I tried using ChordProPageOffset, but got unexpected results. (It’s probably a problem with my expectations.)
Here’s my setup… Logic is feeding MIDI into Gig Performer via a Virtual MIDI port. (I’m on a Mac.) I’ve been automating CC 20 to set song/var parts, and I’ve added automation for CC 21 (for the offset) to increment from 0, once per measure. I’ve added a Widget in the global rackspace for the offset. It maps Ch1 CC21 to the System Actions plugin and the ChordProPageOffset parameter.
The behavior is weird.
I get no movement, until it changes from 2m to 3m. I had expected that it would step forward one line per bar.
It’s late and I haven’t dug into the MIDI monitor, etc, so I might have some self-inflicted bug. For now, I’m just curious as to how I should expect it to behave. I assume that one sets the number of lines of offset from the current song part reference, but I could be wrong.
I will perform with MIDI backing tracks, I’m looking forward to getting a countdown as I near the end of the occasional 27-bar improv section.
I think it works as a proportion of the overall length, so how much movement you get per midi value increment is dependent on the length of your chordpro file.
But I’m not at my computer to test, so don’t quote me on this!
I played with this some more, but the results are a bit random.
My CP file is just a song title and artist followed by text with the occasional song part reference added. The lyrics jump to their song parts just fine. When I add automation for the offset, the relationship between the MIDI CC value and the lines of offset is not monotonic and the steps aren’t predictable. Also, the Song Part references and offsets seem to fight one another.
I’ll go back to using just Song Part references for now. Not only is it predictable, but it’s tolerant of changes. Let’s say you put a bunch of offsets in your MIDI file, but later, you edit the ChordPro file by adding a line of chords or cues. Now, you’ve messed up all of the offsets.
A better solution might be anchors. You could put a series of anchor numbers (0-127) in your CP file. Add a widget to control the anchor parameter. Put those CC values in the MIDI file. Now you can tie a given bar in the MIDI file to a given location in the CP file. You can edit the MIDI or CP file as you wish and that anchor would remain, er, anchored.
This feature works as a proportion of the overall length (as rank13 wrote), it does not jump to song parts.
I see this feature as a convenient way to simply scroll the lyrics file from the Global rackspace.
Yes, the songpart directive is a better choice if you want the precise connection < song part <-> lyrics part >.
Thanks for the confirmation. It makes more sense now. When I edited the document, the behavior changed, and that was because the proportions changed.
I’ll stick with song parts for my need, which is the equivalent of a performer raising their hand to signal an upcoming change. I had envisioned a countdown, but that would require a lot of meaningless song parts. The single warning as needed should give the right balance. It’s just a small number of superfluous song part where a heads up is really helpful.
In the next version of the manual you might add a phrase stating that the offset is proportional.
BTW, the manual format is excellent as it’s well-organized, clickable by topic and searchable. There’s no excuse for users not to check it for solutions before posting issues.
