Getting Started with InTime
The InTime Tempo Tracking System is real-time, interactive tempo tracking music software. It is a unique type of music software that instantly follows your tempo changes in real time as you play your MIDI instrument. Speed up, slow down, play with a groove, that’s what InTime is all about. You can record a MIDI file with natural feel or make intentional tempo changes. The result is a standard MIDI file, which you can use with your favorite notation or sequencing program. When you are finished recording, your MIDI tempo map will reflect your playing. You can play live with pre-recorded accompaniment, and those tracks will follow your playing in real time. You can also use InTime as a sync master, driving external MIDI devices to slave to your playing, once again, all in real time. Before using InTime, please follow this brief introduction to familiarize yourself with its capabilities.
You will find that InTime tracks natural feel, as well as smooth, intentional tempo changes, with remarkable accuracy. Unlike other music software, you, not your computer, are leading the playing. There are a few points to keep in mind as you try playing music with InTime for the first time.
- It takes a little while to get used to playing with the InTime system. You should spend some time working with InTime before attempting to use the more advanced features. Follow the steps below to guide your first session.
- InTime is interactive tempo tracking software: It attempts to strike a balance between responsive tempo tracking and smoothly timed accompaniment. This means that you must always listen to InTime while it is listening to you. To do this, play with and listen to a beat click or an accompaniment file to reference where you are in a song or track. When you speed up, you should feel like you are pushing InTime along. When you slow down, you should feel like you are pulling InTime back.
- Different instruments work best with different settings. If you are playing a MIDI guitar, if you are playing drum rolls, or if you play a lot of piano glissandos, turn on the Rate Filter before you start playing. The Gears button opens the Advanced Tracking Controls Window where you will find the Rate Filter. Click on the light to the left of the Rate Filter to enable. The light should glow green.
Limitations
The technology behind the InTime Tempo Tracking System is capable of precise tracking of both subtle and sweeping tempo changes. However, there are some limitations to keep in mind:
- You cannot make abrupt tempo changes and expect InTime to follow you. For example, if you suddenly double your tempo, InTime may simply think you are playing eighth note instead of quarter notes. However, you can use the Tap function to manually control instantaneous tempo changes.
- InTime can track your groove, and follow intended tempo changes. However, it may not be able to follow very sloppy or out-of-time playing. As a general rule, the higher the sensitivity setting, the more precise your playing must be. At high sensitivity settings, every note has the potential to trigger a relatively large tempo change: If you play off the beat, InTime assumes you really mean it.
- Glissandos, MIDI guitar strumming and drum rolls are actually sent to your computer as a series of rapid MIDI events spaced very close together. InTime may mistake these for intended notes, and mistakenly adjust the tempo accordingly. Enabling the Rate Filter will alleviate this problem.
- Playing a lot of anticipation figures, such as in jazz piano comping, or highly syncopated figures can lead to unwanted tempo adjustments. Enabling the Sub Tracking will help alleviate this problem.
In summary, if you speed up or slow down at a smooth, steady rate, and feel as though you are pushing and pulling InTime along, InTime will follow you. However, if you play unrealistic, jerky, abrupt or wild tempo changes, InTime may lose you. If you play something that would fool a musician, it will probably fool InTime.
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