The contributing editor recently worked with a library that has a large music collection. It recently decided to augment its collection with software that would allow patrons to compose and arrange music on several of the library's PCs. Other libraries may also be interested in what is available.
Music Maker Deluxe from Magix Entertainment makes thousands of drum grooves, bass lines, guitar riffs, and piano samples available to facilitate the composition of tunes from scratch. The selections are dragged into a sequencer- style edit window. The new tune is then created by cutting and pasting, and then copying. The software, available only for PCs, is priced at $50.
The Hotz Trax 2 from Hotz Inter-active is computer-assisted music- performance software that turns the computer keyboard into a synthesizer. Each row of keys represents a different instrument with riffs that are auto-matically in the right key and tempo when played over the 40 supplied songs. A 16-track mixer window facilitates recording, editing, and mixing of tracks. The software, which can be downloaded from the vendor's Web site, costs $60.
SmartSound for Multimedia from Sonic Desktop uses its Maestro window to assist novice conductors in matching music to mood. A selection drawn from the asso-ciated Audio Palette CD collection can be modified with performance moods such as "dynamic" or "mellow" to create a new arrangement. A sequence-editor screen then displays the blocks of music and sound effects used in the tune. These can then be rearranged and edited before mixdown. The software, available for Macs and PCs, costs $199; the Audio Palette CD Collection adds up to $129 per set.
The minimum PC for using software of this type is a Pentium 166/32 with sound card.
[Contact: Magix Entertainment, telephone 310-656-0644, URL: www.magix.net; Hotz Interactive, telephone 818-735-5710, URL: www.hotz.com; Sonic Desktop, telephone 800-454-1900, URL: www.sonicdesktop.com.
