Quite honestly NO it isn't easy.  I've had GPO for several years.  It's on it's own dedicated computer, no frills, no nothing and it took a computer engineer to make it work on my system.  GRANTED it's a GREAT program and someday as soon as I retire and have all the time in the world, I'll figure it out.  BUT you have to have some kind of program that runs compatibly with GPO like FINALE, SIBELIUS, CUBASIS, CAKEWALK, SONAR or some other high end software that will work with it.  Once you CAN get it in, it's difficult to connect it to using the sampled instrumentation.  AND if it uses instrumentation that isn't there - like saxophones and other typical show tune instrumentation, you have to substitute, find other instruments that are close, combine instrumentation to get the sound you want.

 

IT is almost beyond me and I've been sequencing for a long, long time.  It's a GREAT program as I said, but it really takes a lot of time to learn to use it well.  AND the idea behind the GPO is NOT to simply notate the music in in STEP fashion but to be able to control every nuance of playing a real instrument with the amount of attack, delay, sustain, release to make it sound as real as possible.  Some people DO use it and use it well.  I guess I'm just not brainy enough to get it in the time I have had to play with it.  I WILL though someday.

 

GOOD LUCK if you get to do it.  I have found it simply is not that easy to use - yet I love the sound for real orchestra you can get out of it....if you're smarter than me (and it's likely you are).

 

TonyDi

 

There is a DECENT online site that will convert midi's to MP3's and you have 5 different conversion setups to do it with that I've used that aren't too bad.  HAMIENET.COM - sign up (free account) and you have unlimited online conversion time - otherwise you're restricted to so many points a day (300 - but they go pretty fast).  With the account you can convert as many as you want to and they really are pretty good. Different instrumentation in all 5 of the conversion setups.  Other than that, you might have to find someone with a setup (like I WILL have once I get my keyboard and console setup built) that has a lot of MIDI modules and can convert to good instrumention beyond midi sounds from a sound card or General Midi format.  There is only one person I know who does that - but he does it for a living and it would likely cost you quite a bit.  Once I get all my equipment up and running I'll be able to do that - just not at the moment since it's all in a closet and gathering dust.

 

Good luck.  Try that HAMIENET.COM - it really doesn't do too bad a job.

 

TonyDi

 

MEANT TO ALSO TELL YOU - even though you might have GOOD Midi's created, you're BOUND by whatever sound card that you have in use as to what it's going to sound like in any computer or keyboard.  CONVERTING Midi's to MP3's is pretty easy - there are MANY FREE pieces of Freeware you can download that will do that but the sound is all dependent upon the quality of the sound card in your computer.  For instance if they're done in General Midi (and I'm guessing they have to be) then they might sound great on your computer IF you have a good sound card.  BUT I have great sounding midi's that used to sound GREAT with the old basic Soundblaster card - but they now sound like junk in comparison on my work computer because the sound card in my work computer is cheesy at best (why would they put a good sound card in my work computer?.....answer is they didn't, not about midi's at work, ya know?)

 

But MIDI's - if they sound good on your computer - might convert to good MP3's - just might not sound good if the sound card on your computer isn't as good as it should be.  Tell you what I CAN DO IT FOR YOU if you'd like - why not send me a file or two and I'll do a couple into MP3's and see if they sound reasonable to you after conversion.  CONVERTING to MP3's often degrade a higher quality sequence but to tell the truth, even though that's what they say, I've never been able to notice any loss of fidelity - though I know you do using MP3 format from better quality sequences.  Just might be my old ears..but I don't think so.

 

If you want to send me a few files to convert, send them to fxman@sapsema.org and I'll convert them using different setups then into MP3's and send them back to you so you can hear what they sound like converted.  Then you can decide what to do from there.

 

MEANT TO ALSO SAY AGAIN - that if your MIDI's are already created and the sound is what you like it's still going to be dependent upon the sound card one would have in their computer that would produce the sounds for each instrument - and that MIGHT be different from computer to computer.  I have a good program that will convert them into MP3's easily - so if you would like, I'd be glad to try do them for you.  What's your deadline?  How many are there, etc., etc., details.  Let me know.