Now that you have all your hardware, it’s time to hook it all up. In this chapter, you’ll learn how to connect your equipment to your computer, how to create a proper layout for your MainStage concert, and how to map your physical hardware to their virtual counterparts.
Keyboard Programming in Apple MainStage
By this point, you should have a good understand of how MainStage operates. We started off by giving you an introduction to digital audio and how it relates to MainStage. We then discussed how to connect your gear to MainStage. After that, you learned about the hierarchy of a MainStage concert and virtual instrument and effects plugins. In this chapter, we’ll start off with a brief discussion of keyboard programming standards, followed by a number of detailed examples.
Saving & Transferring MainStage Concerts
When you’re finished programming a MainStage concert, it’s important to consolidate all the important data into one package. In this chapter, you’ll learn how to properly save and transfer a MainStage concert.
The Hierarchy of a MainStage Concert
MainStage has a unique hierarchy for organizing elements in your patch list. This hierarchy enables you to be as specific as you want when creating and modifying patches. From top to bottom, the hierarchy is as follows.
Using Third Party Plugins & Sample Libraries in MainStage
MainStage comes with a selection of great stock sounds and plugins. As you get more familiar with the keyboard programming, you may want to experiment with third party sample libraries to broaden your sonic palette and capabilities. Fortunately, MainStage 3 is compatible with any third party sample library or plugin that is available in 64 bit AU (audio unit) format. Here are a few sample libraries and plugins you should look into.
Virtual Instruments & Plugins in Apple MainStage
Before you start programming, it’s important to know the different kinds of virtual instruments, Audio FX plugins, and MIDI FX plugins available in MainStage. This way, you’ll always know what tool to reach fo . In this chapter, we’ll briefly discuss the virtual instruments and plugins you’ll likely use the most, and present a few common challenges you may encounter while programming a show.
Sunset at Griffith Observatory
The sunset over Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles was amazing.
The Best Headphones For Practicing Piano
If you’re like me and do a lot of practicing on a digital piano, it’s a good idea to invest in a nice pair of headphones. I’ve found that a good monitoring system results in more productive practice sessions. My piano software of choice is Synthogy’s Ivory II. It’s a great virtual instrument, and I love the Steinway D and Yamaha C7 samplesets. I’ve also used Pianoteq in the past, but it hasn’t seen much use since I purchased Ivory II.
Apple MainStage Tutorials
Apple MainStage Keyboard Programming
In this series, take an in-depth look at all the possibilities that MainStage offers, and how to integrate these concepts into your own keyboard setup.
Sunrise at Baker Beach
Kevin and I woke up super early to get some sunrise shots at Baker Beach in San Francisco.
