" (sits upon). It's a key-top player I cobbled together from a used built-in type Pianocorder unit, which I installed into a spare Dynavoice frame.

I made a simple box that holds a sustain pedal solenoid in contact with the midi keyboard pedal, for recording Pianocorder sustain pedal data into Midi.

For those that are interested and electronically inclined, I have also discovered a fairly simple fix for the tempo control of the tape deck.
Because a good many of the selections were recorded too fast and cannot be slowed down to an appropriate listening speed, this fix will allow the tempo to be slowed by the equivalent of about another 1/4 turn of the tempo knob. It simply requires the addition of a small resistor in the primary speed control circuit of the tape deck motor.

If there is interest, I can provide more detailed , how-to-do-it, information on this topic.

Thanks again Mark, for making your fabulous Midi-Pianocorder software available to us! I enjoy it every day!

Tom Lear
San Francisco, Ca.

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Replies:

Subject	Author	Date
Re: Thanks Mark!	John Biggs	12:58:36 06/15/01 Fri