Using Guitar Pro 6

[Ron Stern]

Hey, Also Ran, how's it coming ?

You may have noticed by now that GP has odd ideas about what makes editing easy. They not only make you specify the note but also its time value, every frickin time. A huge PITA by itself which also makes the measures add up to invalid beat totals.

In Tux, when fill a measure, the cursor moves to the next measure. E.g. if you enter a half note and two quarter notes (in a 4/4 measure) the cursor moves to the next measure. In GP you can put in anything. Three whole notes, whatever.

In Tux, if you put in a whole note, the cursor skips to the next measure. Why in the world wouldn't it?

Further, in Tux, if you start a measure with a note less than a whole note, it inserts that note, and also fills the remainder of the measure with rests of that same value. I used to think it was inconvenient to have to start with,
say, 4 eighth notes and then convert the last 4 eighth rests into a half note, but GP makes you put in every note and every rest and calculate the total.

It's because they couldn't figure out a way to automate the calculation. Here
is their lame excuse:

Guitar Pro automatically adds the barlines and checks the synchronization of the various tracks. Your score thus remains consistent in terms of musical rules. Such rigour may appear constraining to the beginner, but it proves very pedagogical in the end, and is essential anyway for the score to be played correctly.

Can you believe it?

1. "automatically adds the barlines" is true but unimportant since any program that didn't, well, you couldn't give it away, much less sell it.

2. "checks the synchronization of the various tracks" is meaningless, a device to distract the reader.

3. "Your score thus remains consistent in terms of musical rules." False. It remains consistent because I laboriously made it that way, in spite of the programmers.

4. "Such rigour may appear constraining to the beginner . . ." F you and the horse you rode in on.

5. "but it proves very pedagogical in the end . . . " Yeah right, all software should be more difficult, for the good of the user. Again, F you.

6. "and is essential anyway for the score to be played correctly . . . " Yes, if I so manage it, no thanks to you.

Anyway . . .

-- In general, you have to learn to use "rest" (the R key) instead of delete. --

In the context of replacing chords -- Let's say you have a chord that you want to replace. Don't "delete" it with the delete key -- that deletes the chord but also deletes its time value. Instead hit "rest."

Then, if you have the chord in the library, over on the left side of the screen, you can click on the chord and it will insert the notes on the staff, the chord name, and the chord diagram all at once. That's better than Tux, where you just delete and start over.

In GP, the important point is that what gets pasted is equal in time value to that which was "cut". Just remember that it wasn't "cut" and wasn't "deleted", it was "rested".

No doubt it would have been more pedagogical to have you F it up a couple of times and give up and do it all from scratch, but this time they slipped up and actually automated the process. They just didn't tell you. That's pedagogical, though -- makes you write your own user's manual.

[AlsoRan]

Ron, you must have really sat down and put some time into these programs (GP6 and TUXguitar).

I ended up getting TUXGuitar along with the GP5 program that was a gift.

To be honest, I am almost 50 years old and I can see myself going the way of my grandparents - and that is being unable to program a DVD player much yes use these programs through trial and error!

All kidding aside, without experienced human help, success in using many of these music software programs depends on how well the manual is written and also whether or not it caters to your way of thinking/learning.

I have a couple of toddlers running around the house and a technical job that uses up my daily reserve of mental energy to the point that in the little time I have left I practice/play my guitar. When I have tried to sit down with these programs, I always end up with little, simple unanswered questions that keep me from progressing.

I'll stick with spending my free time learning to improvise over Art Blakey's "Along Comes Betty," and wait for my next long time apart from the family to conquer both TUX and Guitar Pro. In the meantime, I have recorded my songs/ideas on a Boss MicroBR and BR600 recorders and when the time is right, I will use these programs to compose the songs in earnest.

P.S.: You know you are my hero... Thanks for giving me advanced warning of some of the pitfalls I will be facing.

[Ron Stern]

Well, keep on keepin' on, as they say.

