***Last Updated MAY 13, 2009***

5/13/09 Video Games: Yoshi's Island DS - Underworld
Another one-nighter, in even less time than the last again. I'm on a roll!

5/12/09 Video Games: Super Princess Peach - Bowser's Villa 1
Another one-nighter, in even less time than the last.

5/7/09 Video Games: Super Princess Peach - File Selection
I recently bought this game. It's got a few good tunes and this was one of my favorites AND I did it all in one night. New personal best.

4/16/09 Radio: Michael Jackson - Wanna Be Startin' Something

MIDI > main page

I make all my MIDIs with an old version of Cakewalk Express. I’ll get a reference of the song I want to make (be it MP3, WAV, taped recording, or writing down the notes from the music in advance) and use Cakewalk’s staff view so I can click the notes into place with the mouse (as opposed to recording it from my keyboard). 90% of the time I’m listening to the song constantly as I make the arrangement. I can adjust tempo, volume, key signatures, instrument sounds, etc. It‘s a pretty basic program, easy to learn, which is good I guess because, heck, I don’t even know how a lot of the options work nor do I really need them. Here’s what I’m usually working with.

Cakewalk default; track view

Copy and paste, for those repetitive bass lines and drums

Staff view, where all my damage is done; point and click

Editing notes for accuracy, it may read as a half but it may sound like a dotted quarter plus a 16^th

Choosing the track instrument; there’s about 16 or so tracks total

One drum track is set up by default, each note‘s a different percussion sound; staff view

Key/Meter change for songs that have a lot of sharps or flats, changing the key will make notes sharp or flat by default; or maybe a song switches from 2/4 to ¾ time

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