Please recommend easy ways to use my computer to record original music

Factual Questions
1

Is there any computer program that records what I hum into the mike and convert that into a score sheet? I would like to be able to choose which instruments to play that music, and the ability to edit the score sheet as well.

I think I have a small innate talent in music, since from time to time I will start humming some (what I think is) original tunes to myself. However, since I don’t have any formal training in musical theory, and I don’t know how to play any musical instrument, I couldn’t make a permanent recording of what I was humming.

However, I do have computers (wintel and Linux boxes), and I am good at making them do things.

Thanks for your help.

2

I would suggest teaming up with someone who does have some training in music and can help you not only write but arrange and polish it.

3

the device that does what you describe is a pitch to midi converter.

http://www.geocities.com/vocal2midi/

I don’t know how the above thing works, but that’s what you’re asking for.

you should at least get some kind of midi keyboard. Even if you can’t play it at first, you’ll learn if your desire is strong enough.

4
      • Pitch-to-MIDI converters don’t work real well with unkeyed instruments or vocals. I have Cakewalk Home Studio and it includes this feature, but the one time I tried to use it “just to see”, it didn’t work real well—and Cakewalk says that up front. Normally it’s not considered a main selling feature of most sequencers, but Home Studio isn’t the top-rated/top-priced sequencer either (I’m not intending to push Cakewalk so much, it’s just the only one I have).
  • For all the time you’d spend fixing the errors it’d make, you could just key it in manually: get a MIDI/audio sequencing program and record your humming as an audio track, and then in a MIDI track below it, convert it to MIDI notes a few at a time with yer mouse (you listen to a few seconds of your humming, then arrange the MIDI notes for those few seconds, then move on to the next few seconds). A musical-syle keyboard can be helpful/speedier, but you don’t need one to enter MIDI notes one at a time. You don’t have to actually be able to play any instrument to do this, because you can slowly enter one note at a time, but play them all back at whatever speed you like.
  • HS 2002 also prints simple staff-view score sheets, and can display the music as a staff view that you can drop&drag notes around on. - DougC
5

sailor,

I used to have a friend who can do this, but he, hm, “vanished.” Something to do with debts I heard.
mack,

thanks.
DougC,

thanks. What MIDI/audio sequencing program do you recommend?

6

Still waiting for an answer…

7

DougC?

8

there have been long discussions about this sort of problem in music forums, and a lot of poor to average software out there. For what you want (single source) it should be possible, though needing a lot of human checking. However, you will still need someone very musical to take your very basic tune and arrange it.

For the record check out these groups - a lot of software is discussed
note WAV files = raw sound (though digitised), MIDI = notes (essentially)

http://www.noteworthysoftware.com/nwcforum/show.php?id=995
http://www.hitsquad.com/smm/news/9903_101/

9

Do you have any experience with MIDI/audio sequencing programs?

10

urban, not sure who your question was addressed to. I have only tinkered with them as I am only only learning music now. Best to try some of the music specialist forums out there

11
      • I have only ever owned Cakewalk Home Studio 2002. Cakewalk and Steinberg/Cubase are the “big two” in the consumer market.
  • There’s smaller companies out there also, but they tend not to have as many common features as the bigger ones do. Some have trialware available for download.
  • Search for “sequencing software” on Google. - DougC