A good way to practice the software in small doses is to open the program in one window and this website in another, and transcribe. A few chords or a scale. A few measures. If its chords, put your own melody over them; if its notes, put chords under them.

In my opinion Tux is best for this because it's simple, straightforward and streamlined -- KISSS !

Then save the original under some other name and use the file to try cutting and pasting measures, repeats, and so on. This way, you learn the music and learn to write music at the same time.

Afterwards, you can export the file to desktop, or wherever you like, then import it as MIDI into GP and horse around with all the different instruments, tones, etc.

The GP website has a few helpful videos.

Guitar Pro 6 - Tablature software for guitar, bass, and other fretted instruments

[AlsoRan]

RS,

I have printed out this thread and will refer back to it (many times, I am sure). Thanks for helping a guy out!

[roosterjazzez4u]

Hi everyone, l just joined the forum and l also just got Guitar Pro for the i-Phone. l am totally new to this app, but my guitar teacher in Norway uses it for charting some of his lessons. He thinks it's a great learning tool. He is a pro player by the way. Frank Gambale is feature on one of his albums. Anyways, l am still trying feature out hwo l can use it for writing. l will say that GP has some great customer service respond time and help. L need something other than my Sony cassette recorder to write down and record my ideas and GP may work for. We shall see.

Originally Posted by Ron Stern

Hey, Also Ran, how's it coming ?

You may have noticed by now that GP has odd ideas about what makes editing easy. They not only make you specify the note but also its time value, every frickin time. A huge PITA by itself which also makes the measures add up to invalid beat totals.

In Tux, when fill a measure, the cursor moves to the next measure. E.g. if you enter a half note and two quarter notes (in a 4/4 measure) the cursor moves to the next measure. In GP you can put in anything. Three whole notes, whatever.

In Tux, if you put in a whole note, the cursor skips to the next measure. Why in the world wouldn't it?

Further, in Tux, if you start a measure with a note less than a whole note, it inserts that note, and also fills the remainder of the measure with rests of that same value. I used to think it was inconvenient to have to start with,
say, 4 eighth notes and then convert the last 4 eighth rests into a half note, but GP makes you put in every note and every rest and calculate the total.

It's because they couldn't figure out a way to automate the calculation. Here
is their lame excuse:



Can you believe it?

1. "automatically adds the barlines" is true but unimportant since any program that didn't, well, you couldn't give it away, much less sell it.

2. "checks the synchronization of the various tracks" is meaningless, a device to distract the reader.

3. "Your score thus remains consistent in terms of musical rules." False. It remains consistent because I laboriously made it that way, in spite of the programmers.

4. "Such rigour may appear constraining to the beginner . . ." F you and the horse you rode in on.

5. "but it proves very pedagogical in the end . . . " Yeah right, all software should be more difficult, for the good of the user. Again, F you.

6. "and is essential anyway for the score to be played correctly . . . " Yes, if I so manage it, no thanks to you.

Anyway . . .

-- In general, you have to learn to use "rest" (the R key) instead of delete. --

In the context of replacing chords -- Let's say you have a chord that you want to replace. Don't "delete" it with the delete key -- that deletes the chord but also deletes its time value. Instead hit "rest."

Then, if you have the chord in the library, over on the left side of the screen, you can click on the chord and it will insert the notes on the staff, the chord name, and the chord diagram all at once. That's better than Tux, where you just delete and start over.

In GP, the important point is that what gets pasted is equal in time value to that which was "cut". Just remember that it wasn't "cut" and wasn't "deleted", it was "rested".

No doubt it would have been more pedagogical to have you F it up a couple of times and give up and do it all from scratch, but this time they slipped up and actually automated the process. They just didn't tell you. That's pedagogical, though -- makes you write your own user's manual.

[AlsoRan]

Ron Stern looks like he has this thing totally figured out.

I am ashamd to say I have not had the time, will, or intellect to use this program. Maybe during m next break in late October?

Eventually, I will need a program to capture my songs. Tuxguitar came with a DVD of playalongs I ordered and MusicCore looks very promising.