In this class we’ll discuss creating and editing Percussion Layouts and Percussion MIDI maps for Garritan and other libraries.
- Getting Started Editing Percussion Maps in Finale
- Before Editing Your Percussion Layout
- Editing Layouts
- Creating a Percussion Layout
- Adding a New Device to a Percussion Layout
- Creating a Percussion MIDI Map
- Adding a Percussion MIDI Map to your Layout
- Setting the Staff Positions for the new MIDI Map Note Types
Getting Started Editing Percussion Maps in Finale
Finale’s Score Manager has 3 selectable Notation Styles. When you add a percussion (or drum set) staff to a Score, the Percussion notation style is automatically selected. Percussion notation uses Layouts consisting of Percussion Maps consisting of Note Types to connect sound samples on a Device to Notes on the Staff.
Before editing your Percussion Layout
Go back to your score, hit the spacebar to make sure your devices load their samples (assuming you’ve already added a new Device if that’s what you’re working on), and click in the Percussion staff you want to edit with one of the Note Entry Tools. Later, having done this, you’ll be able to audition samples as you add them as Note Types to your Percussion MIDI Map. Then, let’s go back to the Score Manager.
To view or edit your Percussion Layout, click “Settings” next to the Notation Style dropdown at the bottom right of your Score Manager window. The Percussion Layout Selection window opens.
At this point, you have the option to either
- Edit your Current Layout
- Create a New Layout
Editing Layouts
Clicking “Edit” opens the Percussion Layout Designer, where you can view or edit it. You’ll see a list on the left of pre-configured Note Types, which associate an instrument soundwith a Percussion Staff Position, define the Note Head symbol used for it, and the MIDI Note used to trigger it.
These MIDI note numbers correspond to keys on your keyboard. The Note Type’s Percussion Staff Position will not correspond to its keyboard midi note – it’s independently defined in this screen.
It’s possible to add Note Types to the current Layout by clicking the plus sign at the lower left of the window, which adds a Slot to the Note Type List. This allows you to add more Note Types from the currently selected Percussion MIDI Map using the Note Type: dropdown menu. It’s important to note that only sounds available on the currently selected Device will play. Each Layout and MIDI Map are associated with a particular Device, and you can’t mix or combine them in a Layout.
Creating a Percussion Layout
You’ll need to create a Percussion Layout if you’re adding a new Device to your Staff for playback such as the Native Instruments Kontakt sample player, and you want to map a drum kit. Let’s cancel this window and return to the Score Manager.
First, set the Device for your Drum Kit staff to Kontakt. Click”Edit Player” and put the Jazz Kit into the first open slot. Save it, then go back to your score and hit the “Play” button to ensure that all your Devices load their instruments, then click in the drum staff if you haven’t already (this is an important step, because it allows you to hear all the instruments coming out of the player as you choose them to add to your MIDI map). Now go back to the Score Manager, click “Settings” again, then click “Create” at the bottom right of the window. An empty Layout Editor window opens. Give your new layout a name; let’s call it “Kontakt 6 Drums.”
Adding a New Device to a Percussion Layout
Click “New” next to “Current Percussion Midi Map:” This opens the Percussion Midi Map Editor, pre-populated with its default General Midi Note Types. At this point, click “New” next to the top line’s dropdown to add a New Device. A “Save” dialog opens to create an xml file in your Finale Midi Device Annotation folder. Make sure it’s saving to the right location in order to show up in Finale Menus. On the Mac, it’s in your User/Library/Application Support/MakeMusic/Finale 26/Midi Device Annotation folder. Click OK, and you’ll return to the Maps editor.
Now you’re to the point where you create a new Percussion MIDI Map for your Device, full of all your desired Note Types.
Creating a Percussion MIDI Map
We’re going to create a Percussion MIDI Map for a Kontakt Factory Library Jazz Kit.
This Percussion MIDI Map will create routing for all the sounds we want to use from this particular Device, which is a Kontakt multi-timbral instrument. Typical of most Percussion layouts, this instrument has a different sample sound (or individual percussion sound, such as ride cymbal, snare drum, etc with all their variations) on every MIDI note. In the Finale Percussion Midi Map Editor, after defining our Device and particular Map name, we’ll begin to add our sounds by adding them as Note Types to define the MIDI Note that allows Finale to play it. We’ll define the MIDI note for each sound by finding it with our MIDI keyboard.
We’ll keep adding Note Types until all our desired sounds are in the Percussion MIDI Map for our new Device.
The following steps will repeat for each drum sound (“Note Type”) you want to add:
Choose a Note Type from the selected Device using the Note Type Selector menu. Click “Add Note Type” when you’ve found it. When you add a note type to the Map Editor window, you’ll notice its MIDI number is set to zero. Finale will “listen” to your keyboard – keep pecking around until you find the right sound, and stop there. That becomes the midi note assignment for the Note Type.
Finale will listen for the MIDI note for any selected Note Type in the Editor Window – so be careful, make sure the correct one is selected, and don’t hit a key when something else is selected if its already assigned.
To add a new Note Type not yet added to the current MIDI Map, and it’s not one of Finale’s pre-configured Note Types, click the “Custom” item at the bottom of the list. Pick one from the list – “Custom 1” is a good place to start – all your custom note names will show up here too. You’ll be back in the Percussion Midi Map editor, where you can name your Custom Note Type, and assign it a midi note with your keyboard.
Adding a Percussion MIDI Map to your Layout
Now we have a Percussion MIDI Map of our Device, ready to import to our new Percussion Layout.
When you’re done, click OK. You may get an alert if there are already entries in the score for particular Note Types, but you haven’t mapped them yet. If so, keep adding until you have everything you need to match the score entries. Click “OK” when you’re done. You’ll be back in the Layout Editor.
Now you need to add the Note Types you created to the Layout editor. You can click “Add All,” but if you’re adding more after forgetting some, then you’ll need to click the Plus sign (+) at the lower left of the Layout window, to add a Layout slot to receive the missing sound. Once you’ve created the slot, use the pulldown in the upper right to select or create the sound for that slot.
Setting the Staff Positions for the new MIDI Map’s Note Types
Once they’re all added, set the staff position for each of the sounds by dragging the left handle in the Staff Position window.
When you finish that, you’re done – your score will play as written through the Kontakt player.
The Player receives the same CC data that goes into the Aria Player, and the same controllers should work in Kontakt. If you’re not hearing it, that’s for another class on another day about Key Swtiches and mapping controllers in Kontakt.