To illustrate the value of rhythmic quantization, record the
example at the end of the handout, making every attempt to be
accurate.
Then, go to Event List view (or PianoRoll View) to examine the
degree of accuracy, or more aptly, inaccuracy, with which you
performed the example: right-click in either Track or Clips
pane, then, select the desired view from the Inspector menu. (It is
virtually impossible to be "absolutely" perfect, so no need
to have a complete cow ...)
Quantization will need to be done in several stages since the
rhythmic subdivision changes throughout the example.
(Unfortunately, the present version of Cakewalk does not allow
quantization in realtime as you are recording. It must be done after
recording as an edit.)
First, select measures 1-4 since the smallest subdivision for all
four measures is the 1/16th note.
In Track & other views, for example, you may variously:
- Position the mouse pointer so that it is not over any clip,
then, drag a selection rectangle, or "lasso," around the
clip(s) you wish to select. The rectangle must completely
enclose the clip in order to select it.
- (Note: When lassoing clips in Track view, because the
clips are often edge-to-edge, you do not have to start your lasso
outside the clip. Rather, start and end your lasso near the
edges of the clip, and Cakewalk will automatically extend the
lasso to the edges.)
- Select an entire clip by moving the pointer to the middle of the
clip, so that it changes to an arrow with a rectangle, then click
the clip. Press Shift before clicking to continue adding
items to the selection.
- To select small pieces of a clip, hold down the Alt key,
then, click on any part of a clip and move the mouse. You
can select any portion of one or more tracks this way.
- Select events in a time range and set the From and Thru times by
clicking the time ruler at the start of the time span and dragging
the pointer to the end of the time span.
Once the desired region (bars 1-4) is selected, from the menu bar,
select Edit, then, Quantize. The Quantize dialog box will pop
up. Set the Resolution for Sixteenth, then, click OK. The
notes of measures 1-4 should now be corrected to their closest
1/16th-note position. Assuming you were "in the
ballpark" when recording, the notes should now be rhythmically
correct. If you were too far off the mark, the notes may have
been moved to an incorrect position. In such cases, the notes
will need to be individually adjusted via one of several means.
The most accurate method is to go to Event List view and correct the
numerical start times, durations, etc., according to the MIDI
Quantization Chart (handout, also posted on the walls).
Because the subdivision of measure five is an eighth-note triplet,
this measure will have to be quantized separately. Select
measure 5, then, bring up the Quantize dialog box again. This
time set the quantization for 1/8th note triplets, then, click OK.
In measure six, the rhythmic subdivision is 1/16th triplets.
Select this measure and quantize at this value. Click OK.
If all went well, the entire exercise should now be rhythmically
accurate. If not, make individual note adjustments in one of the
various views (Event List view is recommended).
You will not need to quantize everything you record, but it is
certainly a valuable tool when the need arises.
REMINDER: When working on a "real" project, always
save your file (song) to disk before quantizing or making any
other serious edits. You can simply reload pre-existing data if
you are not pleased with the result.
