Free software any musician can use!

Subject: Free software any musician can use!
From: NancyZ
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 12:27 PM

Hi Folks, I just discovered some wonderful free software called Winamp Pacemaker. It allows you to play MP3's AND your own CD's and slow the tempo down WITHOUT changing the pitch!! Thus taking all those fiddle tunes at warp speed down to size for learning:)

Go to Winamp.com for the Winamp downlaod, then if you want to slowdown your own CD's go here for the free plug-in: http://www.url.ru/~copah/

Get the 1.83 version, I've used it and it's great! Enjoy, Nancy

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: wysiwyg
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 01:34 PM

Ah-HAH!!!

Now I can tell Hardiman the Fiddler (my husband) why we joined Mudcat!

*G*

~Susan

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 01:48 PM

Neat... but I'll have to decide if I want to get Winamp.. I wasn't too impressed the last time I checked it out...

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: hesperis
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 03:44 PM

Hmmm, yeah. I didn't like winamp that much... Both Sonique and Music Match have way better skins, too!

We will see what the latest build is like.

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 05:08 PM

Winamp seems fine to me. Plays the stuff I want playing, and seems reasonably intuitive to use.

I don't know if I'll try this gizmo though yet awhile - I get a bit scared by advice like "Don't forget to shutoff original WinAmp CD plugin by changing its extension, for example 'in_cdda.dll.off'" on that download site...

But thanks a lot NancyZ, because it might be very useful indeed, and I'd never have found it otherwise.

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 06:25 PM

I tried the download that McGrath seems to be reffering to but I couldn't make any sense of it. I can't help wondering whether Nancy meant to refer us to http://www.hut.fi/~oparviai/pacemaker/.

Jon (not much of a fan of Winamp but if this works, I will use it!)

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 06:43 PM

Wow, just downloaded and installed from my link. It sees to work fine. Thanks Nancy!

Jon

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 06:48 PM

Posting once more - this really is something that will be useful to many of us.

Jon

Subject: Slow down tempo in winamp
From: hesperis
Date: 17 Jun 01 - 08:55 PM

I'm changing the title to hopefully make it easier to search out.

Still haven't tried it myself, but if it works for some, it's ok.

So if anyone finds this, all they have to do is go to the thread itself.

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: IvanB
Date: 18 Jun 01 - 12:00 AM

Ages ago, I downloaded both WinAmp and MusicMatch and decided MusicMatch was the one for me. That was version 4.something. Now, MM's up to 6.x and it seems every new release eats up more system resources. And I haven't been able to depend on it to record to MP3 without losses (to the extent that I get about 50 seconds of music for every minute of recording). So, a couple weeks ago, I took another look at WinAmp and was well impressed. No, it won't record, so now I have to record to a wave file and encode to MP3 separately, but at least I'm getting the complete source. And WinAmp is very easy on system resources. And WinAmp has some neat addons, including skins (although I stuck with plain Sport Yellow the whole time I used MusicMatch).

For me, MusicMatch has just about outlived its usefulness.

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: pavane
Date: 18 Jun 01 - 11:15 AM

Is it allowed to publicize one's own products here (shareware, of course) where it is likely to be of use to members?
My main program generates (calculates) chord symbols to accompany tunes.
It reads (most) abc & (simple) MIDI, writes MIDI and abc, prints score with words and chords
Also transposes, prints melodeon and concertina tablature (and understands the difference between major/minor and modal tunes).

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Bill D
Date: 18 Jun 01 - 11:31 AM

we have traded information on many music programs...(In particular, Noteworthy Composer)....so I doubt that a mention of what you have would be a problem. (If it is GOOD, you won't have to worry about further mentions, the community will see to it...*smile*....anything to enhance and simplify doing music...(if it is FREE, so much the better....but...we know one wants to justify their effort)

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: pavane
Date: 18 Jun 01 - 11:51 AM

OK then, I will post a link. I does have some restrictions, though, based on what it is trying to achieve. (e.g. mid-bar repeats are not supported because it mucks up the chord generation). (I got the original notation from a very old version of Noteworthy).

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: Geoff the Duck
Date: 06 Sep 01 - 09:13 PM

Subject: RE: Free software any musician can use!
From: GUEST,Genie
Date: 06 Sep 01 - 10:45 PM

Thanks for letting us know about this software, Nancy.

Genie